From the 8D Magic City to the Tea Garden and Bamboo Sea - Self-driving Tour of Chongqing Camry

Three years of traveling around the world, visiting 76 countries and seeing the pace of the world, stopped because of this year’s epidemic. I stayed at home for more than three months, writing, editing, cooking, working out, reading and watching movies every day. Although it was very fulfilling, my ability to "walk the talk" has always been sealed. Now that spring has returned to the earth and lockdown has been lifted in most parts of the country, it’s finally time to start planning this year’s itinerary. The situation abroad is still very serious at present, and I plan to take a good look at the great things in China. It just so happened that my old friend CC from Chongqing invited me to visit. I also wanted to visit this 8D city again, so let’s make Chongqing the first stop.

Departing from the Capital Airport, I haven’t seen the bustling airport in the past three months, so deserted.

During the epidemic, you still need to take precautions when flying. Not only did I wear a mask, but I also wore goggles. There was no food or drink during the whole journey. Anyway, it only took more than two hours, which was very fast.

Since Chongqing became an Internet celebrity city, even the airport has become a check-in place. The spectacular fleet of yellow taxis can be photographed here. Location: After arriving at the airport, there are signs on the bridge leading to the parking building, so you can’t miss it.

I haven’t seen CC for a year. The last time I came to Chongqing was last summer. We made an appointment to meet at Dongshuimen Bridge. I arrived at the appointed place first, and after a while, a red car stopped in front of me. The window slowly came down, CC smiled and said to me: "Brother Dacheng, long time no see." I jumped into the passenger seat, CC started the vehicle and continued to drive forward. "We haven't seen each other for a year. Did you buy a new car?" The red leather seats were made of exquisite and comfortable materials, and the center console was full of technology. I looked around the interior of the car that CC drove and said to her.

"Yes, the car I picked you up last time has been running for many years. I just sold it and bought a new Toyota Camry." "This red suits you so well." "It also suits you. You, this car is a dual-engine version, with good power and control. It also looks very cool. Many people looked at it on the road, and some people asked me if it was a new sports car. "After CC said this, we arrived in Chongqing. Hong Kong and Chongqing Plaza behind Raffles City. CC said it was a good place to take pictures, so we parked the car on the side of the road. I got out of the car and took a closer look at the appearance of this Camry. Indeed, the styling has changed a lot compared to before.

Compared with the old model, this car is much younger and more fashionable. CC told me that this is Toyota's first TNGA strategic model. Although it adopts a new design, the price has not changed. Coral red and black two-color body, honeycomb air intake grille, sports car design language. The movement surrounds the front protrusion, and the visual impact is shocking. The corners of the headlights extend backwards and the eyeliner design is very domineering. No wonder CC said that he is always surrounded by people on the road, it is indeed very popular. CC took a lot of photos of me and the car, and her photography skills have improved rapidly this year.

Some people say that Chongqing is a small Hong Kong in the Mainland. After going there, I found that it really looks like a concrete jungle with order in chaos. In fact, Chongqing's countless faces with rushing rivers and mountains are more majestic than Hong Kong. This is a city that is rapidly moving towards modernization but still retains a strong atmosphere of fireworks, so its charm is truly incomparable.

After leaving Gangyu Plaza, I drove and experienced CC’s new Camry. Camry Dual Engine's technology configuration is also very sufficient. The HUD head-up display is very convenient, the three screens are linked, and the tire pressure monitoring system actually has a numerical display.

The 9-inch central touch screen, the shortcut menu buttons are upgraded to capacitive touch, the original car Amap navigation system supports Carlife mobile phone interconnection. And CC told me that the above configurations are available starting from the 2019 Camry 2.0G Deluxe Edition with a guide price of 199,800, covering as many as 8 models, which suddenly makes Camry completely jump out of the "normal level" of mid-to-high-end sedans. Simply great value.

Next we went to another particularly photogenic place - Nanbin Road. This is the intersection of the Jialing River and the Yangtze River, and the view is particularly good. If you search for "Xiajiang Open Port" in the navigation, you can find this place with excellent views.

Raffles and Hongyadong at Chaotianmen are just opposite, and next to them are the high-rise buildings in the Jiangbeizui Central Business District. You can have a panoramic view of the best areas of Chongqing. I would especially like to thank God for giving me face this time. Chongqing, which is known as the "foggy city", has clear skies and is able to see the most beautiful sunset.

After watching the sunset, CC said to me mysteriously, let’s go, I will take you to a magical place. We drove to the vicinity of Tongyuan Bureau, and after many twists and turns, we came to a very old residential area. Under the dim street lights, I could barely see the road under my feet. CC asked me to look up. I followed the direction of her finger and saw a UFO hanging in the air between two residential buildings!

It turns out that the huge halo in the sky is the Tongyuanju Overpass. Many people go to the Tongyuanju subway station where "You Are Young" was filmed. In fact, most people don't know that the Tongyuanju Overpass itself is also very easy to photograph. But it is not easy to find this place.

We parked the Camry on the side of the road. Turning on the car lights also gives you a very mysterious and magical feeling.

The headlight design of this car is also full of science fiction, and it is also very eye-catching at night.

After taking the photo, I looked at my watch and saw it was already 9:30. CC took me to a very authentic small restaurant under the Tongyuan Bureau overpass - Tongyuan Tavern. There are many "taverns" here in Chongqing, which are actually places to eat. The dishes here are very authentic, with pure Chongqing flavor.

CC solemnly recommended me to eat this dish - stir-fried Chinese cuisine. She said this is a very typical Chongqing dish. Although I love eating meat, this Chinese dish that tastes like wild vegetables is also very suitable for me.

The next day, we plan to go to a place in the countryside to experience the pastoral scenery. Driving in the direction of Changshou is about 100 kilometers and takes more than two hours. Along the way, I deeply experienced the excellent control performance of the Camry TNGA platform. At high speeds, the TNGA platform brings a low center of gravity for driving, making high-speed driving more stable. During driving, the JBL audio installed in the Camry accompanies me all the way. Whether I am driving or riding in the CC, I enjoy it.

The Camry's dual-engine power has a thermal efficiency of up to 41% and a fuel consumption as low as 4.1L. The Hybrid's fuel economy is very high. We traveled 300 kilometers back and forth without even using up half of the fuel tank. CC told me that Toyota also has a "Worry-Free Battery Plan", so she is not worried about the battery having problems and not being able to replace it.

On the way you will pass Changshou Lake, which is also a famous tourist attraction. There is some fog on the lake, which is very suitable for taking pictures.

Continuing forward from Changshou Lake, there is a winding mountain road. The Camry's double-wishbone rear suspension and the improved roadholding brought by the widened wheelbase make my driving more arbitrary.

I also picked up an oversized dog-eared dog on the way.

At the end of this mountain road, we reached our destination today - Zuimei Dongshan Ecological Farm. The architectural style of the villa adopts traditional shape, and the tall cornices are impressive.

After parking the car, we went directly to the tea garden outside the villa. Looking around, there are mountains and mountains, a green ocean, extending to the farthest distance that can be seen.

It is the spring tea picking season, and guests can participate in the whole process of tea picking, tea frying and tea tasting. There was an aunt picking tea in the tea garden. I followed her and observed. The aunt also taught me how to pick tea.

The tea-picking aunts are paid according to the weight of the tea collected every day, so they have to work with both hands to ensure efficiency. Pinch the stem of the tea leaf and pinch it off with skillful force without any sloppiness.

Tea leaves with one leaf and one heart are the most tender.

Due to a temporary power outage that day, I was unable to visit the tea-frying process, so I only had a look in the tea-frying workshop. To be honest, although I drink tea every day, I have never seen how tea leaves are grown, picked and roasted. So I gained a lot of knowledge today.

For lunch, the farm prepared farm rice for us. Two of the four dishes included bamboo shoots. The bamboo shoot bacon and bamboo shoot boiled fish are both very delicious. They are made from local ingredients and couldn’t be fresher. I also ate the Chinese food I had last night again.

After lunch, the guide took us to the bamboo forest on the mountain. The red body of the Camry perfectly matches the green bamboo forest. There is a section with a slope angle of nearly 30 degrees, but driving this car up it is stress-free.

The most entertaining activity today is digging bamboo shoots. When the tour guide gave me a hoe and a big basket, I was a little confused. My eyes were full of towering bamboos. Where could I find bamboo shoots?

As soon as I walked a few steps into the bamboo forest, I encountered a black bamboo shoot.

If you don’t dig it, it will grow as tall as a tree.

I went down with the hoe, and as soon as the tip of the hoe touched the bamboo shoots, the head of the hoe fell off. . . I quickly called the tour guide to repair it, and it took a long time to finally fix it. The first time I dug bamboo shoots in my life, I broke the hoe.

Finally, I dug out the bamboo shoots as I wished, and there was a burst of fragrance. Freshly dug bamboo shoots are full of the smell of fresh earth and air.

After digging bamboo shoots, we also went to a lake. It is said that a TV series was filmed here. In the morning, the mist was like a fairyland.

Finally we went to a viewing platform, which is also a suitable place for taking pictures.

On the way back, we all felt a little tired. Fortunately, Toyota's collision avoidance assist system (lane departure warning system, automatic high beam adjustment system, dynamic radar control system, etc.) ensures complete safety. Camry's body rigidity is increased by 30%, and ten airbags provide peace of mind.

The first stop of domestic travel is accompanied by Camry, which is safe, comfortable and fun to drive. In April this year, Camry achieved cumulative sales of 2 million in the shortest time in its class, making it the choice of 2 million car owners. It is absolutely the right choice. Through this drive, I felt the full sincerity of the new Camry to consumers.

From now until June 9th, you can sign up for the same travel itinerary as my longevity trip to experience its high-value charm.

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