Bit of Culture in Chengdu

Took a taxi across town to the Wenshu Monastery, as we wanted to try out their restaurant where the monks prepare your food. Otherwise known as the ‘Hollow Wood Temple’ it dates back to the Tang dynasty and is set in beautiful grounds. It’s also the headquarters of Sichuan’s Chan (or Zen) Buddhist sect and one of the doorways was marked ‘website offices’ which looked very out of place!

Unfortunately we had missed lunch and the restaurant was closed until five, so we headed back towards our hotel and found a great Tibetan restaurant instead. Can highly recommend the ‘Yak meat with mushrooms’. Very lean, and tastier than beef.

Sichuan Opera

That night our local guide, ‘Wendy’ took us to the Chengdu Cultural Show. This was a chance to see a selection of Sichaun entertainment including a small bit of Sichuan Opera (apparently watching a full Sichuan Opera is excruciatingly boring and repetitive).

'Changing Faces & Fire Eating'

Table juggler
The Rolling Lamp Clown, Shadow Puppets, Juggling and Acrobats were good but the 15 minutes of opera sounded like a cat being neutered.