ChengDu Street Eats

Year 2006-12

永远不会厌倦的成都小吃。

ChengDu is known for it’s specialty street food, delicious, unique and yet very affordable. My aunt took me out to have the spicy hot pot. Afterwards, we had this delicious sweet rice puding, called 叶儿粑, on the street.

This is what $10 will get you in a nice restaurant in downtown ChengDu. 72 small dishes in total - Unbelieverable, isn’t it?! The picture on the left is the crazy spicy hot pot, so called 麻辣烫

72元一大桌物美价廉的小吃套餐。

What colorful steamed rice bums! Two secret ingredients to most of the Chinese desert - red beans and sweat rice!

Whole wheat noodle made right on the spot!

That year is the year of Pig. I noticed those cute little colorful pig-candies on the street.

Spicy Beef & Spicy Rabbit. Everything of course got to be spicy. This is one of the major characters of Sichuan Dishes. Unless the dishes can make your lips numb, the chef would feel totally failed of the tradition of Sichuan cuisine.

Spicy eel and Spicy Fish.

Travel Review China Travel Review ChengDu China ChengDu Street Food

ZhouZhuang - the No. 1 watertown in China (1)

Year 2006-12
年初去了陈逸飞笔下纯朴自然的水乡- 周庄。三步一景，五步一画. Zhouzhuang, one of the most famous water townships in China, situated in Kunshan City which is only 50 kilometers (25 miles) south of Shanghai.

It is noted for its profound cultural background, the well preserved ancient residential houses, the elegant watery views and the strong local colored traditions and customs.

A world-known Chinese painter, Chen Yifei, has helped give the small town of Zhouzhuang the name "Oriental Venice" via his oil paintings because of its houses of white walls and black tiles perched on a winding river bank.

Have partied in the bars and night clubs in Shanghai a couple days, I found the town a perfect escape from the hustles-and-bustles of the city life and a return to the nature and truth.

Zhouzhuang is surrounded and divided by lakes and rivers, 14 stone bridges cross the rivers, showing distinctive views of the water-town.

In this little town, every step brings you a fantastic view.

Walking around in the little town makes me feel like living in a painting.

Zhouzhuang has about 1000 households who are living in the old dwelling quarters.

More than 60% of the houses built in the Ming and Qing dynasties and the early Republic of China as well are well preserved.

Travel Review China Travel Review ZhouZhuang Travel Review water Town

Hanging Out with Family in Nanking

在南京的城墙上。舅舅给我照的照片。(Year 2010-12)

Auntie, mom and me in NanKing.

Grocery Shopping with Grandpa and Mom

Year 2010-12

周日早上同外公和王老太婆去买点好吃的。马上要回美国了，准备趁最后的机会再大补一下贵州家乡的风味。 看我家王老太婆，整个一大姐大的德行。

贵州特色 - 小米轧。甜甜糯糯的，我家外婆的最爱。

夹沙肉和各色的辣椒。

人家说美国的月亮园吧。那也不见得。中国的红萝卜新鲜多了。

外公买到我想要吃的白菜苔。好开心。

看我家王老太婆同人家讨价还价。

外公就不像我家王老婆那样张牙舞爪的。

Kuan-Zhai Alley in ChengDu

Year 2010-12
The famous Kuan-Zhai Alley in Chengdu, which literally means the wide and narrow lanes, is a well-preserved old architectural structures that have been implanted with modern decoration, trendy restaurants, eat-outs in a bustling Chengdu city.

Back at where I live, there is nothing but a culture-deprived desert in the busy, sleepless and yet lonely, boring silicon valley. Well, there is only so much hype that can be generated by the next coolest software and iPad 2. :)

Back home, I find myself tolerate well with the quiet and yet busy life style as is. Well, if you are given lemons, might as well make them into lemonade. All that depressed desire only makes me much easily surrender with the rich culture and the mysteries of old China, lifestyle or its architecture.

Every so often, my friends and I find temporary escape to the very limited number of trendy bars and nice restaurants around here. But, things get old very fast unfortunately. All that disappointment and unsatisfied desire for a more colorful life only make the remedy found in my trips back to China ever more effective and fascinating.

Street performance! Cute!