Swedish DIY home furnishing giant IKEA has arrived in Chengdu, and local citizens have welcomed the mega-store with open arms. Customers lined up hours in advance to prepare for the grand opening of the store. Locals are impressed with the workmanship on IKEA goods while foreign residents are at least pleased with the prices. Many of the items, at comparable or equal quality, can certainly still be found for cheaper at other stores around the city though.

Literally translated as 'Women's Street', a women's market is a more suitable description. Located in the heart of the central business district, across the street from Ran Fang Jie and close to ChunXi Lu, the winding halls of the market are perfect for the ravenous female shopper. Any kind of clothing accessory, jewelry, or style of young women's fashion can be found here. The market is a two-floor maze of tiny wall stalls and little shops. Although I can't speak from experience, I'd imagine females could kill a large part of the day here, not to mention all of the surrounding shopping areas. Another market just like it is just across DaYe Jie, next to Ran Fang Jie. Remember to bargain hard in both places.

How to get there: The market is just a few minutes walk from Tianfu Square. Walk east on RenMin DongLu or DongYu Jie and then turn right on ShunCheng Jie. The moment that ShunCheng Jie becomes DaYe Jie, the market will be on the left hand side on the corner with multiple entrances from DaYe Jie and ShangDong DaJie. Look underneath a long, wide yellow sign.

Close to the city center, Qing Shi Qiao market offers an unusual mixture of goods. The middle of Xinkai Jie is home to a two-story art market featuring a variety of wood, stone, and porcelain crafts and sculpture, calligraphy and landscape paintings, jade stamps, and Buddha figures. There are a number of flower shops along Xinkai Jie, including some which sell cacti. Once you turn left onto Nanfu Jie you will reach another row of small tree, lawnmower, and garden shops followed by a jampacked, flower market at the end of the street. Take a stroll through the winding alleys of the flower market for a breathe of fresh air and momentary escape from the urban landscape. 

The pet and pet supply shops are easily the most curious part of the street. Five or ten years ago these pets were likely purchased to be...well...eaten. But times have changed in China, and having a pet is one of China's newest and most popular trends. Puppies, kittens, hamsters, rabbits, gerbils, turtles, and a wide assortment of fish are available. However, the condition of the pet shops will probably not remind you of home. Visitors to the street will probably never see so many home aquarium shops in one confined place in their entire life. One shop even sells purebred huskies, but they aren't cheap.

In a nutshell, the Qing Shi Qiao market exudes a rather strange vibe when compared with other Chengdu locales. If you have an hour to spare, give it a shot, and you might end up with a souvenir or photo opportunity you had not expected.

Directions: With Mao's statue and Tianfu Square at your back, head south on Renmin Lu. You will soon turn left onto Xinguanghua Jie and then bear right onto Jinxing Lu. Xinkai Jie will soon appear on your right side. The walk should be less than 15 minutes from Tianfu Square.

Computer City extends the entire way between Kehua Beilu (科华北路）and Renmin Nanlu (人民南路）on the south 1st ring road (南一环路). At either end of the street there are large electronics department stores selling absolutely anything having to do with computers, cameras, and cell phones. All along the street in between the large department stores are smaller shops which specialize in different aspects of electronics. The Shu Ma (数码） department store listed below is just one of these mega-stores, but all of them are very similar to each other.

Shu Ma department store is six floors jampacked with electronics. Intense competition makes it a good place to shop around for good deals on all kinds of electronics. Don’t hesitate to walk back and forth between merchants selling the same item and in your whiniest voice say, "But that guy over there just gave me this [lower] price..." The listed price is never the final price. The first two floors have computers, laptops, hard drives, and cell phones. The 3rd floor features cameras, while the 4th floor is the best place in town to shop for cheap DVDs. A word of advice to those with children: unlike video stores back home, there is no separate section for adult videos.

Directions: Shu Ma Guang Chang (数码广场） is located at the junction of the south 1st ring road and Renmin Nanlu. It is on the southeast corner and it is impossible to miss the throngs of people constantly streaming in and out. It takes about 30 minutes to walk straight down Renmin Lu from Tianfu Square and arrive at the electronics super store.

Don't rush, think carefully for a minute before you just go ahead and assume what you will find at cell phone street. Ready? OK.... it's cell phones. Foreign students, English teachers, and businessmen alike all need cell phones. Bring a Chinese friend to help you sort out the phone and contract details and head for Tidujie. In the department store on the south side of the street competition between companies is so intense that prices for new cell phones are as low as possible. If these prices don't satisfy you, you can buy 2nd hand phones on the north side of the street. Remember to bargain here.

Directions: Walk east along Renmindonglu from Tianfu Square and you will soon make a left on Shunchengjie. Pass the Dynasty Hotel and then make a right onto Tidujie.