Beijing Travel

One thing I had trouble finding in China was first aid supplies. I brought some of my own, but the pharmacy is a confusing place and you can't expect to find the plethora of supplies available at any Longs Drug, Walgreens, or various other stores that are spread across the Western world. Unless you want to make a trip to either Carefour (the Chinese Wal-mart) or track down the occasional Wal-mart; it's much better to come prepared. Based on my own experience both providing medical needs to others and bumming first aid supplies I forgot to bring, here's a good list of stuff you should pack, without burdening your suitcase too much.

Over-the-Counter Drugs

Headache remedies are a must - you won't easily find the brand you prefer in China, so bring Tylenol, Bayer, Advil, or whatever it is that cures your aches and pains.

Diarrhea medicine is something i thankfully never needed, but frequently passed out to others I traveled with. Definitely pack some, or someone (possibly you) will be sorry.

Histamine blockers are useful for unfamiliar pollens and allergens. You may discover allergies you never knew you had while traveling abroad.

Decongestants will be a life saver when you or someone you know succumbs to the polluted air in many parts of China.

First Aid Supplies

Hand sanitizer is a must because you won't find many public restrooms with soap (and the truly public restrooms are best avoided anyway).

Antibacterial ointments and hydrogen peroxide are a good thing to have to keep cuts from getting infected.

A small box of assorted bandages, some cotton bandages, and bandaging tape all come in handy for minor cuts and blisters.

Grooming tools like nail scissors, finger nail clippers, and tweezers all come in handy both for intended purposes and playing nurse.

If you have any prescription medications you are required to take, bring enough for your trip and a little extra so that you don't run out in the event of an emergency. Of course, consult your physician and pharmacist for any specific needs you might have.

"I'm packing for China and I want to know what the maximum weight requirements are for my suitcases"

The times I've traveled to China the maximum weights for checked luggage were similar to requirements in the U.S., which I believe are typically 70 lbs. If you happen to take flights between cities in China, things may get more complicated because they intra-China flights often have luggage requirements for far less weight (typically about 50 lbs.). If you have several flights after arriving in China, plan to pack for for the more strict airline requirements. Otherwise you may be paying a fine for your overweight bags.

One thing I did during my travels was leave luggage in storage at one hotel in Beijing while I traveled to other parts of China. I picked it up when I checked back into the hotel a week later. This had the advantage of not needing to lug extra stuff, but with the potential risk of something happening to the suitcase while I was absent. It worked out great and I'd likely do the same thing next time if it were an option.

The Summer Palace is one of the historical destinations everyone should try to visit at least once. Located just outside the 3rd Ring Road, It's included on most Beijing tour ioutings and is also a popular park for Beijing residents looking for a place to escape concrete and steel. The Summer Palace has survived two separate attacks since it's creation in 1750, the most recent during the Boxer Rebellion. It was best known as the summer resort of Empress Dowager Cixi. While the architecture and surrounding scenery is always beautiful, catching the Summer Palace on a clear day is truly breath taking. Be sure to take the boat ride across the nearby Kunming Lake for some of the best views.

If you're feeling adventurous and want to experience food you're not likely to find in your home country, Lao Hanzi is the perfect restaurant destination. Located on the edge of the Houhai lake area, this is one of the true culinary bargains in Beijing. Aside from some of the best whole fish selection I had while dining in the city, Lao Hanzi offers a number of things off the culinary beaten path. Fried snake, which is a little bony and fits the "tastes like chicken" cliche, is a perfect choice for adventurous eating without taking any risks. If you like prawns, you can't go wrong with the bucket of rock salt cooked with enormous shrimp skewered and buried in the salt (yes, you are supposed to eat the head and the shell). Numerous animal parts are on the menu as the Hakka palate is from the part of China where anything is fair game at the dinner table. This is a restaurant where you will likely be surrounded by locals as it isn't a frequent tourist destination, which is always a good thing in my book. Plan on dinner lasting for at least 2 hours as this is an experience.

Location: 1/F, Jiezuo Building, 57 Xingfucun Zhonglu
幸福村中路57号杰座大厦1层

The Red Theater, located in Beijing's Chongwen district, offers Vegas-style Kung Fu entertainment, complete with requisite lights, fog and bombastic music. It's Kung Fu if Cirque De Soleil did Kung Fu. The show tracks the story of a boy who's dropped off at a Buddhist temple by his mother and slowly grows through kung fu training and temptation into the next leader of the temple. The video above offers a better intro to the show than anything I could possibly say about it.

No photographing or videotaping are allowed during the performance because the theater makes most of its money selling you DVDs and trinkets after the show.

Like any good college neighborhood, the Haidian area housing both Bei Da (Peking University) and TsingHua, has a bar district ready to cater to students looking for a party. Propaganda is possibly the best dance bar in the area, playing a popular mix of dance music from Europe and hip-hop from the United States. The crowd is largely foreigners and the bartenders speak reasonably good English, so if your Chinese is rusty, you'll do okay. Like most bars in China, if you want to sit down, you need to pay for bottle service.

To get here, simply tell a cab driver you want to go to "Wu Dao Kou Jiu Ba Jie" (pronounced: woo dow coe jeeoh bah jeeuh), which is the location of Propaganda, Lush, and a couple great burger and pizza joints.

Here's a video taken outside Propaganda with Spanish language:

Mexican food is nearly impossible to find in Beijing. As of August 2007, Taco Bell hadn't opened a single store closer than Shanghai. This made El Fogoncito something of a culinary oasis in Beijing.

Four weeks into my most recent trip to China I was sick of noodles and rice and had a craving for Mexican food. Lucky for me, one of the members of my travel group was a Mexican national, who contacted a friend she knew through the Mexican Embassy, who turned us on to El Fogoncito. The restaurant is part of a chain based in Mexico City, with remarkably authentic food. Tacos, burritos, and even the fajita dish are all lightly seasoned, with various salsas and guacamole available to garnish your dish and spice it up. Tortilla chips are heavier than anything I've sampled in either the U.S. or Mexico, but a welcome change. The guacamole is a bit unusual, consisting of something closer to a sauce, but it's apparently hard to track down avocados anywhere in China. Several Mexican beers and many tequilas are available from the bar.

This video is in Spanish, but shows the inside of the Beijing El Fogoncito:

1-01, Bldg. 19, Wanda Guangchang, 93 Jianguo Lu, Chaoyang district (phone: 5820 6551). Open 10am-2pm, 4:30-9:30pm.
富宫喜多西餐厅 朝阳区建国路93号万达广场19号楼1－01

One of the less commonly visited historical sites in Beijing is the Drum Tower (or Gulou). Originally built in 1272 during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), the Drum Tower has undergone repair on several occasions during the Yuan and Ming (1368-1644) Dynasties, remaining largely unchanged through its current state. The drum tower was used to mark the time, with a total of 24 drums. As a tourist attraction, the tower still marks the time with drum performances by three drummers who perform every half hour. The tower ceased to have a practical function when the last emperor evacuated the city in the 1920's.

The video is of the every 30 minute performance in the Drum Tower.

The climb to the top where the drums are stored is not for the physically impaired - the steps are incredibly steep and treacherous. The view of the city, in a full 360 degrees is one of the best places to get a sense for the surrounding hutong.

Also in the tower is a water clock, which precisely marks time.

Across the way from the Drum Tower is the Bell Tower (or Zhonglou), which housed bells also used for audible announcements throughout the city.

Roast duck tastes better in Beijing. I've had it several times in the United States, but Peking Duck is always better in its birthplace. My favorite place to eat Peking Duck is hole-in-the-wall restaurant, Li Qun Roast Duck Restaurant, located in the rapidly shrinking Hutong east of Tiananmen Square. The experience of visiting Li Qun has changed in the past couple of years - you used to wind through the roads of the hutong, pursued by pedicab drivers on your way to the restaurant. With Beijing rapidly tearing down portions of the hutong, replacing narrow streets with roads and housing with updated apartment living, there's a direct path to get to Li Qun Roast Duck Restaurant.

Some of the old signs still remain.

Once inside, the feel of the restaurant has changed very little. The first thing you see is the brick oven where ducks are roasting. A narrow corridor leads either to the main dining area or to a private dining room if your party is too large for the 4-top seating that makes up most of the cramped dining space.

There are two ways to order (both require calling ahead to let the restaurant know how many ducks you need). You can either order a complete meal, including ducks, pancakes, hoisin sauce and fixings, along with some additional dishes; or you can order a duck and sample things from the menu ala carte. If you're brave, you can try things like duck feet in mustard sauce and fried duck gizzards, or stick with things more familiar to a Western palette.

For assistance in getting to Li Qun Roast Duck Restaurant, I highly recommend calling to have a cab driver get directions in Chinese. The staff speaks reasonably good English, so you'll be able to hand off the phone (and call ahead for ducks) even if you don't speak any Chinese. You can also print this card for additional help in getting to the restaurant.

While there are now several countries, like Vietnam and Cambodia, rumored to have the best price in the world on tailored suits and custom tailored shirts, Beijing is still among the most affordable places to get a quality tailored suit. For about US $100, you can get a tailored suit equivalent in quality to something you might pay $700-1000 if purchased in the United States. Tailored shirts are typically US $20-25 for quality fabrics.

Many of these tailor shops exist at markets throughout Beijing. The Alice My Tailor shop is on the more reputable end of the spectrum, offering reasonable prices up front, with some wiggle room for negotiation. Located in the Ya Xiu Sanlitun Market, Alice My Tailor is in stall #3186, which is on the third floor. I walked in with a group of four guys, all looking for suits. We browsed the rows of fabrics to pick the material for our suits, got measurements taken, and only then the negotiation on final pricing began. This is where they hope to get you - you're seemingly committed to buying, but haven't agreed on a price. As long as you're willing to walk away at least once, you will get the price you want.

The initial quote was higher than what we hoped to pay, although admittedly reasonable by Western standards. We wanted a total of 5 suits, along with some tailored dress shirts, giving Alice My Tailor a fair amount of business all in one go. Prices were reasonable for 4 of the 5 people in our party, but the tallest guy in the group was going to have to pay over 25% more because his suit required more material. The price came down by 100 yuan on suits for the 4 of us fairly quickly, with no movement on price for the 5th suit. Remaining a united front, we agreed to all walk away if our friend couldn't get a better price on his suit.

As we were walking out the door, one of the salespeople called us back and offered a price 100 yuan higher than what the rest of us were paying, or about a 14% premium, which still seemed high, but far more agreeable. In the end, we purchased all 5 suits, several dress shirts, and even came back to purchase more when the fitting returned.

Some additional tips: If you're getting a suit on a short trip to China, make sure you schedule the tailor visit early in your stay. The tailor shops can turn a suit around in 3-4 days if necessary but are much happier to have about a week (it's more difficult to get great pricing for rush orders). Expect to make at least two visits - one for the initial measurements, one for a fitting, and possibly a third for pickup. The last visit may be replaced by having the tailor shop deliver to your hotel.

Alice is also mentioned in That's Beijing In Style.