I saved notes for this post back in Sept 2010! Wow, I am so behind. Here’s a quick recap and a few thoughts: Beijing may not have bike sharing, but they sure sell bikes at very reasonable prices. At the beginning of the typical school year, September, I added 500RMB to my phone card at […]
It’s been almost a year since I’ve left Beijing and I still think about how the city landscape was in such dramatic change while I was there, as I’m sure it still is. At that time I also met Jonah Kessel (via Twitter), who filmed a series of short videos for Asia Society, the first is titled “A Disappearing World.” […]
I returned to HK yesterday from another trip to Xining, China… and looking forward to a pizza lunch in Central. It’s been a while since I’ve had American food (though it seems that’s all I write about)! This is just a quick update to share what I’ve been writing for VeggieWala. Check out a few things […]
Check out an excerpt from my newest contribution to VeggieWala: Chinese cuisine is always said to be particularly difficult to navigate as a veggie foodie. I’m not personally a vegetarian; however, I certainly appreciate the dietary, health, and moral factors, and sympathize with the troubles of eating as a vegetarian. We ordered a variety of dishes, […]
Since a friend introduced me to the Date Cake shop of Wudaokou (五道口), I’ve been addicted! Continue reading to find out more: Have you ever had a ‘date cake’? If not, it’s definitely worth the long Beijing commute to try. The little shop on the north side of Chengfu Lu, about 5 minutes walk […]
Happy 2011! Wishing everyone all the best for the coming year :) Here’s to the first post of 2011 and an update of my own! Design Museum Boston is proud to present Tiffany Wan, the newest addition to our correspondents team. A graduate of Syracuse University and currently located in Beijing, Tiffany will be bringing an […]
Again, apologies for the lapse in time before this post! Allow me to continue… Guess what?! You have no idea how exciting this is: you can find freshly made, artisinal cheese in Beijing! That’s right…fresh. And homemade. Once I heard about the Cheese Maker of Beijing, “Le Formargerie de Peking” or 北京布乐奶酪坊 earlier this year, I […]
NanLuoGuXiang Chess：南锣鼓巷象棋 It’s been a while since I posted! Apologies! And this one is going to be short… just a few photos that I’ve taken in the past couple months that I quite like :) 抱歉我最近没写。。这个post也很短，只让你看看我这几个月拍的几张照片儿。我相当喜欢！ Tianjin Snacks：天津小吃 Hutong Bikes near Lama Temple：胡同自行车在雍和宫附近
Before moving anywhere, even to the next neighborhood, it’s always a hassle and headache, let alone across the globe! I previously had a few things to say about some common issues and encounters at the beginning like internet access beyond the GFW and personal care products. Here are a few more points to consider, thanks […]
Design friend @ssshaona posted a link to information about the new “Happy Magic Water Park” in Beijing. The Water Cube of the Beijing Olympic park has undergone renovations to be transformed into an indoor water park. After reading the blurb, more than 1 friend here in Beijing has mentioned of hearing the same! Looks like it […]
I got back to Beijing about two weeks ago and it’s been a slew of things to take care of… First things first, did you know that there are two types of internet here in Beijing? No, it’s not dial-up versus DSL. Internet service here is provided by China Unicom, 中国联通, and there are 2 types […]
In a few days, I’ll be headed back to Beijing once again and during my time in Boston I had an interesting conversation with ID (Industrial Design) friend @jomiz80. Reflecting on my 1st 4 months in Beijing, it was actually a great experience, even with the handful of negative encounters. Surprisingly, this was the first […]
Dueling Starbucks and Peet’s coffee shops are located directly across the street from each other in the town of Alameda, CA (Bay Area). I’m sure it’s not the only corner in the area with multiple coffee shops. When two huge coffee chains open shop so close together, it certainly shows the presence of coffee culture. Coffee […]
My friend Sally, a Master’s in psychology exchange student from Taiwan, is studying at Peking University (Beida) this semester. I’ve been happy to help her with some translations and she’s kind enough to contribute one of her stories here: “北大洗澡記” 每天晚上校園都有不少人手提著塑膠袋或是小提籃，裡面放著盥洗用具，在寒冷的夜晚裡，走向公共浴室洗澡。我則是和室友走向更遠的浴室，因為那裏洗澡的地方有門可以關上。我來到北大最讓我驚訝著的兩件事，第一件事宿舍裡沒有洗澡的地方，第二件事是洗澡的地方沒有門可以關上。我聽我室友說在公共浴室洗澡，大家彼此可以看到對方的裸體。不過後來拿到港澳台學生用的洗澡證，我的心情好許多。因為港澳台辦公室知道台灣、香港和澳門的同學不習慣這樣的洗澡方式。有了這張卡，我們可以被允許進入留學生公寓的浴室，保全人員會先檢察我們的證件才讓我們進去洗澡。 我的大陸朋友說，這樣的洗澡方式都常在北方比較常見，所以南方人到北方求學，常常會很不習慣。不過她說，她們得習慣環境，因為這樣的生活習慣在北方已經很久了，即使跟行政單位反應也是沒有用的。我聽完不能理解為什麼反應是沒有用的，於是我只好點點頭。 “Taking a shower at Beida” Every evening there are many students walking through campus, bringing their plastic […]
A good friend of mine here in Beijing shares my love for food and gave me this book yesterday! “北京小吃” Beijing snacks (or Beijing small eats). Although, I can barely read any of it, the pictures say a lot.. and to remind me that I have yet to explore any of the well known foods […]
A visit to NanLouGuXiang was great to see with all the small independent and creative shops. From the pottery to Tibetan yogurt and craftmanship items. It’s a shame to come across this article in the Beijinger noting the change in environment from an authentically developed ‘tourist attraction’ to one that will potentially be artificially enforced. […]
I thought my room was small; this is a very different lifestyle…! With space pressures increasing in Beijing, the first “capsule apartment” complex has now opened in China’s capital – and according to China Hush it’s found at least one tenant. China Hush reported the opening of the capsule complex in Liulangzhuang, Haidian, earlier this month. According to […]
So smart to orient the map the same way the street is laid out! Proof that community living and communal bath houses and toilets are still used and needed, even in a ‘developed’ city like Beijing: I do wonder if this map is for locals or tourists, since it’s placed on a main street that currently […]
It’s funny and insightful that the USA is used for reference when beef noodles are an original Chinese dish. California is apparently home to the beef noodle king. And here’s a Beijing location:
A few photos from YuYuanTan Park (玉渊潭公园) this weekend: