Beijing, Part V

On Sunday, I headed to my last and some would say most important destination - The Great Wall. However, the weather was not the best for viewing this national treasure. It was extremely foggy. Even though it was early Sunday morning at 8 AM, and even though the weather was bad, there were still tons of tourists.

We went to the Badaling section of the Wall.

The Great Wall is divided up into sections by these guard towers. In case you did not know, the Wall was built to protect China from the Mongol invaders of the north. Many people died while building the wall, and apparently it was not too effective in warding off invasions.

It started becoming even foggier...

I really couldn't see much beyond the walls, which was a shame. I hear that the scenery is usually very beautiful.

Then it started raining! The only thing worse than being stuck in a huge crowd of eager and impatient tourists is being stuck in a huge crowd of eager and impatient tourists with umbrellas. Each person took up twice as much space.

It became really crowded. There was a roadblock ahead at one of the towers so sadly I did not make it to the top. Apparently, there is a Chinese saying that you aren't a real man until you climb to the top of the Great Wall. Hey, I climbed to the peak of Hua Mountain, which was much more physically exerting!

Oh well, there's always next time! Next time, I will make sure to journey to the Wall at an odd hour such as 4 AM Wednesday morning to avoid the crowds. Hopefully the sun will be shining then as well.

Beijing, Part IV

After my experience at the Beijing Silk Market, I met a friend to visit the Forbidden City. As I waited for her to arrive on the subway, I noticed that there was a quiet, unassuming entrance right by the main gate of the Forbidden City. It was called “The Working People’s Cultural Palace” or something of that nature. I had never heard of it before so I walked to the entrance and saw that the fee was only 2 Yuan, so I decided to go.

The “Cultural Palace” was not at all what I expected. It was basically a huge, beautiful, rather deserted park. The morning mist and drizzle made the place even more mysterious and fascinating. I was really happy to discover this little gem. So far, this is the only attraction that did not have huge crowds of people swarming all over it. Perhaps it is overshadowed by its big siblings Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.

The park had Cyprus trees that are 500 years old.

It also contained large temples. These were where the emperors would go to make sacrifices to their ancestors.



It was an absolutely gorgeous place. I’m really surprised more people haven’t discovered it. If you are ever in Beijing and need a moment of peace and quiet away from the crowds, I highly recommend this park. It is to the right of the main entrance of the Forbidden City.

Then I went to the Forbidden City. Even though it was raining pretty hard, there were so many visitors!

There were some quieter corners though.

For dinner, we went to feast on a famous specialty, Beijing roast duck. Basically, the fresh roasted duck is cut into slices. You take a wrap and roll up pieces of the duck meat and crispy skin along with green onions and a sweet bean sauce.

In the foreground of this photo are the wraps.

It was a delicious meal and I was sorry that I had to rush back to the hotel.

Shopping and Bargaining

On Saturday I visited the Silk Market, which is a five story building full of little shops that cater especially to foreigners. The market, which sells shoes, bags, clothes, pearls, and more, can be a tourist trap if you are not prepared to bargain. The extremely aggressive and skillful shopkeepers will stop at nothing to make a sale.

For example, a nice bag caught my eye in one of the myriad of shops. The shopkeeper immediately noticed. This conversation ensued.

Shopkeeper: This is a really nice bag. It comes in many colors.

Me: Hmmm.

Shopkeeper: Here, let me take it down for you. Try it on, look in that mirror. This bag is really popular with girls your age right now.

Me: Oh, that’s nice. How much is it?

Shopkeeper: Well, since you are a student and because you are an early morning shopper, I will give you a discount. I normally sell this bag at 520 Yuan or 400 Yuan. But for you, I will make it 220 Yuan.

Me: I think that’s too much.

Shopkeeper: No! That’s already a bargain! For foreigners I would show them this price: 480 Yuan. But since you are a student, I will give you a discount.

Me: No, that’s too expensive. I think I will look around some more.

Shopkeeper: Okay, okay. What’s your price?

At this point, I should have chosen a ridiculously low price such as 50 Yuan. That is one of the tricks of the trade: Never set your bottom price too high. You can’t bargain down once you do. However, I was naïve and wasn’t sure exactly how much the bag was worth.

Me: 100 Yuan.

Shopkeeper: Haha, that is ridiculous. Look, this is real leather. I will sell it for 200 Yuan. How’s that?

Me: No, no. I think I would rather look around some more. Maybe I will come back.

Shopkeeper: Everyone sells it for this amount. You won’t find it cheaper. Okay, how about 180 Yuan?

Me: No, no, I do not want it.

Shopkeeper: Fine, what’s your price?

Me: I told you, 100 Yuan.

Shopkeeper: Don’t be crazy! Fine, how about 170 Yuan? That’s already really low! How about it?

This goes on for awhile until finally she hits 130 Yuan.

Shopkeeper: 130 Yuan! That’s only 30 Yuan from your price. Just give it to me, all right? Only 30 Yuan.

Me: Fine, okay, okay.

I probably could have gotten the price down lower, but I was still satisfied. The bag was cheaper than it would have been in the states, and besides I was tired of arguing with the same person over a difference that amounted to less than $5. The funny thing is that there really are no native Chinese that shop in the area. I saw many Europeans and Americans though. The shopkeepers know that almost everyone is a foreigner, so they even called out to me in English. They seemed taken aback when I spoke Chinese back to them.

The Silk Market did get overwhelming after awhile. First of all, the enormous amounts of tiny shops filled with glittering fares and narrow aisles really did start to look alike after awhile. Also, the shopkeepers stand out in the aisles to call out to you, “LV wallet! Do you want a LV wallet? How about Coach?” and practically jump on you if you look at an item for more than a second. Still, it was a really fun experience to bargain and I bought two nice bags for less than $40. I even saw another friend from Yale in the crowd that I didn’t even know was in Beijing.

So if you are in Beijing, definitely visit the Silk Market. Just remember that if you want a bargain, you have to bargain ruthlessly. And remember that most of the name brands are fake.

Beijing, Part III

Today I experienced all the downsides of being a single, unprepared traveler in a large, unfamiliar city. In the morning I decided to visit the 798 Art District. It is a lesser known attraction located on the fringes of Beijing. There are many cool and edgy art galleries, cafes, and shops in renovated buildings that used to be Soviet-style military factories.

I did not know where it was located but decided to just wing it. I headed to the nearest subway stop by our hotel and asked a person working there. He told me to go to this certain subway stop. After riding the subway train for 40 minutes, I stepped out at that station. Nothing looked like an art district. On the contrary, the subway stop was located in the middle of a street surrounded by tall office buildings undergoing renovation.

I asked a lady selling beverages out of a cart. She told me to go to the bus stop down the street and take bus #401. However, as I looked at the list of stops the bus made, I didn’t see a 798 District. Then I asked several people how to reach the area and they all did not know. I went back near the subway stop and asked another street vendor. He told me to take #403. I went back to the bus stop and looked at the list of stops. In between the fourth and fifth stops, someone had scratched in “798.”

At this point I decided to just get on the bus. On the bus, I asked a passenger which stop to get off at. She told me to get off at the stop after hers. However, the area looked rather deserted under the bright morning sun. There was a dusty street surrounded by little shops and mechanics stores.

I decided to trust the passenger and got off. After asking several more pedestrians, I finally turned into this quiet street that had industrial buildings.

I saw a man with a large tourist camera walking down this way. There were a few galleries but they seemed closed. I was really confused – several tourist sites on the Internet had recommended this art district, but it seemed mostly abandoned. I saw a few sculptures in front of some buildings but nothing more. Maybe I came at the wrong time of day?



There was this really cool robot sculpture though.


I walked all the way to the end of the street and came out onto a busy road. This did not seem right. I asked a nearby security guard. He said I had just walked out of the district, but it was actually the 751 district. 751 was an artsy industrial district, but to reach 798 I had to walk even further in.

So I had just walked for an hour and passed the street I had to turn into to reach 798! Finally, after asking a few more people, I turned into the bustling cute little neighborhood of 798. Sadly I only had an hour and a half to explore since I wasted so much time being lost.


There were so many little art galleries filled with work by up-and-coming young Beijing artists. Most of the artwork was very edgy and modern. I was really fascinated by the subject matter and presentation style of most of the galleries. Sadly all of the galleries prohibited photography. I was only able to see a portion of the district so the next time I visit I definitely will come back!
Getting back also presented a problem. The subway station was pretty far away and I had no idea where the bus station was, so I had to call a cab. However, most of the cabs were already occupied. Finally I chased down a cab and paid 15 Yuan (a little more than $2) to take me to the nearest station.

In the afternoon I went to visit another Yale friend who lived in a district full of universities. It took 16 subway stops to get there! Then it started raining – and by raining, I mean pouring down buckets. Luckily I had an umbrella but even it could not shield me from the elements. The streets were full of water up to my knees.

Needless to say, after getting soaked and then riding the crowded subway for a hour (including 15 minutes in the wrong direction) with other soaked people, I was ready to call it a night.

Beijing, Part II

On Thursday, I woke up bright and early to visit one of the most popular sites in Beijing, the Summer Palace. This vast garden on the edge of the city was the retreat and relaxation spot for emperors.

It took us about 40 minutes to get there by subway. The Summer Palace area includes a lake, a mountain, forests, temples, a river, and more. It is a truly beautiful preservation of nature and history.






Unfortunately the weather was not as agreeable. It was extremely hot and the scorching noontime sun overhead was relentless. On the bright side, I brought along an umbrella to shield myself from the sun’s rays. This is a very popular custom in China.


In the afternoon I headed back to the city’s center to visit Tiananmen Square with Julius, another Yale classmate.


To our disappointment we learned that the National Chinese Museum, located on one side of the square, is undergoing renovation and therefore is not open to the public. We also wanted to visit Mao Zedong’s memorial that holds his preserved body. However, for some reason the memorial closes at noon every day.

But no worries! Wangfujing Street was just one subway stop over. This is a popular tourist destination. It is a pedestrian street filled with all kinds of shops as well as street vendors that offer some of Beijing’s traditional specialties. We found some scorpion and starfish kabobs! However, we stuck with the much more boring snack of yogurt.


As the daylight faded, we rode the subway to another part of Beijing to meet Wendy for dinner. We ate at a small, unassuming but good dim sum place. Soft serve ice cream from McDonalds for dessert!

At night I accomplished some more mundane tasks, including purchasing a power adapter for my laptop. Then I traveled back on the subway to get back to the hotel by around 11. It is surprising how many people are still on the subway that late at night.

Beijing!

On Wednesday night, I took the train from Changsha to Beijing with my mother's college classmate. Chinese trains are so fun because instead of seats they have beds in little compartments.

This is known as the "soft sleeper," as opposed to the "hard sleeper" which has three cots, one on top of the other instead of two. We left Changsha around 6 on Sunday night and arrived bright and early in Beijing at 7 am.

After settling down in our hotel, I immediately went exploring with Carol, a friend from Yale. We met at her university and then walked to the Olympic Park. It took a long time as we wandered around the perimeter, trying to find the Bird's Nest, but we eventually achieved our goal.

I was really surprised at how expensive it was to get into the Bird's Nest comparatively. There was no charge to enter the Olympic Park, but it cost 60 yuan just to enter the stadium.

There were few visitors on this Wednesday afternoon. I was disappointed that tourists were not allowed on the actual field of the stadium, only the seating areas.

We also saw the Aquatics Center, known as the Water Cube.

Here's an overall look at the park area, with many vendors selling kites.

Later I visited a famous Beijing bookstore. It had probably five or six floors and basically any type of book you could think of. Additionally, there was artwork and DVDs and CDs.

At night I went to eat a Beijing specialty with another friend Wendy. We ate huoguo or hotpot. It is the same concept as fondue, except you cook raw foods such as meat and vegetables in a various types of broth. You also have your own sauce to dip the foods into after they are cooked. We chose a spicy broth on one side of the pot and a clear mushroom broth on the other. The pot was in the shape of a yin-yang symbol.

The foods we chose out of an extensive booklet included lamb, beef, spinach, mushrooms, and noodles. There were also interesting foods that we did not pick, such as tongue and tripe. Then after some shopping in a higher-end, modern district of the city, it was time for me to journey back to the hotel.