Posted by Jonah Lopin on Sun, Apr 25, 2010 @ 06:35 PM
I am periodically asked by friends what stuff I recommend they do in Beijing. In the interest of efficiency, I decided to write my top ten list of eleven things I would do if I were a tourist in Beijing who only had time for eleven things:
1. Get a foot massage. There are lots of small massage parlors in Beijing, and for $5 or so you can get an awesome foot m
assage. Yes, they also do the lower legs. If you ask nicely, you and your friends can probably sit next to each other during the massage. (Note: I would eschew the full-body massage, but it's hard to get in trouble with a simple foot massage.)
2. Eat Beijing Duck. I wouldn't go to the fanciest spots since they are touristy and overpriced. Just find local duck restaurants and eat 北京烤鸭 = bei3jing1 kao3ya1 = Beijing Duck.
3. Go to the Great Wall. The great wall (长城 = chang2 cheng2) is awesome to visit. The best way to see it is to take a bus outside Beijing for about an hour to a town called huai2 rou2, and then get a taxi to take you to a small town where peasants who live at the foot of the wall will cook you dinner and rent you a room for almost no money. I wish I could remember how to find the peasants I stayed with last time I was there because they were great. They grew their own tofu. But I can't remember. This little jaunt is not for the faint of heart since you will be heading out without a place to stay.
4. Party at San Li Tun and Hou Hai. The nightlife in Beijing is interesting. I like the Chinese bars scattered throughout the 
touristy areas. One night, go to San1 Li3 Tun2 (三里屯 = "3 little villages") and go into anywhere that looks awesome and has lots of neon. Another night, go to Hou4 Hai3 (后海 = "back lake") - I haven't been there in a while, but last time I was in Beijing there were some good bars and restaurants. Get there around sunset.
5. Read the Beijinger. I used to read a monthly paper called That's Beijing because they pointed to great stuff to do, see and eat. According to wikipedia, though, the State took over That's Beijing. That sucks, but the folks at That's Beijing started a new publication called The Beijinger.
6. Buy Things at Silk Alley and Liu Li Chang. The silk alley (秀水市场 = xiushui shichang) is great for North Face and other knock offs. For antiques and random flea market stuff, visit Pan1 Jia1 Yuan2 
(潘家园). In both places, no matter what the price is, just act shocked. Go ahead and over-act. Then say you'll pay 40% of the price. Then when they won't budge, walk away, and you'll likely get chased down to make the sale, often in a very secretive manor so other tourists don't see what a "great" deal you got.
7. Buy a bike and ride it around for the day. You can buy a mountain bike for about $20. Get a sturdy lock. Just find a local bike shop, buy a bike, and hit the streets. Try to stay blended in with Chinese cyclists so you don't get hit by any cars. The rule of thumb is: as long as there are Chinese people on bikes around you and they don't look scared, you probably are not about to get hit by a car or arrested.
8. Morning Exercises & Sunrise at 天安门广场. Some Chinese people do amazing and outlandish morning exercises. You owe it to yourself to head to a park early in the morning to experience it. A good morning in Beijing, maybe after clubbing all night (if you're into that kind of thing), is to head to Tian1 An1 Men2 Guang1 Chang0 (Tian An Men Square) at sunrise to catch the ceremony of raising the Chinese flag. From there, you can walk north to Bei3 Hai3 park and catch morning exercises.
9. Eat Chinese Food. Visit as many restaurants as 
you can. Eat dumplings and potsticker. Eat as many delicious chinese foods as you can. Some of the best meals you can eat are are 家常菜 = jia1 chang2 cai4 = "house regular food"= comfort food. Just look at Aaron enjoying dumplings and kung pao chicken at this restaurant.
10. Make dumplings. If you have the chance, find some expert dumpling makers who will let you "help" them cook up some fresh dumplings. You can prepare for this using our dumpling-making instructional video.
11. Visit the Summer Palace. The summer palace is pretty sweet. Head there for 4 hours to walk around. The view from the top of moonlight mountain on longevity hill is especially captivating:
What are your favorite things to do in Beijing?