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Chengdu |
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Chengdu is one of the 24
well-known historical cities approved by the Sichuan provincial
committee and the State Council of China. 2,300 years ago, King
Kaiming the 1Xth of the Shu State relocated his capital here. In
256BC, the Shu County Governor Li Bing and his son built the Dujiang
Dam. Since then the Chengdu plain has never had any flood or drought
disasters and its farm and handicraft industries have prospered. The
Chengdu plain has hence been referred to as the "Kingdom of Heaven."
Since then, Chengdu has become the state capital of Sichuan, and an
important political, economic, cultural and military center in the
southwest. It was one of the 5 famous cities in Han Dynasty, and the
best commercial city second to Yangzhou only in Tang Dynasty. It was
also the second largest cosmopolitan city of the North Song Dynasty
(960-1127) next to its capital city Bianjing, where Jiaozi, the
earliest paper money in the world, was first circulated. |
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Geography |
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Chengdu
is located in the middle of Sichuan Province in the west part of the
Sichuan basin, between 102°54ˊ and 104°53ˊ east latitude and between
30°05ˊ and 31°26ˊ north longitude. It is the center of science and
technology, trade and commerce and finance and the hub of
transportation and telecommunications in the southwest. It is adjacent
to Deyang city in the northeast, Neijiang city in the southeast,
Leshan city in the south, Ya'an prefecture in the southwest, and Aba
Tibetan autonomous prefecture in the northwest. The average height of
the Chengdu plain is 500 meters, with the highest point reaching 5,364
meters above sea level and the lowest point 387 meters. Its
geographical features mainly involve plains, plus hills and mountains,
with the terrain slanting from northwest to southeast. In the
northwest is the Qionglai Mountain, and in the northeast is the
Longquan Mountain. The city covers a total area of 12,390 square km
including 87 square km of urban area, with a total length of 192km
from east to west and 166km from north to south. |
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Climate |
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Chengdu enjoys a humid,
subtropical monsoon climate. Firstly, the climate differs in the
eastern and western parts, and the east is warm and the west is cool.
Secondly, it is warm in winter, and spring comes early, with the
frost-free period exceeding 337 days each year. The average annual
temperature is around 16.5 degrees centigrade, which is 2-3 degrees
centigrade higher than in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze
River, and spring comes one month earlier, each year, there are only a
few days when the temperature drops to below zero degrees centigrade.
Thirdly, it enjoys plenty of rainfall in summer and autumn although it
rains little in winter and spring, with an average annual rainfall of
1124.6mm. The rain fall of a record high year could be 2 times of that
of a record low year. Fourthly, it provides enough sunlight, warmth
and rainfall in the same seasons, which is beneficial for the growth
of plants. Fifthly, the wind speed is low, the average annual wind
speed is 1-1.5 meters per second, and the annual sunshine averages
1,042-1,412 hours, covering 83.0-94.0km per square centimeter.
Table of average monthly temperatures (unit: degrees centigrade)
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January |
6 |
July |
26 |
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February |
7.6 |
August |
26 |
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March |
13 |
September |
22 |
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April |
18 |
October |
16 |
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May |
21 |
November |
12 |
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June |
24 |
December |
7 |
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Natural Ecological
Environment |
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The
rate of vegetation coverage in Chengdu reaches 30.1 percent, and
garbage treatment 100 percent, noise in tourist attractions averages
below 60bd, and noise in urban area 54.9bd. The air pollution index
indicates 78, and average drinking water quality in the city amounts
to 99.1 percent. In 1997, in the comprehensive environment examination
of 46 major Chinese cities, Chengdu won the fourth place in
comprehensive score, the second place in environmental quality, and
ranked the first among inland city. |
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Economy |
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In
1992, Chengdu ranked the 12th among the top 50 cities in terms of
comprehensive strength in China, and its infrastructure for investment
was among the top 40 cities. During the eighth Five-Year-Plan,
Chengdu's average gross output value saw a year-on-year increase of 16
percent. In 1997, its gross output value stood at 101 billion yuan,
rising 11.5 percent over the previous year, with the growth rate
higher than the average level in the country and other provinces, with
an average per capita production value of 10,254 yuan per year. In
1998, its GDP reached 110.3 billion yuan, with the GDP proportion of
the first, second and tertiary industries occupying 11.2, 45.1 and
43.7 percent respectively. The growth speed of electronic and
information, machinery (including automobile), medicine, and food
industries quickened, the "Chengdu-made" products increased, economic
returns rose. The total demand grew significantly, and a balance
between demand and supply was maintained. In 1998, fixed assets
investment recorded 37.21 billion yuan, increasing 20 percent over the
previous year. Its financial income grew steadily, and financial
operation has been satisfactory. |
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Culture |
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Early
in the Han Dynasty (206BC-220), China's first official-run school,
Wenweng Shi House was established in Chengdu. It was also home to men
of letters and well-known people from various dynasties, including the
founder of Han prose Sima Xiangru, poet and prose writer, philosopher
and linguist Yang Xiong, knowledgeable lady Zhuo Wenjun of the Han
Dynasty; woman poet Xue Tao of Tang Dynasty (618-907); master painter
Huang Quan of the Five Dynasties (907-960); historian Fan Zuyu of the
Song Dynasty (960-1279); and scholar Yang Shen of the Ming Dynasty
(1368-1644). Well-known poets Li Bai, Du Fu and Lu You had once
settled in Chengdu. It is also the birthplace of the Chinese block
printing technique, and Sichuan silk. During the Tang and Song
dynasties, Chengdu was famous for its music, songs and dancing and
operas. Since the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), Chengdu's tea culture
became known throughout the country and grew popular. Now, Chengdu has
more teahouses than and other place in the world. In 1993 and 1997,
International Panda Festival was held here.
In 1997, the fifth Chinese Art Festival and the folk art fair of
international friendship cities were held here. The city now has 16
art performance troupes, 16 public libraries, 4 public art galleries,
14 cultural centers and 8 museums. |
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A Survey of Tourist
Industry |
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Tourism began in Chengdu
in the early 1980s. During the period of the eighth Five-Year-Plan,
the city committee and municipal government have listed tourism as one
of the development strategies of the city. In 1998, they promulgated
the "decision on accelerating the development of tourism," and devised
the "plan of developing tourism in Chengdu", which put tourism as a
pillar industry of governmental support. Up to now, the development of
tourism has been coordinated, integrating food, accommodation,
sightseeing, shopping and entertainment, and service functions are
comprehensive and facilities complete.
The city now has 57 tourist hotels, of which 53 are star rated hotels
with a total of 20,000 beds, 5 designated restaurants; 142 travel
agencies including 23 international ones; 11 tourist bus companies and
designated bus companies, 108 taxi companies, 3 tourist airlines which
offer charter services, 3 special tourist trains and one tourist
shipping company. There are five shopping streets, 12 designated
commercial centers for tourist shopping, 18 designated tourist
restaurants, more than 10 tourist recreational centers, 14 tourist
safety and relief centers and 8 tourist consultation and supervision
institutions.
During the seventh and eighth Five-year-plan period (1980-1990),
Chengdu received a total of 1.28 million overseas tourists, earning
$259 million and 103 million domestic tourists, with an income of
4.669 billion yuan. In the first three years of the ninth
Five-year-plan, it received 491,100 overseas tourists, creating $185
million in profits and 60.5 million domestic tourists, earning 17.854
billion yuan. Before the eighth Five-year-plan, tourism accounted for
no more than 3 percent of the city's GDP but it rose to 6 percent in
1996, 6.5 percent in 1997 and 6.88 percent in 1998. Tourism has become
a new economic growth point of the city. In 1998, Chengdu and Dujiang
Dam city under its jurisdiction have been listed among the first group
of "Top Tourist Cities of China." |
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City Flower of Changdu |
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On May
26, 1983, the ninth NPC standing committee of Chengdu decided to
choose the hibiscus as the city flower. The hibiscus has a long
history in Chengdu. According to historical records, during the Five
Dynasties, Emperor Meng Chang of the Shu State had hibiscus planted
along the city walls of Chengdu, When autumn arrives, hibiscus blossom
stretches for 40 miles, and therefore, Chengdu is also known as the
"Hibiscus City." The hibiscuses are large, brightly colored, elegant
and have several well-known varieties. An example is the "drunken
hibiscus" which changes color three times a day, it turns white in the
early morning, light red at noon and bright red in the evening. In
poems, hibiscuses are praised as equal to chrysanthemums, or the best
of autumn flowers. |
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City Tree |
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On May
26,1983, the standing committee of the ninth NPC of Chengdu decided to
choose the ginkgo as its city tree. The ginkgo tree is a precious
ancient tree of Chengdu. According to a survey, the city now has over
600 ginkgo trees, the largest one is inside the courtyard of the
Chengdu Real Estate Co. located on Tidu Street. It is 157 centimeters
in diameter, with a history of over 500 years. There are also some
ancient ginkgo trees in the forest gardens in the suburbs. On the
Qingcheng Mountain of the Dujiang Dam City, there stands a large
ginkgo tree, which could only be encircled by five people hand in
hand. It is said to be planted by Master Zhang of a Taoist sect, and
has a history of over 2,000 years. Ginkgo trees grow strong, with
thick trunks and beautifully-shaped cap; its leaves are in the shape
of butterfly, and turn yellow in the autumn. Its fruits are also a
good tonic. |
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Local Culture |
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Dramas and Quyi
Sichuan Opera,
the major kind of local drama, has a long history. Chengdu was where
it originated and flourished. The Sichuan Opera repertoire has a wide
range of subjects. The comedy in particular, is well-known among the
public. With exquisite performance and plentiful styled movements,
especially the trick performance, it has become a favorite of both
domestic and foreign audiences. The soliloquy and vocal music of
Sichuan Opera take the local pronunciation of Chengdu.
Sichuan Opera has a large repertoire. Representative items include
Tales of White Snake, Red Clouds, Good Men from Sichuan, etc. In
addition, talking and singing quyi, comedies, stage plays, Peking
Opera, music and dancing in Chengdu are also making continuous
development.
Holidays
and Festival Celebration
The Longchi Snow Festival, initiated
at the end of 1995, is one of the largest tourism-oriented events
sponsored by Dujiangyan City. It starts in December and ends in March.
The period includes Christmas, the New Year's Day, the Spring
Festival, the Lantern Festival and Women's Day on the 8th of March.
The festival provides people living in the south with a wonderful
place for spending holiday, appreciating snow and skiing in winter. It
has now become a golden route for winter tour in the southwest China
region. During the period of the festival, items available include ice
carving, snow carving, cross-country skiing, free-style skiing,
high-slope sleighing, horse-driven sleighing, and ice and snow
photography. Meanwhile, activities with extensive participation of
tourists are organized. They include snowballing, making a snowman,
tug of war and running on snow-covered ground, and puck shooting.
Longchi Snow Festival
The Longchi Snow Festival, initiated at the end of 1995, is one of the
largest tourism-oriented events sponsored by Dujiangyan City. It
starts in December and ends in March. The period includes Christmas,
the New Year's Day, the Spring Festival, the Lantern Festival and
Women's Day on the 8th of March. The festival provides people living
in the south with a wonderful place for spending holiday, appreciating
snow and skiing in winter. It has now become a golden route for winter
tour in the southwest China region. During the period of the festival,
items available include ice carving, snow carving, cross-country
skiing, free-style skiing, high-slope sleighing, horse-driven
sleighing, and ice and snow photography. Meanwhile, activities with
extensive participation of tourists are organized. They include
snowballing, making a snowman, tug of war and running on snow-covered
ground, and puck shooting.
Chengdu
Lantern Festival
Since ancient times, the fifteenth
day of the first lunar month has been called the Lantern Festival in
China. In the evening of this day, family members world get together,
eating sweet dumplings made of glutinous rice flour, visiting lantern
shows and finding out lantern riddles, a scene of bustle and
excitement. The Chengdu Lantern Festival was rooted in this custom.
Nowadays, it is held in the Qingyanggong Park and the Cultural Park
area annually, lasting about a month. The lanterns displayed have a
good variety including traditional ones made of paper, silk and color
glass as well as various kinds of neon lamps controlled with sound,
light and electricity, low-voltage lamps, program controlled lamps,
and lantern groups in various design which either tells a tale or
displays a grand scene. The lantern group in dragon design consists of
golden dragon drawn with sugar, jade dragon made of ceramics, two
dragons playing with a pearl, golden dragon holding a pillar, nine
dragons taking off and a dragon playing in water. All these lanterns
are the products of superb craftsmanship. They upgrade the traditional
recreational activity onto a new scale.
Huanglongxi Town Fire Dragon Festival
The Chinese folk art "fire dragon lantern dance" was originated in the
Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). The ancestors, in accordance with
the legend that "candle dragon" controls the light and darkness while
the "ying dragon" controls wind and rain as well as the story of a
dragon giving birth to nine young dragons, created the distinctive
"fire dragon lantern dance" on the basis of totem culture of "dragon
dance". The constant modernization and development during the later
times has gradually improved such lantern dances, rendering
Huanglongxi into the "Hometown of Fire Dragon", enjoying a nationwide
reputation. From the evening of the second day to the fifteenth day of
the first lunar month, fire dragon lantern dance performances are
given with the accompaniment of gongs, drums, cymbals and other folk
music instruments. The audience use specially made fireworks to spray
on the naked performers, giving a jubilant scene.
Country Tour
Festival in Pixian County
The Pixian
County-based You'ai Folkways Village is known as "a village with
flower blossoming" and "a peasants' park without wall", where the
gardens and peasants' dwelling houses are typical architectures in
west Sichuan. To promote the development of the agricultural tour, the
village held the first country tour festival in February 1999, and the
event will be a regular fixture in the future. The festival features
folk art performances, flower exhibitions, exhibitions of peasants'
traditional living utensils, traditional cultural and business
activities, wheelbarrow service, walking on stilts, and pushing the
stone mill. It has become a spotlight in the series activities for the
Chengdu ecological tour in 1999.
Chengdu Flower Fair
Going to the flower fair at the Qingyanggong Park is a folk custom in
the Chengdu region which dates back more than 1,000 years. Tradition
has it that the fifteenth day of the second lunar month is the
birthday of all flowers and also the birthday of Lao Zi, the founder
of Taoism. This day, Taoist believers went to worship him at the
Qingyanggong Park. During the Tang and Five Dynasties, it became folk
custom for people going to visit flower and temple fairs at the
Qingyanggong Park around the 21st day of the second lunar month. The
annual traditional gala thus formed and was further developed in later
years. The flower fair, temple fair and materials and goods fair
combine together, giving the Chengdu Flower Fair a unique style. Today
the annual fair is held inside the Cultural Park next to the
Qingyanggong Park. Visitors can not only appreciate various flowers
but also have the opportunity of tasting a good variety of local
snacks and enjoying folk art performance.
Longquan Hill Peach Flower Festival
Longquan
has been known to the world for producing fruits since ancient times.
The production of honey peach holds a dominant position, with a total
of 17 million honey peach trees covering some 11,333 hectares. As one
of the 10 peach flower scenic spots in China, it has opened 234 square
km of orchard to the visitors, which account for 40 percent of the
total area of the region. In spring Longquan becomes a sea of flowers.
Oriental cherry, peach, plum, pear and apricot blossom to create a
fairyland on earth, attracting hundreds and thousands of visitors. In
order to take advantage of this resource, the local government
sponsored the peach flower festival in 1987. The event has since
become an annual gala not only of sightseeing but also of economic,
cultural and artistic exchanges.
Dujiangyan
Drawing-Off Festival
The annual drawing-off event in the
Dujiangyan City at the Pure Brightness Festival (April 5) started in
the year of 978 to mark Li Bing and his son who led the construction
of the Dujiangyan Water Conservancy Works to benefit the Chengdu
Plain. In ancient times, people usually used wood and raft to build
provisional cofferdams in winter so as to block the Minjiang River
water for repairing riverbed and reinforcing the dikes. At the Pure
Brightness Festival, a grand ceremony would be held to worship Li Bing
and his son, pray for an abundant harvest of all food crops as well as
for stability and peace. The cofferdam world then be removed to let in
the Minjiang River water to irrigate the vast stretches of cultivated
land on the Chengdu Plain. After 1957, a water gate was built on the
Dujiangyan Canal to replace the cofferdam. As a result, the ceremony
of drawing off water by cutting the cofferdam was no longer held. In
1990, the Dujiangyan City restored the event by holding mock cofferdam
cutting and traditional worship activities. Lantern exhibitions,
street performances, flower and goods trade activities were added. The
endeavor has helped to attract a great deal of domestic and overseas
tourists.
Tianpeng Peony Fair
Danjing Mountain in Pengzhou began to
grow peony in the Tang Dynasty. In 1985, peony was selected as the
city flower of Peng zhou City. The annual peony fairs held in April
have helped to attract a continuous flow of tourists. Danjing
Mountain, 50 km away from Chengdu, is the largest peony growing center
in west China. Danjing Mountain peony shares the same reputation with
Luoyang peony in Henan Province and Heze peony in Shandong Province.
The Danjing Mountain Peony Garden is home to over 250 kinds of peony.
Eight peony samples, Chinese herbaceous peony garden, crape myrtle
garden and yellow azalea garden, which cover a total area of some 6.6
hectares have been open to the public.
Xinjin Dragon Boat Race
Xinjin is a place of rivers and
lakes. The Nanhe River in the south of Xinjin City is wide and
suitable for water activities. Tradition has it that dragon boat race
in Xinjin on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month dates back to the
Tang Dynasty. It became well-known during the Qing Dynasty. On that
day, dozens of colorfully decorated boats were anchored in order on
both sides of the river. After firecrackers, they rushed towards the
destination under the deafening sound of gongs and drums. The boats,
about 16 m long often go against the current, therefore, the
competition is quite intense Catching ducks has been an interesting
part of the repertoire at the dragon boat racing fair since the Qing
Dynasty.
Pixian Wangcong Singling Match
The Wangcong Temple in Pixian County is where two ancient Lords of
Sichuan Du Yu and Bie Ling were worshipped. Starting in the Qing
Dynasty, such worship services were carried out twice a year in spring
and autumn. Spring service fell on the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month
with the aim of encouraging spring ploughing, while the autumn service
fell on the 9th day of 9th lunar month to mark the harvest. In
addition, local officials visited the Wangcong Temple each year when
the Dujiangyan Dam drew off waters. When the Dragon Boat Festival (5th
day of the 5th lunar month) came, peasants were relaxed after the busy
ploughing season. They would gather at the Wangcong Temple to
"shouting folk songs" in antiphonal style or in the way that one sang
first and the others joined in the chorus. The songs sung were eight
eulogies to the two ancient lords or prayers for good harvests. The
young people usually expressed their feeling and love through songs.
Today, the custom of "shouting folk songs" has evolved into the
singing match. In the meantime, goods trading, food exhibition,
lantern and flower fairs are held to enrich this traditional festival.
Chengdu
International Panda Festival
Giant pandas are a national treasure peculiar to China, and are on
the verge of extinction. The existing pandas number some 1,000, of
which 80 percent inhab it the mountain forests in west Sichuan,
particularly in the giant panda reserves in Anzhihe, Chongzhou and
Heishuihe, Dayi under the jurisdiction of Chengdu City as well as in
Wolong and Baoxing Fengtongzai reserves. In order to give publicity to
the importance and urgency of protecting giant pandas and the
ecological environment and promote international economic and cultural
exchanges and cooperation, Chengdu has sponsored two international
panda festivals. In addition to promoting the protection of wildlife
and environment and facilitating economic and cultural exchanges, the
festival is also aimed at displaying the great charm of Chengdu as a
historical and cultural city. It is a great event which helps the
public to love and treasure the nature and helps the world to get to
know Chengdu. |
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Transportation |
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Chengdu is a
transportation hub in south-West China. The Shuangliu International
Airport, one of the seven largest airports in the country, is linked
with other airports via 60 national flight routes, 5 international and
regional routes and 12 charter routes. The Chengdu North Railway
Station is the sole special-grade station in southwest China.
Baoji-Chengdu, Chengdu-Chongqing, Chengdu-Kunming and Chengdu-Daxian
lines meet here. The station handles 30 pairs of trains a day,
including three pairs of excursion trains. The highways link every
village. Some of the five expressways have been completed, and the
others are under construction. They are from Changdu to Chongqing,
Mianyang, Leshan, Nanchong and Ya'an.
Expressway
Entry to and Exit of Expressways
The two expressways linking Chengdu and other places that have been
completed are the Chengdu-Chongqing line and Chengdu-Mianyang line.
Another three expressways-Chengdu-Leshan, Chengdu-Nanchong, and
Chengdu-Ya'an lines-are now under construction.
Water Transport
The Funan River, also called the Jinjiang River, consists of the Fuhe
River and Nanhe River which pass through the urban area of Chengdu. It
is the golden waterway leading to other places and the lifeline of the
city's economic and cultural formation, development and prosperity. In
1992, Chengdu invested 2.7 billion yuan in comprehensive treatment of
the river, therefore, greatly improving the outlook of Chengdu. The
anti-flooding and sewage discharging capacity was improved. The river
was reopened to shipping. There are 13 wharves on the river, a
sightseeing shipping company equipped with two 40-star motor-driven
cruise boats, four 40-star power-driven cruise boats and eight
speedboats is operating on the river.
Railway
The Chengdu North Railway Station is the sole special-grade
station in southwest China, located at where Baoji-Chengdu,
Chengdu-Chongqing, Chengdu-Dunming and Chengdu-Daxian lines meet. The
station handles 30 pairs of trains a day, including three pairs of
excursion trains (Y207/208 between Chengdu and Guangyuan, Y217/218
between Chengdu and Chongqing, and Y227/228 between Chengdu and Yibin).
The daily passenger flow amounts to some 50,000 and daily luggage
handling capacity stands at 12,000 pieces. The station handles an
annual passenger flow of near 8 million. It was nominated as the "unit
guaranteeing safety and good services" by the Ministry of Railway and
has kept up the honorary title of "civilized unit" for 11 years.
Air Transport
Domestic, International (or Chartered) Flight Terminal
Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport, as an air transport hub in
southwest China, is open to all domestic and international airlines
related, providing services such as various kinds of ground security,
fire-fighting and rescuing. A passenger and goods marketing agent
service system ranging from ticket selling, parking, freight transport
to stop-over maintenance has been established and improved. At
present, it has opened 60-odd international and domestic air routes.
The annual handling capacity of passengers in 1998 reached 4.376
million. The rate of flights departing and arriving at the scheduled
time has reached 99.9 percent. The rate of passenger satisfaction
stands at 93.51 percent.
The airport staff adhere to the principle of "serving people and being
a pace-setter of the trade" and take the satisfaction of passengers
and users as their long-lasting goal. It has so far been awarded
60-odd honorary titles including the advanced unit in afforestation,
the national hygienically qualified airport. |
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 Information
provided by
China National
Tourism Administration. |
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