Chongqing's charms amaze US internet celebrity

Eating spicy ice cream, getting a haircut, dancing with local grandmas, trying intelligent NEV cars, and taking the Yangtze River Cableway and a night cruise, Darren Watkins Jr, the 20-year-old US internet celebrity better known to his 37 million YouTube followers and those on other platforms as iShowSpeed, had shown the world another interesting city through his lens.

"This is (a) cyber city that looks crazy on camera," the YouTube sensation said in great excitement as he enjoyed the breathtaking view during a night river cruise in Chongqing.

"Beautiful, beautiful. This is Chongqing. This city doesn't look real."

From 3 pm to 9:30 pm on Wednesday, he did a marathon livestream in Chongqing city center after visiting Beijing, Shanghai, Shaolin Temple in Henan province and Chengdu in Sichuan province.

The livestream in Chongqing has attracted over 7.3 million viewers on YouTube so far, as well as over 8,000 comments.

This metropolis of more than 30 million people in Southwest China, which boasts a multidimensional landscape, futuristic architecture, spicy hotpot and glittering night scenes, has attracted many foreign internet influencers amid the recent "China Travel" trend.

A gateway to a vast inland and a major manufacturing hub, it became China's fourth municipality in 1997 after Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin.

As large as Austria and five times bigger than Beijing, this city of mountains and rivers has witnessed rapid development into a modern metropolis with advanced transportation systems, outstanding architecture and eye-catching features.

The city looks futuristic with its skyscrapers, while at the same time, with some 3,000 years of history, it still preserves a distinct culture and lifestyle.

The live show started in the Jiefangbei area, which is the equivalent of Times Square in New York, surrounded by giant billboards and brand-name retailers.

The US celebrity had attracted millions of fans in China soon after he started his China livestreaming tour on March 24, with his short videos going viral online.

His appearance in Chongqing immediately drew large crowds, and he had to urge them to calm down.

Accompanied by local English-speaking internet celebrity Chen Rui, the American tasted ice cream with spicy chili oil, visited Kuixinglou Square, which has become a global sensation due to its unique architectural features, and took metro Line 2 to the famous Liziba Station where the train passes through a 19-story residential building.

He then took a ride on the 112-meter-long Huangguan Escalator, the highest single-grading escalator in China and Asia when it was built. He also experienced Chongqing's dazzling transportation infrastructure, including the highest overpass in the country at 72 meters and Huangjuewan Overpass which connects more than 20 ramps and eight different roads.

"It (the tour) is very hectic and it has a lot of energy. Everyone is full of passion," Chen said. "It is a very meaningful trip and a good opportunity to introduce Chongqing to the world."

As one fan on YouTube put it after watching the Chongqing livestream, "Growing up in America I was told entirely wrong things about China. But after watching these Speed streams I'm definitely visiting soon!"

"These videos have completely flipped my perception of China on its head. Our French media had painted a wildly inaccurate picture of it. I'd absolutely love to travel to China with my friends sometime soon!" said another YouTube user.