As part of an orientation program for some English teachers earlier this month, I prepared this list of 100 fun things to see and do in Beijing. How many have you done?
- Attend
a Chinese Acrobat performance - Attend
a concert in the National Opera House - Attend
a folk or jazz concert at the Sanwei Bookstore - Attend
a Peking Opera performance - Attend
a show at the Lao She Teahouse - Attend
services at one of the Catholic Churches - Attend
services at one of the Protestant Churches - Attend
the flag lowering ceremony at Tiananmen Square (sunset) - Attend
the flag raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square (sunrise) - Climb
the Great Wall at Jinshanling and hike to Simatai - Climb
to the top of Coal Hill in Jingshan Park (just north of the Forbidden
City) - Climb
up the mountain, then ride down the alpine slide at Badachu Park - Dance
with locals in the park in the morning or evening - Drink
Shaken Iced Tea at Starbucks - Eat a
bowl of Jia Zhang Mian (special noodles) - Eat a
green pea pie at MacDonalds - Eat a
Whopper at Beijing’s only Burger King inside Terminal 3 at the airport - Eat at
an outdoor café in the lakes area (Hou hai) - Eat at
Element Fresh - Eat at
Hutong Pizza. - Eat at
Pete’s TexMex - Eat at
the Old Beijing Noodle Shop across from the Pearl Market - Eat
baozi on the street for breakfast. - Eat
Beijing Roast Duck - Eat
candied fruit on a stick (bingtang hulu) - Eat
fish and chips at Fish Nation (Sanlitun) - Eat
jianbing on the street for breakfast. - Eat
scorpions on a stick at the Wangfuing night market - Eat
snacks on the street in the evening - Eat
youtiao (oil sticks) on the street for breakfast - Enjoy
a tea ceremony at a teahouse - Get a
‘dry hair wash’ - Get a
facial. - Get a
foot massage - Get a
medicure/pedicure - Go
boating at Houhai - Go
boating at the Summer Palace - Go to
the top of the Gate of Heavenly Peace to look out over Tiananmen Square - Eat at
the Bridge Café at Wudaokou - Go up
into the tower at Deshengmen - Drink
‘bubble tea’ at a “Be For Time” teahouse.
- Hang
out at The Village at Sanlitun (tons of Western restaurants; Apple Store) - Hang
out in an exercise park - Have a
suit or dress made - Rent a
bike - Ride
Subway Line 2 to either end. Get
off and explore. - Ride
the alpine slide at Mutianyu Great Wall - Ride
the tourist express train from Xizhimen to the Badaling Great Wall - See
the pandas at the Beijing Zoo - Shop
at Beijing Glasses City (low priced frames and lenses) - Shop
at Jenny Lou’s imported foods market - Shop
at Jingwuxing Wholesale Market - Shop
at Ladies’ Street - Shop
at Panjiayuan Antique Market - Shop
at the clothing wholesale market across from the Beijing Zoo - Shop at
the Harley Davidson store - Shop
at the Liang Ma Flower Market (across the canal from the Lufthansa Center) - Shop
at the Pearl Market (Hong Qiao) - Shop
at the Silk Market (Xiu Shui Jie) - Shop
at the wholesale fabric market at Muxiyuan - Shop
at the world’s second largest IKEA store - Shop
at the Yashow Market (Ya Xiu) - Shop
at Tianyi Wholesale Market (Christmas Central in November and December) - Shop
for antique furniture and reproductions at Gaobeidian - Shop
for computers/electronics in Zhongguancun - Shop
in the Xidan area - Take a
boat ride along the canal - Take a
bus to the end of the line. Get off
and explore. - Visit
“The Bookworm” (restaurant and bookstore—lots of current western titles) - Visit
an art gallery - Visit
Beihai Park - Visit
Chuan Di Xia Ming Village (2.5 hours west of town in the mountains) - Visit
Nan Lou Gu Xiang (cafés and nightclubs) - Visit
the 798 Art District (galleries and restaurants) - Visit
the ancient observatory at Jianguomen - Visit
the Art Muesum - Visit
the Bell Tower and Drum Towers - Visit
the Bird’s Nest (pay to go inside) - Visit
the Botanical Gardens - Visit
the Capital History Museum - Visit
the CCTV Tower. This is best done
on a very clear day. - Visit
the China Minorities Park - Visit
the Confucian Temple - Visit
the Forbidden City - Visit
the Fragrant Hills - Visit
the Mausoleum of Chairman Mao at Tiananmen Square - Visit
the Military Museum - Visit
a morning market - Visit
the Museum of Ancient Chinese Architecture - Visit
the Old City Wall at Chongwenmen—Go into the Dongbianmen Tower at the east
end to visit the Red Gate Art Gallery and view photos of Old Beijing - Visit
the Old Summer Palace - Visit
the pagoda park along the canal near the Mac. - Visit
the Planetarium - Visit
the Temple of Heaven - Visit
the tomb of Matteo Ricci. - Visit
the Water Cube (pay to go inside) - Visit
the wholesale market across the canal from the hotel (Ling Long Lu and the
canal road) - Visit
the Yonghegong Lama Temple - Walk
around Kunming Lake at the Summer Palace - Wander
the old streets of the Da Zha Lan (Da Sha Lanr) district
