Beijing Travel

YOUR LOCAL GUIDE TO BEIJING
Welcome to Beijing! This guide will introduce you to all of the information that you need
to know when in China's capital. How to get around; how to eat; where to go; what to see;
it's all in here. I've even included a few pointers on language and culture that will add some
color to your adventures in Beijing.
Take this guide with you as you go around the city, as it’s full of the Chinese
names and addresses of places to see and restaurants to try. Any time you get stuck, just
show your cab driver the characters of the place you need to go to or show your waiter the
thing you want to eat on the menu provided, and you should be in good shape. Also, don’t
forget to bring a copy of your hotel’s card with you so that you can always get home safely
or call for backup in extreme situations.
Please take a few moments to go through the online version of this guide:
www.beijing-travel-guide.com. You’ll find that it offers important updates, as the city is
constantly changing, and interactive features, particularly with respect to language, that
will supplement what you carry with you while in Beijing.
!"#$%!
Warm regards,
Michael Collins
Mcollins@beijing-travel-guide.com
www.beijing-travel-guide.com 2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Welcome to Beijing 5
What this guide offers you
The Excitement of Beijing 2008 6
Why the Summer Games were such a big deal to the Chinese
China’s Olympics 7
What China calls its Games
Opening Ceremony 8
A look at the ways in which Chinese language
and culture influenced the Opening of the Games
The Olympic Colors 9
The special roles colors played in the Olympics
Chinese Culture 10
An overview of Chinese culture with a particular
focus on Food, Art, Confucianism and other
traditional concepts
Mandarin 15
Crash course in Chinese with a section on Greetings
and Basic Words – study and impress your friends
Food 18
Four tips on dining etiquette
Menu 20
Menu advice and dish recommendations that will
help you explore the many types of Chinese food
Getting Around Beijing 25
Explanation of the layout of Beijing and how to use public
transportation to get from A to B with the least amount of hassle
Shopping 28
Essential bargaining techniques for Western shoppers
Places 29
A list of the must visit Place to See, Places to Shop and
Places to Eat in Beijing, when you’re not watching the Games
Recommendations 37
Restaurant and Bar picks that won’t lead you wrong
Itinerary 40
The combination of Places and Restaurants that should
Guide you through China’s capital
Warnings 42
Please read these before you set out in the city!
Frequently Asked Questions 44
Additional information
Map of China 47
Basic lay of the land
My Story 48
Your author
WELCOME TO BEIJING!
Welcome to the capital city of China. Beijing is a city where old and new come together in
a fascinating mix of traditional and modern Chinese culture and lifestyle. Recently Beijing
has been all over the news because of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics, an event that
the entire world watched. The Beijing Games were larger than life, and here are a few of
the impressive figures that were associated with them:
1 – first Olympics in China

5 – cost in RMB of the cheapest student tickets to the Games
302 – gold medals awarded in Beijing
10,000 – athletes who participated in the Beijing Games
21,000 – torchbearers along the Olympic flame’s 85,000-mile journey to Beijing
7,000,000 – tickets sold for the 2008 Summer Games
4,000,000,000 – spectators who watched the Games on TV and radio
35,000,000,000 – the total cost in US dollars of all of the construction projects for the
Beijing Olympics
This past year,

culminating in the 2008 Summer
Olympics, has been China’s
“coming out” party to the world.
Let’s use the Olympics to begin
to better understand China and
to learn about Beijing. And to
do this, we’ll need to know a
little bit about Chinese history,
language and culture.
So, why were the
Beijing Games so special?
THE EXCITEMENT OF BEIJING 2008
Over half the world’s population watched the Beijing Summer Olympics, which was the
biggest event in the world in 2008. We in the West couldn’t talk about the stock market,
climate change or human rights without mentioning Beijing 2008. Still our interest paled
in comparison to the excitement over the Games in China.
After China won the right to host the Games in 2001, the whole country started
counting down the minutes (literally, and on big digital clocks in places like Tiananmen
Square) until 8 pm on August 8, 2008. Months before the start of the Games, you were
guaranteed to see the Olympics rings and Fuwa prominently displayed in almost every
Chinese city. Multiple programs lauding the accomplishments of Chinese Olympians ran
every night on CCTV Olympics, formerly known as CCTV-5 the nation-wide sports
channel, but renamed for the Games. Daily newspaper headlines wondered aloud how
great the Games would be. And in Beijing, the 2008 “One World, One Dream” slogan
showed up on billboards, t-shirts, bumper stickers and even in flower arrangements. It was
overwhelming. But why did the Chinese care so much about the 2008 Beijing Olympics?
There are many ways to think about this. Here's one that puts the Beijing
Olympics in the context of recent Chinese history.
The Chinese journey to
Olympic glory began in the 18th
century. At this time, China was the
most powerful nation in the world,
and its population already numbered
close to 300 million (the population of
the US today). The Qing, China's last
dynasty, presided over an economy
that accounted for 1/3 of the world’s
GDP (the US currently accounts for
20% of world GDP), a territory that
included Taiwan and Hong Kong and
a peaceful society that allowed
technological innovation and the
development of culture. China was at the height of its power.
In the 1700’s, China was developed, cultured and proud and didn’t care to interact
with the outside world. As they paid less attention to other countries, the ruling Qing
became increasingly despotic and corrupt. Refusing to believe that foreigners could
produce anything of value, China did not participate in the industrial revolution. The
country did not modernize with the West.
Isolationism worked for China until a trade dispute with the British brought about
the Opium Wars. In the 1840's and '50's, steam powered gun-ships sailed up Chinese rivers,
and forced China once again to pay attention to the rest of the world. China’s losses to the
British in the Opium Wars were the beginning of the Middle Kingdom's downward spiral.
For the next 90 years, the colonial powers of Britain, Germany, France and Japan took
turns beating up big, backward China. No longer an economic or political power, by the
late 1930’s China had lost both Taiwan and Hong Kong, it’s once proud culture had turned
in on itself and challenged everything the Chinese had traditionally held close to heart and
society was on the verge of civil war. It was a rapid and humiliating fall from greatness for
China.
A long march and a bit of luck brought Chairman Mao to Tiananmen Square
where he founded the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949. Although many
Chinese, swept up in the communist sentiment of the time, brimmed with hope that they
would soon return to their place of greatness in the world, they would not see this change
under Mao. A series of ill-conceived attempts to modernize the economy and improve
society ultimately left China, by the mid 1970's, right where it started under communist
rule – poor, backward and culturally bankrupt. Things began to change in 1978.
“No matter if it’s a white cat or a black cat, as long as it catches mice it’s a good
cat.” With these words, Deng Xiaoping initiated in China one of greatest economic
transformation that the world has seen in modern times. In test cites, specialized economic
zones in southern China, Deng applied pragmatic, market-based reforms to China’s
planned economy. The success of these zones, like Shenzhen, encouraged the government
to spread the reforms across the country. And thus they created China's capitalist –
socialist, free market – command, hybrid economy.
August 8, 2008, marked the 30th anniversary of Deng’s jumpstarting China’s
economic engine. In this time, China’s economy grew at better than 8% per year, and in
the process it pulled roughly 400 million people out of poverty. Beijing is now one of the
most important political centers in the world, and Chinese culture influences people
everywhere, from Europe to Latin America. The Summer Olympics affirmed to the
Chinese and the rest of the world that China is back.
This is why the Olympics became known as China's "coming out party" to the
world. This is also one reason why the Chinese were so excited for Beijing 2008.
China bundled many of its hopes and dreams for itself into the Olympics. It's
easy to see where the country wants to go in the future by looking at the way China
marketed the 2008 Summer Olympics.
CHINA’S OLYMPICS
The Chinese government named the 2008 Summer Olympics the Green Olympics, the
High-Tech Olympics and the People’s Olympics.
The Green Olympics is the most prominent concept attached to the Games, and
represents what China claims is its determination to protect the environment. China’s
economic boom has created terrible pollution problems. Some of the most significant
problems include:
1. Sixteen of the world’s twenty most polluted cities. Acid rain and smog in these
cities not only destroy buildings but also shortens the lives of an estimated
750,000 people each year.
2. Erosion and desertification of hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland. This
leads not only to reduced harvests but also more frequent dust storms traveling
from North-Central China and the Gobi desert to eastern cities such as Beijing.
3. Pollution of an estimated 70% of rivers and lakes that limits access to drinking
water in rural and urban areas.
China estimates that it spends $64 billion each year addressing pollution problems and
environmental damage.
Under the banner of the Green Olympics, China plans on spending over $6.6
billion in the next few years to improve the environment through recycling, reforestation
and conservation programs. Moreover, China plans to rely less heavily on dirty coal plants
for power and to increase its usage of environmentally friendly fuels such as natural gas,
solar, hydro and other renewable
energy sources.
Beijing was also The High
Tech Olympics. Amidst the massive
construction projects to build the new
Olympic stadiums, brand new
broadband, GPS and mobile
communications networks have been
installed throughout the capital.
Technologically advanced Multi-
lingual Translator Machines were
also available to spectators. All of
these conveniences illustrated
China’s commitment to transforming
from the world’s factory to one of the world’s high tech economic centers.
The final concept of the Games, The People’s Olympics, reminded spectators
that China hopes not only to spread the Olympic Spirit through the Games but also hopes to
spread understanding of China and Chinese culture. The Chinese government has recently
announced a series of new programs to teach Chinese art, language and customs in
preparation for the Games. One part of Chinese culture that these programs will have a
difficult time teaching, however, is an appreciation for the past. China's all out effort to
modernize has destroyed many of its historic monuments – from the hutongs in Beijing to
the archeological sites near the Three Gorges Dam. Recognizing that foreigners often come
to China to see ancient China, not skyscrapers, the government has announced that it has
redoubled its efforts to protect and refurbish ancient structures and cultural relics. I hope
they're successful.
THE OPENING CEREMONY

The Opening Ceremony of the Games of the XXIX Olympiad was held in the Beijing
National Stadium at 8 pm on August 8, 2008. Designed by the award winning Swiss
architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron at a cost of $500 million, the stadium made no
distinction between structural elements and the building’s façade. This gave the stadium a
web-like appearance and a very apt nickname, the Bird’s Nest. 100,000 spectators piled
into the Bird’s Nest to join in the celebration of the Opening Ceremony, that famous
director Zhang Yimou helped to produce. It was a spectacular show carried by CCTV and
NBC to viewers across the globe!
The Chinese consider the number “8” to be the luckiest of all numbers, so the
starting date and time of the Opening Ceremony was specifically chosen to bring good luck
and good fortune to the Games. The numerical representation of the date illustrates why the
Opening Ceremony was so lucky: 08 – 08 – 08 – 08; this is the 8th hour of the 8th day of
the 8th month of the 8th year
since 2000. The Chinese
character for the number 8 is
“&,” which you pronounce as
“b!”. This character sounds
very similar to the Chinese
word for prosperity, “ ' ,”
roughly pronounced “ba” in
Cantonese and pronounced “f!,”
in Mandarin. Since the
pronunciation of the Chinese
word for “8” sounds just like the
pronunciation of the Chinese
word for “prosperity,” “8” is a very lucky number in China. Therefore, Chinese try to
maximize the number of 8’s in everything from phone numbers, to car license plates and
even the starting date of the Olympic Games. The more 8’s in a number the better. The date
and time of the Opening Ceremony show that the Chinese hoped the Beijing Games would
be very lucky for spectators, athletes and China. And the Games were.
THE OLYMPIC COLORS

Over the past year, you’ve seen many advertisements for the Beijing Olympics. Whether on
billboards or TV, all of these advertisements have been colorful. Colors are important in
Chinese culture, and the colors used in every advertisement, sign and banner have been
chosen for specific reasons.
Colors can have many different meanings. Westerners associate green with “go”
in some circumstances and “envy” in others. Red sometimes indicates “stop” and other
times it represents “anger.” Chinese are very sensitive to the significance of using certain
colors in certain situations. Colors are intimately intertwined with Chinese history and
culture, and China gave special attention to designing the color scheme for the 2008
Beijing Olympics.
This section gives a brief overview of the special significance the 6 official colors
of the Games. Each description contains the common name of the color, the official
Olympic name for the color and then a short discussion of the color’s importance in the
Games and Chinese culture.
WHITE: Jade White: In ancient times, Chinese intellectuals wore jade to

show their honesty and suggest that they were clean, pure-hearted and
unselfish. Jade, which the Chinese use to make jewelry and sculptures, is also
a symbol of luck.
GREY: Great Wall Grey: Grey is the tone of traditional Beijing architecture
and can be seen everywhere from the grey Great Wall in the mountains to the
grey siheyuan courtyards, which lie in Beijing’s hutongs. Grey symbolizes maturity, and a
man will wear grey to suggest that he is wise.
BLUE: Blue-and-white Porcelain Blue: The shades of color in the blue – and
– white porcelain bowl match the shade of Beijing’s bright summer and
golden autumn. The blue relates to the city’s history and creativity.
GREEN: Chinese Scholar-Tree Green: This green tree represents the image
of Beijing, the harmony between man and nature and also symbolizes
China’s hope for a “Green Olympics.” Chinese associate green with the
springtime, and thus the color is a symbol of life, the hope for new things to
come.
YELLOW: The Glaze Yellow: Roof tiles in Beijing, tree leaves in autumn
and farmlands ripe for harvest in late summer are examples of the golden
color of the glaze that covers China’s landscape and history. This rich yellow
and gold color also represents nobility: During ancient times the Emperor
would wear beautiful yellow garments from head to toe and prohibit peasants from wearing
anything of a similar color.
RED: Chinese Red: Red is the most famous color in China. Red lanterns, red
weddings, and red palatial walls (just look at the Forbidden City) illustrate
that red colors all aspects of the lives of Chinese in Beijing. Not only is red
the most prominent color of the official Olympic Emblem, “Dancing
Beijing,” but red is also the color of Beijing and China, as the red flag of China
demonstrates. (Red is also the color of Communism, and this is another reason for the color
of the PRC flag.) Red symbolizes everything good: happiness, joyousness, and good luck.
Almost all festival and celebrations will contain something red. For example, during the
massive Chinese New Year celebration, families will give their children small red envelops
filled with money as good luck gifts for the year.
CHINESE CULTURE
Remember reading about ancient Egypt, Greece and Mesopotamia in school, and finding
out how advanced these civilizations were thousands of years ago? In order to begin to
understand Chinese culture, you can’t lose sight of the fact that China was and is one of
those great, ancient civilizations. In more than 5,000 years of recorded history China has
changed and evolved but still remains China. The Chinese are very proud of their history,
and a strong sense of this history permeates Chinese culture.
LANGUAGE: When people say they speak Chinese, they usually mean Mandarin Chinese,
the official state language. That said there are many types of Chinese. Nearly every place
you go in China has its own dialect. For example, people in Shanghai will speak
Shanghainese just as those from Guangdong, formerly known as Canton, speak Cantonese.
Although each dialect relies on the same set of characters for written expression, when
spoken the dialects are very different. If someone who speaks only Shanghainese meets
someone who speaks only Cantonese, they won’t be able to communicate.
This was the situation in China for a long time. Although there was a written
standard, there wasn’t a spoken standard for all Chinese for thousands of years. As you can
imagine, this made ruling the country difficult. How can a government make laws and issue
commands when everyone speaks a
different language? In order to unify
the nation and also create a more
viable political and economic
environment, when Mao and the
Chinese Communist Party came to
power in 1949, they made Mandarin
the state language. Today Chinese still
often speak their local dialects but
they all also know how to speak
Mandarin.
Chinese language has an
intimate relationship with Chinese
culture and with a careful eye you will
be able to spot the intersection of language and culture throughout the Games. The first
thing to understand is that the Chinese language is over 5,000 years old, originally
appearing as engravings in turtle shells. Chinese developed into characters that represented
simple nouns like “sun” or “mountain” or verbs such as “cry.” Many of these characters
have changed over the years but some remain strikingly similar to their original forms.
Language is one of the defining aspects of culture, and the Chinese take great
pride in preserving their language as a means of preserving their culture and history. They
place great value on the ability to speak and write well. For example, in ancient China,
those who held the highest rank in society were the intellectuals, the people who could read
and write. Below the intellectuals were peasants, then
workers and finally businessmen. The amount of money
that you had mattered little because it was your level of
education that determined your social rank. Another
modern example of the emphasis the Chinese place on
careful language study is Chinese TV. The government,
which controls all TV and radio broadcasts, only allows
people who speak flawless Chinese to hold jobs as TV
news anchors and reporters to ensure all Chinese hear
nothing but perfect Mandarin.
Written Chinese has tens of thousands of
characters, and is a very difficult language to learn how to
read and write. Chinese children spend years practicing
and memorizing in order to recognize the roughly 2,000
characters needed to become literate. Remarkably, over
90% of China is literate.
Whether an elementary school student in Beijing
or a college student in New York, both begin studying
Chinese by writing out individual characters over and over.
There is no substitute for rote memorization. Gradually
the characters work together and form words and
sentences. Much later it becomes clear that many
characters have a history or a pattern that gives clues to the character’s origin, meaning and
perhaps pronunciation. For an example of how some Chinese words are built, look at the
word for China’s currency, the renminbi or RMB. It is written ()*. This is a simple
construction because ! means man or a person, !" means the people, and * is currency;
hence, The People’s Currency. Here’s another interesting example: Look at the
relationship between the words for “tree,” #, “mù,” and “wood,” $, “lín” and “forest,”
% , “s"n.” Two trees together make wood and a collection of three trees make a forest.
Pretty cool. These patterns and more detailed versions abound in Chinese.
Chinese is also a tonal language: The inflection that you place on each individual
word will change its meaning. This is often what makes learning Chinese so difficult for
foreigners. For example, Mandarin Chinese has four tones: 1st tone is a high and level; 2nd
tone rises; 3rd tone descends and then rises; and 4th tone falls sharply. The tone you use to
pronounce a given word will change its meaning. Look at the wide range of meanings that
the word “ma” can have just by changing the tone:
1st Tone 2nd Tone 3rd Tone 4th Tone

m! má m# mà
+ , - .
“mother” “hemp” “horse” “to scold”
If you aren’t careful with your tones, you might call your mother a horse in this situation.
With other words and tones, imprecise pronunciation can be even more embarrassing with
other words and tones.
FOOD: I will talk about food in greater detail in the “Food” section but here let it suffice to
say that food is a vital aspect of Chinese culture. Sharing meals together is one way for
families to preserve traditional Chinese values – rent
Ang Lee’s film Eat, Drink, Man, Woman, /012, to
see an example of this. But food does more than just
unite families: It sends signals to others. For example,
enjoying certain foods in public, such as a simple bowl
of noodles, can indicate that your family might be poor
– a bowl of noodles is one of the cheapest foods in
China so poor people eat more noodles than wealthy
people. Ordering a particularly spicy dish or sweeter
dish might lead others to believe you are from a region
where that food is most common: spicy in Sichuan and
sweeter dishes in the south. Many foods have their own
historical significance, like a particular Hunan pork
dish that was Chairman Mao’s favorite. Finally,
ordering expensive, exotic dishes for friends is often a
sign of respect. Much can be learned about a person
and a situation from what is eaten in China.
ART: The Chinese place great value on art of all types.

Chinese calligraphy and painting, for example, are
intimately related art forms because of the similar skills
and years of practice required to produce each type of
art. Calligraphy and paintings are produced by hand
with a variety of inks and brushes. The Chinese
emphasize writing characters with the proper technique and the correct strokes in order to
write fluidly and beautifully. It is easy to see how the same strokes that combine to create
characters can also be used to paint trees or bamboo. Many times Chinese paintings will
have short poems written in one of the corners, combining calligraphy and painting. The
most well-known and expensive styles are the hu!ni#ohuà, 345, which contains birds
and flowers and the sh!nsh$ihuà, &'(, which is a landscape painting. (The previous
painting is an example of a sh!nsh$ihuà and below, next to Confucianism, is a hu!ni#ohuà.
You can see calligraphy, paintings, and other traditional Chinese crafts at the
Liulichang culture street and Panjiayuan market. In both places you can purchase pieces for
relatively low prices, and in Liulichang you can even watch artists practice their
calligraphy and painting.
Performing arts are also very important in Chinese culture. I hope you’ll take the
time to listen to music created by traditional Chinese instruments like the erhu and guqin.
Martial arts are still taught and practiced widely and it will not be uncommon to see
Chinese people practicing Taichi in a park – it won’t be as much fun as watching people
fight in mid air like in the movies Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon or Hero, but these
public exercises are very cool to watch. An interesting way to enjoy both of these
disciplines is to attend the Beijing opera. Beijing opera or "6, j%ngjù, combines brilliant
martial arts, gorgeous costuming, abrasive singing and an overly dramatic style of acting to
create a show that I promise you won’t forget. Chinese have performed Beijing opera for
over 200 years and it is one of the highest expressions of Chinese culture. For more
information, look at Beijing opera under the “Places to See” section.
CONFUCIANISM: Confucianism has existed

in China for over 2000 years, and it is the
most important Chinese philosophy for
Westerners to understand. Confucian
thinking influences the behavior of the
individual in order to create a stable society.
By practicing “loyalty, piety, kindness, love,
reliability, and righteousness” the individual
can lead a good life – it’s kind of like a
more complicated version of the Golden
Rule. These individual qualities form the
basis of the five relationships that govern
Confucian society: master and subject,
father and son, husband and wife, elder
brother and younger brother and friend.
When the individual leads a good life and
respects these five relationships, a stable
hierarchy will be established between
friends, through families all the way up to
the Emperor. All members of society will be
in harmony, and this is the highest goal of
Confucianism.
In Confucian thinking, the
individual is not as important as the
collective well-being of society. This understanding of the individual’s role in society still
exists in China. The “One Child” policy, where in order to control population growth the
government only allows families to have one child, is a rough example of this thinking in
action. Furthermore, one of President Hu Jintao’s trademark slogans emphasizes a
“harmonious society,” which reminds Chinese of, among other things, the Confucian view
of society.
One of the most important Confucian concepts is filial piety, 7. Although the
basic notion is that children need to respect and honor their parents, filial piety cuts much
deeper than that. Many Chinese feel that they owe so much to their parents that they can
never do enough for them; children can never pay back their debt. One product of this
feeling is that in their own homes Chinese often take care of their parents into old age.
Sending parents to a retirement home is unthinkable.
IMPORTANT CONCEPTS: The Imperial Examinations from Confucian times influence
Chinese culture and society. In ancient China Imperial Examinations were given to
determine one’s level of education and ability to serve in the government. Theoretically,
regardless of one’s wealth, social position or family connections anyone who did well on
the Imperial Examinations could rise to the highest ranks in the government. Because
government officials were in charge of the collective wellbeing of society, the Emperor
gave them the power to tax. This made government officials incredibly powerful and often
very wealthy. Therefore children studied diligently for the exams, hoping that they would
do well and become a high-ranking government official. The Imperial Examination system
was the only hope for social mobility in ancient China.
In practice the Imperial Examination system did not completely level the playing
field. People of high standing in the government with many connections could from time to
time get their children preferential treatment or at least give them a better chance of doing
well on the exam. This system of connections, relationships, prestige and clout has a name
in Chinese: guanxi, 89. Today in China, guanxi can be a product of party membership,
family status, career success, access to power and old friendships. Instead of using guanxi
to gain an advantage on the Imperial
Exam, people with strong guanxi can
often get the best apartment in a
neighborhood, the best table at a
restaurant, and ensure that their children
attend the best schools. Guanxi still
permeates all facets of Chinese society,
particularly in Beijing, and is sometimes
far more valuable than money.
Using guanxi to gain an
advantage on the Imperial Exam
centuries ago or using it today to make
sure a business transaction goes through
also has a name in Chinese: houmen, :
;. This literally means “back door.” A product of one’s guanxi, homen means the ability
to use special privileges or an alternative path to secure desirable commodities or
opportunities. For example, high-level officials will “use the back door” or<:; in order
to get their middle-of-their-class children into the best universities. The extension of this
point is that without guanxi and the ability to use the back door, smart, well qualified
students might not be able to get into the best universities or have the same privileges as
their well connected but less gifted classmates.
These are two fascinating yet fundamental concepts in Chinese society. Most
societies have some variation of these ideas; however, in Chinese they have specific names
that everyone knows because they govern so many daily interactions between people
MANDARIN
Mandarin Chinese is the most widely spoken language on earth! Unlike English or
other Romance languages, which spilled out of Europe, Chinese does not have an alphabet.
It has characters – tens of thousands of them. The good news is that you only need to learn
a handful to get around Beijing. I’m going to teach you what you need to know.
The standard form of spoken Chinese, )*, in China is Mandarin, =>, which,
in pinyin, is hàny$ – meaning the language of the Han people, China’s ethnic majority. It
is also called ?@A, p$t&nghuà – meaning the common language. Pinyin is the most
widely used Romanization system. Other systems, such as the Yale and Wade-Giles, are
slightly different but also quite effective and typically found in other Chinese speaking
destinations such as Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore. Here is the abridged pinyin
system that I will use as a crash course in reading and speaking Chinese for all of you that
can’t wait to try.
Three things to remember: (1) pinyin has fixed rules. The ‘ch’ pinyin
Romanization always sounds like the ‘ch’ sound in American English; (2) pinyin
pronunciations do not always perfectly correspond to true Chinese pronunciations. The
system uses an English base to teach non-English, non-Romance language, sounds; (3)
Chinese is a tonal language. There are four tones and above each pinyin Romanization
appears either 1st tone “-,” 2nd tone “/,” 3rd tone “v,” or 4th tone “\.” These tonal marks are
called diacritics and they help you to begin to differentiate between the many Chinese
words that have the same pronunciation. For example the pinyin word “ji” will sound very
different with a 1st tone, which is a sustained flat tone, versus a 4th tone, which is an angry
sounding descending tone, similar to the sound you'd make when shouting, “Hey!” to get
someone’s attention. Moreover, these different tones give the words different meanings.
Many times Chinese
teachers use hand gestures to help
students visualize and remember
their tones and perhaps these gestures
will help you learn the tones. For
example, flat, palm down hand
moving evenly across an imaginary
line perpendicular to the floor will
indicate a 1st tone, “-.” This 1st tone
is very flat, almost like you are
singing and trying to hold a pitch.
Starting from the same position,
usually chest height at the left
shoulder, and gradually raising the
hand as it moves left to right will indicate a 2nd tone, “/.” The 2nd tone is similar to the
sound of an inquisitive “Hello?” 3rd tone, “v,” is more challenging and shown by making a
‘v-shaped’ motion with the hand starting at the left shoulder, dropping toward the
bellybutton, and then rising again to finish at the right shoulder. Finally, sharply moving
the hand from the left shoulder down to the right hip will demonstrate a 4th tone, “\.” Again,
this tone should sound as if you’re yelling, “Hey!” to get someone’s attention. Please keep
these tones in mind as you practice your Chinese.
The following crash course should allow you to get around in a pinch in China.
Below are the phoneticized sounds and the tonal marks will be included later.
If you see: Say the Underlined letter combinations

a ah, the sound when a doctor wants to look
down your throat
c ts as in cats, therefore ‘can’ is actually
ts ah-n
e her, just like the “uh” sound in “duh”
i he, like knee
o or, or like more
q chin, so ‘qing’ is just like ch-ing and ‘quan’
becomes chew-ah-n
u too, not the same as ‘you’
x show, but this ‘sh’ sound should come from
closer to the front of your mouth than the
English version
z seeds
zh drew
Most of the other letters and corresponding sounds are very similar to their English
versions: ch, b, d, f, g (like the ‘g’ in ‘game’), h, j (as in “john”), k, l, m, n, ng (as in
“song”), p, r, s, t, w (as in “want”) and y (as in “young). Vowels will combine but you
should read them one at a time using the pronunciation key from above: ao, ai, iu, ou, etc.
Finally, the following letter combinations are a bit tricky:
If you see: Say the following
zi, ci, si, zhi, chi, shi, ri For zi, ci, and si you need to mimic the
sound of a buzzing bee, “zzz.” zi = dszzz,
ci = tszzz, si = szzz. For zhi, chi, shi, and ri,
when you make the buzzing sound try to
touch the tip of your tongue to the front part
of the roof of your mouth – curl your tongue
upward in what's called the retroflex
position.
ju, qu, xu, yu The “u” in these cases is a rounded vowel

coming from the front of the mouth and lips.
It doesn't exist in English. The best way to
figure out how to pronounce, for example,
the word “xu” is to start by saying the word
“she” and rounding your lips as you hold
the word. Add each consonant in front of
your newly discovered vowel and you're on
your way.
yan, ian The “a” is not the typical ah sound but

instead sounds like "and." Just add the "ee"
sound of the letter "i" in front and you can
then pronounce words with "ian" in them.
For example, "xian" is "sh-ee-an."
ang, iang Unlike the previous rule, the "a" vowel
remains the same as before, sounding like
"ah." Therefore, "yang," for instance,
sounds like, "y-ah-ng."
ao “ow” like allow or bow
ei “ay” like in bay or way
ie, ue, ye The “e” sounds like yes.
iu “eo” like Leo or Theo
ou "oh" like hoe
uo “oh-h”a little softer than Noah
Although this list doesn’t cover every variation you might encounter, it gives you
what you need to know to try to pronounced most of the pinyin Romanizations of Chinese
words in this guide. Here's how to use these rules to pronounce the names of the Fuwa,
roughly pronounced, “foo-wah” with these guidelines:
Beibei Jingjing Huanhuan Yingying Nini

BB CC ## $$ DD
bèibèi j%ngj%ng hu!nhu!n yíngyíng n%n%
“bay bay” “jing jing” “hoo-an hoo-an” “yingying” “knee knee”
Let’s keep going and expand your vocabulary with a few of the phrases that you can use on
a daily basis.
Greetings and Basic Words

English Chinese Pinyin
English EF y%ng wén (ing when)
Chinese GF zh&ng wén (dr-ong when)
Beijing !" b'ij%ng (bay jing)
Hello/How are you? !+ n( h#o (nee how)

Very Good. ,+ hén h#o (h-uh-n how)
Good Bye. HI zài jiàn (ds-eye j-ian)
Yes/Correct/Right JK duì le (d-way le)
No/Incorrect/Wrong LJ bú duì (boo d-way)
Thank you. MM xiè xiè (sh-e sh-e)
My name is______ NO______ w) jiào ______
(w-o j-ee-ow)
Where is the bathroom? PQRST? cè s$o zài n#r?
(ts-uh s-oo-o ds-eye n-ah-r)
Left U zu) (z-oh-h)
Right V yòu (yo)
North ! b'i (b-ay)

South W nán (n-ah-n)
East X d&ng (d-ong)
West - x% (sh-ee)
Front Y qián (ch-ian)

Back : hòu (h-oh)
Inner Z néi (n-ay)
Outer [ wài (w-eye)
NUMBERS: The Chinese numbering system is similar to the English system. In order to say
numbers 11-99, all you have to do is combine the characters that you already know. For
example, 29 is two 10’s and one 9: èr shí j(u or ./0. The same pattern hold for number
101-999: 357 is three 100’s, five 10’s and one 7; s!n b#i w$ shí q%, 123/4.
1 \ y%
2 ] èr
3 ^ s!n
4 _ sì
5 ` w$
6 a lìu
7 b q%
8 & b!
9 c j(u
10 d shí
100 e b#i
1,000 f qi!n
10,000 g wàn
FOOD
You will be able to find food from across the globe in Beijing. From linguini bolognaise to
double quarter pounders with cheese, you’ll be able to get any variety of food that you want.
However, you have to try real Chinese food while in Beijing.
Food in Beijing is delicious. There is no comparison between Chinese food from
Golden Panda Express down the road and the Chinese food in Beijing. In fact, you
probably won’t want to eat at your local Chinese take-out place after your trip to Beijing.
And the dining experience in Beijing, just like the food, will be different from what you’re
used to at home.
When you walk into a Chinese restaurant you will often see a wall of fish tanks
teeming with all types of live seafood. That is just to show you that your food is fresh!
Don’t be alarmed. As you are staring at the fish tanks your hostess will ask you how many
people you have and then take you to your table. Tell her your newly learned Chinese or
just show her on your fingers. As you approach your table, you need to be conscious of
four things:
1. Showing respect for age and rank or, as the Chinese say, giving someone face, 5
6, “miànzì,” is very important. Although there are many ways of giving
someone face, the easiest way at dinner is to give the seat at the head of the table
to the eldest member of your party.
2. When ordering, you order to share. You don’t order an appetizer, entrée and
dessert all for yourself as you do in the US. Everyone can discuss the dishes and
order a variety of items and share them. It's family style. This is a great method
because everyone can enjoy a wide variety of tastes throughout the meal. In more
formal settings, however, the host will do all of the ordering for the table.
3. Food in China may look a bit different than what you are used to seeing at your
Chinese restaurant at home. You will see new meats, (the Chinese will eat all
parts of an animal), vegetables and preparation styles. If you order a fish dish you
will probably get an entire cooked fish on your plate. Just try it! It won’t bite you
and I know that you’ll find that the number of dishes that you enjoy will far
outweigh the number that you dislike.
4. If you are out with Chinese, once the meal is over the real fun begins. The
concept of everyone paying for his or her own share of the meal, 787h, “gèfù
gède,” is foreign to Chinese – well, they know it but it’s not practiced. Everyone
offers to pay because they want to treat the others with respect – it is similar to
being a kind and generous host when friends visit you at home. Shouting and arm
waiving might ensue in extreme cases but finally someone will win and pay the
bill. The person paying knows, however, that the next time the group goes out
someone else will pay the bill. Everyone should take turns paying and everything
will even out. (If you are not out with Chinese, pay the bill as you would in any
other restaurant.)
Now that you know the basic principles of Chinese table etiquette, it’s time to learn
how to read a menu so that you know what you’ll be eating.
In order to get you started on your culinary adventures in Beijing I’ve included a list of
dishes to which you’ll easily adjust and find very tasty. After the short list of dishes, I’ve
included some key Chinese words or characters such as i, “j%,” which means chicken, so
that you can try to identify what you’ll be eating as you expand past the selections that I’ve
offered. Don’t be afraid to try something new!
MENU
Beijing Roast Duck or Peking Duck !"jk B'ij%ng k#oyá
A must try Beijing specialty! Slices of
roast duck that you roll in a small
pancake with green onion and hoisin sauce.
Kung Pao Chicken lmin g&ngb#o j%dìng
Diced pieces of boneless chicken cooked
with peanuts and hot peppers. The real thing.
Diced Chicken & Green Peppers opin làzì j%dìng
This is a mildly hot, simple chicken dish.
Beef Cooked in a Skillet qrst ti'b!n níuròu
Large pieces of boneless beef cooked
and served in a hot skillet with onions.
Noodles with Braised Beef uvstw hóngsh#o
A very simple but tasty noodle dish níuròumìan
containing a few pieces of braised
beef and some vegetables. A little
hot but you worth trying for the noodles.
Shredded Pork in Garlic Sauce xytz yúxi!ng ròus%
Long, thin shredded pieces of pork
Covered in a garlic sauce – the same sauce
found on the eggplant. Basic and Delicious.
Sweet and Sour Pork {|}~ t!ngcù l(j(
Sweet and Sour Pork Tenders
Deep Fried Sweet and Sour Pork •€t gùlàoròu
A collection of deep fried pieces of pork
with a sweet and sour sauce and pineapples.
Typically a southern dish.
Scrambled Eggs and Tomatoes •u‚ƒi„ x%hóngshìch#o
Scrambled eggs with stewed tomatoes. j%dàn
Simple and delicious!
Eggplant in Garlic Sauce xy…p yúxi!ng qíezì
Outstanding! An eggplant dish of some
type will become a staple at your table.
This eggplant will be very different from
that which you grill at home or even have
at a local Chinese place. Eggplant is prepared
in nearly any style and is one of my favorite
foods. You have to try it!
Spicy Tofu with Diced Pork ,†‡ˆ máp& dòuf$
Japanese Tofu ‰Š‡ˆ rìb'n dòuf$
Very delicate balls of tofu, almost like
a custard, in a light sauce.
Chinese Broccoli ‹Œ jìelán
A leafy broccoli that lacks the
head of its US counterpart.
Often served slightly salted.
Mushrooms & Bok Choy •Ž•• móg* càix%n
Bok choy means “vegetable
Heart” and it is easy to see the resemblance
in these small, Chinese cabbages. The center
of the plate will have a pile of mushrooms
braised in a brown sauce and the light, crisp
and slightly salty bok choy will circle the
mushrooms.
Stir Fried Mixed Vegetables ƒ‘’• ch#oshi j(ncài
Sugar Fried Bananas/Apples “zy” b!s% xi!ngji!o or
A pile of small pieces of banana or apple “z•– b!s% píngg$o
fried and covered in melted sugar. To eat,
you grab one of them with your chopsticks
and quickly dunk it in a bowl of water that
is provided. You will notice as you pull the
piece of fruit away from the pile, long, sticky
skeins of sugar will trail off of your bite-sized
piece making it impossible to eat. Once you dunk
the fruit in the water the sugar hardens and the
strands break away. You’re then left with a
sugary, fruity treat. Be careful because the
inside will be very hot!
Fried Doughy Bun w/ Condensed Milk —˜™ zhámántóu
Small doughy buns that you dip into a sweet,
condensed milk sauce. Great stuff.
Boiled Dumplings šp jiàozi
Steamed Buns ›p b!ozi
White Rice œ• m(fàn
Scallion Pancake žŸ ji!nb(ng
Look for roadside carts with black skillets to
find these tasty, authentic Beijing snacks. They
are thin, egg based pancakes with scallions,
a slightly sweet brown sauce and sesame seeds.
Some people call them Chinese crepes.
Meat on a Stick vj sh!ok#o
If you’re looking for snack food that’s a little
more adventurous than scallion pancakes, you
should try sh!ok#o. You will find little roasting
stands on the side of the road and built in to the
walls of alleyways. They are easy to identify
because you will see a series of tiny wooden sticks
with small chunks of spiced meat roasting on them
in the front of the stand/store. You tell the ‘chef’
what type of meat you’d like to try, anything from
bits of lamb to chicken hearts, and he roasts it right
in front of you for 1 or 2 RMB per stick. Be careful
of these if you have a weak stomach.
Beverages
Coca-Cola ¡ ¢ k'k)u k'le
Sprite £¤ xu'bì
Bottled Water ¥¦§ kuàngquán sh$i
It’s a good idea to drink bottled water while in
Beijing. China does not have the same water
sanitation systems that we have in the west
and it’s better to be safe drinking bottled water
than sorry and resigned to spending a day or two
in the bathroom.
Green Tea ¨© l+chá
The Chinese will serve tea at almost every meal.
The great advantage of tea is that it is natural,
delicious, and safe to drink because it's made
with boiled water.
Jasmine Tea ª«3© mòlìhu! chá
Chrysanthemum Tea ¬3© júhu! chá
Bubble Tea -®¯© zh"nzh* n#ichá
Coffee °± k!f"i
Beer ²³ píj(u
You can get some of the more popular American
and European brands of beer in China. However,
you should try Tsingtao, (´µ), one of China’s
better known beers. It is brewed in Qingdao,
where the Germans taught the Chinese how to
brew the beer when they occupied the territory
at the beginning of the 20th century. Qingdao
is also the location of some of the water-based
Games for the 2008 Olympics.
Chinese Liquor ¶³ báij(u
You should try it, but probably only once.
It’s terrible.
Most famous brand of Chinese liquor ·¸³ máotái j(u
If you go out to dinner with Chinese, they will most likely encourage you to have
a few glasses of beer, "9, and Chinese liquor, ¶³. Glasses will be raised, toasts will be
made, and the cheer “G!nb"i!” “:;!” will be heard by all. “G!nb"i!” is the Chinese
version of cheers but seems to have a little more enthusiasm surrounding it than what is
common in the US.
Here are some key characters that you can try to spot on the menu that will help
you divine what is inside some of the dishes on menus in Beijing.
Meats
Meat t ròu
Chicken it, j%ròu¹This, as you can see is the
combination of the character for
chicken, iºand the character for
meat, t. They are paired together
on the menu to indicate what part of
the animal you are eating –
remember the Chinese generally eat
the entire animal, all the way down
to the feet of the chicken. The same
character pattern will follow for pork
and beef.)
Pork »t zh*ròu
Beef st niuròu
Fish x yú
Shrimp ¼½ xi!rén
Bone ¾™ gútou ¹If you don’t want to deal
with chewing around bones as you
eat make sure this character is not in
the name of the dish that you order.
Instead, order something that
contains one of the following two
characters:)
Shapes of Food
Thin narrowly sliced meat z or tz s%, ròus%
Cubed/Diced n d%ng
Slices ¿ pìan
Strips À tíao
Pieces/Chunks (generally with bone) Á
Balls Âp wánzi
The Five Flavors

Sour Ã su!n
Sweet Ä tían
Bitter Å k$
Spicy o là
Salty Æ xián
Preparation Methods
Stir-fried ƒ ch#o
Steamed ÇÈ q%ngzh"ng
Prepared in a spicy sauce ,o, málà ¹o means spicy
and is a good character
to identify when
ordering depending on
your preference for
spicy dishes.)
Braised in a brown sauce uv hóngsh#o
Deep fried — zhá
Prepared in a garlic sauce xy yúxi!ng
Roasted or baked j k#o ¹As in Beijing
Roast Duck: Beijing =
!" and duck = kº
so if you put everything
together you get !"
jk.)
Menu Divisions
Category É leì
Cold Dishes Ê•É líangcaì leì
Seafood ËÌÉ ha(x%an leì
Vegetables Í•É sùcaì leì
Stir-Fry Dishes ÎƒÉ l%uch#o leì
Poultry ÏÐÉ j%aqín leì
Fish xÉ yú leì
Meat tÉ ròu leì
Soup ÑÉ t!ng leì
Beverages ³§ j(ushu(
Starches Ò0 zh$shí
Drinks /Ó y(nlìao
If you’re a vegetarian you can alert your waiter by saying “w) ch% sù,” and/or
pointing to this: “NÔÍ.” Although there are tons of vegetable dishes in China, many
delicious and unusual varieties not found in the US, sometimes it’s hard to keep them
completely free of meat. Often little bits of meat are incorporated to add flavor. In
addition, and this is important for vegetarians to keep in mind, cooking oils are typically
recycled so your plate of broccoli might have been cooked in the same oil as the pork that’s
at a neighboring table. If you haven’t found a good meal in a few days, just visit a
Buddhist vegetarian restaurant where you will be guaranteed a meat-free dining experience.
Finally, in order to bring your delicious meal to a close simply say “mai dan” or
point to ÕÖ, which means “Check, please!” Try telling your waitress MM, “xièxiè,”
which means “thank you,” or ×Ô, “h#o ch%,” which means, “the food was very good.”
You don’t need to tip. It’s not common practice in China.
GETTING AROUND BEIJING
Beijing is a sprawling city with the Forbidden City, ØlºG$g&ng, and Tiananmen
Square, ÙÚ;, Ti!n!nmén, are the center. Beijing is laid out in a huge grid and there are
six main roads that circle the city called ring roads. You’ll most often use the second ring
road, known as Érhuán l+ or ]ÛÜ, and the third ring road, S!nhuán l+, ^ÛÜ, to get to
the different regions of the city. From time to time you'll use the fourth ring road, but
you'll seldom get out to numbers five and six. The remainder of the roads go north-south
or east-west. These roads, which are typically smaller than the ring roads, will take you
directly to your destination. The grid is easy to understand and navigate. The only difficult
part comes in remembering road names which usually relate to the landmarks and former
city gates of Beijing. However, in the "Taxi" section, I'll teach you how get deal with this
problem.
You're going to have to use public transportation. Beijing's public transportation
system is adequate and steadily improving for the Olympics; additional subway lines, new
busses and faster trains are being added. Moreover, although Beijing’s roads are typically
incredibly congested, China plans on reducing the number of cars on the roads by half for
the Games in order to make traveling around the city easier and also to reduce pollution.
A combination of riding the subway, taking a bus and walking can get you almost
anywhere within Beijing; it’ll just take you longer to travel in Beijing than you’d normally
expect. If you want to leave Beijing, it’s most common to use the train system. You can
take an airplane for longer distances but if time is not an issue, just take a train and enjoy
the countryside.
As a Westerner in Beijing, you’ll most likely be taking taxi cabs for convenience
when returning to your hotel or heading down to Panjiayuan to shop. Therefore, I'm going
to teach you how to use a taxi first, and then cover the other methods of transportation in
order of the likelihood that you'll use them.
TAXI: The first time riding in a taxi in Beijing can be a likened to non-New Yorker's first
time riding in a taxi in New York City, just slightly more harrowing. The cabs are generally
not well maintained and, when they
can, fly in and out of traffic with
complete disregard for road signs and
normal traffic patterns. Most times,
however, they are stuck in the
congestion of Beijing’s main roads.
For all of the drawbacks of taking a
cab, it is by far the most convenient
way to get around the city, and you
are going to be taking cabs while in
Beijing.
When hailing a cab in Beijing, stand
on the side of the street, and look for
a cab that has its meter light on,
signaling it’s open to pick up passengers. Extend your arm, and look at the cab. The driver
should respond by coming over and picking you up. Cabs sit 3 comfortably and 4 with a
little effort.
Once you're in the cab tell the driver exactly where to go. The best way to give
driver your destination is either to try to tell him the name of the place in Chinese or to
write the Chinese characters of the place on a piece of paper and hand it to the cab driver.
(For example, just writeØlfor the Forbidden City.) Another method for communicating
with your taxi driver is to use your cell phone to call your hotel and put them on the phone
with your driver. However you choose to communicate, you should have an idea of where
you are going and how you will get there before getting in a taxi or else the driver might
take you for a scenic tour of the city in order to charge you more than he should. Everyone
is looking to make some extra money off of foreigners, and this is an easy way for cabbies
to do it.
After telling the cabbie where you want to go, you MUST make sure he puts his
meter on! Say "d# bi#o” ÝÞ to remind him to start the meter in case he forgets. Without
the meter running, the cabbie can charge you whatever he wants at the end of your ride.
Remembering to force the cabbie to use the meter will save you money. The typical rate for
cabs is 10 RMB for the first three kilometers, and then 2 RMB for every km after that.
Surcharges will be assessed for long distance rides and the starting rate jumps up to 11
RMB after 11 pm. Once the cab ride is over, check the meter, pay your fare and hop out.
There is no need to tip, as tipping is not a common practice in China.
You're going to be taking a lot of cab rides during your stay in Beijing. Just
remember that you have to be an active rider and pay attention to what's going on. With
these tips in mind you'll be fine.
Important language for cabs:
Put on the meter ÝÞ d# b(ao

Turn right Vß yòu gu#i
Turn left Uß zu) gu#i
Go straight à< zhi z)u
Stop the car áâ ting ch"
WALKING: Beijing is an easy city to negotiate by foot. It is, however, somewhat dirty.
Don’t be surprised if light colored shoes become a few shades of gray darker over your
time in China’s capital. Also, I typically avoid wearing sandals, as Beijing streets are pretty
dirty. Finally, Beijing is a very large city so you will not be able to walk everywhere.
You’ll need to take public transportation to specific areas and then walk around on your
own once you get there.
SUBWAY: The Beijing subway system is easy to use and has been expanded in preparation
for the Olympics. Be forewarned, it will be very crowded! In general, the subway runs
underneath the major roads and follows the grid layout of the city. In order to find the
subway look for the blue ãq signs or ask someone, “Dì ti' zhàn zài n#r?” Alternatively,
you can have them look at your book and point to the following, ãqäRST?
The subway fare is 2 Rénmínbì, RMB, ()*, the equivalent of roughly $.35
and allows you to go wherever the subway runs. You can pay in cash or with a prepaid
transportation Smartcard that can be purchased at the subway station and used for subway,
bus and taxi rides.
Swipe your card and head down to the platform. (If you're using a single ride
card, keep track of it because you'll need to swipe it again to exit the subway.) On the
platform you will see maps, in Chinese and pinyin, outlining the route of the respective
lines. Once on the subway you will also see a map of the subway’s route and hear an
announcement of each station’s name as you arrive. It’s a very easy system to understand.
There are three important things to remember, however, when riding the subway:
1. When buying a card or boarding the subway or bus,

the Chinese do not stand in line. They simply rush for
the counter or entrance in an “every man for himself”
fashion. Just be prepared to hold your own.
2. The subway operates from 5 am until about 11 pm, so
plan accordingly if you’re going to use them for late
night excursions in the city.
3. Beijing has constructed four new subway and light
train lines for the Olympic Games. Get a subway map
from your hotel as soon as you arrive.
BUS: In an attempt to uphold its Green Olympics motto, China

hopes to have 5,000 brand new, natural gas powered busses on
the roads by the start of the Olympics. It will cost 1 RMB to
ride them, just as it does now for their older counterparts, and
they will take you all over the city. These new busses will not
change the harsh reality of taking the bus in Beijing: Bus routes
are hard to figure out; passengers will push and shove to get on
the bus; and once you do fight your way on, it will be overcrowded, hot and sweaty. You’re
much better off taking a cab.
TRAINS: Trains will take you outside of Beijing and allow you to explore other parts of
China. Hopefully you'll have time to do this either before or after the Games.
The Chinese rail system is extensive and ever-expanding. Train stations are giant,
imposing buildings that
have hoards of people in
front of them jostling for
tickets. Inside it's more of
the same only here
people will also be sitting
and sleeping in groups. It
will seem as if people
live on and inside of the
rail system, and many
times this isn’t far from
the truth. Despite these
inconveniences, the trains
can be a great,
comfortable way to see
the countryside, talk to
people, and experience
China.
You have four different options for train tickets: hard seat, soft seat, hard sleeper,
soft sleeper. Short train rides will give you the two sitting options, and you should choose
the more comfortable soft seat. For longer trips, you'll you need to decide whether you
want to sleep in a 6-bunk car (top, middle, and bottom bunks on both sides of the isle) with
other passengers milling about or a slightly more private, slightly more comfortable 4-bunk
soft sleeper car. You'll probably want the soft sleeper.
Please also remember to keep your ticket with you throughout your ride, as you’ll
need to display it to leave the train station at your final destination. Without a ticket to
prove that you were in fact legally on the train, you may be forced to buy a second ticket to
leave the train station.
BICYCLES: There are many types of bicycles in Beijing - classics with baskets in front of
the handle bars, collapsibles that professionals take to work, motorized rides that look like
they might grow up and become real motorcycles and, of course, just plain, old pieces of
junk. But as a foreign traveler, you probably won’t need a bike.
You will see people riding their bikes everywhere in Beijing, but particularly in
the less developed areas of the city. Cyclists have a tendency to travel in packs, so you’ll
have to be equally mindful of bikes and cars as a pedestrian.
TRAFFIC: You need to be careful crossing the road in Beijing. Cars WILL NOT stop for
you. Always have your head on a swivel and be ready for cars, bikes and busses to appear
out of no where. Roads converge on vast intersections from every conceivable angle and
crossing the street requires more than the simple look left, right, and left again approach.
Just be patient, stay alert and keep your party together until you’re used to the traffic
patterns.
SHOPPING
Shopping in Beijing is what Westerners call bargaining. Only in expensive stores, hotels
and restaurants where the prices are fixed and the items are genuine, or can't be faked as in
the case of prepared food, is bargaining not allowed. In all other places, particularly
markets such as Silk Street and Yaxiu, all of the items are fake and bargaining is a
must. The Chinese call their bargaining method “ji#ngjià,” (åæ). Learn it and get ready
to use it. Don’t get ripped off!
Learn how to bargain:
1. The customer approaches the vendor on his own volition, or the vendor barks out
advertising slogans and pulls, sometimes physically, the customer to her stand.
2. While the customer looks at the merchandise, a T-shirt for example, the vendor
compliments the customer on his potential selections and offers other items to the
customer to consider/purchase. (During this step of the bargaining process it is
helpful not to show too much enthusiasm for the item that you eventually want to
buy. If you are really excited about one particular item the vendor will be
inflexible in the bargaining process betting that your desire for the item will force
you into buying it at a high price. Be discrete and then attack with your
bargaining skills!)
3. Once the customer selects something that he likes he turns to the vendor and says,
“How much does this cost?” “D*o sh#o qián?” “çèé?”
4. The vendor will punch a few digits into her calculator and show it to the customer
to give a price – all prices during the bargaining process will be typed into the
calculator. This price will be much too high, often 15 or 20 times the cost of the
item. For this T-shirt example, let’s say the vendor offers 150 RMB.
5. The customer must say that the T-shirt is too expensive, “tài gùi le” "êëK",
and ask the seller to offer a cheaper price, "pián yi di#n" "ìíî". Don't offer a
price yet. Let the seller keep coming down. Tell her the shirt is fake by pointing
at it and saying "ji# de" "ïh", and then ask again for a cheaper price, "pián yi
di#n".
6. This will bring the vendor down to 100 RMB. She will again as you for a price.
When you feel that simply asking her to reduce the price of the shirt won't work
anymore, make an offer. Offer a price perhaps 1/10th of the current price: 10
RMB.
7. The vendor will say that the customer’s price is far too cheap and she can’t sell it
to him for that much. She will then make counter offer of, say, 85 RMB and say
she can’t go any lower.
8. The customer once again says, “No, too expensive. 20 RMB.” (“tài gùi le” "êë
K")
9. This process will be repeated multiple times with the vendor saying things like,
“Fine! I’ll give you a friend discount. This is a very good price.” Other phrases
vendors use to maintain high profit margins are, "good quality" and "real (insert
any brand name here)". Don't believe them. Once the vendor will no longer
reduce her price with this casual bargaining, the customer must WALK AWAY.
If the customer wants to get the best price possible he must walk away. The
vendor will follow after the customer after a second or two and then offer a lower
price. (If she doesn't follow, go to another stand and try the process over again.)
Another round of more agitated bargaining might ensue but the sale will be made.
The Western customer must go through this process if he does not want to pay a
premium for everything that he wants to buy. Remember, the Chinese feel that
Westerners can afford to pay more and want to get those extra RMB out of them.
Two additional tips: 1) Be friendly throughout the process. Smile as you demand
a lower price and you'll improve your chances of getting it. Don't make it a personal
dispute. It's just business. 2) Everything at the popular clothing, jewelry and antique
markets is fake. It's not a Gucci bag so don't pay for a Gucci bag.
PLACES
Below is a list of some of the most famous places to visit in Beijing. They are divided
into “Places to See”, “Places to Shop” and Places to Eat and Drink.” Following this
list of the most historic sites in Beijing, will be my list of recommendations of
restaurants and bars, along with a suggested itinerary for your stay in Beijing. Let the
adventures begin!
Places to See
THE GREAT WALL, ð ñ, “chángchéng”
The Great Wall is the symbol of China. You must see it! The most well known section of
the Wall, Badaling, is about an hour and a half by bus away from Beijing. This site is often
overrun with tourists and a little too commercial. A better option, one that's in fact closer to
Beijing, is the Mutianyu portion of the wall. Only about an hour from the center of the city,
Mutianyu offers an original, 300+ year old section of the Wall and a small village with a
variety of restaurants and stores. If you can spend a whole day at the Wall, try going to a
less well restored, less touristy and less polluted section that's between 2 and 3 hours away,
such as Jinshanling or Simatai. Both are beautiful.
No matter where you go, you'll see that the Great Wall is absolutely breathtaking.
Although the pollution from Beijing has cut down on some of the views that you will see
from atop the Wall, it still remains one of the most spectacular places on earth. Just
remember to bring water and proper shoes because it's built on the crest of a mountain
range and hiking up to the Great
Wall and walking along it
during the summer will be a
serious workout!
How to get there: One way to do

it is to pick the section you want
to visit and have your hotel
arrange the trip for you. On the
other hand, if you're traveling
with a large tour group, just go
along for the ride. But the best
way to get out to the Great Wall
is to go through the Beijing
Downtown Backpacker's Hostel. These guys run day trips to all different sections of the
Wall. You'll be in good hands and have a great time! Tel: 86-10-84002429
FORBIDDEN CITY, Ø l, “g!g"ng”
The ancient home of the Emperor and one of the most famous places in China. You will
see the large picture of Mao greet you at the entryway and then walk through wall after
wall, courtyard after courtyard to witness the grandeur of Imperial China. Today the
Forbidden City stands as in
interesting juxtaposition between old
and new China. You’ll see a
Starbucks hidden inside and
construction cranes dotting the
skyline outside of the ancient palace.
The Forbidden City will be swarmed
by tourists, particularly on the
weekends, but remains a must see!
How to get there: You can do this

one on your own. Simply write
down the charactersØl on a piece
of paper and show them to a cab
driver. Everyone knows where the Forbidden City is. Have an idea of where you're going
so you don't waste time and money on the cab. Alternatively, you can take the subway and
get off at Tiananmen East or West Gate.
TIANANMEN SQUARE, Ù Ú ; “ti#n#nmén”

Tiananmen means “Gates of Heavenly Peace.” This square, which was enlarged under
Mao’s rule to become the largest square in the world, with the capacity to hold over 1
million people, is located in the heart of Beijing. Here is where the infamous student protest
of 1989 took place and where the Chinese flag raising and lowering ceremonies take place
every day. Mao’s tomb is at the far end of the square. The Great Hall of the People and the
Chinese National Museum form the other sides of the square. You should go, if you still
have energy, after you see the Forbidden City, which is right across the street.
How to get there: You can do this on your own. Write down the charactersÙÚ; and
show them to your cab driver.
Have an idea of where you're
going so you don't waste time and
money on the cab. Alternatively,
you can take the subway and get
off at Tiananmen East or West
Gate.
SUMMER P ALACE, ò ó ô, “yíhé

yuán”
Located in the north west of

Beijing, the Summer Palace is the
former summer retreat of Emperors from the Ming and Qing dynasties. The most well
known former occupant of the park is the Empress Dowager Cixi. She reigned at the very
end of the Qing dynasty, roughly the 1890’s, and diverted the country’s money from the
army in her own pet projects. One of the largest of these projects was the reconstruction of
the Summer Palace. Included in the reconstruction was the fabrication of a lavishly
expensive boat made of marble, which
she kept for personal enjoyment.
Needless to say, Cixi didn’t do much
sailing with this craft. Today, partly
due to her reconstruction efforts,
however, temples, pavilions, towers,
halls, and bridges surround the park’s
large central lake. It’s a beautiful
place to walk around. Make sure you
see the boat!
How to get there: Show your cab

driveròóô. All of them will know
that the Summer Palace is in north
west Beijing. Make sure you know this too! Because the Summer Palace is pretty far
outside of the city, many cabs will take circuitous routes to get to there in order to make
some extra money. Don't fall for it. Know where you're going. It might be helpful with
this one to ask someone at the front desk of your hotel tell the cabbie where you want to go,
and tell him not to trick you.
TEMPLE OF HEAVEN, Ù õ, “ti#ntán”

Built in 1420, Tiantan served as a ceremonial temple throughout the Ming and Qing
dynasties. You should go and see the Echo wall, which allows a whisper on one end of a
long wall to be heard clearly at the opposite end. The Three Echo Stones produce a similar
effect. Also take time to stroll around the grounds.
How to get there: Tell your cabbie that you want to go to Ùõ!;.
798 ART DISTRICT, b c& ö ÷ ø“q$ ji! b# yì shù qù”
Out of run down Great Leap

Forward-looking factories
comes Beijing’ù well-known
contemporary art district.
Take a trip up here and get
ready to spend the day. There
are many galleries displaying
a wide range of cutting edge
art forms: painting,
photography, sculpture and
others. When you get hungry
or just want to rest your feet,
there are also plenty of cafes
and bistros that make great
places to grab a bite and recap what you’úû seen. Definitely worth your time.
How to get there: You’ll have to take a cab, because 798 is out in the north east of the city.
Tell the driverbc&ö÷øand if he doesn’t get it right away, you can try 798’s other
name üýpö÷øþÿÿ
ÿ
ÿ
THE PLACE, ! " Ù# “shì mào
ti#n ji%”
ÿ
The Place is a huge, brand new
shopping center in the heart of the
CBD or central business district.
There are a smattering of decent
shops and places to eat. The main
reason to go to The Place is to see
the world’s 2nd largest LED
screen, which forms a glowing
canopy over the shopping center.
Just how big is it? It hangs 80 ft. above the shopping center, spans the 88 ft. width of the
center walkway and stretches an entire city block. Check it out at night.
How to get there: It’s over in the CBD not far from the Central Park and Fortune Plaza
apartments. Tell your cab driver $%ø&'Ü9()"Ù#
Places to Shop
LIULI CHANG, * +, ! -, “líulích&ng shìch&ng”
This is the best place to buy

traditional Chinese handicrafts,
paintings and calligraphy.
You will walk down old
alleyways and wander into
shops that catch your eye.
Inside of many shops you will
see art from around China and
also things being done by
hand, right in front of your
eyes. Certain shops will allow
you to pick from an English
list of Chinese sayings for
anything from family
happiness to lasting friendship and have one of the calligraphers in the store make your
calligraphy to your exact specifications; saying, size, paper color, etc. Here you’ll get great
prices by using the aforementioned “Shopping” techniques. (If you like Liuli Chang, also
check out Panjiayuan, Beijing’s huge flea-market, where you can buy all of the art and
antiques that you want.)
How to get there: Show your cab driver a piece of paper with the following characters: *
+,F./. The address is ó0;Ü¡W100 œ, if he is confused. Liuli Chang is south
and west of Tiananmen square. If you want to take the subway, take Line 2 and get off at
Hepingmen. Walk south for 100 meters and you'll be there.
WANGFUJING SHOPPING CENTER,

< = > ? @ , “wángf!j'ng yèshì”
Famous for its modern style and

flashy signs, Wangfujing is one of
the best places to go for high end
shopping in Beijing – you can find
almost anything that you’d find in
NYC right here. It is a pedestrian
only avenue that allows you to
wander back and forth between
stores. It’ll probably be very
crowded on weekends so try to go on a weekday afternoon.
If you're looking for an adventure, go to the Wangfujing snack street, 1234Ô
/. It's at the far end of the shopping plaza, walk away from Changan jie, and has all
sorts of fun foods: scorpions, silk worms and more. Grab a few beers or maybe some
baijiu for a bit of liquid courage and go prove to your friends that you are all that is man
How to get there: Show the cab driver<=>ü/, and he should know where to go.
Wangfujing is on East Changanjie, XðÚ/, not too far from the Silk Street Market.
SILK STREET, A ' B , “xiúshu' jíe”
Jump off the subway at the Yonganli stop and you’ll be standing in front of the bargain
shopper’s Mecca. Silk Street is a gigantic store and inside you can find anything from
custom made suits and jewelry to
digital cameras and artwork. It’s a
wild time with vendors trying to sell
you their products around every
corner. Get ready to bargain before
going and just remember: If you can
fake it, they will sell it. Have fun!
How to get there: Show your cab

driver 5§/!-. Silk Street is on
Jianguomen wai dajie, 67;[ü/,
just across from the Twins Mall, 8
p9ü:, two big, green cylindrical
towers. You can also take the subway to the Yonganli stop on Line 1.
PANJIAYUAN ANTIQUE MARKET, ; Ï ô < =! -“p#n j$a yuán jiù mào shì ch&ng”
If you’re looking for little Chinese-

looking trinkets to bring back to
friends or even pieces of furniture
to send back to your home,
Panjiayuan is your place. There are
thousands of merchants selling
antiques, jewelry, calligraphy,
clothes and more. Bring your
barging skills and see what you
can find. It will be hard to leave
without buying something.
How to get there: Best to just grab

a cab. Your driver will certainly know where to take you ;Ïô<=!-
YASHOW MARKET, > 5 ! - “ya xiù shì ch&ng”
Next to Silk Street, this is the most famous place to buy knock-off brand name clothes,
bags, shoes and everything else under the sun. There are a handful of tailors on the third
floor that do a decent job for a reasonable price, as long as you bargain hard. Go wild,
spend those RMB.
How to get there: You’ll need to take a cab, and, again, most cabbies will know right where
this place is. Tell them: >5!-?%;[ü/99(.
Places to Eat and Drink
HOUHAI, :Ë, “hòuha'”
If you’re looking for more bars than clubs for your slice of the nightlife, you should
head over to HouHai. Here you’ll find a beautiful lake surrounded by many upscale
restaurants and bars. If the spirit moves you after spending time at the bar, you can
always take a boat out onto the lake to continue the night. Although this is one of the
best places in the city to walk around at night, it’s also great during the day. A
daytime walk around the lake will allow you to avoid the nighttime crowds.
How to get there: Every cab driver should know where :Ë is, but just to be sure, tell
them to go to the Houhai Lotus Market, :Ë@3!-!"which is the most well known
entrance to the park.""
NAN LUO GU XIANG, WABC "nán luó g! xiàng"

Please don't miss this 700 year old, beautifully restored hutong, DE, which is not far
from Houhai. What's a hutong? A hutong is an alley between traditional courtyard
houses known as siheyuan, _FG. The siheyuan and the hutongs formed the center of
daily life years ago. They are a vitally important
part of China's culture and history.
Unfortunately, the government has bulldozed
many of the hutong areas to make room for
office buildings, malls and everything else that
makes up modern Beijing.
In the Nanluoguxiang hutong, you'll see
refurbished, traditional dwellings and get a taste
of what old Beijing might have looked like.
Small stores, restaurants, bars and even a few
hotels line the street, but they do their best not to
spoil the atmosphere. Food and drink typically
have more character to here than they do in other
parts of the city where people also go out to
enjoy themselves at night.
After exploring Nanluoguxiang for a
few hours, make your way over to the Drum or
Bell towers (shown on the left). Built in the early
1400’s these towers once kept time for the city;
the bell rang during the day and the drum sounded at night. For a small entrance fee,
both now afford great views of this well-preserved, historic section of Beijing. As the
sun sets, head toward Houhai where you can grab a 3RMB beer on the street and enjoy
the lake and the lights at night.
How to get there: Tell your cab driver you want to go toWABCDE. This is the
southern entrance of the hútòng. Once you finish walking north through the hutong,
hang a left to go toward the Drum and Bell Towers.
SANLITUN NIGHTCLUB DISTRICT, 1 C D 9# B, “s#nl'tún j'ub# jíe”
This is one of the most famous bar, restaurant and club districts in Beijing. There are
plenty of watering holes that cater to western tastes but you can also find a handful of
distinctly Beijing establishments in the area. It’s a lot of fun to just have your cabbie
drop you off on one edge of Sanlitun and then walk around for a while until you find a
place that suites your tastes. Once you decide on a bar, you might try a Beijing
special, green tea and whiskey. Ganbei!
How to get there: Cabbies know where this is. Have them drop you off at the corner
of Sanlitun nan jie and Gongren tiyuchang beilu / ^}HW/ ó IJJK-!Ü
and walk north.
KARAOKE BAR, KTV, “KTV”
There are many fun Karaoke Bars throughout Beijing. You can rent rooms fully
equipped with huge flat screen TV’s, plush leather sofas and an array of microphone
and speaker equipment to accommodate any party. You typically rent the room by the
hour, and the rates become much cheaper after midnight. Attendants are generally
helpful when figuring out how to select songs and will bring you food and drink upon
request. Go to sing and drink and enjoy friends. A must try while in Beijing!
How to get there: You have to be a little careful when selecting KTV sites. Some of
them offer girls and other value added services. Stick to PartyWorld, formerly known
as Cashbox, venues. This high quality, reputable Taiwanese company won't put you
and your friends in any awkward situations. Show the cab driver: éL KTV. There
are two locations. The first on Chaowai dajie in the Prime Tower: $%;[ü/22(
MNü:1O. The second at Xiwai dajie in Teng Da Plaza: •[ü/168(PQü:.
Go to the closer one.
[One Child Policy?]
RECOMMENDATIONS
You only have a few days in Beijing, so a large catalog of restaurants, bars and clubs won't
do you much good. Big lists also tend to lead to indecision, and you’re not here to waste
time.
Restaurants
DA DONG PEKING DUCK RESTAURANT EF$kG
Nobody does Peking duck like Beijing. And nobody in Beijing does Peking duck like Da
Dong. Head to the well designed Dongsishitiao location for a classic Beijing meal. The
duck will be the highlight of the meal, but there are plenty of other dishes on the beautiful,
coffee-table book of a menu that are outstanding in their own right. Must go in Beijing!
How to get there:
Dongsi shi tiao: XH/IJ22KLMRNSEO1-2T (5169 0328 ) This one!
Tuanjie hu: UVPQR3KS, X1ÛTðUWXLV (6582-2892W
XIAO WANG F U X<=
With three locations across the city, Xiao Wang Fu's is a growing success in Beijing. Décor
varies by location, from Guanghua lu to Ritan to Hou hai, but the food remains the same:
classic, home-style dishes that locals and foreigners love. I've eaten more lunches at the
Guanghua lu location than at any restaurant in Beijing. I hope you'll stop by at some point.
How to get there:
Guang hua lu: Y'TXC2K (6591-3255)
Ritan Park: Zõ[%\ (8561-7859)
Houhai:]^_`@- (661-5558)
DING TAI FENG ab&
Forget your leathery, steamed or pan fried appetizers from back home, this world famous
Taiwanese chain has the best XXc (little soup dumpling) that you'll ever have. The menu
isn't expansive, but you won't go wrong with a single dish. Very clean with outstanding
service, this is a great place for lunch or dinner, particularly for less adventurous eaters.
How to get there:
Shin Kong Place (big mall): dNT87KMYef6S (6533-1536)
Dongzhimen: Mg-C)B24K (6462-4502)
HATSUNE YhZijk
The only pure play non-Chinese restaurant that I'm recommending, Hatsune serves up some
of the best Japanese food in town. The menu contains a wide range of high quality and
creatively presented sashimi, sushi and rolls but also has plenty of really tasty cooked
dishes for those who don’t want the raw stuff. The lunch box deals are a steal for a filling
mid day meal. Check it out!
How to get there:
Guanghua lu: Y'XTJ8KlZEOCm2T (6581-3939)
THREE GUIZHOU MEN 1nëo!
Three guys from Guizhou, a province in the south of China, came to Beijing a few years
ago hoping to make it big in the blossoming modern art scene. They opened up a small
restaurant to support their fledgling painting careers. Although they never made it as artists,
their restaurant, Three Guizhou Men, turned into one of the best places in town and has
grown to 5 locations across Beijing. Guizhou food is very distinctive, a bit spicier and
heartier than what you find in other areas. There's also a really interesting sour flavor found
in a few dishes that's definitely worth a try. Two thumbs way up!
How to get there:
Gongti Xi lu: pq-T8KS (6551-8517)
Guanghua xilu: Y'-T6K (6502-1733)
Guomao/Jianwai SOHO: drSOHO7KS1-2T (5869-0598)
KONG YI JI stu
What a beautiful place. Bamboo and peony flowers, glass and dark wood, Kong Yi Ji
creates a peaceful, courtyard setting around a pond in the center of the restaurant. The pond
is tasteful and appropriate (unlike so many ponds and streams found in other Chinese
restaurants) as Kong Yi Ji is a Zhejiang style restaurant. The Yangzi River flows through
Zhejiang Province on its way toward Shanghai providing much of the food for the region.
The pond and décor pay homage to the restaurant!s roots. And so does the food, which is
authentic and outstanding in every respect. If you enjoy tea, Kong Yi Ji also has a very nice
selection. Last but not least, the wait staff is kind and helpful, truly first rate.
How to get there:
West Gate of Chaoyang Park: v'[%T8K[[\ (6508 2228)
BAO YUAN DUMPLING HOUSE wg!6x
The combination of beer and dumplings is hard to beat, and one of the best places in
Beijing to enjoy it is the Bao Yuan Dumpling House. Cheap and delicious. The menue is in
English and Chinese and offers a range of dishes in addition to dumplings, but focus on
what the restaurant does best - !!. You can have the cooks vary the color of the outter
skin of the dumplings to match what's inside of each. A plate of steaming purple and green
dumplings is at least good for a conversation starter, so give the colors a try.
How to get there:
Maizidian: Just north of building 6 on Maizidian street:y6GB6KSQ" (6586-4967)
HAN CANG z{9S
Very good Hakka food, a style of cooking from southeastern China that is a little vinegary
and salty but not at all heavy, next to Houhai. Dark, unadorned wood tables and chairs
make for simple décor. Emphasis is on the food. The 2nd floor offers a nice view of the
lake.
How to get there:
Houhai: Go to the main entrance and bear to the right of the lake. It's a very short walk. ]
^ |}^X~ (6404-2259)
Bars and Clubs

LAN CLUB Œ\Q
A very sophisticated night on the town must include substantial time at Lan Club. The
fantastic interior design by Philippe Starck, attracts almost as much attention as the
couture-clad clientele. This place is one of a kind in Beijing. You're welcome to do dinner,
but drinks and the live music are probably more than enough.
How to get there:
LG Towers: 67;[ü/º8pü:4T
SUZIE WONG'S ]^_`¢a
The most well known club in Beijing, each year Suzie Wong's puts another collection of
Beijing's best (fill in the clubbing superlative here) awards on its mantle. Self billed as
1940's Shanghai meets 1920's New York, Suzie Wong's decor alone makes it worth the trip.
Multiple levels, a couple of bars and one pretty popular dance floor give you plenty to do at
Suzie's.
How to get there:
Chaoyang Park West Gate:$%bô•;
Q BAR
Some of the best drinks in town. As you take the crummy elevator to the 6th floor of the
Eastern Hotel, you might be thinking, “Where the heck am I going?” But this comfortable
bar with outstanding drinks will reward your patience. A great place to meet friends for a
drink, Q Bar only gets better when it's warm and you can sit outside on the rooftop.
How to get there:
Eastern Hotel on Sanlitun nanlu: ^}HWÜº cd³e6T
FACEBAR
This Southeast Asia themed lounge is a place to relax with friends. It has large comfortable
sofas and chairs as well as a few pool tables and bar areas. Very cool antique-looking
furniture. Sometimes a little older crowd, it’s not a place to get rowdy.
How to get there:
26 Dongcaoyuan Gongti behind the Cervantes Institute: IJWÜXfô26(
CENTRO
If you're looking to have a scotch and soda with the business travelers, then Centro is your
place. Live music starts most nights at 8, and the bar’s pretty loud by that time. But there
are also sofas and armchairs around the perimeter of this sizeable bar and lounge if you
don't want to be in the midst of the action. You won't feel like you're in China when you're
here, but that might be just what you want.
How to get there:
Kerry Centre Hotel lobby:g}G••e
ITINERARY
Below I’ve set out a 5 day itinerary for Beijing. Each day is packed with activities,
maybe more than it'd be possible to do at a comfortable pace. These are just
suggestions. Use them as starting points for planning what you want to see while in
Beijing.
Day 1 – Traditional Beijing
MORNING: Breakfast at your hotel. Take a cab to the Forbidden City. Plan on arriving
around 9:30 to give you plenty of time to walk around the area before lunch.
LUNCH: Cab from Forbidden City to Dadong for Peking Duck. Have your hotel call ahead
to make sure you have a table.
AFTERNOON: Cab from
Dadong to Nanluoguxiang.
Walk north from the southern
entrance to the hútòng. Shop
a little bit, maybe grab a
snack along the way. Exit the
hútòng and turn left on 鼓楼
西大街 and walk down to the
Drum and Bell Towers.
DINNER: Walk or Cab over to

Houhai and eat at Han Cang,
a delicious Hakka restaurant
just to the right of the lake.
NIGHT: Pick up an RMB 3 beer from one of the little stand on the side of the street, and go
for a walk around Houhai. Plenty of bars to stop in if you’re looking for some action.
Day 2 – Old and New Beijing
MORNING: Breakfast at your hotel. Cab to the Temple of Heaven. Arrive around 9:30 so
you can take your time walking around the temples and through the gardens.
LUNCH: Cab to Xiao Wang Fu’s at Ritan Park.
AFTERNOON: Shopping at the Silk Market. Don’t forget to bring your bargaining skills.
You’ll probably want to stop by your hotel to drop off your bags of clothes, pearls and
trinket and shower. Get ready for a fancy night on the town.
DINNER: Kong Yi Ji.
NIGHT: Lan Club, not far from People 8.
Day 3 – Great Wall
ALL DAY: Trip to the Great Wall. Get up early to make it out to the Simatai section or take
your time and head out to Mutianyu. Both will be great. Bring lots of water, a few snacks
and your camera. And don’t forget, climbing the wall is pretty good exercise. Wear
something comfortable and athletic in order to climb up and down hundreds of stone steps.
Day 4 – Shopping and Art
MORNING: Breakfast at the hotel and then cab down to Panjiayuan. Pick up all sorts of
traditional Chinese arts and crafts.
LUNCH: Ding Tai Feng in the Shin Kong Plaza.
AFTERNOON: Cab up to the 798 art district. Explore the galleries and stop for a drink or a
snack at any one of the cafes. Head back to your hotel to relax and shower before dinner.
DINNER: Hatsune for Japanese
NIGHT: Suzie Wongs, not far from Hatsune, for another high class night out.
Day 5 – Hutong and

Palace
MORNING: Breakfast
at the hotel, and then
cab down to
Liulichang. Stroll
around the hútòng and
perhaps pick up a few
pieces of traditional
Chinese art.
LUNCH: Three
Guizhou Men
AFTERNOON: Cab out to the Summer Palace. Make sure to bring your camera and walking
shoes. Return to your hotel to shower and rest.
DINNER: Bao Yuan Dumpling House for local dumplings and beer.
NIGHT: KTV
WARNINGS!
CABS
Drivers will try to over charge

foreigners. Tell the driver where
you want to go and have an idea
of how you should get there.
Use your Chinese if you’ve been
driving around the city for a
while. Rides within the city
should cost between RMB10-25
on average. A long ride out to
the Summer Palace might cost
up to RMB 45-50. The most
expensive ride you’ll take will
be to or from the airport, which
will be just about RMB 100.
ART EXHIBITS
Near many of Beijing’s most famous monuments you’ll encounter young Chinese who
speak pretty good English inviting you to see their art exhibits. Although they will tell you
that they are college art students who just want to give you a free showing of their work,
don’t follow. Wave your hand and keep walking. This is a scam whereby the young
Chinese take you to a small, makeshift gallery and then pressure you into buying something
of low quality that you probably don’t want. Save yourself the hassle and keep walking
when they approach.
TICKETS
Many of Beijing's historic places require that you buy a ticket to enter. Although there may
be long lines and it may be a pain to deal with the pushing and shoving required to get to
the ticket counter, do it yourself! There will be friendly Chinese who speak good English
ready to "help" you purchase your ticket. They will invariably charge you a higher price
than the regular ticket price and probably hassle you to purchase other services from them
as well. Don't deal with these unofficial vendors for tickets, English speaking guides or
anything else.
In addition, when you buy your ticket to an historic place, buy one that will allow you to
see everything. You're going to want to look around, and the cheapest tickets don't give you
access to everything. You'll be forced to buy separate tickets at the entrances to the places
you want to see inside of the monument, and their total cost will be higher than the cost of
the "everything included" ticket.
FOOD
When out to eat, your waitress will try to help you select
a few dishes. Chances are good that she will first
introduce you to the most expensive items on the menu.
If you want to try them, by all means go for it. But if
you want something a little less expensive either say “ê
ë K ” which means "too expensive", or just pick
something yourself.
ENGLISH SPEAKERS
In Beijing there are two types of people who speak

English well: educated professionals who work in
multinational companies and salesmen who hang around
tourist areas looking to make some money off of
foreigners. Who do you think you'll run into most often?
For example, if you are standing outside of the Summer
Palace and someone offers in English to give you a ride to your hotel in his van, be alert.
You won't be in any danger if you do business with him, but it might be an expensive
exchange. Best bet is to just take a taxi home. Whether shopping in a market or walking
around a temple, be on your guard when a Chinese English speaker comes up to you
offering special services " they will be overpriced.
TEA SCAMS
Again, near some of the most famous historical sites in Beijing, Chinese have been known
to invite foreigners to come to a shop off of the beaten path to view some tradiational art.
As the “host” begins talking about the artwork, he or she pours the foreigner a few cups of
tea. After a few stories, the “host” will ask the foreigner to buy a piece or art. If the
foreigner refuses, the “host” will demand a that the foreigner at least pay for the very
expensive tea that he as just (unwittingly) consumed. Be on the lookout for free tea when
it’s not served in a restaurant or a real tea house.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How can I call friends and family at home and also in Beijing?
If you want to call home you’ll need to use the international dialing code 001 for the United
States. (00 is to get out of the country and the US code is 1.) If friends want to call you in
Beijing they will need to dial the China code 86 and then 10 for Beijing. Cell phone
service in Beijing is very good and your own GSM phone or a locally purchased phone will
put you on the network. It will probably be most convenient to just bring your GSM phone
to China and then buy a SIM card in order to avoid the expensive roaming costs. (See
below for how to buy a SIM card.)
If you’re bringing a computer, think about using Skype to keep in touch with people from
back home: www.skype.com. It’s free to download, and lets you call anywhere in the
world for a pretty low rate.
How do I buy a SIM card?
SIM cards, can be found in convenience and phone stores all over Beijing. All you have to
do is point to your cell phone and say “Sim Ka” and the attendant will quickly produce a
number of cards. You’ll then choose which phone company you want to use. A safe bet is
China Mobile which will provide great coverage in Beijing and throughout China. After
that select the prepaid time for your card, generally either 50 or 100 RMB. Then you’ll be
all set to call your friends.
Can I use my credit card in Beijing?
Almost all day-to-day transactions rely on cash in Beijing. Big purchases, such as your
hotel room, can be put on a credit card but you’re still going to have to carry cash. ATMs
(•€•‚tíku,nj%) from both Western and Chinese banks are all over the place, and most
accept foreign credit and debit cards to withdraw money.
What are the emergency numbers in Beijing?
Police: 110
Fire Department: 119
Ambulance: 120
Tourist Hotline: 6513-0828
Local Directory Assistance: 114 (Chinese); 2689-0114 (English)
Where can I find more information on traveling to China?
The parent site of your guide!

www.beijing-travel-guide.com
The State Department’s Travel Site for China – Good for travel safety
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1089.html
CIA World Fact book – Good for general country info

www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ch.html
China National Tourist Office – For the Chinese perspective on things

www.cnto.org/aboutchina.asp
How can I get internet access to check my email or use Skype?
Internet access is available in most hotels. You can bring your laptop, pay a small fee at
the front desk, plug into the Ethernet connection in your room and you’ll be ready to check
your mail. If by chance your hotel doesn’t offer internet access there are plenty of internet
cafes throughout Beijing where you pay a few RMB for a couple of minutes to surf the web.
What should I do if I get sick?
You should head to one of the clinics or hospitals listed below with your passport, health
insurance ID and some cash. Doctors at these locations should speak English. Keep in
mind, as ambulance services are not particularly reliable, taking a taxi might be the fastest
way to get to the hospital. The word for hospital is y%yuàn, hGi
Zh!ngrì Yóuh"o Y#yuàn (6422-1122 or 6422-2949): a good hospital that many

foreigners rely upon. Go to the “Foreign Guests” (wàib#n [j) section for
quicker, better service.
Foreigners’ Clinic of the Peking Union Medical Center (B$ij#ng Xiéhé Y#yuàn,
6529-6114): One of the most well regarded hospitals by expatriates. The staff is
well trained and the prices are cheaper than at the Western clinics (about 150
RMB for a checkup and one or two common prescriptions).
Beijing International SOS Clinic (B%ij#ng Guójì Jiùyuàn Zh!ngx#n, 6462-9112):

Perhaps the best facilities in Beijing. Many Western doctors are on the staff.
Expect to pay U.S. prices. Can process insurance claims for some U.S. health
insurance companies—so you don’t have to pay the full amount up front.
The International Medical Center at the Lufthansa Center (Y&nSh& Y'uyì

Sh&ngchéng, 6465-1384/1394/1328): Resembles a Western clinic in every
respect. Expect to pay U.S. prices.
MAP OF CHINA
MY STORY
During the summer between sophomore and junior year of college, I came to Beijing for
the first time to study Chinese through the Princeton in Beijing language program. Even
though I was surrounded by friendly teachers, support staff and classmates, I felt terribly
lost and overwhelmed by Beijing in those first few weeks.
I did everything a first-timer in China was bound to do. Because I couldn’t read
the characters I threw darts at menus not knowing what would arrive on the table. Because
I didn’t know the city I went on 30-minute scenic tours of Beijing by taxi when my
destination was no more than 5 minutes away. I became violently ill from food that came
from a back alley. I took the subway east when I should have gone west. I ran and dodged
cars coming at me from all directions as I played Frogger with my life crossing the street. I
misspoke and said inappropriate things in Chinese to people that were being friendly to me.
And I overpaid for everything!
Although I now live in Beijing and work for an American law firm, I couldn’t
have started farther from China only a few years ago.
I grew up in tiny Orefield, Pennsylvania. My time at public high school was
invested in family, sports and classes. At 18, I didn’t know a thing about China and neither
did anyone around me. That all changed when looking for something challenging and new
freshman year, I took Chinese 101.
Chinese studies became my passion and shaped nearly everything I did at
Princeton. After four years I had been to Beijing to study Chinese, taken every course on
China that I could fit into my schedule and become the guy who my friends asked
thoughtful, China-related questions, such as, “Can I get General Tso’s in the Forbidden
City?” After graduating I joined the Princeton in Asia fellowship program on a post in
Beijing, and I've been here ever since.
I created this travel guide with the kind help of Princeton in Beijing (PiB),
Princeton in Asia and the Princeton Chinese department. The head of this department and
founder of PiB, Professor Chih-p’ing Chou, was a great resource throughout the writing
process. Professor Ed Zschau's lessons on entrepreneurship kept me motivated to finish the
project. My family and friends, particularly Liz and Christine, helped me edit and improve
the content. Thank you all for your help.
Warm Regards,
Michael Collins
mcollins@beijing-travel-guide.com

Beijing Travel

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YOUR LOCAL GUIDE TO BEIJING

1 – first Olympics in China

This past year,

THE OPENING CEREMONY

THE OLYMPIC COLORS

WHITE: Jade White: In ancient times, Chinese intellectuals wore jade to

1st Tone 2nd Tone 3rd Tone 4th Tone

ART: The Chinese place great value on art of all types.

CONFUCIANISM: Confucianism has existed

If you see: Say the Underlined letter combinations

Finally, the following letter combinations are a bit tricky:

If you see: Say the following

ju, qu, xu, yu The “u” in these cases is a rounded vowel

yan, ian The “a” is not the typical ah sound but

ao “ow” like allow or bow

ei “ay” like in bay or way

ie, ue, ye The “e” sounds like yes.

iu “eo” like Leo or Theo

ou "oh" like hoe

uo “oh-h”a little softer than Noah

Beibei Jingjing Huanhuan Yingying Nini

Greetings and Basic Words

Hello/How are you? !+ n( h#o (nee how)

North ! b'i (b-ay)

Front Y qián (ch-ian)

The Five Flavors

Important language for cabs:

Put on the meter ÝÞ d# b(ao

1. When buying a card or boarding the subway or bus,

BUS: In an attempt to uphold its Green Olympics motto, China

Learn how to bargain:

How to get there: One way to do

FORBIDDEN CITY, Ø l, “g!g"ng”

How to get there: You can do this

TIANANMEN SQUARE, Ù Ú ; “ti#n#nmén”

SUMMER P ALACE, ò ó ô, “yíhé

Located in the north west of

How to get there: Show your cab

TEMPLE OF HEAVEN, Ù õ, “ti#ntán”

798 ART DISTRICT, b c& ö ÷ ø“q$ ji! b# yì shù qù”

Out of run down Great Leap

This is the best place to buy

WANGFUJING SHOPPING CENTER,

Famous for its modern style and

SILK STREET, A ' B , “xiúshu' jíe”

How to get there: Show your cab

If you’re looking for little Chinese-

How to get there: Best to just grab

YASHOW MARKET, > 5 ! - “ya xiù shì ch&ng”

Places to Eat and Drink

HOUHAI, :Ë, “hòuha'”

NAN LUO GU XIANG, WABC "nán luó g! xiàng"

SANLITUN NIGHTCLUB DISTRICT, 1 C D 9# B, “s#nl'tún j'ub# jíe”

KARAOKE BAR, KTV, “KTV”

XIAO WANG F U X<=

DING TAI FENG ab&

THREE GUIZHOU MEN 1nëo!

BAO YUAN DUMPLING HOUSE wg!6x

HAN CANG z{9S

Bars and Clubs

SUZIE WONG'S ]^_`¢a

Day 1 – Traditional Beijing

DINNER: Walk or Cab over to