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A beautiful example of a classic imperial garden, Bei Hai was a summer playground for successive dynasties that ruled from the neighboring Forbidden City. Today, it is well and truly open to the public, and thronged daily by locals who come here to socialize. There are a couple of small temples, a fine, small ornamental garden, and a noted restaurant. This is arguably the most lovely of Beijing’s many fine city parks (see Bei Hai Park).

The most visitor-friendly neighborhood of Beijing, Hou Hai is three joined lakes surrounded by an expansive and labyrinthine sprawl of age-old hutongs (alleys). Visit for a handful of well-preserved mansions, as well as the opportunity to see a more humble form of Beijing life as it has been lived for centuries – but visit soon before the developers have their way and demolish the lot (see Hou Hai).

Mahjong players at Hou Hai

An exercise park beside Hou Hai

Drum towers (gu lou) were once found in all major Chinese towns. They housed large drums that were beaten to mark the hour, keeping the city’s civil servants on time for work. There has been such a tower on this site since 1272, although the current structure dates to 1420. Visitors can clamber up the torturously steep steps to inspect some 25 drums and be entertained by a troop of drummers that delivers skin-thumping performances on the hour.

This dates from 1745 and replaces an earlier tower that burnt down. The great 42-ton (42,674-kg) bell it contains used to be rung to mark the closing of the city gates in the evening. During Spring Festival visitors are allowed to ring the bell for a donation of ¥100. The views from both the Drum and Bell Towers over the neighboring hutongs are well worth the exhausting climb.

Less than 10 minutes’ walk east of the Drum Tower, Nan Luogu Xiang is a lengthy north-south hutong. Still traditional in feel, the alley is in the process of receiving a makeover and is now home to several small hotels, as well as a handful of interesting clothing and craft boutiques, and an ever-increasing number of cafés and bars, including the excellent Pass By Bar.

Set back from the road with a sign on top in green characters, and opposite a branch of KFC, this museum is dedicated to the man regarded as the founder of modern Chinese painting. It exhibits a collection of the lively watercolors of horses, which made Xu Beihong (1885–1953) internationally famous.

This was the home of Beijing Opera’s greatest ever performer (1894–1961). The rear rooms have been left with their traditional furniture as it was when he died. Others contain a hagiographic account of his life, as well as diagrams of the stylized movements required by the form and a video of Mei, already 61, but still playing the young girl roles for which he was famous (see Mei Lanfang).

About a 30-minute walk east of the Drum and Bell Towers, or just a few minutes south of the Yonghe Gong subway station, the Lama Temple is Beijing’s largest working temple complex. It is filled every day with about an equal number of worshipers and visitors (see Lama Temple).

Just west of the Lama Temple, the Confucius Temple was first built in 1302 during the Mongol Yuan dynasty, and considerably expanded in 1906. Around 200 ancient stelae stand in the courtyard in front of the main hall, inscribed with the names of those who success-fully passed the imperial civil service exams. On a marble terrace inside the hall are statues of Confucius and some of his disciples.

The park was named after the Temple of Earth (Di Tan), which was a venue for imperial sacrifices. The altar’s square shape represents the earth. These days, the only thing that gets killed here is time: the park is always full of pensioners strolling, chatting, and exercising. A lively temple fair is held here at Chinese New Year.