After yesterday’s sunny and hot day we wake to miserable, rainy weather and a heavy mist hanging over the river Jia Ling Jiang obscuring the opposite bank. So we take the opportunity to catch up with the blog and do some washing. During a break in the rain we take a short walk to the Bao Lun Buddhist temple in the next street. The small, steep entrance hides a deceptively large temple complex, which rises up the hill side and contains some magnificently painted statues of Buddha and a wonderful pagoda. Back in the hostel bar we get chatting to a Dutch couple, Rens and Maaiki, and in one of life’s freaky coincidences, it turns out that they had also shared a compartment with Daan and Lynn on the Trans-Siberian (see earlier blog) and recognised us from a picture Daan had shown them! They know almost everything about us including all about Hattie and our blog!
Chongqing is at the confluence of the Jia Ling Jiang and the Yangtse (known as the Chang Jiang or Long River in China) and our hostel is situated on the banks of the former in a small ‘village’ called Ciqikou in the district of Shapingba. Chongqing is made up of five districts, covers a total area of 31,800 square miles and has a population of 30 million. The largest and fastest growing city in China and, apparently, the world.
Despite Ciqikou being a stop on the tour itineraries, we find it relaxing here and have decided to stay for two more nights. The ‘village’ is a warren of cobbled back streets lined with timber-framed one story buildings. It dates back to to the Ming Dynasty and the living conditions for some residents don’t appear to have changed much in the intervening six centuries! Food is prepared, cooked and eaten on the streets as well as in the scores of restaurants that line the main street. There is some evidence of restoration work and some new housing has been incorporated in the traditional style (but unfortunately not using traditional materials).