Chengdu - Not Expressly Pandas

Many people, especially those like me who carry that dreadful WASP-born illness, often say that all Chinese people are the same. All the stereotypes are true, like, you know, they’re all amazing at math and science; terrible at driving and creativity; they take pictures of everything; and they can haggle like bandits. But after over two weeks spent in the city of Chengdu and the nearby town of Anren, I can honestly say that, well . . . they’re actually pretty good at driving. I’m obviously joking. Like all stereotypes none of them are universally true, especially the one that Chinese people lack individuality.

I give this one about two weeks.

The city of Chengdu is unlike any other city and it blows my mind. It’s home to lots of growing enterprise, but also to a unique laid-back culture rife with spicy food eating, tea drinking, slow walking, and happy lounging. Believe it or not, the metropolitan area houses about 14 million people which is roughly the size of 20 DCs. Ironically, most Americans have never heard of it. There are only a few things that put Chengdu on the map, one of which is its giant panda enclosure and research center.

"Ahhh, nothing beats this view and all-you-can-eat bamboo"

My favorite part about this spacious, indoor-outdoor, pure panda exhibit is the informational video screening discussing the researchers’ breeding techniques. And I quote, “In order to collect panda semen, we used to sedate them and use electrical stimulation. The success rate was low so we developed new technology – now we use both electrical stimulation and [I’m not even joking, they actually said this] massage” (rough translation). I wonder if the lady in the video knew she was going to school for panda hand jobs.

"I'm so wasted"

"I often get over-excited, especially with water. I love rolling on the ground desperately and sometimes I even wonder that I was a coal worker in the past" . . . Ah yes, classic coal worker behavior.

The second thing that puts Chengdu on the map is a giant Buddha carved into the side of a mountain. It’s actually about two hours away from the city but is quite the majestic site.

The story goes that a wise man had his eye gouged out by a corrupt government official after refusing to hand over the money he raised to carve this Buddha in order to stop the floods.

The sleeping Buddha mountains – you can see the head on the right, preceded by the torso and lower body. Our tour guide almost died when my friend made an obvious observation.

Thirdly Chengdu is famous for the super spicy, family-style “hot pot” dining experience. Complete with adventurous meats (throat, stomach, brain, you name it) and the notorious Sichuan peppercorn, you will leave with a red and sweaty face, and an intensely numb and tingly mouth.

Yin or yang: mild or spicy? This ain’t no Panda Express. Instead of “cheers” you yell “gan bei!”, and you better down your glass or risk offense.

Finally we have Chengdu’s Global Center:

The building with the largest floor space in the world. Complete with malls, countless restaurants, a water park . . .

And yes, an indoor beach.

Because of its Zen atmosphere, Chengdu is known as the most livable city in China. The old saying goes that if you are elderly then you want to live in Chengdu, but if you are young then you do not because you will lose the drive to work hard and sacrifice for the good of your country. I can definitely see how that is true after my limited exposure to more wealthy and touristy areas, filled with deliciously cheap snacks and kung-fu movie architecture.

However, nothing is more Zen than the sleepy town of Anren less than an hour away. At one point my friend and I were caught in the middle of a traditional festival parade. It was the most lifeless party I’ve ever been to despite the pretty colors. From the arm-banded Communist party members ominously making sure that everyone was having fun to the incongruously tuxedoed sax man, we swore we were tripping. At one point the saxophone dude started giving us a solo serenade and three massive TV cameras were shoved in our faces to capture our reaction. The parade basically stopped and all attention focused toward my friend and me because we were white foreigners.

I’ll leave you with a few last tidbits of my experience. Here you can see the statue of a crazy dude from Wuhou temple, a store featuring dual heroes Mao and Churchill, and a KTV aka a drunken Chinese karaoke place aka “Oriental Eden” . . . lol.

According to the tour guide, the guy depicted in this statue "liked to get drunk and do war"

All pictures courtesy of Jeremy Bell