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Places in China: Sichuan Province

Sichuan Province is a popular place because of a couple of outstanding 'Chinese' icons within its borders. One is the popular Giant Panda Bear. The other is the spicy but much-loved Sichuan cuisine. These two elements bring people into this province which produces among the top ten of China's GDP among the nation's provinces. However, most of the GDP is used within the province because of the large population.

Sichuan is a large province in West Central China. It covers 570,000 square kilometres of land area and has a booming population at 114 million people. The population density is around 180 per square kilometre on average. Ninety-five percent of the people are Han Chinese with two and a half percent being Yi and one and a half percent being Tibetan. The remainder are made up of Miao, Naxi, Qiang and Hui.

Bordering provinces and municipalities include Tibet, Chongqing, Guizhou, Yunan, Shaanxi, Qinghai, Gansu, Hubei and Hunan. Chonqing used to be a part of Sichuan Province but became an independent municipality in 1997.

Several cities in the province attract tourists for their historical and religious attractions. Buddhist relics and historic sites are among the most popular. One of five sacred mountains to the Buddhists in China is in the province, near to the town of Leshan. The capital city, Chengdu, has had great historic significance since 316 BC.

Agriculture is strong in Sichuan where twenty percent of China's wine is produced. Several auto manufacturing plants that are of great importance to the country are in this province as well. Iron and steel manufacturing are among strong elements for this area. Coal and other energy-producing strengths round out the major positives in the province's economic development.

Large pastureland areas and forestry make up a great percentage of the land in Sichuan. The major exception is the Tibetan Plateau on the western side of the province.

Tourism ranks highly in the province, largely because of the Giant Pandas and the Sichuan food, which is known worldwide. Some festivals and horse races add to the number of visitors entering the province during their seasons. Of course, the dramatic landscapes in the province make it a good place to experience more of the wonders of China.