Unexpected Beijing

I have long dreamed of visiting China, but mainly to see the Great Wall and the Forbidden City. I hadn't really thought about China much outside of history.

We planned the trip around the monuments, and even though the Chinese ladies in the library kept telling me how much I'd love Beijing, and how fun and modern it was, their words sort of fell on deaf ears. I was genuinely surprised at how cool and funky it was.

Catail rooftop bar

MicroBreweries are everywhere

Our hotel was in the Beijing Fun district, a newly renovated area mixing old with new perfectly, so we spent our nights roaming the streets and looking for bars. Travel tip #1: Look up. A lot of bars are on the roof or have views. Worth noting, we were there Monday and Tuesday nights and everything seemed to shut at 11pm.

Art in the street

Travel tip #2: Follow the music. You will hear music coming out of alleys, and if you follow it, you'll discover it opens into a big square. If there is a fountain, it will dance with a light show and there will be a pop up bar. These seem to be sponsored by the Beijing beer that sponsoring the upcoming Olympics, so it feels very festive.

Seat in a bar

Travel tip #3: Get off the main drag, especially in the Hutongs. Around the corner may be a square with restaurants, bars and art installations. Beijing, like Berlin, has many gems hidden from the main street, but you soon get an eye for spying where there might be something worth exploring.

Art is everywhere!

Lego Temple of Heaven

Travel tip #4: You need to be fit, or comfortable walking...a lot. The historic sites are massive. Even if you are dropped at the door, you will walk kilometres. We averaged 12-14kms a day, and on the day we visited the Forbidden City, we covered 18kms, and that's also using taxi's and electric rickshaws to get around in between locations.

At the Summer Palace

Travel tip #5:  It is worth knowing Journey to the West (the story behind Monkey). There are references everywhere. It comes up constantly. There are two fairly recent films and your library will probably have a children's book of the tale. Also worth watching The Last Emperor, our guides kept refering to it, both in and outside of the Forbidden City.











We commented a lot about how clean and uncrowded Beijing felt. Other than at the tourist sights, which were packed with predominately chinese tourists, you could move through the streets with ease. So prepared to be surprised and delighted. It's a really fun city to explore!

Other than the walking (and heat), I think kids would love Beijing as there's so much colour and entertainment around on the streets. You could also set up a 'Spotto' kind of game for the Monkey King.

Fun shop window

Practicalities:

We stayed in The Emperor Tiananmen which is a good location for night time wanders.

Further Reading:
Atlas Obscura - 24 Cool, Hidden and Fun things to do in Beijing
Bespoke Travel Company on Beijing FUN

Dhawa Jinshanling and the Great Wall of China

Food Streets in Xi'an

Animated shop window

Linking with #MuralMonday for the 2 murals, old and new.