Sichuan, referred to as “Chuan” or Shu, the provincial capital of Chengdu, is located in the hinterland of southwestern China. Since ancient times, it has been known as the “land of abundance” and is the gateway to western China and the hometown of giant pandas. Sichuan is now at the junction of Chongqing, Guizhou, Yunnan, Tibet, Qinghai, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. The eastern part of Sichuan is the parallel ridge valley of Sichuan and the hills of Chuanzhong, the central part is the Chengdu Plain, and the west is the western Sichuan Plateau. Sichuan governs 18 prefecture-level cities, 3 minority autonomous prefectures, and 15 county-level cities.
Sichuan is an important economic, industrial, agricultural, military, tourism and cultural province in China. In 1993, Chengdu, the provincial capital, was identified by the State Council as a technology, trade, financial center and transportation and communications hub in southwestern China. Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport is the fourth largest airport in China.
