Hutongs

Just took my first midterm in China... and I did sooo badly.  It was in my Labor Economics class and I was not prepared enough at all.  The teacher made it seem like it would be similar to the homework problems, but I cannot even understand how that is possible because it was so much harder.  The other international students and I looked at each other after the test was over and was like, "what the hell just happened."  Sigh... I might be over reacting, but I'm pretty sure I barely passed that test, if even. At least it's over? 

Well anyways, onto more happy topics! Beijing has many different cultural and historical things to offer.  I’ve been able to visit a lot already like the Summer palace, Tiananmen Square, great wall, and the silk market just to name a few.  Another thing Beijing is known for is the hutongs.  Hutongs are essentially alleys of old Chinese neighborhoods.  The government has recently started making more of a push to preserve these areas for their cultural history after many were demolished for new roads and buildings. 

This past weekend, I went with my friends Alex and Stefan to visit a famous hutong area called Nan Luo Gu Xiang.  I had a really great time walking down the street and getting to see a whole bunch of different types of shops and I got to sample a lot of different street food than what I’ve seen in Beijing so far. I’ve realized about myself that when I visit places, I like to go where the locals are.  Touristy places like Tiananmen Square and the Summer palace are nice, but I really enjoy going to less tourist places and the feel of them.  It’s crazy how even the less touristy places are always filled with people.  But when we were walking around the more residential areas of Beijing, it was definitely much quieter than many other places in the city.

Residential streets

Entrance to the busy street of Nan Luo Gu Xiang

Communist gear anyone?

Casually selling ready-to-drink mojitos in a street stand

 I've mentioned before in my blog how I liked Taiwan better than Beijing, and one of the things that was a lot better was the food. Especially the pastries!  In Taiwan, a famous bakery is called 85 degrees C.  I thought it was only in Taiwan, so you can imagine my surprise when I saw it while I was out shopping a couple days ago!  It made me soooo happy.  And the bread was delicious =D

YUMMMM

My favorite! Bou Lo Bao (Pineapple bread)!