During the May holiday, we flew to Chongqing, a massive municipality of over 31 million inhabitants. From there we took a one-day trip to the Dazu Rock Carvings, which is listed as a UN World Heritage Site.
The following day we embarked on a fascinating 3-day trip on the mighty Yangtze River, which included the Three Gorges. Everywhere along the riverbanks, towns were being prepared for the 10-15 meter rise in water level, planned for 2009. Some of the views were breathtaking, and the boat cruise was concluded by a visit to the Three Gorges Dam.
Despite some of the controversy, this is an impressive piece of engineering. With over 2 km in length it is not world's largest dam, but it generates the most hydroelectric power. To get to the other side, we went through a series of five locks; in each the water was lowered by 22.5 meters. The whole process took about four hours. Well worth a visit.
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