Cheng Du:
Most people will arrive in Sichuan in the capital Chengdu. This lively and modern city survives against the rising tide of motorized hell as a haven for cyclists. Bike lanes separated from the traffic by steel fences on almost every street which are full of bikers. Accidents are commonplace as the river of bikes of differen
t speeds flows around the city. As with all of Asia nobody bothers to signal a turn and although Chinese ride on the right riding the other way down a lane is commonplace. Fortunately a bike crash is not catastrophic and will merely result in being told in an exasperated tone to be more careful.
As riding in the city is such a pleasure there is little need to use the public transport but the airport bus accepts bikes in a bag free of charge and leaves from outside the Jin Jiang hotel on Ren Ming Nan road.
There are several good bike shops which sell most things you’ll need in the way of spares all in a row on Xi Wu Long Gai, ask locals how to get here.
There are still some small areas where traditional architecture remains and the market food stalls offer spicy Sichuan food for a few RMB. A wander around the area behind Paul’s Oasis over the river from the traffic hotel off Hong Xing Lu offers a glimpse of old Chengdu. Modern Chengdu however boasts expensive department stores and modern office buildings.
A ride out to the Panda research base (Xiong Mao Yan Jiu Ji Di) is a mandatory tourist trip, but remember to leave early as Pandas sleep in the afternoon. Just follow Jie Fang lu past the zoo, about a 40min ride from the traffic hotel.
The Traffic hotel is on the South bank of the river just along from the Jin Jiang hotel where the airport bus drops you. It is a convenient clean place to stay with all the facilities you’ll need; massures, moneychangers etc. It has cheap dorms at 40RMB. Across the river is Paul’s Oasis the backpacker hangout for cheap western food and Chinese beer.
Getting away
The travel services at the Traffic can help arrange train tickets if you are prepared to pay a bit to save yourself the trip to the station.
Air ticket can be bought at China Southwest airlines opposite the Jinjiang hotel tel: 666 5911 or nearby at Sichuan Sheng air 664 7196. Also check to see if the travel services can beat the airline prices as they sometimes can offer group tickets at a 10% discount.
Buses for Songpan leave early morning 7am and before from the Xi Men station. It’s a 30min ride across the city from the Traffic hotel. The buses have roof racks and bikes in bags should go for free but it depends on the driver maybe he’ll ask for 10-20 RMB. Tickets are available the morning of departure but get there early to get a good place.
The trip to Songpan takes 9 hours it could be ridden in two to three days but the road is quite busy with trucks and buses.
