DK Travel : Beijing

At the heart of Beijing is tradition, given physical form in the mighty Forbidden City, from where successive imperial dynasties have ruled since the 15th century. Neighboring Tian’an Men Square is the China of recent history, of red-flag socialism and Mao. But this is also a city on the move, as an all-pervading spirit of change makes Beijing the most 21st-century of capitals.

Stir-fried kidney flowers

These are actually pork kidneys cut in a criss-cross fashion and stir-fried, during which they open out like “flowers”. The kidneys are typically prepared with bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, and edible black fungus (a sort of mushroom).
Stone Boat

While it may not be as historically significant as its namesake up at the Summer Palace, this Stone Boat does a good latte, it’s a WiFi hotspot and, come evening, it serves as a unique, candlelit venue for a quiet drink.
Street dancing

Ballroom dancing is hugely popular with the elderly, but in Beijing it doesn’t take place in ballrooms but out on the street. On warm evenings, car parks and sidewalks are filled with dancers congregated around a boombox. At the Workers’ Stadium you can get up to four different groups on the forecourt in front of the north gate – choose your style: waltz, polka, foxtrot, or gavotte.
Stupa Forest Temple

Near the parking lot for the Tanzhe Temple is this even more fascinating temple, notable for its marvelous collection of brick stupas hidden among the foliage. Each stupa was constructed in memory of a renowned monk. The towering edifices were built in a variety of designs, and the earliest among them dates from the Jin dynasty (1115–1234).
Summer Palace

Beijing summers are unbearably hot, so the imperial court would exchange the Forbidden City for this semi-rural retreat with its ornate pavilions, gardens, and temples, ranged around the cool expanse of Kunming Lake (see Summer Palace).
Summer Palace

It’s a long 45-minute taxi ride from central Beijing to the Summer Palace, but it is a sight that should not be missed. The grounds are arranged as a microcosm of nature, with hills and water complemented by bridges, temples and walkways. It manages to be both fanciful and harmonious at the same time (see Bei Hai Park).

Long Corridor ceiling, Summer Palace

Marble Boat, Summer Palace
Sun Dong’an Plaza

A mall full of mid-range clothes shops with a multiscreen cinema and lots of restaurants up on the top floor.
Sweet and sour carp

Beijing cooking is heavily influenced by the cuisine of Shandong Province, generally regarded as the oldest and best in China. Sweet and sour carp is a quintessential Shandong dish traditionally made with fish from the Yellow River.
Sweet Garden Hostel

Peaceful, family-run hostel in a converted courtyard residence close to Dong Si Shi Tiao subway offers simple single, double, and 4–6 bed dorm rooms. Staff speak little English but arrange bike hire, ticket booking services, and even airport pick-up.
Tai chi

Looking to improve the flow of qi (life force) through their bodies, early each morning crowds of mostly elderly people gather in Beijing’s parks to indulge in mass movements of tai chi, or tai ji quan as it’s better known in China. Although the discipline has its origins in martial arts, for most folks it’s more about making sure that the joints don’t seize up.

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