Chengdu

Chengdu is a sub-provincial city which has served as capital of China's Sichuan province. The surrounding Chengdu Plain is also known as the "Country of Heaven" and the "Land of Abundance". Its prehistoric settlers included the Sanxingdui culture. Founded by the state of Shu prior to its incorporation into China, Chengdu is unique as a major Chinese settlement that has maintained its name unchanged throughout the imperial, republican, and communist eras. It was the capital of Liu Bei's Shu during the Three Kingdoms Era, as well as several other local kingdoms during the Middle Ages. After the fall of Nanjing to the Japanese in 1937, Chengdu briefly served as the capital of China.

The Sanxingdui Museum in Nanxing Town, Guanghan, about 40 kilometers from city proper, exhibits the excavations of the ancient Shu Kingdom. Located just 10km from downtown Chengdu, this is the most convenient place for visitors to see the giant pandas at a close range. Baoguang Temple, built in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220), is situated in Xindu to the north of the city. Botanical Garden is about 6 miles north of the dowtown area. It has more than 2,000 species of plants and covers a total