{"id":13590,"date":"2017-08-21T13:12:48","date_gmt":"2017-08-21T17:12:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/?p=13590"},"modified":"2017-08-21T13:12:48","modified_gmt":"2017-08-21T17:12:48","slug":"72-hours-in-chengdu-part-two","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/72-hours-in-chengdu-part-two\/","title":{"rendered":"72 Hours in Chengdu (Part Two)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our short visit to Sichuan’s capital of Chengdu has been a good one so far. The first day<\/a> gave a good glimpse into both the ancient and modern sides of the city, as we saw the countless skyscrapers going up around Tianfu Square and took in the local culture at the People’s Park. For the second day, we’re heading out of town a bit to get up close and personal with Chengdu’s most famous animals.<\/p>\n

Chengdu Panda Base<\/h2>\n
\"72<\/a>

Pandas!<\/p><\/div>\n

For many, the highlight of a trip to Chengdu is seeing the giant pandas<\/strong> (\u5927\u718a\u8c93 – d\u00e0 xi\u00f3ng m\u0101o). Get up early on day two and head out to the Giant Panda Breeding Research Base<\/strong> (\u5927\u718a\u8c93\u7e41\u80b2\u7814\u7a76\u57fa\u5730 – d\u00e0 xi\u00f3ng m\u0101o f\u00e1n y\u00f9 y\u00e1n ji\u016b j\u012b d\u00ec).<\/p>\n

\u5927\u718a\u732b\u662f\u4e2d\u56fd\u7684\u56fd\u5b9d
\nd\u00e0 xi\u00f3ng m\u0101o sh\u00ec zh\u014dng gu\u00f3 de gu\u00f3 b\u01ceo
\nGiant pandas are China’s national treasure.<\/h3>\n

This research base was founded back in 1987 with just six giant pandas that were rescued from the wild. Over the following decades, the base has achieved great success – it’s home to the world’s largest artificial breeding population of captive giant pandas. The latest figures available on their website says there are currently 113 pandas who call the base home.<\/p>\n

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It’s a beautiful place.<\/p><\/div>\n

It’s far more than just a zoo, as the beautiful and massive grounds have been carefully planned out to imitate the panda’s natural habitat. This is also a world-class research facility, with several labs and a large staff constantly working on saving the once endangered “bear cats.” It must be working, as the giant panda was reclassified as “vulnerable” just last year.<\/p>\n

You’ll want to make sure you get out there early in the morning to see the pandas at their most active – feeding time! Once the bamboo has been devoured, they will engage in their other favorite activity for most of the day – sleeping.<\/p>\n

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Some action shots before nap time.<\/p><\/div>\n

On our visit, we saw a group of pandas playfully wrestling each other while another furiously worked to alleviate\u00a0a back itch by rubbing up and down against a wooden pole. One super tired panda climbed to the top of a rock structure and promptly passed out. He must have had too much bamboo!<\/p>\n

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Bamboo hangover.<\/p><\/div>\n

Every enclosure at the base has information on display introducing the pandas that live inside. There’s also a museum, where you can learn all about the giant pandas and the ongoing efforts to protect them.<\/p>\n

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A red panda striking a pose.<\/p><\/div>\n

In addition to the giant pandas, you’ll also see red pandas<\/strong> (\u5c0f\u718a\u732b – xi\u01ceo xi\u00f3ng m\u0101o) – their Chinese name means “small panda” – as well as plenty of birds such as cranes and storks. It’s a beautiful place to explore, and you’ll learn a ton about pandas in the process. While it’s possible to get out here by public bus, you’re better off just joining a tour from one of the hostels in town.<\/p>\n

Hot Pot<\/h2>\n
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Mmmm.. hot pot!<\/p><\/div>\n

After spending your day with the pandas, it’s time to enjoy another Sichuan specialty – hot pot<\/strong> (\u706b\u9505 – hu\u01d2 gu\u014d). There are tons of restaurants in Chengdu where you can sit down for a hot pot experience. We tried Fat Mom Hot Pot<\/strong> (\u80d6\u5988\u706b\u9505 – p\u00e0ng m\u0101 hu\u01d2 gu\u014d) and absolutely loved it.<\/p>\n

\u56db\u5ddd\u706b\u9505\u7684\u5473\u9053\u662f\u9ebb\u8fa3
\ns\u00ec chu\u0101n hu\u01d2 gu\u014d de w\u00e8i d\u00e0o sh\u00ec m\u00e1 l\u00e0
\nThe taste of Sichuan hot pot is numb and spicy.<\/h3>\n

Order up a whatever meat, seafood, and veggies you want, as well as the type of broth you’re going to cook it in. Sichuan is all about the “numb and spicy<\/strong>” (\u9ebb\u8fa3 – m\u00e1 l\u00e0) flavor that comes from the liberal use of peppercorns<\/strong> (\u82b1\u6912 – hu\u0101 ji\u0101o). To combat the intense flavor, mix up a bowl of sesame paste<\/strong> (\u9ebb\u9171 – m\u00e1 ji\u00e0ng). You can add things like garlic, green onion, cilantro and more. If you can’t handle the heat, you can order a split pot and get one side with a clear broth. This is Sichuan, though, so power through and eat it the way the locals do. Get a cold beer or a glass of plum juice and you’ll be just fine!<\/p>\n

Sichuan Opera<\/h2>\n
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An evening of Sichuan opera.<\/p><\/div>\n

You might as well go for the trifecta and make it a totally Sichuan day. After dinner, head to the Shufeng Opera House for a performance of Sichuan opera<\/strong> (\u5ddd\u5267 – chu\u0101n j\u00f9).<\/p>\n

\u5ddd\u5267\u5f88\u6709\u610f\u601d
\nchu\u0101n j\u00f9 h\u011bn y\u01d2u y\u00ec si
\nSichuan opera is very interesting.<\/h3>\n

It’s a fantastic show with many different types of acts. There’s singing, dancing, traditional music, comedy, acrobatics, and the famous face-changing<\/strong> (\u53d8\u8138 – bi\u00e0n li\u01cen). You’re sure to be impressed by the quick movements and you’ll be left wondering how they manage to pull it off.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

After a day full of pandas, hot pot, and Sichuan opera, you might think that’s a wrap for our time in Chengdu. Think again, as we’ve still got one more day in this bustling city to visit a few historic sites and take part in a dumpling party.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"72

Our short visit to Sichuan’s capital of Chengdu has been a good one so far. The first day gave a good glimpse into both the ancient and modern sides of the city, as we saw the countless skyscrapers going up around Tianfu Square and took in the local culture at the People’s Park. For the…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":13594,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[481527,481526,127524,481537,481538,481540,481541,481539,13415,69377,2685,127330,127526,481532],"class_list":["post-13590","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","tag-3-days-in-chengdu","tag-72-hours-in-chengdu","tag-chengdu","tag-chengdu-guide","tag-chengdu-panda-base","tag-chinese-pandas","tag-face-changing","tag-giant-panda","tag-hot-pot","tag-pandas","tag-sichuan","tag-sichuan-hot-pot","tag-sichuan-opera","tag-what-to-do-in-chengdu"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13590","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/55"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13590"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13590\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13599,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13590\/revisions\/13599"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13594"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13590"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13590"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13590"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}