Hutongs, Smog and People

Café on first floor of our apartment complex - very modern

Mango and Berry smoothies are the best. As are the tempura sweet potato chips.

While Brianna is in North Korea I decided I would take myself off to explore some of the areas close to our apartment, (thus avoiding the long taxi drives in bad traffic, with the possibility of a driver that wants to make a wee bit more money, taking me on a very long, long, long drive)

Love the doors. Attention to detail.
 Even with these limitations I have found some gorgeous parks, great shopping and stepping off the main roads, a maze of Hutongs.

Shopping . . . .all the Big Brand Names

Beautiful parks and community areas

At first glance Beijing appears like a very modern city, however you can still find the city’s alleyways (Hutongs) weaving across most of central Beijing. These were formally the houses of the well to do, officials or prostitutes.

The modernization & increasing population within Beijing has destroyed many traditional Sibeyuan (courtyard houses within the hutongs). With few opportunities for work in the countryside, tens of millions are moving to the cities in search of a better life.
As space became an issue additional buildings have filled in the area traditionally open as a leafy quiet courtyard in the middle of most structures.. Several families may now live within an area once designed for only one family.

Traditional Inner courtyard

Living in poor conditions, dissatisfaction is widespread and increasing with regards to corruption, pollution, environmental degradation, and the expensive rise in the cost of living.

However, if you don’t dwell on the social inadequacies and want an interesting afternoon, wandering around the hutongs looking into the Sibeyuan, is a fascinating way to spend some time.

I was amazed at how often I felt like I was back in Italy . . . .the flecks of layered paint, decorative wood paneling and detail to architecture. . . .

As population growth drives a consumer boom, China’s energy needs are fast outstripping its capacity and a major expansion of its network of coal-fired generating stations is planned. When China is already the planet’s biggest polluter – resulting in an atmosphere that is almost furry enough to stroke, you wonder what the end result will be?

Coal blocks used for heating and cooking - continuously polluting the air

I cleaned the air conditioner when we first arrived in our apartment, and only weeks into our stay, I am amazed at the thick layer of sooty debris that is coating the vents.

Yuckkkkkkkkkkkk!

 It's no wonder that the city has many gorgeous parks that are widely used for social gathering, exercising & gambling.

Open green areas are artificially created and well maintained

Beijing - a contradiction at every turn

Arriving early you can still avoid the tourists (ha! - No! We are not tourists. We are travelers.)

Temple of Heaven

Olympic stadium

Gardens along every road are well maintained, beautiful and used by the Bearinger's

The older buildings are rapidly being replaced by high rise modern buildings

Dancing in the streets Beijing style. Very nice way to spend an evening with the gals

Turn a corner and another intriguing vista . . . though Brianna is quick to point out that we are in an area of some affluence . . .which is different to the ones with more effluence!!!!

On this outing I stumbled across Beijing’s most spectacular temple complex, The Lama Temple. This has 5 main halls flanked by numerous smaller very ornate buildings that were constructed during the 17th Century and converted into a Tibetan Lamasery in 1744. The highlight is the 55ft statue of Mailtreya, the future Buddha. The idea that impressed me is  that this 17m high structure (with another 6m underground) was carved from one single sandalwood tree. The tree was a gift from the Tibetan people to the Emperor and took 3 years for numerous Imperial carvers to sculpt the single gold covered statue. 

I can’t help but wonder if trees of such magnificent height and girth even exist today.

Bri is back and we intend on doing some more girl things . . . .guess!!!!!

Beijing, the capital of the People’s Republic of China is one of the world’s largest cities with a population of over 14 million. It is a microcosm of modern China and all its contradictions. A bustling city of affluent shoppers, trendy youth, and beggars that rub along with a myriad of outlets with diverse cuisine, 6 million bicycles and 20 thousand new cars ( that win their place on the clogged roads through a national lottery with over 100,000 entries each month)

Expanding in concentric rings from the Forbidden City at its core, the grid-like layout of modern Beijing still echoes its Ming dynasty blueprint. Old Beijing survives in its temples, palaces and old alleyways ( hutongs) that crisscross the city outside the second ring road, which itself charts the loop of the demolished City Wall. Within this ancient outline are towering skyscrapers, shopping malls, huge avenues, vaulting flyovers, ancient structures of cultural significance and the vast expanse of Tiananmen Square.

While Bri was away I took a taxi to Di Tan Park, an ideal place to relax amidst the trees where the city does not appear to intrude. This was the venue for Imperial sacrifices, with an Alter dating from the Ming Dynasty. Wandering around watching people play cards in the ancient renovated structures, walk their babies in modern strollers, play musical instruments or dance is a great way to spend a hot Beijing day. I was still there at dusk to see the modern young couples stroll hand in hand or sit smooching. . . I could not help but wonder if the Ming imperial worshippers ever imagined such a use of their Fangze Tan (temple of earth alter)

Di Tan Park - playing cards

I know I have been around for awhile now, but I had never in all my years considered using a chair in this fashion. Silly me !! I thought the legs went vertical to the seat ?

I spent a few days wandering around the Hutongs of Dongcheng. Many of the shops were under construction but I found enough to spend time rummaging. When I encounter these chaotic collections I feel avidity or greed or liberated excitement. 

It's hard to explain what it's like to have something so alien or old in your hands for the first time. To pick up a snuff bottle, a lacquered box, an exquisite cup, or a netsuke - in a material that you have never encountered. To shift it around, to find its weight and balance. 

There are objects that can only be described as 'play things', small carvings of animals that roll in your hand. Very rich, very simple, very tactile. . .  Seductive Things

Rubbing a finger along the raised decoration of a stork in flight through clouds, mmmm!

We are organizing trips to Chandixia, Longqing, Pingyao, and Chengdi