“the good, the gritty and the glamorous.” 10/27/2011
 Now, I know its not Lonely Planet, but Frommer's, you know, the travel guide for the elderly, has named Chongqing one of its top travel destinations for 2012(take that chengdu!). They don't have too much to say about the metropolis we make our home other than the ubiquitous, hills, rivers, hot-pot(they even failed to mention the women), but do offer a nugget of truth in stating that Chongqing "offers a captivating glimpse of modern China -- the good, the gritty and the glamorous" (that's a direct quote, it appears even squares are no longer using the Oxford comma Go on and read the full writ-up here.). Add Comment Wanzhou Scene?... 06/03/2010
 Wanzhou scene? . . . Nestled into the mountains a little way north up the Yangtse sits Wanzhou; Chongqing’s second city. Seeing as Chongqing itself only has a handful of decent bars, I had no expectations and was surprised: Wanzhou has a lot to offer. The city itself is how I imagine Chongqing before 1997, a lot smaller and less built up – it’s buildings and mountain/river location are similar – however the lesser degree of pollution means the mountains are actually visible most days. Nevertheless the drone of development resounds across the city. The small central park has an array of local musicians and a small orchestra performing folk music and red songs in the day and a surprising number of relaxed coffee bars are also dotted around the town. Wanzhou also has a Lazer Quest operating in an abandoned warehouse just by the docks – unfortunately they open periodically and were closed when we visited. But if you’re luckier for 50¥ you can spend the evening running around, shooting lazers at your friends.  For more usual entertainment, Wanzhou’s BaiYan Lu (white rock road)– leading off the main square has a handful of typical Chinese clubs – small KTV bars like the tropical QQ Bar and the trippy Mirror bar, playing decent enough techno in the usual tinselly neon surroundings (both halfway up Bai Yun Lu Yi Xiang). However the highlight is undoubtedly Seed Bar. Somewhere between a jazz bar and a yuppie 1980s apartment this wood clad bar is crowded with eccentric decoration but somehow manages to pull it off. They also have an impressive collection of sketch books in which to explore your inner artist or just leaf through. At night they open their stage – acts alternating between local musicians and ambitious punters. Half the staff are musicians themselves and they welcome everyone to come and play. Seed is open to anything and if you bring along an MP3 or computer their sound system is equally open to the more musically challenged. (LaoShu KaiFei JiuGuan 3rd floor, Bai Yan Lu) For a typical provincial town Wanzhou is far more than its port location with a young and enthusiastic music scene that looks set to develop along with the town. This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar. | 
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