(原標題:Class Cultural City)
「I've got my first glimpse of the pandas...soon after I landed in Chengdu,」 said Edward,from South Africa. He decided to have a five-day stay in Chengdu after he had consulted with his friends,who told him a lot about the city. Chengdu was his first stop during his China tour — in fact,this was his first visit to China.
Edward is one of the many visitors to Chengdu from foreign countries,who are attracted by the city's rich tourism resources,including the giant pandas. As a Best Tourism City in China,Chengdu is known for its natural beauty,long history and distinctive cultures and boasts a large number of important tourist attractions,including the UNESCO World Heritage Mt. Qingcheng and Dujiangyan,Du Fu Thatched House Museum,Wuhouchi Shrine Museum and Jinsha Site Museum. The city's efforts to promote tourism in recent years have given rise to various new forms of tourism,such as eco-tourism,Three Kingdoms theme tourism,rural tourism,regimen theme tourism and folk culture theme tourism,which have greatly expanded the scope and enriched the contents of leisure tourism of the city and injected new cultural vitality to the city's tourism industry.
People come to Chengdu for various reasons,and the reasons is the appreciation of local people's life attitude,teahouses,Sichuan Opera and the natural and cultural environment of the city.
People's love of life and the leisurely life styles are well illustrated in the film called A City You Won't Leave Once You Come,by famous director Zhang Yimou,and their self-possession in the face of emergencies and calamities has won wide acclamation.
The city attracts tourists for its natural beauty and distinctive tourism resources,while its long history,rich culture and special life styles are also of great interest to visitors,who would like to stay to learn more about the city. One would say that local people enjoy a leisurely life,but it's also a life that is artistic and fashionable at the same time,which provides inexhaustible sources for the city's creativity.
An epitome of the creativity of local people,Chengdu BlueRoof Art Gallery rises at the site of a disused factory site and has become one of the three best-known artists' communities since its establishment in 2003.
Local people's respect of cultural tradition and elegant life has won acclaim from Yu Guangzhong,a famous poet and distinguished scholar from Taiwan,who once commented that Chengdu 「has a classic and cultural style」.
As one of the historical and cultural cities in China,Chengdu enjoyed a long period of peace and prosperity in history — the city is one of the rare examples in China with its name and site unchanged throughout the two thousand years — that ensured cultural continuation and fostered numerous celebrated figures. Well-known historic sites in the city include Du Fu Thatched House Museum,Wuhouci Shrine Museum,Wangjianglou Park,Shuwang Mausoleum,Wang Jian's Mausoleum,Jinsha Site Museum and Sanxingdui Ruins in the neighboring area.
The city is also a showcase of traditional folk culture: the old city walls,ancient alleys,traditional teahouses,Mahjong,the Temple Fair,Lantern Fair and various flower fairs and folk song conTest123s.
Chengdu has become a Melting Pot of the history and reality,traditional and modern,local and global. Many foreigners coming to the city have decided to settle down for various reasons — the love of local cuisine,the prospect of career development and so on.
There is a saying that 「Chengdu is more China than China」 and the city will never disappoint people coming from afar.
It is also an opening city. Chen Jun,a young man from Hebei province in northern China,has chosen to settle down in Chengdu. 「I have become a Chengdu local with not much trouble,thanks to the simplified procedures,the convenient residence registration...I appreciate the city's inclusiveness and openness.」
「I am impressed by the city's friendliness and inclusiveness,」 said Mike from the Washington State,the US,now working in Chengdu,「It's exceptional.」
This 「friendliness and tolerance」 makes the city a favorable choice for 「outsiders」 to settle down and start up their business.
Chengdu stands out from cities in China for its leisurely life,a seemingly slow-paced style that symbols a steady pursuit of quality and elegance on all aspects of life,and the perfect combination of tradition and modernity that makes the city a best place for human inhabitation in China.
Local people's pursuit of quality life and elegance also makes the city a hot spot for startup,since the pursuit to improve life never ends,as seen in the city's remarkable development of urbanization,the improving public service,the industrial development plan and the radiation effect of industrial conglomeration. Chengdu provides a giant platform for investments and career development.
It is said that a city's future development is based on the city's unique disposition,and the efforts by the local government to carry on the traditional pursuit will pay off in the future.
A quotation from the Times magazine that reads 「Chengdu,China's China」 holds true in that the city will continue its tradition in the modern times,a tradition typified by the pursuit of quality,harmony,inclusiveness and innovation,and embrace both tradition and modernity.
(原標題:Class Cultural City)