Petrena travels to Dazu in Chongqing to explore an ancient town and its world famous rock carvings, which are among the most well preserved in the world and are part of a UNESCO World Heritage site. The town feels timeless, and the rock carvings showcase a cultural heritage where three religions come together. The walls tell stories of family, children, karma, death, and more, inviting reflection on long‑gone eras and daily life in a historic setting.
Petrena explores Dazu's ancient town and UNESCO rock carvings, discovering thousand-year-old art and authentic local life in Chongqing.
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Petrena Schell's journey to Dazu, Chongqing, proves that some of China's best-preserved history hides in the most unexpected places. From navigating early trains with surprising ease to wandering a 14th-century ancient town where locals still live with open doors, her day is packed with authentic encounters. The real magic hits at the UNESCO World Heritage rock carvings—thousand-year-old masterpieces blending Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. One carved hand holds an eye; another wheel tells stories of life and death. It's the kind of discovery that makes you rethink everything you thought you knew about China.
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18 min
2025
Dazu Rock Carvings in Chongqing: UNESCO World Heritage and a
China just continues to blow my mind! I got invited a more rural area, called Dazu in the Chongqing province of China. Where I got to explore an ancient town and witness some of the most well-preserved rock carvings in the world, that is actually now a UNESCO World Heritage sight. The town transports...
Discover Dazu Ancient Town and UNESCO Rock Carvings in Chongqing
Petrena takes viewers off the beaten path to Dazu, a rural enclave in Chongqing, where an ancient town sits beneath a world famous UNESCO site. The star here is the Dazu rock carvings, some of the most remarkably preserved relics in China, carved by hand and hammer and dating back many centuries. The visit feels like stepping into another era, with walls that whisper stories of family, karma, life and death as three religions mingle in this secluded landscape. It’s a deep dive into Chinese cultural heritage that blends archaeology with everyday life in a way that makes history feel tangible and personal.
Attractions in this video: Yangzi Ancient Town, Dazu Rock Carvings, Thousand Hands And Thousand Eyes Carving
More about the current video:(Published on 2025-03-24)
Petrena Schell starts her day with an early morning train, feeling proud of mastering China's railway system despite the language barrier. She arrives in the Dazu area of Chongqing, where she stays in a peaceful countryside setting. Her first stop is Yangzi ancient town, a 637-meter-long street dating back to the Ming and Qing dynasties. The town feels alive because locals still live there with open doors, socializing, playing mahjong for just 5 or 10 yuan a day, and brewing traditional grain wine. Unexpectedly, a face-changing performance unfolds inside a building—a Sichuan culture tradition. Petrena enjoys local green tea and corn biscuits before watching her friend Muel get a hilariously cheap $1 haircut. She's traveling with two fellow YouTubers, and the connection feels immediate and deep. After a dome theater introduction to the rock carvings, she finally visits the Dazu Rock Carvings, a UNESCO World Heritage site. These thousand-year-old carvings blend Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism, depicting everyday life, family values, karma, and mortality. The most stunning piece is the Thousand Hands and Thousand Eyes carving, hammered into gold by hand. Petrena is overwhelmed by the energy and artistry, calling it one of China's most amazing discoveries.
FAQs (From the traveler's perspective)
Q: How do you navigate trains in China without knowing Chinese?
A: You just focus on the train numbers, platform numbers, and seat numbers—everything else being in Chinese doesn't matter once you figure that out.
Q: What was the most surprising thing about the ancient town?
A: People still live there with open doors and TVs on, which is totally different from Canada where everything is closed off.
Q: What did the thousand hands carving look like?
A: It was hammered into gold with hand and hammer, and each hand actually has an eye in the middle—it's called Thousand Hands and a Thousand Eyes.
