Tunis/Tunisia — Tunis, June 25 (TAP/Houda Hammami) - Known as the "City of Mountains," "City of Fog," "City of Bridges," "The Furnace City," or even "The 8D City," Chongqing has captivated visitors and tourists alike, earning a reputation as one of the most bizarre and fascinating cities in the world.
Located at the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing Rivers, Chongqing is a massive Chinese metropolis that defies conventional urban design. It's often said to be "not for the faint-hearted or those afraid of heights", a place where visitors can't always tell whether they're on the ground floor or the 22nd.
A Multilevel City --Seen from Every Angle
In the heart of southwest China, Chongqing stands tall among mountains and rivers, as though challenging nature with the power of human design. With architecture that melts the boundaries between reality and imagination, it feels like stepping into another dimension.
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Nicknamed the "City of Mountains", Chongqing embraces rugged terrain with steep slopes and sharp drops. Rather than fight this difficult geography, architects chose to blend with it. Skyscrapers rise from the hillsides as if born from the rock, while roads and bridges crisscross in multi-level 3D grids.
Here, the height of a building isn't measured from ground to ceiling, but from the bottom of the valley to the top. Some residential towers don't even start at the traditional "ground floor." Depending on the topography, the "first floor" might actually be the sixth or tenth.
When imagination becomes reality: The train through a building
One of the most jaw-dropping sights in the city is a train that passes directly through a residential building, a globally unique phenomenon. The light train glides between the 6th and 8th floors of a tower before continuing over a suspended bridge.
Though it might look like a movie trick, it's a real urban solution. Because expanding metro lines in a city surrounded by hills is challenging, engineers built a tunnel through the building. The structure is soundproofed to minimize noise, and the building remains fully functional.
Today, this building has become a major tourist attraction, drawing crowds eager to watch a real train slice through steel and glass.
In Chongqing, it feels as if the city is stacked in vertical layers: a highway runs above a bridge, under which flows a river, beneath which lies a subway tunnel. On another hill, a train passes over a building, architecture turns into vertical movement art.
This unique style gave rise to the concept of the "vertical city", where elevators and escalators are used like cars. In some areas, public elevators connect mountainous neighborhoods, residents essentially live in natural skyscrapers.
Despite its ultra-modern infrastructure, Chongqing is not just a city of skyscrapers and tunnels, it's a testament to human adaptability, a place where the line between the natural and the engineered disappears.
When the sun sets, the city comes alive
As night falls and darkness cloaks the city, boat cruises launch on the rivers, offering visitors an unforgettable experience. These night cruises are a major draw for the 30 million tourists who visit each year, blending natural beauty with dazzling modern architecture.
Still waters reflect thousands of shimmering lights from skyscrapers and suspension bridges, painting a vibrant rainbow across the surface, so vivid it feels dreamlike.
When boats pause mid-river, tourists gasp in awe, capturing panoramic shots of the glowing city. Describing it as a "dreamlike journey", many say the mix of moonlight and neon lights creates a sense of wonder and peace.
Small, softly lit boats line the banks, adding a romantic touch. Cruises typically start at Chongqing's iconic suspension bridge, where the colorful beams shift hues as the boats pass beneath, casting mesmerizing shadows and reflections.
Towers blend into the starlit sky, creating the illusion of a glowing dome above the city.
Along the riverbanks, restaurants and cafés glow like pearls, their golden lights mimicking gentle waves, creating dancing reflections across the water.
These night cruises also pass through the old town, where traditional Chinese lanterns mix with modern lighting, making visitors feel they're drifting between two worlds, or two time periods.
A stunning yet overlooked city
Chongqing is not just the most spectacular and surreal city in China, it may be the most unique city in the entire world. Visitors often need a local guide just to navigate its complex layout.
One wrong turn might cost you hours, as bridges and roads wind horizontally and vertically for hundreds of kilometers, like a living labyrinth.
Even GPS apps often fail and tourists are advised not to rely on them, as they may lead them further astray.
Nicknamed "China's New York" or "The Land of Possible Dreams", Chongqing is roughly the size of Austria and home to 33 million people.
It boasts some of the most astonishing geography, architecture, and urban development on Earth, yet it remains relatively unknown internationally, overshadowed by cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.
Built among mountains and rivers like a shifting painting, Chongqing never stops surprising. It is the city of trains that pass through buildings, of roads that scale cliffs, of illuminated bridges that breathe new life into the night.
Still, it's barely featured on global travel itineraries.
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Called the "City of Light and Fog" due to its mountainous terrain and humid climate, Chongqing lacks the international tourism promotion it deserves.
Unlike Beijing or Shanghai, it remains underrepresented, despite its surreal landscapes and unmatched charm.
Another challenge is the language barrier: English is not widely spoken, creating obstacles for international visitors.
Moreover, the city's profile has long been shaped by its economic identity, as a giant industrial and commercial hub, rather than its tourism potential.
But in recent years, Chinese authorities have started to put Chongqing on the tourist map, attracting content creators, adventurers, and lovers of unusual architecture and urban nature, offering a golden opportunity to unlock its vast potential.
"Discover China" - Tunisian Journalists Explore Chongqing
The "Discover China" programme, organised by the Chinese Embassy in Tunisia, gave a group of Tunisian journalists the opportunity to explore three major cities, Beijing, Shanghai, and Chongqing, between June 8 and 16.
The experience left many in awe of Chongqing, a city so astonishing it feels as if it belongs to another world, yet it's very real, waiting to be discovered.
Translated to English by Samir Ben Romdhane
