Chongqing has long been a gateway to China's Wild west.  With its steep hills, raging rivers and spicy food, you could say that there's something for everyone in Chongqing. 

Overlooking the confluence of the Yangtze and the Jialing Rivers, Chongqing is known throughout China as the "mountain city". Many of the city's hills are so precipitous that bicycles are scarce and motorcycles a far more common sight. Largely determined by its mountainous topography, Chongqing's  districts are spread over a series of hilltops and separated by major rivers. As your taxi or bus zips across the overpasses linking the areas, check out the precariously stacked apartment buildings clinging to the hillsides. It's possible for one of these buildings to have both the first floor and the fifth floor at ground level. 

Known for its spicy food and hot-tempered people, Chongqing, with its mountains and fog and bubbling hotpots has secured a place in the Chinese imagination.

While the entire Chongqing municipality contains over 30 million people and like Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai, reports directly to the Central Government, and is no longer a part of Sichuan Province, the actual city itself has a population of only 5.8 million.

Due to its strategic location on the Yangtze River, for over 4,000 years, every dynasty has had a provincial capital there. This climaxed during the Second World War when Chongqing, was made the war-time capital of the Republic of China. Its population exploded, filling the city with refugees and government officials. During the war, the city endured severe air raids by the Japanese and what followed was an intense period of poverty.

Since then, it has rebounded with fervor. Chongqing became southwest China's key industrial center and a focal point for China's "Go West" program to bring investment to China's under-developed west.  Its rapid modernization can be felt most clearly around the Liberation Monument, Chongqing's commerical and entertainment center. The actual monument, originally made of wood and dedicated to Sun Yat-sen, was rebuilt in 1945 to celebrate the end of the war with Japan. The monument is within walking distance of most of Chongqing's major hotels and shops.

If you want a taste of old Chongqing, the best place to begin is Chaotian Gate, the only remaining city gate and Chongqing's chief wharf on the Jialing River. Traffic is intense with freight and passenger ships docking day and night.  From Chaotian Gate, there are great views of the green waters of the Jialing meeting the murky brown currents of the Yangtze. Within walking distance are the two cable cars crossing the Jialing and Yangtze and providing stunning views of Chongqing's surroundings.

Though Chongqing's modern historical sites are plentiful, ancient ones are sparse. A short walk from the main commercial center is the Arhat Temple. Occupying the same site for over a thousand years, the temple has since undergone reconstruction. Inside are some 500 sculptured arhats,  being that have reached Nirvana, and a large golden Buddha. If you want to know your future, in the temple there's a specific route to follow based on your date of birth to find an arhat whose life course yours will closely follow.

If the urban congestion has gotten you down, try a stroll through the People's Park. Featuring a palatial conference and concert hall modeled after the Temple of Heaven, the park is large enough for an afternoon stroll and its trees and gardens are a welcome change of pace from Chongqing's urban development.  

Ciqi Kou was Chongqing's old harbor and was once the home of many of Chongqing's rich merchants. Ming and Qing dynasty architecture abound throughout the town. Tea houses, dragon dances and temple fairs all makes this a great place to really soak up the atmosphere of old Chongqing.

More than a thousand years ago, Buddhist and Taoist sects fiercely competed for ascendancy and imperial endorsement. As power changed hands and religious orders came in and out of favor, the victors would create new monuments to their gods and destroy the old ones. One result was that significantly stronger materials were employed to build religious monuments, being hard to destroy, and the monuments got bigger.  The monumental Dazu art testified to this trend.

The Dazu Rock Carvings and statues are scattered over some 70 sites in Chongqing's Dazu County. The statues here are stylistically different from those at Yungang and Dunhuang, both of which were much earlier projects. Dating back to the Tang and Song Dynasties, the carvings at Dazu are purely Chinese in style, whereas earlier caves at Longmen, Dunhuang and Yungang have very obvious foreign influences.  Revealing Buddhist, Taoist, and Confucian influences, the Dazu carvings range from small, intimate statues dedicated by pious families to massive reclining Buddhas,  requiring hundreds of artisans.  A welcome break from Chongqings urban sprawl, the sites unfold over the idyllic scenery of rolling hills, placid farms and the red earth of the Sichuan Basin.

Of the two major sites for the carvinigs,  North Mountain is smaller and requires less time. It's believed that this was originally a military camp and that a general, perhaps hoping for good fortune in battle, commissioned the earliest statues. Although many of the statues have deteriorated over the centuries, there are a few that still remain in good conditions. Among the most notable is Nitch136,which depicts a saint riding a white elephant and the goddess of mercy, Guanyin.

Fortunately, this site is 2km from Dazu County and can be reached by a 30-minute walk from the bus station.  Atop the site, good views can be had of the surrounding countryside.

As one of Chinas "three furnace cities" Chongqing broils all summer with temperatures reaching the high 40 degree Celsius.  Although the winters rarely get very cold,  the fog can be quite heavy at times. Spring is comfortable, it's also when the orange blossoms bloom. Autumn, when the oranges are ripe, create a riot of colors along the riverbanks. The best time to travel is from March to June and from September to November.  Chongqings only real tourist area is down by the dock where local maps are sold and guided tours or cruise tickets are offered. The porters or "bangbangs", as locals call them, carry things from the docks to the ships and are notorious for agressive behavior. Be sure to set a clear price before they pick up your bags.

It will be a great shame if we leave Chongqing without tasting its spicy food.  Sichuan cuisine's history can be traced back to the Qin and Han dynasties, and became a major school of cooking during the Tang dynasty. When chili peppers were introduced to China during the Qing dynasty, Sichuan cooking developed into the modern spicy feast.  

As Chongqing lies in the heart of China's chili belt, local dishes are not for the timid tongue. Chongqing's specialty is the addition of the Sichuan peppercorn, which produces a numbing heat hence the many dishes have the prefix "mala", meaning numb and spicy. Many restaurants will tone down the spice count for tongues that have yet to be initiated.

The most famous Chongqing dish is a spicy hotpot called Mala Huoguo, a cauldron of red, bubbling soup in which diners cook raw meats and vegetables. The longer it simmers the spicier it gets and the custom is to save the leafy vegetables for last, watch out -- they pick up all the species.

If this sounds a bit too much, many restaurants also serve a Yuan-Yang hotpot, with one side red and the other a clear chicken broth. Many street vendors sell a cold noodle topped with cucumbers and drenched in a spicy sauce then sprinkled with chopped garlic. Barbeque is a popular way of cooking and can be less spicy.  Small rice dumplings in a hot soup are usually filled with sweet sesame paste. (Photo source: baidu.com)