Chongqing

Author: China Tourism Press
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-02-01
Features:
Fragment: Chongqing has become even more youthful due to its status as a direct-controlled municipality. Once the Three Gorges Dam, located in the middle section of the Xiling Gorge at San Dou Ping in Yichang, is completed and the water level normalizes, although scenic spots like the "Powder Wall," "Mengliang Steps," and "Ancient Plank Road" at the Gorge entrance will be submerged, the natural landscape pattern of "The Goddess of the River should be unharmed," "Qutang's grandeur, Wu Gorge's seclusion, and Xiling's beauty" will remain unchanged. The magnificent and magnificent Three Gorges will still enchant visitors, making them linger at the edge of the river. Moreover, what is particularly important is that with the completion of the Three Gorges Reservoir, a series of new attractions will gradually emerge along the Three Gorges section and both banks of the reservoir, such as Shenlongxi in Badong, Fengjie, Wuxi, and Wushan Golden Triangle Tourist Area. The alpine meadows of Hongchi in the depths of the Daning River, Shuangxi Cave and Xia Bing Cave, Furong River and Furong Cave in Fuling, and the world-famous wonders such as Tiankeng (sky) and Tiefeng (earth) in Fengjie will present themselves in even more magnificent forms. "When the wind breaks the waves, there will be a time to hang the sails across the vast sea." The ancient and young Chongqing faces both rare development opportunities and a heavy historical mission. At this moment of the turn of the century, if one asks how an inland metropolis can truly rise, the resounding answer comes from the spiritual essence of the BaYu land, the diligence and wisdom of the children of Chongqing, and the relentless flow of the mother river beside them.
THE RISE OF A GIANT INLAND CITY CHONGQING WAS ONCE THE CAPITAL OF THE STATE OF BA, THREE THOUSAND YEARS AGO. THE PLACE WAS KNOWN AS JIANGZHOU DURING THE WESTERN HAN DYNASTY. LATER, IT WAS CHANGED TO YUZHOU DURING THE SUI, TANG, WUDAI, AND NORTHERN SONG DYNASTIES. SOON AFTER, THE PLACE WAS RENAMED AGAIN AS GONGZHOU FOR A SHORT PERIOD. WHEN ZHAO DUN WAS GRANTED THE TITLE OF PRINCE GONG, HE STAYED IN THIS PLACE. TO CELEBRATE, HE RENAMED THE CITY OF GONGZHOU AS CHONGQING (DOUBLE CELEBRATION) IMMEDIATELY AFTER ASCENDING THE THRONE. THIS NAME HAS REMAINED THE SAME FOR THE PAST EIGHT HUNDRED YEARS, THOUGH THE SCOPE OF THE CITY HAS CHANGED SLIGHTLY. CHONGQING IS SUBTROPICAL AND HOT IN SUMMER, THUS GAINING THE NAME "FUMANCE CITY." AT THE SAME TIME, CHONGQING IS ALSO KNOWN AS A "MOUNTAIN CITY" BECAUSE OF ITS BUILDINGS ON HILLSIDES AND THE MOUNTAINS SURROUNDING THE CITY. THE CLIMATE IN CHONGQING IS OFTEN CLOUDY AND MISTY, SO IT IS ALSO CALLED "THE CLOUD CITY." FURTHERMORE, SINCE THE AVERAGE ANNUAL PRECIPITATION IS ABOUT 1,000 MILLIMETRES, THE SCENE OF RAINING AT NIGHT APPEARS FROM TIME TO TIME. IN THE YEAR 1362, MING YUZHEN, THE LEADER OF A PEASANT UPRISING ARMY DURING THE LATE YUAN DYNASTY, ESTABLISHED THE PEASANT REGIME OF DAXIA AND ASSIGNED THIS CITY AS ITS POLITICAL CENTRE. IN THE YEAR 1937, SOON AFTER NANJING WAS OCCUPIED BY THE JAPANESE INVADERS, THE KUOMINTANG GOVERNMENT MOVED FROM NANJING TO CHONGQING AND DESIGNED THE LATTER AS THE WAR-TIME CAPITAL. DUE TO ITS GREAT CONTRIBUTION TO THE VICTORY OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR, ON THE MAP OF CHINA DISPLAYED IN THE GREAT HALL OF THE UNITED NATIONS, ONLY THE NAMES OF THE FOLLOWING FOUR CITIES APPEAR: BEIJING, SHANGHAI, NANJING, AND CHONGQING. EVER SINCE THEN, CHONGQING HAS ENJOYED FOUR CHANCES OF DEVELOPMENT IN SUCCESSION. AS THE WAR-TIME CAPITAL OF CHINA, CHONGQING BEGAN TO DEVELOP INTO A MODERN INDUSTRIAL CITY AT THE END OF THE 1940S. IN THE 1950S, OUT OF BEING THE LOCATION OF BOTH THE SOUTHWEST BUREAU AND THE SOUTHWEST MILITARY AND POLITICAL COMMITTEE UNDER THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF CHINA, AND AS THE MUNICIPALITY DIRECTLY UNDER THE PEOPLE'S GOVERNMENT FOR A SHORT PERIOD, CHONGQING HAD ALMOST BECOME THE POLITICAL, ECONOMIC, AND CULTURAL CENTRE OF SOUTHWEST CHINA. IN THE 1960S, DUE TO THE PRACTICE OF THE "THIRD FRONT" STRATEGY, A COUPLE OF ENTERPRISES, PARTICULARLY MILITARY ENTERPRISES, BEGAN TO MOVE TO CHONGQING, MAKING IT POSSIBLE FOR THIS INLAND CITY TO SET UP A COMPLETE SYSTEM OF INDUSTRY. IN THE 1980S, SOON AFTER THE PRACTICE OF THE OPENING POLICY, CHONGQING WAS LISTED AS ONE OF THE KEY CITIES ENJOYING THE CHANCE TO THRIVE DURING THE PERIOD OF THE FIRST FIVE-YEAR PLAN. AS A RESULT, WITH THE OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENTS IT HAD OBTAINED, CHONGQING HAD TUMED OUT TO BE THE LARGEST CENTRE OF INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE IN SOUTHWEST CHINA. WITH A ROUND DEVELOPMENT OVER THE PAST YEARS, CHONGQING WAS LISTED BY THE STATE COUNCIL AS ONE OF THE TOP CITIES BOASTING MYRIAD TOURIST ATTRACTIONS. AND NOW, CHONGQING IS CHOSEN ONCE AGAIN BY HISTORY. EVER SINCE THE MOVE OF THE STATE COUNCIL WAS APPROVED ON MARCH [4, 1997 BY THE FIFTH SESSION OF THE EIGHTH NATIONAL PEOPLE'S CONGRESS, CHONGQING HAS BECOME THE FOURTH MUNICIPALITY DIRECTLY UNDER THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT, ALONG WITH BEIJING, SHANGHAI, AND TIANJING. AS THE LARGEST CITY IN CHINA, CHONGQING COVERS AN AREA OF 82,400 SQUARE KILOMETRES WITH A POPULATION OF 30 MILLION. BELONGING ORIGINALLY TO SICHUAN PROVINCE, WANXIAN MUNICIPALITY, FULING MUNICIPALITY, AND QIANJIANG DISTRICT ARE NOW UNDER CHONGQING'S JURISDICTION. A GREAT PART OF THE THREE GORGES APPEARS