What a birthday

When the alarm went off at 6:00 AM, Ted and I could barely roll out of bed. We have been on local time for a while now, waking up at 9:00 to leisurely stroll outside for some hutong breakfast and morning tea. While the early wake-up call wasn't the funnest thing to do on my 24th birthday, it was well worth it, as we were going to see the Great Wall.

And we weren't just going to Badaling, where every tourist bus goes. At this section of the wall, much of it is reconstructed, and part of the tour is also being forced into shopping at silk and vase factories. Ted and I had decided early on that when it was time to visit the wall, we were going to go to a much more remote area so we would not have to deal with a constant sales pitch while trying to enjoy the experience.

So there we were, on our way to the Jin Shan Lin section of the wall at 7:30 in the morning. While we were ripe with anticipation, we soon found that the drive was much longer than expected, and before we knew it, had been in the car for over four hours. While this wouldn't have been that bad if we were able to do our intended trip, which was a hike from the Jin Shan Lin section over to the Simatai section (a 10k hike), we soon found ourselves in the worst traffic jam I had ever witnessed.

While we don't have any pictures to prove the chaos, the scene was one I don't want to remember. Just imagine, in an idyllic fall landscape in the outer reaches of Beijing, pasenger cars, tourist buses, semi-trucks, and huge trucks full of pigs, logs, cattle, grain, tractors, and whatever else you can think of creating four lanes of traffic on a two-lane country highway. We were stuck in this traffic for at least two and a half hours, as congestion got so bad in one area that we finally had to change our planned trip. With all of the time sitting in this traffic going absolutely nowhere, we didn't have enough time to complete the hike on time, so we took another half an hour to turn around and settle on going to Simatai, which would have been our hiking destination.

But as soon as we arrived, we knew that sitting through all of the traffic and the long drive was well worth the wait. I have to say that this went from being one of the worst birthdays ever (sitting and breathing in truck fumes is not my idea of a good time) to one of the best. The views were stunning , and the day was beautiful.





This was truly a birthday experience I will never forget.

...And we're back!

So you may have noticed that I haven't posted in a while, but Ted and I have been busy dealing with this:



In short, pests.

This weekend we were busy attending the 7th World Conference on Sport and the Environment, a meeting of the Sport and Environment Commission of the International Olympic Committee. While I am glad that we took the time to attend this conference, I went thinking that I would get to meet other sustainability researchers and experts to talk about the role of culture in sustainability. What I got was a bunch of cronies from national olympic committees (NOCs) and their paid sustainability hacks.

This conference did start with an interesting site visit to the olympic "green", where the infamous Bird Nest and Watercube reside. I have to say, the stadium is quite impressive up close, but seems out of place surrounded by dirt, smog, and cranes. Ted and I got a good laugh out of the fact that this conference coincided with some of the worst air quality we had witnessed since arriving in Beijing a month ago. As you can see to the left from this view atop a hill in the Forest Park (just north of the Olympic Green), visibility was about a mile. If it was a clear day, we should have been able to see the construction site of the Bird Nest, but as it was, we could barely see the edge of the lake.

This in no way stopped conference delegates and press from sticking to the positive message that Beijing had done nothing but champion air quality and the environment, and the big news after the event on CCTV was the decision by the IOC not to move any sporting events out of Beijing due to poor air quality. While I would have to agree the that Beijing has made a great number of improvements in order to host the games, I was greatly disappointed that they only addressed the green technologies they had used to reduce CO2 emissions. So dedicated to not speaking about any other topic, one BOCOG official, before giving a presentation on all of the positive sustainability measures they have taken, specifically noted that they would not be talking about urban development.

At that moment, I knew that the site visit was the only valuable information I was going to glean from the conference, other than the knowledge that the IOC is so stuck on being carbon neutral that they have blinded themselves to other sustainability issues. For instance, at the site visit, one of the lead builders in charge of the construction for the National Indoor Stadium bragged that we were looking at the largest steel roof in the world. Ted and I were the only people to even bat an eye at this bit of information, which is quite disturbing considering that steel production facilities are such notorious polluters in China that they are shutting down production for three months during the games to help clear the air for outdoor competitions.

Yes, all of these "experts" had no idea what the hell they were talking about, as they were office dwellers of national olympic committees, there to learn how they could best Beijing and other host cities to take the crown for the "Green Games". While Sydney was the first city to bid in earnest for a green Olympics, since then it has become chic to attempt to outdo the last city in green technology. But what this has created is situation where everyone focuses on the newest green technology, but has no intent to actually shrink their footprint, or leave a lasting environmental legacy for their community.

Meanwhile, Ted and I couldn't even come back home and relax after infuriating sections on carbon offsets and the environmental vulnerability of Oceania (and they didn't even play the bjork song) because we had dirty, filthy bugs all over our hotel room. I had booked the place because it was only a few blocks away from the conference center and it cost less than $100.00 a night. Because we have been staying in hostels our entire time in China (and never had a bad experience), we thought we would be living in the lap of luxury, doling out about twice the amount we have been paying for hostels. No such luck. Here's a tip: never stay at Beijing Century Longdu International Apartments. We were killing bugs of various shapes and sizes every ten minutes or so upon our arrival. The shower was a nice choice of either freezing cold or scalding hot water, there was no internet, and the bed, while relatively comfortable, was louder than the deck of an old-timey sailing ship. So much for life in the high rise.

But, things are looking up. For our last four nights here in Beijing we are staying back at Templeside, which has been our home away from home in China. It feels great being back in Old Beijing, as it seemed to welcome us back with a beautiful but brisk autumn day. Since we hadn't really had the opportunity to explore the white pagoda in Beihai park, we decided to climb up and take in the view of Beijing. The reward was absolutely gorgeous, as the sky was clear and blue and the views were amazing. Wouldn't you know, as soon as the environmentalists leave town, we had one of the most beautiful days we had seen in weeks.

Doin' it like the locals do

Ted and I would like to think that we have had a fairly authentic experience while in China. We've lived in the hutongs, had porridge and dumplings for breakfast in restaurants with four tables, and we ride the subway around town like nobody's business. But there were a few pieces missing to the puzzle that would really allow us to see and understand the local experience: taking in some of the nightlife in a trendy area, and eating American fast food.

While we have always passed trendy little bars all around town, we never wanted to be those laowais, traveling in China only to be caught indulging in creature comforts from back home. Why would we want to spend 20 Yuan on a small drink in a gaudy bar when we could get like five breakfasts for the same amount of money? But after a while, reality sets in. Not all of China lives in the hutong, and part of experiencing the local culture is also partaking in some of the trendier spots which are highly influenced by western night-life, but nonetheless have their place in this vibrant city.

Bravely adventuring into a new world, we first met up with one of Ted's former co-workers who has been in China for two months as part of a U of O study abroad program. Bringing along a friend of his from the program, the four of us had a double date at a posh little Indian restaurant called the Raj, where Ted and I used a fork for the first time in a month. I never knew I could be so conflicted by proper placement and use of silverware, as I desperately wished I had my handy chopsticks in hand to munch down the yummy rice and curry.

On the way to the restaurant Ted and I had spotted a little bar which advertised their drink special of the night: Mojitos. Lured in by the small courtyard and the fact that no one else was there, we put the hookah to use and talked politics over some delicious Mojitos, made with fresh mint picked from the courtyard. We then continued down a small hutong we had traversed earlier, having a drink at "The smallest bar in Beijing: 12 sq. meters", and drank at another cute place with loft seating decked out with pillows low tables - a perfect place to keep the conversation alive.

With only a 20 yuan cab ride back to our hostel in Qianmen to finish off the night, I have to say that we had a great time and enjoyed every single one of the bars we visited. It is so easy to be overwhelmed in a place like Beijing where there is such a diverse daily reality, making it easy to go overboard on attempting to get a "real" experience. For us, getting this experience (up until recently) had been braving restaurants with no English menus and eating in the street with everyone else.

But the reality is that many Beijingers love to indulge in a good drink here and there at a trendy spot, and live to eat at KFC, McDonalds, and Pizza Hut. So when Ted and I were finished signing in for the IOC's Sport and the Environment conference (which starts tomorrow!), we decided to sit down for a nice date at the nearest Pizza Hut to try this local favorite.

Now, Pizza Hut is not the same in China as it is in the US. In China, they are sit-down restaurants, and have a full menu. Not only did they have American-style pizza as well as more Asian themed pizzas with seafood (shrimp pizza, anyone?), but they also had espresso, spaghetti, fried meatballs, garlic bread, escargot, milkshakes, ice cream cake, and beer. No joke. Although the choices were abundant, Ted and I decided on the 12 inch Hawaiian, which went for 83 yuan ( little over 10 US dollars). I only wish I had a camera to capture this momentous event, if only to prove that yes, there was actually escargot on the menu.

While the pizza was dull and the service wasn't the best we've had, the company was fantastic, and the absurdity of sitting down at a Pizza Hut for a nice, expensive meal was priceless.

Ah, to be back in Beijing

Even though our train pulled in at a very early hour, Ted and I were both relieved to be back in the city where this trip all started for us.

Don't get me wrong, we had a great time in Qingdao and Shanghai, and I think seeing other areas in this huge country not only gave us the opportunity to get a small break from being in Beijing, but also made us appreciate some aspects of the city more than ever. For example, it became clear as soon as we stepped of the train in Qingdao how far Beijing had come in using English and pinyin to aid international travelers in exploring the city. In Shanghai, where we thought food would be everywhere, we were surprised not only by the lack of street food but also the lack of the good quality, middle-of-the-road dining establishments that offer big plates of tasty food at very reasonable prices. We had become dependent on these kinds of places to have a large midday meal that could sustain our daily walk-a-thons, and in Shanghai we found ourselves wandering for blocks looking for a place that had an English menu (or even pictures on the wall) which wasn't a Coldstone Creamery or Pizza Hut.

So, weighted down with fashionable duds that we had picked up in Shanghai, we happily drug ourselves onto the subway this morning on our way to our new hostel in Qianmen. Ted and I had two reasons to be thankful: it was only a few short blocks away from the Qianmen subway station, and our room was shockingly ready when we arrived at 8:00 AM. So after a quick spot of tea and breakfast, armed with notepad and camera we got started on our quest to document the Qianmen area.

As you can see from the picture at left, this was no easy feat. To begin with, I had to take this picture, which is facing due south on what is Qianmen Dajie, through a hole in the gate while no guards were looking. This is the main street which will run through the Qianmen street development, and everything to the left of that construction worker is a protected area under the Beijing conservation plan for its 25 historic areas. The gate I shot this through was due south of Qianmen Gate, which in on the axis which runs directly through Tienanmen Square and the Forbidden City. Needless to say, after snapping a few shots through this little peep hole, I turned to snap a shot of Ted in front of the gate, turned back, and saw that an attentive guard from the other side had used his spidey sense to sniff out suspicious photographers. I don't think he saw me taking pictures, but he was definitely giving me a look as he peeked his head out to see what flim-flammery was afoot.

From here, we walked around the entirety of the site, which runs south to Zhushikou Dajie, and is bordered by Qianmen Donglu on the east and Liangshidian hutong (which runs between Qianmen Dajie and Meishi Jie) on the west side. This west side is where Ted snapped some great photos for me of the site over some simple barriers, showing me how it was done while climbing onto piles of bricks to get a better view. What is most telling in these photos is how exposed this side of the site is, as it is not in the conservation area. As you can see in the picture to the left, the east and protected end of the site is entirely blocked from view from the street, complete with informational panels which detail the history of the Qianmen area back to the Qing dynasty. If there are any gates they are guarded, and at the first sight of laowais like Ted and I, they jump to attention and make sure we get nowhere near the door (we tried to walk into one gate, and immediately got thrown out, while locals came and went without trouble). We even spotted an extra security measure; one billboard like those blocking the exterior was located inside the construction site, blocking even more from peekers like Ted and I from really knowing what is going on behind those walls.

While the experience was infuriating, it was not as maddening as going back to the hostel and finding out that SOHO, a Chinese development firm that was founded by a former Goldman Sachs broker (which will over double their profit this year and just floated a $1.6 billion Hong Kong IPO) is behind this development. Nothing crushes a girl's soul more than the thought that the center of her research is thoroughly protected by hordes of (Saudi) money and political dreams, but I'll just have to keep doing my best to find more information everyday as my time in Beijing will end sooner than I realize.

A "relaxing" day in the garden

So Ted and I have been shopping our little hearts out in Shanghai, hence the lack of pictures and blog posts. We've been waking up fairly early, grabbing some Jiang Bing for breakfast (the Shanghai version has less onion and cilantro, but is crispier and just as yummy), and have been hitting the subway to whatever shopping mecca calls our name that particular day.

But as the magic of retail therapy begins to wane and one mall begins to melt into another, one has to find something else to do in Shanghai. Today, we thought we would pay a visit to the most famous garden in Shanghai, Yu Yuan. It took us a while to drag ourselves out of bed, as all of the walking in Shanghai has begun to wear us down, and the day previous most of our calories had come from the best fried rice we had ever tasted, which was washed down with our first taste of Suntory Beer. While we swigged down four big bottles at dinner (don't worry Grandma, it's a lite beer), we still managed to keep dinner at 60 yuan, which was the best bargain for quality yet at a single meal service. Let's just say beef seared with hot red peppers, onions, cilantro and other greens, stir-fried lentils (Chinese green beans) and peppers, fried rice complete with smoked meat, hot peppers, and a ton of onions and soy sauce, and Suntory, a smooth lite blend of wheaty goodness. Even in all of our American gluttony, we still managed to be outdone by the young men across the room, who immediately struck up a conversation which started with "hey joe!" to the tune of "Hey Jude". They were drunk and very friendly as they kept cracking jokes about Yao Ming ("I believe I can fly"), President Bush, and placed bets as to whether we were from the UK or US. Now that's what I call a cross cultural exchange.

Needless to say, the morning started a little like this blog post: slow. So when we finally and forcefully dragged ourselves to Yu Yuan gardens, we were overwhelmed by what we saw before us. No, it wasn't that sense of wonder that fills one upon taking in such a wonder as the Forbidden City, it was the "Oh my God, why did we ever decide to do this, and today of all days?" sense of dread.

It was that immediate acknowledgment that you have just stepped into the biggest and saddest tourist trap within a 100 mile radius. Complete with Starbucks, Dairy Queen, Haagen-Dazs, and a KFC, this Disneyland/fantasyland complete with authentic-looking architecture filled with crappy goods of all sorts, forcibly overwhelmed the senses in the worst way. I couldn't help but be reminded of the Qianmen area which Ted and I will be documenting once we return to Beijing, as authentic (and protected) historic neighborhoods have been demolished to make way for a reconstruction similar to the one you see here. Complete with a trolley-traversed pedestrian area and "authentic" reproductions of the architecture that stood on the site just a few years ago, I couldn't stop thinking about all of the poor people that have been forced out of their homes in Qianmen, and for this.

But as horrifying of an experience as this was, it is also a good reminder that the work that I am doing on my thesis is worthwhile. While I can't do anything about the development that is already underway in Beijing, maybe I can do something about a similar situation in the future. The Yu Yuan gardens was first-hand proof that when few cultural relics remain from a certain time-period, they will more than likely be stripped of all of their authentic historic value in order to bolster their commercial value. While this sometimes comes in the form of total destruction so that some tower can be built in its place, this can also come in the form of romantic reconstruction purely for tourism purposes. This has happened here in Shanghai, and it continues at this very moment in Beijing.

An introduction to Shanghai

I was very excited to board the train to Shanghai on Saturday afternoon from Qingdao. While it was fun to be on the beach for a few days, Qingdao was just too sleepy for my taste. After being in the metropolis of Beijing, which already had a slow pace of its own, this off-season resort town didn't seam to offer much beyond the sea and the food it provides, the latter which this valley girl has never really embraced. Call me crazy, but my idea of a good meal does not involve picking the thing out while it is still squirming in a small plastic tub sitting out on the sidewalk, but to each his own, as demonstrated by Ted's exuberance in finally having his choice of creepy crawlies from the ocean deep to dine upon.

While our taste in food shall eternally divide us, we did both enjoy the European architecture seen throughout the city, which are remnants from Qingdao's time as a German concession. I was disappointed that all the trains coming and going from this beach community had been diverted away from the old town through the Sifang station, as the original train station is a beautiful 100+ year old building which is being renovated in anticipation of the 2008 Beijing Olympics sailing regatta to be held in Qingdao. Even through the rusty scaffolding and standard green construction screens blocked the work from view, its beauty still showed through, half timbers and all.

After a pleasant 19 hour train ride (which gave me plenty of time to knit on my new hand-made needles from Beijing), Ted and I crawled out of our soft sleepers and onto the streets of Shanghai. To our great relief, our very cute hostel was only four subway stops from the train station, so we dropped off of our bags and ran out to see more of the city. Because we hadn't really done much research into the best places to go, we both decided to head for the most popular spots for tourists: People's Square, Nanjing Road, and the Bund.

This, needless to say, was overwhelming. Being a beautiful and mild Sunday afternoon, these areas were absolutely crawling with tourists. Ted and I, who had become accustomed to being some of the only laowais around, were taken aback by the sheer number of western tourists, as white people were everywhere. We quickly became judgmental and competitive, making fun of those sporting hiking boots, safari vests, backpacks, and Asain girls that looked like they were not enjoying being paid company.

Yeah, Shanghai is just that kind of town. After leaving the very conservative Beijing where you see families and couples everywhere, Shanghai sports lots of singles, partial nudity in subway ads, and at least two cathouses within a two block radius of our hostel. If it means anything, the girls look largely bored, as they are usually dolled up with nowhere to go, resulting in the funny sight of scantily-clad women zoning out on a torn up couch watching TV in a small, nondescript office.

But don't let this fool you; Shanghai is a great town. Even though we got taken to the cleaners today for a very mediocre lunch (the guy tried to charge us 40 yuan each for some Tsingtao beers when they cost 5 yuan at any corner store - we laughed at him and still offered to overpay at 20 when he looked at us pathetically), there seems to be something to do on every type of budget.

And, of course, there is all of the shopping. This town has everything from Gucci to bargain basement deals, and they are usually on the same block. One could say that there is too much, but all of the selection just makes for a fun scavenger hunt, and gives you a great reason to explore all the different areas of the city.

Finally, just like in Beijing, there are some great parks here in Shanghai. While they are not incredibly extensive or elaborate, they are relaxing in their simplicity and stillness in a city that is always moving forward. While we have only been here for two days, I can tell that we are going to have a great time in this town, and will hopefully return to Beijing a little better dressed than we came.

Saying goodbye (for now) to the hutong

We both knew the moment would have to come sometime, but Ted and I both left our hutong last night knowing we would miss our little corner of Beijing. This hutong has been a home away from home for us, as we went from the strange laowais who must be lost in the eyes of the neighbors, to the local patrons who couldn't live without their morning sweets and evening snacks.

Living in the hutong, we got a first-hand experience of the state of development in Beijing's hutongs, and just like many things in Beijing, things may not always be what they seem. The scene to the right shows a house that we saw being torn down, brick by brick, with a pick ax. Everyday we would walk by and see a little more of the building had been knocked down and carried away, and we couldn't help but feel disappointed at the sight of this destruction.

But as we explored deeper in the hutong, we also found this example of traditional craftsmanship being used to build new siheyuans where older ones had been torn down. While it is not pleasant seeing the historic fabric being torn down by two men at a time, it is still reassuring that in some areas of Beijing measures are being taken to ensure that new structures will be as authentic as possible, and will blend in with the existing landscape, which is a far cry from the disney-fication of the hutongs of Qianmen and Chongwen. These two men are working in a tandem to prepare beams, with the man in the foreground shaving the log, after which the other man uses an adz to square the log.

Beyond the mounds of information that Ted and I were able to gather from our experience here, I think we will remember the people and the food the most. So used to our faces at all times of day asking for two thick slices of Tamarind bread, the woman working the sweets stand to the left gave us one of those tasty looking muffins as goodbye gift when we stopped by on our way to catch the overnight train. Even though we only speak about 10 words of Mandarin and she speaks no English, I could tell by her smile and kind gesture that she got a kick out of our frequenting her stand, and knew that we were thoroughly addicted to her bread.

Now that we are in Qingdao (which Ted is going to write all about), it has made me realize how unique the hutong experience is. Before I could only read about how people valued or devalued the hutong, but seeing it myself, I know I will miss the community there.

But all is not lost: Ted and I loved the neighborhood so much that we are going to stay there again at the very end of our time in China, at which time we will be going on a tour of the great wall with the great staff at Templeside.

For now though, we are bumming on the beaches of Qingdao, where fitness is a way of life, and the architecture is a strange mix of dilapidated European sophistication and Asian modernism. I can tell you already that while the beach is nice, I would kill for some of that Tamarind bread right now ...

Just so you know ...

Ted and I just wanted everyone to know that we will be out of touch for at least a day, as we are taking the night train to Qingdao in a few hours. We will be staying there for a few days (a few blocks away from the beach), where we will be sipping on Tsingtao straight from the source.

After that, we will be making the 20 hour train ride to Shanghai, where we will be staying for about a week before returning to Beijing on the 20th. We'll make sure to update regularly, and post a few pictures from the beach and the shopping mecca of Shanghai.

On a more serious note, Ted and I had a great meeting with the volunteers down at Friends of Old Beijing, which had been doing great grassroots advocacy for the preservation of the remaining hutongs in Beijing. If you have a second, you should check out their website so you can get an idea of the fantastic work and advocacy they have been doing in the Beijing community.

But, I'll have to talk about that later. Ted and I have a soft sleeper calling our name ...

"Lazy" Sunday

So Ted and I finally decided to take the subway for the first time yesterday. We had to get to a market all the way across town, and to be honest, my feet have been killing me. I can count three band-aids on them as of right now, and that is even after the restful day we had today. After our plans to see the national museum earlier this week were thwarted when we found out it was closed for repairs, we saw yesterday numerous posters throughout the subway for the capital museum. They were hosting a Greek exhibit on loan from the Louvre, which perked Ted and I's interest immediately.

So when we had no other plans for our lazy Sunday, we decided to go check out this brand spankin' new museum, which was just completed last year. While the in-house collection was not that extensive, we really enjoyed the few pieces that were on display in the special Greek exhibit in the main hall.

The collection was comprised of stone statuary and red and black Attic vases, but was hard to see because of the hordes of people pushing to get a look at the art, all snapping photographs. One man Ted and I saw took at least three pictures of every piece, and at least one of all of the information cards. Sheesh. But instead of me tiredly mumbling on about the exhibit, I thought I would share the few pictures I took:

After a while of pushing through people to get a glimpse at some art, Ted and I had worked up a big appetite and found a little but boisterous place to grab some lunch close to the museum. Everything on the menu was either seafood or spicy food, so we decided to go for the latter. To our table came buckwheat noodles which were smothered in chili oil, and ground chicken floating in a sea of red peppers, ginger, and green onions. Needless to say, the Tsingtao was chugged to extinguish the fires in our mouths, and we left with noses running but pocketbooks barely dented. It makes my nose hurt just thinking about it!

So we rolled ourselves down to the subway for the ride home, where we got to share some intimate moments with our fellow riders... all 100 thousand of them. At one point, I thought Ted and I were going to get separated, as I got pushed onto the 1 line by a sea of Beijingers, while Ted almost got left behind. Luckily he made it in the car with the last desperate push of riders to make the train, and we managed to get home intact.

It was still fairly early in the afternoon, so I decided to let Ted live out his Beijing dream: take a paddle boat out onto Houhai lake. Note to potential paddlers: avoid the damn thing when the wind has been gusting all day. The boats are not necessarily what you would call "aerodynamic" so expect to paddle hard against the wind to get to your destination. Also, if you are above "typical Asian stature", this may not be the ride for you. About 5 minutes in, Ted had to ghetto rig a front seat so that he could paddle from the front, where there was enough leg room to prevent, and I quote, "my ass from cramping up something fierce". But again, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:
Before I forget, I also have to mention the band that we listened to for quite some time before hopping onto the paddle boat. The great thing about Beijing is that there are people doing great things in public all the time. If you visit a park, there is usually something going on, and today at Houhai there was a classical Chinese band there that blew Ted and I away. The violin player (Chinese two string violin: I don't know the technical term) was amazing, and you could tell these old guys knew how to wail. They had drawn a huge crowd, and still had one hours later when Ted and I walked by the same pavilion after the boat ride.

We ended the day with an indulgence that Ted and I have been craving: pizza. Since we were down on Houhai we decided to stop into one of the trendy bars (which was empty being Sunday night and all) to have a beer and some 'za (thanks Lee). The pizza was very mediocre, but it was the first melted cheese we had had in over a week. Yum. And you know, the place was pretty cute. We decided to sit at the big booth with high benches and a low table, where we had to take off our shoes and sit cross-legged on big over-stuffed cushions. This is a far cry from some of the places we have been frequenting since our arrival in Beijing, which usually feature chairs with removable seat covers and chopsticks which come in the same packet as a moist towelette. It almost made the overpriced pizza seem worth it.

Since we only have a couple of days left in Beijing before we head to Qingdao and Shanghai, I thought I would leave you with a shot of the Drum Tower across Houhai at night:

lolbeijing

Count da craens!
Dis Partee propagandeh brot to u by Nintendo Wii!
Um, which wey did the Revolushun go?
U takes us home naow? Pleez?
U doen yet? Iz embarassing.
Huuuugs!
Im in ur marckets maeking a mockery of UO outreech programz
Sad hutong kitteh... iz sad.
O knee how! Pinyin Kitteh halps dumm laowai!

Qianmen, day two

It seemed this morning that Ted and I had began to face the dreaded traveler's burn out. You know, that feeling that you've already seen a lot of things in a city, and its gotten to the point where you no longer wake up instantly with a destination in mind for the day. This morning we had that feeling, as we were clueless about what to do today as we shopped at our local corner store for some essentials and picked up some more delicious tamarind bread (which Ted described on his blog) for breakfast from the hutong.

But while we sat and drank our morning cha (jasmine tea), we both agreed that we should head down to the Qianmen area again. No, we didn't want to go back for the expensive duck, but instead were intrigued by something we had seen the day before.

It was this: a billboard for a new shopping mall, which is to be completed in a hutong style. While it was hard to tell through the gates what exactly had been there before as it had been entirely cleared out for construction, I had heard about sections of Qianmen (historic sections none the less) being torn down to make way for a pedestrian mall as part of an overall city improvement plan to ready Beijing for the Olympics, so we thought we would go down and take a look for ourselves what was happening at the site.

What we saw was quite astounding. While this shopping mall was in no way a sporting venue for the games, it had Olympic logos, complete with Olympic mascots and the Paralympics logo pasted all over the walls which hide the construction site from view. They also showed a computer generated image of what the mall would look like, complete with a trolley system and a multi-cultural shoppers. A similar wall around the corner states "All brands coexist harmoniously: Ideal ancient streetscape for tourists".

Uh-oh. I could see the biggest no-no known to preservations in the making. To a preservationist, tearing down a historic building is bad enough, but building fake disney-fied ones to replace them? Even worse. It is widely accepted internationally that preservation, no matter what the intention, should make it clear which buildings and building sections are originals, and which are new additions or structures. This way, no one is fooled into believing that something is a historic form when it is clearly a reproduction.

But what is happening in Beijing is that the hutong, which was once a non-deserving form that was thrown to the wayside of economic growth, has now been targeted as a huge moneymaker for the city of Beijing. As more and more international-looking, forgettable skyscrapers fill the landscape of Beijing, any and all historic structures, including the hutong, are now bringing in loads of money acting as tourist destinations. International tourists, who can see big buildings anywhere (and whom I know didn't come for the pollution), come to Beijing for the historic value of this place. There is history everywhere, and as the government has recently realized, there is also valuable history in the vernacular form of the siheyuan and the winding hutongs that give a glimpse into imperial life hundreds of years ago.

Now that this realization has occurred, it has almost been to the detriment of these areas, especially those in close proximity to larger cultural sites, as seen at Qianmen. And who knows what is in store for the bombed-out areas I showed you yesterday: they could be luxury apartments, luxury siheyuan (which, by the way, sell for over $1.3 million US), or could be a part of this retail development down the street. With all of these walls up blocking what is really going on at these sites, hidden by phrases such as "600 years of commerce" and Beijing 2008 logos, it is hard to tell at this time what the future holds for Qianmen.

But on a more pleasant note, Ted and I did get to see the Temple of Heaven, which was beautiful in the morning light. There were roses everywhere of all different varieties, and the park was full of beautiful green grass and perfectly planted trees. We followed this up with a nice, cheap lunch in the alley (eating like the locals do, and at the local price - 71 yuan), and made the long trip home, stumbling north through the Xidan shopping district and financial street. Tomorrow we rest in the park, if the weather permits - it started raining just now ...

Qianmen and the quest for Peking duck

After our depressing day at the zoo yesterday, Ted an I decided that we needed the ultimate pick-me-up: a traditional Peking duck meal. Ted, being the ultimate foodie, had already researched where to get the best duck in town, and declared we would head down to the Qianmen neighborhood in search of this culinary delight.

On the way we couldn't help but stop by Tienanmen Square again, as there were only thousands of people there today in contrast with the millions on national day. But to tell you the truth, we were drawn to the area by catching a glimpse of this sight through a hutong:












It was the new national theater which was just completed this year, and Ted and I couldn't help but be drawn to it like a fat kid to a twinkie. I have to say, it looked beautiful in the pollution filtered morning light, as Chinese tourists walked around its moat taking in the sight before moving on to the Great Hall of the People. Complete with Egyptian-inspired papyrus bundle capitals and red flags waving for national week, the building was quite impressive, and made a powerful impact upon the square.

The square itself is also quite impressive, as it is surrounded by massive government buildings that were built to inspire. There are also monuments to laborers on the square which flank Chairman Mao's mausoleum, which was closed for the day. Too bad, considering I got all worked up to see the man after being offered the coolest item I've spotted in Beijing thus far: the Chairman Mao watch, complete with "solute to the people" action, as demonstrated on Ted's blog.

After completing the tourist's loop of the monuments, we shuffled through the crowds to get to the Beijing Planning Exhibition Hall. A magnet for laowai like ourselves, we joined other white tourists to see all of the wonderful plans that Beijing has for the future. Or we all just came to see the huge model of the city of Beijing. Whatever.

Covering a whole floor, the model shows every little detail of metropolitan Beijing. But being the history nerd I am, I was immediately drawn to the preservation section of the planning hall, which went into detail about the evolution of preservation agendas implemented by the municipal government. It was very informative, so I took a picture of every single display they had, models of siheyuan and all (siheyuan are the traditional courtyard houses of the hutong).

Being that I was inspired by the planning hall, Ted and I decided to swing through the Qianmen hutongs to get a glimpse of the neighborhoods that inspired my thesis topic, which was an eye opening experience. As you can see, it looked as if a bomb went off in these areas, as walls were missing, bricks were wearing away, and the streets hadn't even been paved, which is a luxury that most hutongs have been afforded over the years in Beijing. What was even more interesting is that we had entered from a back area that was not blocked off, but it was obviously a construction zone. It was hard to tell what kind of work they were doing, but by comparing it to work that had already been done on the main street to the west, they were preparing to build a wall in front of the homes to block them from view.

Seeing this, and then immediately walking onto the main street where they had constructed new walls in attempt to hide the homes from view was a huge wake-up call. Ted and I had seen many new walls around the city and got small glimpses here and there of the crumbling buildings behind them, but we had not yet actually walked behind any of these walls to see the utter destruction that lay behind them. In our little hutong the homes are fairly run down, and also stand behind new walls that hide the true state of the structures, but it comes nothing close to this. We found out today that our hutong is actually one of the protected areas under a new conservation plan in Beijing, which means that new buildings going up here are in the old style, and the ones that remain are kept in at least standing condition. Here, who knows what will happen to these structures, how long they have been ignored, and if people will continue to live here in the future. I do have to admit though that I laughed most of the way through the hutong, as the construction workers got a kick out of the laowai walking through that part of town, laughing at us and saying hello. Those Beijingers and their sense of humor ...

After trekking down to Tienanmen and Qianmen, Ted and I had worked up an appetite, and decided upon a place in a still-standing and decent hutong a little west of the bomb site seen above to dine on duck. While we really got the laowai price (240 yuan! What?), we also got one superb meal that we will still be drooling about when we get home. I took a picture so we could share it all with you:

The one and only Peking duck, sliced table side, with plum sauce, pancakes, what we identified as slivered daikon radish, cucumber bites doused in vinegar dressing, duck soup made from the leftovers after slicing, and no meal would be complete without a glass (or six) of Tsingtao. Enjoy!

I know people use the phrase "concrete jungle", but come on ...

You want to know what the saddest thing in Beijing is? Let me show you:
That's right, folks. Right in the midst of boundless pride associated with national week, Ted and I witnessed one sad excuse of a zoo today at the Beijing Zoo. While we had heard that the place was ghetto fabulous and the admission was only 20 yuan (compared to the 100 yuan for the new aquarium), we still thought it would be worth the walk to see the pandas and such at the largest zoo in China.

Well, I guess you get what you pay for. Not only did we get to see exotic animal species such as nutria and skunks, but we also got to see animals in exquisite cages which included such luxury items as fake plants and painted backgrounds. As Ted put it, you could just see the designer saying, "They're just stupid animals; they can't tell the difference if it is real or painted on!" But the worst was probably a tie between the big cat house and the nocturnal animals. As you can see, the big cats all looked like they wanted to die: they were either curled up in a corner or pacing furiously, looking as if they wanted to tear the head off of every last one of the gawking zoo goers. The nocturnal animal house featured cracked windows which looked like they had been patched with spackle and animals that were traumatized by endless flash photography and screaming children. Don't worry though, there was a sign saying there was no smoking allowed.

Other wonderful interactions witnessed at the zoo were children throwing trash and food into the open enclosures, a man throwing rocks at a sick wolf that was missing one ear, and a man tapping on the glass of the outer cage for polecats, which were all housed in cages ... inside the glass enclosure.

Even as sad as those images are, the worst thing witnessed on the day was at the bear enclosure. Looking depressed and hungry, one bear began to paw at a cracker that a kid threw down into the mud and concrete enclosure. I kid you not, there was a construction zone directly behind the bears, concrete was everywhere, the only "natural" thing there was dirty looking water in the corner, the trees were even surrounded by concrete, and the bear sat there, trying to paw a cracker out of the mud.

As sad as it was, Ted and I decided to go check out the main attraction before heading home, the giant panda house. While these enclosures had obviously had more time and effort put into their construction, the pandas were so put off my the chaos and flashbulbs surrounding them that they sat facing the back wall of their enclosures as to avoid the herd of pushing gawkers and small children, all being yelled at by some dude with a megaphone who was probably there to control the crowd.

So what we thought was going to be a nice half day at the zoo turned out to be the downer of the week. After seeing such horrible enclosures and depressed animals, we couldn't help but take it home with us, as we haven't stopped a second to catch our breath from the time our plane landed this weekend. Needless to say, we spent the second half of the afternoon relaxing on the roof of the hostel, reading, emailing, and soaking in the sun of what was the most beautiful day so far of our stay in Beijing. Yes, we could even see the moon and some clouds, which was a first, as we usually can't even see the sun on an average day because the pollution is so bad.

After some much needed relaxation and some store-bought soup with steamed buns from the hutong, I think we will be ready to hit the streets again tomorrow.