Best of Chongqing One Day Tour: Stilwell Museum, Arhat Temple, Eling Park, Panda

Eling Park has a grand view of both Yangtze and Jialing Rivers. The park was built in 1909 as a private garden. Eling was originally named Goose Nape Hill, for its narrow shape resembling the nape of a goose’s neck. It was on the mountain of the city.

Situated on the top of the Pipashan Mountain, Chongqing Museum was founded in 1951. The museum has over 40 exhibiting halls with about 100,000 pieces of relics, which spans over 3000 years history. These antiquities mainly include bronze wares, pottery, paintings, porcelain, sculptures, etc.

General Joseph Stilwell Museum was founded in memory of Joseph W. Stilwell, an American general who contributed a great deal to the Chinese people. In 1942, during the Second World War, General Joseph W. Stilwell acted under orders to come to Chongqing. He worked as Chief of Staff in the China Theater of Operations and as the Commander-in-Chief of the American Army in the China Burma India Theater. The residence became the headquarters of the China Burma India Theater during that period. General Stilwell participated in a series of political and military affairs in the CBI Theatre of World WarⅡ, and cemented a profound friendship with the Chinese people fighting side-by-side in the Anti-Fascist War in China. In July 1944, campaigns in Northern Burma succeeded and a road between India and China was built under his direct supervision, which made ammunitions and weapons accessible to China and brought an end to the blockade of the fascist state. The road was later named Joseph W. Stilwell Road. President Roosevelt recalled General Stilwell to Washington in 1944. William Pace, a former American Secretary of Defense, made a special trip to the museum in 1994 and was greatly touched by how well it had been preserved.

Arhat Temple's location is a bit of a surprise: wedged tightly between skyscrapers and apartment blocks. The thousand-year-old building is still a place of worship and home to 18 monks (although once upon a time, 70 monks were in residence here). The main draw is the impressive entrance to the temple decorated with hundreds of terra-cotta sculptures. This site is worthwhile even for the non-pious.