A city between two rivers shrouded in fog where stick porters still shoulder an infinite variety of loads under new office blocks. A buddhist temple surrounded by deformed beggars sits in the shadow of the surrounding skyscrapers.
We had booked our hotel via an agency online. When we arrived at the hotel, we thought we had been dropped off at the wrong one. We were expecting to pay 20 pounds a night but not in the opulent surroundings of so much marble and chandeliers! There was some confusion surrounding our booking by the front of house staff, namely that they couldn't find it. After showing the manager our confirmation and, more importantly, the confirmed rate there were tight smiles all round and several phone calls made but they very kindly honoured the rate of 20 pounds per night and did not charge us the actual price which was 60 pounds a night - hurrah!
We had a wander around the town and came across several little backstreet markets which were teeming with life. Here you had the opportunity to purchase very fresh produce. By fresh, I mean still alive, there were fish and eels in buckets, frogs, chickens and
ducks which were butchered then and there if you so wished. All of this was in dark stoneflagged alleyways that at first sight appeared slightly intimidating but people just smiled and laughed, with a little bit of pointing but no animosity.
Chongqing is the home of the spicy hot pot so it would be rude not to partake! We went to an authentic hot pot restaurant where we had the two pot system with chicken broth in the outer ring of the pot and a spicy broth in the inside one. Thanks to the limited English of the waitress, we managed to order beef, beef meatballs, mushrooms and cabbage to cook in our pots. Pointing to plates on other tables wasn't really an option as they all seemed to be full of tripe and other yucky animal bits (we still haven't discovered what they do with chicken breast - I think it is the only part of the chicken they discard!). The hot pot was great fun and very tasty!
The reason we were in Chongqing was to pick up the cruise boat that was to take us on a Yangtze river adventure through the Three Gorges...
China's Flag
Map of China