Wow, I'm writing this all in retrospect, and it's crazy how much I did in a week. On Monday, I woke up in Dujiangyan and went to Panda Valley to see the famous Sichuan pandas. The main panda center is in Chengdu, but this one in Dujiangyan is smaller and more scenic. I walked around, and it was nice, but I didn't go crazy for them. Some of my friends and many Chinese people are obsessed with pandas. I met a Chinese guy on the bus in the mountains yesterday, and he said that seeing a panda is the pinnacle of the Chinese experience—something like that.
That same guy had asked me about America since he had never talked with a foreigner before. I told him that, for the past handful of decades, the world has tried globalization. It worked for some time, but now countries are becoming more protectionist, which has both benefits and drawbacks. I'm proud to be an American.
After seeing the pandas, I took the train back to Chengdu. The trains leave on the dot—you can't even enter the gate until like two minutes before departure, and then it departs immediately.
In Chengdu, I got a much-needed haircut. I went to a proper salon, and it was great. The barbers and I chatted, and he shed some light on Chinese society. He also said how much he likes America. All he wants to do is drive a Harley motorcycle, but he said that would never happen in China due to restrictions. Every bike and car here is an EV. He likes how you can do whatever you want in America.
He gave me a good cut, and afterward, I went to drink tea. I found a Michelin-starred teahouse, and they squeezed me in. I drank organic red oolong. I really like roasted green tea. The teahouse, called Mi Xun, was super cute.
At night, I went to the famous Sichuan Opera. I'm not much of a theater person, but this opera was fantastic. It's called an opera, but there's no singing—just crazy acrobatics, skill acts, a mask-changing show, and fire-breathing. There was a storyline, but it made no sense to me. The coolest trick was a girl who spun a table on her feet.
After the opera, I went out and ate rabbit. Rabbit is actually the leanest meat—high in protein (about 27g per 100g serving), low in fat and calories compared to beef, pork, or even chicken, and rich in B vitamins, phosphorus, iron, and selenium. It's also easily digestible due to its fine texture and low fat content.
I also had Kung Pao chicken, which Chengdu is known for. The spice killed me, but it was good. I was so tired from running around the past few days that I just crashed after that.
