Today, I had the same tactic as yesterday: pick a tourist attraction and walk over there. This time, I headed south to the "Chengdu Wu Hou Shrine."
Unfortunately, the walk over there was quite boring. They are working on a new metro line, and most of the way, there was a construction site.
On my way there, I had some Mapo Tofu (Delicious!) after walking around for way too long, deciding on where to eat.
Chengdu Wu Hou Shrine
At the Shrine, I bought an audio tour, expecting some background on the things I'd see. But I lost track of the route, and the cheap earbuds kept falling out, so it was not a success.
The site itself was really nice, though, especially combined with the nice weather.
These Bonsai trees take enormous amounts of maintenance, and it's a shame they don't always get the appreciation they deserve.
The crowds thinned out in the deeper areas of the Shrine site, and it was lovely to walk around.
After the Shrine, I decided to head to the People's Park, near my hotel, and hopefully get some lunch on the way.
Chengdu is home to the Panda, and they won't let you forget that while you're there. Even the buses Panda faces on them.
I did not find lunch on the way, as it was mostly metro construction again, and it was around the lunchtime rush, so the few open places had long queues.
People's Park
I opted for some cake and coffee instead, saving it for the park. Plopping down at the lake, I spent the next hour just watching people pass by (some surprised to see a foreigner) and having fun on the lake.
I read about this online a while ago, but it's interesting to see in real life. These are adverts put up by (the parents of) single people hoping to find a partner.
There's a lot of pressure on the youth to get married before thirty, and the closer you get to that age as a single person, the more likely you'll end up on a piece of paper here.
The park was busy this Thursday, with people playing hacky sack.
Taking photos.
Reading.
Chatting.
And my favorite: write down proverbs or poems with a huge brush dipped in water. By the end of the poem, the first words have already faded.
I finished the day with a walk through the main shopping area, looking for some things to take home with me, as this was the last day of the trip.
I didn't find much, except for some souvenirs (Pandas, of course), and eventually returned to the hotel after a quick dinner.
The next day, I woke up at five in the morning, got up, and ordered a taxi to the Airport.
First was an Air-China flight to Beijing, and from there, a Lufthansa flight (in premium economy, I definitely could get used to that!) to Munchen.
And finally a short stint to Amsterdam, where I landed just in time for the last train home of the day, arriving home at 2 in the morning.
