Beginning to resemble a miniature Hong
Kong, complete with skyscrapers, hills and
a profit-hungry populace, Chongqing
centres on a four-kilometre-long
peninsula, capped by grassy parks atop Pipa
Shan and Eling Shan . The downtown
area and most accommodation prospects
surround Victory Monument in the
eastern Jiefangbei commercial district; Chaotianmen
docks , where Yangzi ferries pull in,
are just a short walk away at the eastern
tip of the peninsula. The seething long-distance
bus and train stations are southwest
across town, on a complex traffic flow
near river level. From here, either flag
down a minibus or bus #102 to Chaotianmen
docks, or climb the covered stone stairway
up to Zhongshan Er Lu, where trolleybus
#405 runs to Jiefangbei. The airport
shuttle bus (¥15) transports passengers
the 30km from the airport to the
CAAC office on Zhongshan San Lu (from
where buses #104 and #105 run along Renmin
Lu to the Jiefangbei terminus on Linjiang
Lu). At ¥1-2 for a ride, buses are
the easiest way to get around if you want
to give your legs a break from the
serpentine stone staircases linking
different levels of town. Because of the
hills, bicycles are a rare sight.
If at all possible, avoid Chongqing's
piratical taxis , or establish the
fare first and make sure you have the
exact change. The peninsula is so small
that it shouldn't cost much more than the
cab's standing charge (¥5-10) to reach
anywhere central.