WCG 09 Grand Final host city: Chengdu, China Date: November 11~15, 2009
Ticket Update
You have to buy a ticket for the finals. RMB50 ($7.5) for one day pass or RMB150 ($22) for full 4-day pass. This sounds odd to me. Can't really recall any finals that asked for paid tickets before. Anyway, this is what I got from the organizers. Go pre-order the tickets here. Be aware they don't deliver the tickets. You can get it only when you arrive at the venue.
I start this for all TL people who want to watch WCG 2009 Grand Finals because I currently live in the host city Chengdu (成都 in Chinese). I'd like to introduce the city and answer your questions about the city, tour, hotels, transportation, pandas, all you want to know. I know China is geographically far for most TL people, but I hope I could be helpful when some of you decide to come here.
Glory & Love -Capital city of Shu, one of Three Kingdoms (You know Zhuge Liang? You probablly will be interested in Chengdu.) Today Chengdu is one major city in southwest China. -Birth palce of the first paper currency in the world "Jiao Zi" in Song Dynasty -Hometown of pandas, there is a local research base with nearly 100 pandas! -Free entrance of 11 tour sites before the end of 2009 including the panda base and Temple of Zhuge Liang. -Best place for Sichuan Cuisine. If the world love Chinese dishes, Chinese love Sichuan dishes.
Not-So-Good Facts -No metro. I have to say the transportation is probably the most annoying issue here. A city with more than 11 million population has NO METRO. It's hard to get a taxi during rush hours/weekend. -Not a fashion metropolis as Beijing, Shanghai or Hong Kong. Less-developed, but lower living expense (basically lower price for everything ^^)
Also, I'm thinking about organizing a TL party/hang-out during WCG finals if there are TL people actually coming lol
Lol there's always a tl meet up in every wcg. Last time I went it was basically all the sc peoples hanging out. So its a for sure that everyone will meet up, whoever goes.
Btw it won't cost you 1920 dollars for a round trip, lolz. 1020 is more like it.
Glory & Love -Capital city of Shu, one of Three Kingdoms (You know Zhuge Liang? You probablly will be interested in Chengdu.) Today Chengdu is the biggest/richest city in southwest China.
And Three Kingdoms was about 200 CE. So it has been around for a long time.
-Free entrance of 11 tour sites before the end of 2009 including the panda base and Temple of Zhuge Liang.
Really????!!!
-Best place for Sichuan Cuisine. If the world love Chinese dishes, Chinese love Sichuan dishes.
Sichuan Cuisine is also so damned spicy that you cannot really taste anything except spiciness.
Not-So-Good Facts
-No metro. I have to say the transportation is probably the most annoying issue here. A city with more than 11 million population has NO METRO. It's hard to get a taxi during rush hours/weekend.
Typical for an average sized city in China.
-Not a fashion metropolis as Beijing, Shanghai or Hong Kong. Less-developed, but lower living expense (basically lower price for everything ^^)