Leaving Chengdu, we reached our final destination by bus: my hometown, the City of Mianyang.
About 150 miles north from Chengdu, Mianyang is the second largest city in Sichuan Province, after Chongqing was separated from Sichuan. However, it is significantly smaller than Chengdu so that there is an immediately recognizable small-town feeling. I am in no way implying it is a bad thing to live in a small town. In fact, I like small towns exactly because I was grown up in one. But you know when people are young, they have a restless anxiety of "seeing the world". I was no exception. So when I was admitted by a university 1,500 miles away, I was like, "Yes! Finally!"
Twelve years passed. Things haven't changed much, at least I think.
We walked around the city without much of a plan. I got lost several times but recovered soon: it wasn't big anyway. In the center of the city, we spotted this nicely dressed policewoman, who was, most probably, younger than me.
Rice noodle is THE most famous snack food ("Xiaochi") in Mianyang. And this is one of the best places to get it. We used to live right across the street and it felt so good to come back again.
We took a picture of it as true tourists.
We used to get some very nice beef and lamb from this mosque.
We visited some friends and relatives. It was nice to see them again. This dude lived in my friend's house and he wasn't so happy to have his picture taken. But we took it anyway.
About 150 miles north from Chengdu, Mianyang is the second largest city in Sichuan Province, after Chongqing was separated from Sichuan. However, it is significantly smaller than Chengdu so that there is an immediately recognizable small-town feeling. I am in no way implying it is a bad thing to live in a small town. In fact, I like small towns exactly because I was grown up in one. But you know when people are young, they have a restless anxiety of "seeing the world". I was no exception. So when I was admitted by a university 1,500 miles away, I was like, "Yes! Finally!"
Twelve years passed. Things haven't changed much, at least I think.
We walked around the city without much of a plan. I got lost several times but recovered soon: it wasn't big anyway. In the center of the city, we spotted this nicely dressed policewoman, who was, most probably, younger than me.
Rice noodle is THE most famous snack food ("Xiaochi") in Mianyang. And this is one of the best places to get it. We used to live right across the street and it felt so good to come back again.
We took a picture of it as true tourists.
We used to get some very nice beef and lamb from this mosque.
We visited some friends and relatives. It was nice to see them again. This dude lived in my friend's house and he wasn't so happy to have his picture taken. But we took it anyway.
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