Day 2 in Chengdu

 It was a city day. I started walking towards Kuanzhaixiangzi (宽窄巷子) . Very nice place with lots of themed tea houses, restaurants and local snacks. Great for photo Ong but not actual shopping or eating. Streets date from late Qing-dynasty style but have been rebuilt. I took advantage of the travel agency offices and final booked a 5-day tour. 

People's Park (人民公园) is a rare island of tranquility amid the noise and hustle of central Chengdu. It contains beautifully landscaped walking paths, lakes with paddle boats for rent, tea shops and restaurants, children's amusement rides, small sports facilities, and other attractions. The park is always full of locals relaxing and enjoying themselves, especially drinking tea. 

Tianfu Square (天府广场) is a square, overlooked by an enormous Chairman Mao statue in the center of the city, has been spruced up. Below the square is the hub of Chengdu's subway system. In the subway entrance plaza, a small shopping mall has been built.  I booked Chengdu Museum (成都博物馆) onsite to take a break in AC. It has 6 floors of space containing different interesting things about Chengdu civilization from ancient times to modern times.

I continued to Chunxi Road (春熙路) shopping street in the center of the city. It makes for a good change of pace. There are clothing stores, bookstores, restaurants, arcades, and cinemas. It is a good place to find something to eat, as you can find a great variety including hotpot buffets, Japanese restaurants and Western food. Then I walked to the famous Taikoo Li Chengdu (成都太古里) with a total site area of approximately 70,800 square meters and a total gross floor area of more than 269,000 square meters. It is a retail-led mixed-use development with an open-plan, low-density, neighborhood-style shopping center that creates a unique shopping and leisure experience for people watching.