China 2015 Installment #4: Chongqing

After eating one final breakfast on the Victoria Jenna and saying goodbye to all of our new friends, we checked out of our cabin. Our guide, the lovely young Mia, met us in the lobby. She hired a porter to carry our bags up the long flights of stairs which led from the Yangtze River up to the streets of Chongqing.

Lesser (red) panda at Chongqing Zoo

We got into our nice big clean comfy van, and our driver braved rush hour traffic to get us to the Chongqing Zoo, where we would get our first glimpse at some real live pandas! Pandas are active in the early morning and early evening, so this was the perfect time to visit.  The zoo has 8 giant pandas,  as well as some lesser (red) pandas. We encountered the red pandas first. They look like a cross between an American raccoon and a red fox, and are quite cute. We know that they live in the wild in Bhutan, but they are very rare and we never got the chance to see them when we were there. Here there were several in an enclosure. One came right to the front of the enclosure and looked up at us hopefully, as if he thought that we had food for him.

Next, we arrived at the giant panda enclosures in time to observe little Sishun, a lovely juvenile female who made her public debut on May 1, 2014. She was lying back on a raised platform, and enjoying her bamboo breakfast, double fisting at times.  She was very content as bamboo detritus accumulated on her belly. She was so cute! Her mom Ya Ya was in the next pen over and we could see her walking by in the background.

Sishun eating bamboo while her mom Ya Ya walks by at the Chongqing Zoo

Craig, Sishun, and Steph at the Chongqing Zoo

Panda yoga with Liang Liang at the Chongqing Zoo (supported forward fold)

The zoo was really beautiful. It was an oasis in the middle of the city. There were lots of plants and trees that were very well manicured. Everything was very clean, and the animals had indoor as well as outdoor enclosures. People were practicing tai chi and it was all very peaceful. There were many families there. As it was a school day, the only children there were very young. A few parents asked us to pose for pictures with their kids, which we gladly did. The kids were adorable, if sometimes terrified of us.

We moved on to the enclosures of the other giant pandas, and saw Sishun's father Ling Ling. It was a very hot day, and Ling Ling was more interested in trying to get inside to air conditioned comfort than playing on his jungle gym and slide. Another panda (Liang Liang) did a forward fold onto a cool stone and just sat there contentedly. So Craig joined in on the panda yoga and did a supported forward fold of his own. We had to get a picture for Jenny, our yoga instructor back home.

We really enjoyed getting to see the pandas, and it really whet our appetite for our upcoming volunteer work at a panda health center in Chengdu. We tore ourselves away from the pandas to enjoy the other exhibits.

There were enormous hippos, rhinos, pigs, and porcupines. Then we reached the primate area. There were so many different types of monkeys, each species in their own enclosure (though a handful of species shared space).

The zookeeper went into the squirrel monkey enclosure to fetch their food bowls. When he left, they were trying to figure out how to open the door to follow him. They held on to the little window in the door and peered through.

There was a mandrill who looked like a Beijing opera star, who stuck out his tongue at us.  The colorful markings on his face and chest were gorgeous. The glare from the glass (and my substitute camera) made photographing these monkeys very difficult.

Mandrill at the Chongqing Zoo

We went to one glassed-in monkey enclosure which had various tire swings and ropes hanging from the ceiling. It was dark inside and the enclosure appeared to be empty. Then some kids went over and were obviously looking at something. We went to the front of the enclosure and were surprised to find a large ape with a furrowed brow, sitting at the very front of the enclosure, with his face very close to the glass.  The placard said that he was an orangutan, but his fur was black rather than orange.

Steph's buddy the orangutan at the Chongqing Zoo

Kids tapped on the window at him, but we just stood quietly looking at him. When the kids went away, I was able to get face-to-face with him. He had a contented look and he stared right into my eyes. He seemed so empathic and intelligent. And human. After a few minutes, when my attention wandered, he pounded the glass lightly with his fist and then put his palm up to the glass as if to get my attention. It was very humbling. I repeated his gesture, and we stared into one another's eyes once again. We shared a very special moment. It was amazing.

The zookeeper came back to feed the squirrel monkeys and they went crazy. There were many choices (apples, oranges, and nuts) but, as is the cliche, they preferred the bananas. A rat ran across the enclosure and tried to scavenge from them, but they chased him away. We also saw birds, pigs, porcupines, tigers (the white tigers were absolutely gorgeous), and lions.

After spending several very enjoyable hours at the zoo, we had a lovely lunch at the Paradise Club restaurant overlooking the Yangtze River.

Our lovely guide Mia

Huguang Guild Hall

Then we went to Huguang Guild Hall, a former family association complex in Chongqing. During a time of plague and famine, only 100 families survived in all of Chongqing. Immigration from other provinces was encouraged to increase the population. The first building of this complex was built in 1759. The complex was used as a gathering place for villagers who had moved to Chongqing. They lived communally, helping one another through difficult periods.

Mia bought our tickets and we went up a flight of stairs to see a beautiful ancient style building.We met Bella, who would be our guide at the site.

We went into a room called Emperor Yu's Palace. Da Yu was the "Hero of Water Control." The families built a shrine to him here, to pray for good weather so that the Yangtze would not flood. The large bronze statue of Da Yu was a reproduction of the original, which was damaged. As prayers/wishes, people tied colorful strings around the shrine, and also hung little red wooden plaques with tassels and Chinese knots. On one side of the plaque was  a Chinese character which symbolized the wish: prosperity, longevity, etc. On the back, the person would write their name (and sometimes even their address, since many Chinese people share the same names and they want to ensure that their good luck is delivered to the proper person).

Traditional roof, featuring dragon fish and "constipated dragons" at Huguang Guild Hall

Opera stage, Huguang Guild Hall

Bella explained all of the architectural elements of the building complex, including the fact that dragonfish on the end of roof beams meant that the person living there had earned a Ph.D., and that so-called "constipated dragons" were placed facing outwards on roofs for prosperity (the dragon ingests money and "holds onto it" because he is "constipated"). Some buildings were decorated with gold leaf. If you used gold leaf without the Emperor's permission, you would be killed.

There were two opera stages here, an outdoor one for the masses, and an indoor one for the elite.We saw several tableaux depicting life at the Guild Hall, including celebrations, arranged marriages, and charity works.

We had Bella all to ourselves, and she said that it was smart to come around lunchtime. In the early mornings they can have up to 3500 visitors. After leading us through the various buildings, she brought us to the immigration museum and gallery / gift shop.

Many other ancient neighborhoods which bordered this complex are in the process of being torn down to make room for the modern. The contrast is stark. From here we could see the brand new Dongshuimen Yangtze River Bridge, a  beautiful partially cable-supported girder bridge which supports automobile traffic as well as a monorail.

Craig with Lt. Gen. Claire Lee Chennault at the Flying Tigers Exhibition Hall

Painting of Chongqing during WWII, and painting of Flying Tiger planes, Flying Tigers Exhibition Hall

After that, we ventured just outside of the city on hilly streets to the Flying Tigers Exhibition Hall. It is a very low-key, unassuming museum, but very interesting.  A woman gave us an introductory lecture about the history of the Flying Tigers and the cooperation between the Americans and the Chinese which ultimately saved Chonqing from Japanese control in World War II. We don't usually have much interest in war and military history, but this was fascinating. It brought tears to our eyes as we saw photographs and read placards about Claire Lee Chennault and his band of American volunteer pilots who helped the Chinese, and the resulting admiration that the Chinese had for them (which is still evident in their attitude toward Americans to this day). Lt. Gen. Chennault married a Chinese woman named Anna Chang, 30 years his junior.  Chennault passed away in 1958, but Madame Anna Chennault just celebrated her 90th birthday and lives in Washington, D.C.

One of the more heart-tugging moments for us was seeing photos of a three and a half year old Chinese boy who was adopted by the Flying Tigers. He was ceremonially inducted into the Air Force and was known as Little Tiger Joe. He was pictured in uniform next to the airmen, and it made us emotional.

It was obviously a low-budget museum, but it was very informative. We bought a nice book about the Flying Tigers and a commemorative postage stamp set honoring the Chennaults as a way of showing our support. As we left the museum, the employees locked up. We think they had been open only for us. Now we were even more glad that we bought something!

Banner expressing Chinese gratitude to the Flying Tigers 

Wang Jun called Mia while we were visiting the museum. We spoke to him and he asked if we had spoken to Mia about our need to purchase a camera battery charger. We hadn't, as we had been on the go all day and didn't want to interrupt the itinerary. Wang Jun spoke to Mia and explained our predicament. Mia said that the only other thing on our agenda was dinner, and she kindly offered to take us shopping to try to find a charger before dinner. We were so grateful!

We drove to the hotel, the Chongqing Hilton, and checked into room 2719. It was a very nice room.  We met Mia in the lobby. She asked if we would mind taking the subway, as it was rush hour and she didn't want the driver to get stuck in traffic. We had never taken the subway in China before, so we were eager for the new experience. Like most other things in China that are not thousands of years old, the station was very new, modern, and clean. We took Line #1, which had opened within the past year (Mia and her friends had taken an inaugural ride). We took the immaculately clean subway train for three stops.

Mia and Craig on Line #1, Chongqing Subway

We emerged in Jiefangbei Square, a shopping district filled with high rise buildings. We saw the People's Liberation Monument, a clock tower built in 1945 to commemorate the victory over the Japanese in WWII. Sixty years ago, it was the tallest building in Chongqing. Now it is dwarfed by all of the skyscrapers and luxury stores surrounding it.

People's Liberation Monument is dwarfed by skyscrapers, Jeifangbei Square, Chongqing

Art museum, Jeifangbei Square, Chongqing

We went into Suning, a large appliance and electronics chain store. As we ascended the escalator, I could see the Olympus logo on the wall. I held my breath and hoped that they might be able to help us. Mia talked to some employees, and we showed them our broken charger. They made a few calls, and said that they didn't have one in stock, but they could have one sent to the store. Since we were leaving the following morning at 8:30 a.m., this seemed impossible, and our hearts sank. But then they asked if we could come back in a couple of hours to pick it up, and we were thrilled! Mia said that we could do a little more sightseeing and then eat dinner in the area while we waited.

Hongya Dong, Chongqing

Craig at Hongya Dong, Chongqing

So with a spring in our step, we walked over to Hongya Dong, an eclectic shopping / dining / tourism / park complex built into the side of a cliff. The building is built in Ba Yu architectural style, as an 11-story stilt building. We started off on the ground floor, where there was a nice water feature in the park. Then we took an elevator to the 4th floor, which housed hawkers of savory snacks. We watched a man make potato noodles from scratch.  He mixed the potato up into a slurry, then put it through a strainer to shape the noodles, which oozed out of the holes looking like lavender worms.  He then fried them in oil and tossed them high into the air to dry them. They looked delicious. Another man pounding rice into rice cakes. There were lots of chilis everywhere, and the fragrances made our mouths water. Another level of the complex housed many bars. There were Irish pubs, a Tex Mex bar, etc. It all looked rather incongruous. (Though we did take a quick look around for Birgit and Stephan, since they always seek out bar culture and this would certainly be an experience!) We then took the elevator to the 11th floor roof deck, which is actually at street level on the next parallel street. There is a nice view of the brand new Qianximen Jialing River Bridge, the twin of the Dongshuimen Yangtze River Bridge which we had seen earlier in the day. There were some interesting statues here, including a huge pirate ship with pirates.

Qianximen Jialing River Bridge viewed from Hongya Dong, Chongqing

Next we walked to the Wan Yue restaurant for dinner.  While Craig was in the restroom, a large group entered the restaurant, and I was thrilled to discover that it was the Singaporean group from our  Yangtze River cruise! In a city of 30 million, what are the chances that we would run into them? And if we hadn't been in the area waiting for the battery charger to be delivered, we would have eaten somewhere else entirely! We were happy to see them and to compare notes about how we had spent the day. After enjoying our dinner, we stopped at their table to get a group photo and wish them a happy journey. They were so sweet!

Reunited with our Singaporean friends from the Yangtze River Cruise, Wan Yue Rsstaurant, Chongqing

We left at around 6:45 p.m. for the store. We were afraid to be hopeful. If we tried something like this at a store at home, we would probably go back to find that the employee we talked to went on break and nobody else knew what we were talking about. But fear not, as we walked into the camera department, the employee nodded at us and went into the back and emerged with a brand new charger. It looked right, but he didn't want to take chances. He opened the package, inserted my battery, and told us to wait a few minutes while he plugged it in to make sure that it worked. We were so happy! We waited patiently and after a few minutes I tried the battery in the camera and it had indeed charged.  It was the best 130 yuan ($21) we ever spent! Now we would be able to use our good camera for the remainder of the trip, including the pandas! We were walking on air on our way back to the subway. We are so grateful for Mia's willingness to help us. She really went above and beyond to help us out!

Our hero! Suning employee who procured our battery charger!

Jeifangbei Square, Chongqing - it's nice to have the good camera back!

We took the subway back to the hotel, arriving shortly before 8 o'clock. We had managed to do all of our sightseeing, get the charger replaced, and we were still home at a reasonable time! We got three batteries charged overnight, so we were well-prepared for the next leg of our trip. On to Chengdu and volunteering with the pandas!

Saying farewell to Mia