A Tourist in Beijing

In reality I was only a tourist in Beijing for a couple of days. I really was a resident for some 6 months and during that time I investigated the Chinese people, their history, their heritage and their landmarks.

Upon arriving in Beijing I went right to work at Sino Bright #8 – a BC Off-Shore School.

But after work and on week-ends I walked, cabbed and bussed my way through all of Beijing. And there is a lot to see!

I lived in the area directly north of Wangfujin Street, the most famous of all the shopping streets in Beijing. My accommodation was a 2 story, 2 bath, 3 bedroom apartment in the middle of one of the famous “hu tong” areas of Beijing. It is a 5 minute walk from the Beijing Drum and Bell Towers, a 10 minute walk from Ho Hai Lake complex and a 60 minute walk from the Olympic Stadium – The Bird’s Nest.

It didn’t take me long before I had been to the Temple of Heaven, The Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, the Great Wall (twice), the Summer Palace, The Beijing Zoo and the Blue Zoo (The Aquarium).

Of course my walking took me to the Pearl Market, The Silk Market, Yua Shu and Yu Show Markets and Tian Ee Shopping Market. I also found the Antique Center. But in my 5 months of travelling and serious hunting I could not find where they made or sold snow-boarding or fly-fishing equipment.

I had also been to the Great Hall of the People, a Fishing Market, the beautiful Fall Gardens, watched the National Acrobats, the National Magicians, seen the National Ballet as well as taking in a city wide Art Exhibit. I also took in a theme park, bumper cars, a boat ride and after being introduced by the Canadian Ambassador from Canada to China took part in the 8^th Beijing Chapter of the Terry Fox Run, and I completed it.

I witnessed the happenings of The Sino-African Summit, the visit to Beijing of then French President Jacques Chirac and Russian President Putin.

I visited schools and classrooms and debated the strengths of both systems with Chinese teachers and principals in Beijing. My vice principal and I put on a pro-development sessions for 300 teachers – trying to illustrate “what a BC school really is” and how it might differ from a Chinese school.

There are many things that western visitors to China would notice immediately. Depending on the time of the year you might notice the cold and the wind, or the heat and high humidity but no matter when you arrive you notice the smog.

You’ll also notice the millions of people – there are approximately 1.4 billion people in China and about 15 million living in Beijing. And millions of them are cigarette smokers. They smoke on the street, in public and private buildings and in all restaurants. You’ll also notice a million cabs, a very well conceived bus and metro system. You’ll notice millions of mo-peds and bicycles but everyday China adds another 1000 privately owned automobiles to the streets of China. You’ll notice the millions of children who leave for school every morning proudly wearing their school uniform. And depending upon how long you are in Beijing and what type and location of accommodation you have you will notice the small shops and the small restaurants where thousands of young kids work 12 hour days trying to make enough money so they can go to school. You should also notice that everyone is trying to learn and practice their English language skills – and while it is all better than my Mandarin – it just wasn’t good enough for them. And again, depending on your mode of holiday you might notice the smells and sights that really separate Beijing and other cities in China from western tourist sites.

The Chinese government is trying to restrict smoking in restaurants but there are enough restaurants in Beijing for you to eat out three times a day for years and never eat at the same place twice so policing that will be a real difficult task. Recently one of the big restaurant chains tried implementing the new law which prohibits smoking in restaurants and their business dropped so much they will either declare bankruptcy or ignore the law.

The million cabs are probably reminiscent of major global cities like New York but they are very inexpensive. Cabbies don’t expect tips, speak any number of different Mandarin dialects, speak very little English and seemly never take the customer “for a ride”.

The bus system is very helpful as well. You never have to wait for more than 2 or 3 minutes for the next bus to come by. And I don’t mean any next bus but the same bus you were waiting for, however the drivers don’t speak English, most signs are in Mandarin and getting a seat can be a challenge. But you can ride in almost any direction for one Yuan (1 RMB or $0.15)

I found the metro just a little bit more difficult but once who have your directions straight you’ll be fine. And it might be safer than the streets even though I never felt unsafe on the streets, at any time of the day or night. The millions of people and the seemingly millions of mo-peds and bikes are a wonder to behold. But the most amazing aspect is that they all merge without any significant problems. And of course, add more and more cars and rookie drivers and you have a potential traffic problem but in Beijing it appears to be no traffic problem. Horns honk but it’s not about road rage – it’s a warning that “I’m here, be careful”.

You’ll also notice in this “Age of Interruption” are the number of cell phones in China. The cost of a gigantic land phone infrastructure is just too costly – so why not take advantage of cyperspace. Cell phones are very inexpensive in China – that makes it a viable option.

For the culinary experts or just food lovers there is the food of China. From the international fare of the world in global Beijing to the native Chinese fare you are able to get everything you want. But I encourage you to try the Chinese foods – it is great! My resolution from day one was – “eat it all, eat whatever is put in front of me and ask questions later”.

I’m not a big breakfast eater so breakfast for me was always in my apartment from Monday to Friday. I was able to get my morning coffee – whether it be at Starbucks or at McDonald’s; it did the trick. The shopping markets are full of various eggs, meats and yogurts – so try them out.

I started my visit to Beijing eating the student lunches at Beijing #25 but it didn’t take very long before I ventured out into the streets at noon and investigated the Chinese dishes. Whether it was noodles, dumplings, soups, vegetable or seafood dishes - they all were excellent. I tried the small street vendor specialties as well. I fell in love with what I call the “Beijing Breakfast”. You watch them make this crepe egg waffle and special sauce concoction and wrap it up in a small plastic bag for ease of eating. I also tried the fish, pork or chicken on a skewer. And the cost is very cheap– from 3 Yuan ($0.45) a skewer to 12 Yuan for a one person lunch. But be ready to stand in a line if you eat from 12:00 noon to 1:00 pm.

Dinner in Beijing is what you make of it. From small corner eateries to fancy restaurants the food is varied and delicious. As the principal of SBS #25 I was taken out often and treated very well. I ate food from almost all the different provinces and have no real preferences. It seems to me that most of us in BC are used to a variety of “Chinese” dishes that are more from Hong Kong than from Beijing because there are subtle differences.

I ate tree fungus, chicken feet, stomach, pig ears and knuckles, seafood including eel as well as many fresh and salt water fishes, hot and cold desserts, pork, chicken, mutton, beef, squirrel, rabbit, wheat and rice noodles and all with chop sticks. And the Chinese beer (pi jo is cheap and good - from 3 Yuan in small eateries for a litre to 40 Yuan in the 5 Star Restaurants a litre). And don’t drink the water unless it comes from a sealed bottle.

The restaurants are as varied as the food types. They can be 5 Star quality, located in the great hotels or near the shopping streets, with great menus and waiters who speak English and they are very clean and quiet – if you can forgive the live entertainment. They can be small, and I mean small. These street quality restaurants might not have a readable menu, the noise level is almost unbearable, waiters could be street kids who might not know any English at all, the noise wouldn’t be from entertainment but from the many lively conversations going on or the cell phone conversations that are just part of live in Beijing. And of course, the smoking is there, always there. Get used to it as it is sometimes the lesser of two evils. And get used to the ambiance or lack of it – the smells, the décor, the smoking, the noise, the street traffic and the lack of order is all part of your China experience of you chose to accept it. I did.

Let me talk about chop sticks for a while. I’m left handed so I just started using chop sticks with my left hand. But in China all children are taught to use their right hand. One afternoon, while sitting in a nearby mid-sized restaurant I noticed I was been spied upon by a young Chinese boy. He had been watching me for some time and when he got his mother’s attention he started to laugh. I was taken aback but later found out that he was just surprised to see me using my left hand and wasn’t really laughing at my chop stick skills. In the small and mid-sized restaurants you won’t get forks, knives and spoons so bring them with you if chop sticks aren’t your thing.

Another thing you’ll notice in China is the shopping and the bargaining. People have said that The Silk Market is a micro-cosmism of China. When you get to the “Markets” you’ll notice the frenzy and the girls. There are guys working in the market but there are an enormous number of girls working in the markets, they all have a working use of the English language and they are there from before opening to closing – 7 days a week. There are no sick days, no holidays, and I doubt there are any benefits but these kids work to make money and in most cases they can save enough money to continue their education in some form or another.

And they bargain! Bargaining is part of everyday life in China. Be prepared the bargains and the great styles but also be prepared for the arm grabbing, the “Hey Mister”, “just look”, “come in and take a look”, “you need shoes?” Be prepared for the brand names - Polo, North Face, Spyder, Tommy, Gucci, Chloe, Coach, - the list goes on. You will be their first sale of the day, you are their friends, and you will be given special price. If you look ever-so-interested you are fair game. They usually ask 10 times more than they really expect to get - so start low. They will not sell you anything at a loss and will probably not let you go if they can make a sale and make 2 Yuan. And don’t get too excited about 2-5 Yuan… its only 30-65 cents. The markets are all fairly comprehensive. There are pearls at all the markets, they all sell electronics and clothing and they all have knock-offs. And everything is a knock-off. It looks like the real thing. There are no sale-slips or receipts so taking things back is difficult if not impossible. And if you feel you have been mistreated there is a service department which deals with major complaints.