Mid Autumn Festival- Staycation in Beijing

Hello from Beijing! It’s your “International Nabers” here restarting our blog with our newest move to Beijing, China.

First let me address the fact that I still have yet to even write about our move to Beijing, which was a little over 2 months ago now….I am working on that intense one which is taking me some time to wrap my head around. And although I love to write, I am terribly rusty so be kind as I stretch my wings again on this platform. And a final note, I have no clue how to update my blog- hahaha, I just paid to keep it active for the past 8 years so ads, links, etc are all very outdated and I don’t even know how to update them. This is definitely a work in progress gang, appreciate your patience with me as I figure things out! One thing to note: I have finally remembered out how to add the links so anytime you see a word or phrase in blue, that is an active link that will give you some general history on the word/phrase.

In the meantime, please enjoy a post about our recent first school holiday – Mid Autumn Festival, aka Golden Week, where we spent the week being tourists in Beijing! We decided since we are still in temporary housing, don’t have our shipment from the states, and have no dog sitter for our fluff ball, it was best to stay in town and just explore our new hometown. Here’s a little recap of what we did, which I think highlights some “things to do” for expats new to Beijing, tourists stopping over here, or people visiting loved ones.

A couple of weeks before the week began, we sat down with the kids with our computers out and a handful of sightseeing books and city maps of Beijing to flip through. We compiled a list that included some tours, some markets, some restaurants, and some everyday life stuff. I think we accomplished so much (plus 1 final tour postponed to a couple weeks after the break, included here in this post). Proud of our kiddos and of us. Now we have a good general understanding of our city, its history, and the Chinese culture. Time to dive in!

We kicked off our break by checking out the famous Pearl Market (Hongquiao Market). Located at No. 9, Tiantan Road in the Dongcheng district, this market houses the largest selection of pearls in China from around the world, though it’s probably best known for selling floors and floors of (ahem), high-end fake goods. It was an easy subway ride away from the CBD area and we wanted to expose the kids to this and see what their bartering skills were like, lol! From the moment you walk in, it’s like sensory overload. Each floor, which I think there are something like 6 floors (?!), had a theme of sorts. David found a watch, I found loose leaf tea, Ava fell for a purse, and Mac a fidget spinner, and IYKYK, haha. They watched dad barter first, and then had tons of questions. While we strolled, we coached them on how to do it, and reminded them that to the Chinese here, it’s a sport. They are disappointed if you don’t play the barter game, especially in these flea type markets. As we strolled, Ava found a purse backpack she just loved. The lady at the shop could tell instantly this little girl is head over heels, haha. Between David and I, we helped Ava with her negotiations and after leaving the shop & coming back, she ended up with the purse at the price she wanted, amazing! Mac found a cute little shop and the old man was so enamored with Mac, he loved playing the barter game and once again Mac came away with his toy. Both were so kind to let me take a pic of them with the kiddos and their prizes. We also stumbled upon the most random rooftop terrace at the mall for lunch. We sat inside these little igloos that had aircon units, and shared some plates between us all. What a fun experience!

Before heading home I really wanted to check out this “Eyeglasses City” mall I had heard about, located at 43 Huawei Beili, Panjiayuan, Dongsanhuan Nanlu, in the Chaoyang district. It houses floor upon floors of independent shops selling eyeglasses, sunglasses, contacts, etc and even does eye exams there, makes the lens while you wait, and TA-DA you walk away with your product. Talk about fast and convenient! We were told about a specific shop (Hi Anna!!, WeChat id: loulinabest) so we went in, loved her, and the kids and I walked out with new sunglasses, while old man David got an eye exam and walked away with new glasses within 30 minutes. To cap off this fun filled bargain shopping day, we took the subway home and promptly ordered dinner in, which arrived in no time. Amazing convenience, thank you China!

Now for a fun tour….I found an amazing company called Our Beijing (WeChat id: ourbeijing, Hi Dominic!). This company, started by a super nice British guy living in Beijing, has some great tours. From food tours to hikes with dogs to The Great Wall to Mahjong and of course Hutongs…..Dom has you covered. There are so many great tours but ultimately we decided as Beijing newbies we really needed and wanted to check out the Hutongs and what better way than on an E-Bike (or as some say, a scooter or a moped). Dom sets up private tours so it was just him, and the 4 of us. David and I each took a kid on the bike and off we went for a little over 3 hours exploring hutongs, eating some amazing street food, playing “Jian zi” next to the Bell & Drum tower (which was also on our list to see) with a sweet old Chinese lady who just joined in on our fun! We swung by the Houma Lake (also on our list) which was so picturesque. We loved our tour and Dom’s company. Really looking forward to exploring more of Beijing with him again soon…..maybe even with Wilson in tow :). Side note, what is a Hutong? Well it’s basically a side street or alleyway that houses a traditional residential area in Beijing nestled in between the thriving metropolis and skyscrapers of Beijing. Steeped in ancient tradition, local flavor, and community, Hutongs are beautiful and we’ve only just scratched the surface, I cannot wait to check out more!

Another fun market area we really wanted to explore with the kids is something called 798 Art Zone, or Danshanzi Art District. This is a huge sprawling complex of 50 yr old decommissioned military factory buildings, located at No. 2 Jiuxianqiao Road. It is so diverse and such a fun place to casually stroll around. They have so many shops from vintage, to thrift, to art, and so much more. We had a blast people watching and checking out the shops and finished our time with a fun treat- Chinese street candy. These are huge skewers of fresh fruit dipped into a sugar that hardens into a shell. So flipping delicious!!! Yet another place I cannot wait to go back to and explore more…..maybe with a more inclined shopping buddy, lol.

Something we have been so excited to witness is how adventurous both kids have been in regards to trying new food, but that does not apply to this place we went to….we met up with some new friends at a fun kid friendly place called Spacelab in Solana Mall where the burgers and meals were served via robots along a track throughout the whole restaurant. The food was decent but the joy from the kids made the night!

We also tried Hatsune, a Japanese sushi restaurant we had heard about in Kerry Mall. Once again the kids impressed us with their adventurous tastebuds but also Mac shocked the heck out of us by eating a HUGE ball of wasabi on its own and barely cracked any emotion on his face. He’s a legend with spice.

A fun (for me) activity was a couple of outdoor workouts courtesy of ActivForever. David had to work a bit so I took the kids to 2 back to back outdoor workouts along the Liangma River which was just gorgeous in the sunny and mild fall weather. The kids played with other kids also on break while the parents worked out. Then we brunched close by at a rooftop restaurant called Arrow Factory Brewing. Perfect couple of midweek social workouts! Mac also doubled down on his baseball practices. He joined a team with Next Generation Baseball so giving him some extra practice time was a perfect way to spend some time on break.

Ok on to the next tour, this one curtesy of Beijing Postcards, a company that was just been raved about and now I can see why. Lars is the tour guide, and he is Danish but has lived in Beijing for a long time. He has a HUGE passion for the history of Beijing and he did not disappoint on this 4 hour tour of the Forbidden City. I told David that it was almost like watching a theatrical monolog, the way he excitedly explained to our group all of the research he had poured over from archives, speaking with locals, and research regarding the Forbidden City and the Ming Dynasty. It was A LOT of walking, but he gave us earbuds so we could hear him if we wandered around, and encouraged questions. Both of our kids were so enamored with his story telling and asked questions multiple times. I was so impressed with their attention and excitement about what they saw and learned. HIGHLY recommend Lars and his team, the 4 hours will fly by I promise you…..and he allows for potty breaks, and snacks & beverages at the end :).  It was extra busy as well at the Forbidden City due to the holiday, so it was such a special treat to see so many Chinese come from all around China dressed in their traditional wear for professional photos at this sacred place. It was also interesting how popular Ava and Mac were, lots of pictures because we look so different!

David’s birthday also fell on this holiday week so we decided to make it fun and include more cultural experiences. His idea was to take us all to a show called The Red Theatre Acrobatic Show, following by a fun dinner of Peking (ask Beijing) Duck. We got tickets via WeChat with Ticket Beijing WeChat id:chaoyangtheatre) and they helped us figure our where to sit to have the best experience (although the theatre was NOT packed at all). Side note- this show used to be at the Chaoyang Theatre but has since moved to the Red Theatre, hence the WeChat id name. The Red Theatre is located at No. 44, Xingfu Da Jie in the Dongcheng District….not far from us in CBD. Ok so the show…..think along the lines of a basic cirque Du Soleil show meets American’s Got Talent Extreme Show. Got that visual?! Ok that’s what we watched for an hour. It was entertaining, is was scary, it was exciting- I recommend!!

After this exhilarating show which we of course dissected, we took a DiDi (China’s version of Uber) to a famous Peking Duck restaurant that was recommended to us. The kids were apprehensive and David and I excited. Peking Duck is rich and flavorful….and an experience that is not something you do often so it becomes more of a treat for a special occasion or if someone is in town and wants to try. I think it would be even better with a larger table because it would give you the ability to order even more, but we did just fine for the 4 of us and even came home with leftovers. The restaurant is called Jingzun Peking Duck located in the Sanlitun area at Chunxiu Road Taipingzhuang Nanli Building 6 North Side (Holiday Inn Express Opposite), Chaoyang District of Beijing. You can request a menu in English which is awesome and they slice the bird right there at your table per the tradition of Peking Duck. It came with all the traditional sides to make your duck tacos, and we added a soup and a couple of veggie dishes. The kids loved it, as did we. Highly recommend!! (invite us to come along next time for a larger group!)

Our final tour, which really took place after break but I wanted to include it here, was the nighttime tour at the Temple of Heaven, again with Lars and Beijing Postcards. It was chilly, although I did get made fun of from my husband and kids for wearing a hat. Don’t care, I was cozy. The tour was about 3 hours and we walked!!! I mean the other tour with Lars was meandering through the Forbidden City. This one was like straight up power walking through the Temple of Heaven. It was so fun!! We started at the North Gate, and Ended at the South Gate, with plenty of stops to learn long the way. When we exited, we walked west along this boardwalk that was basically like a huge meridian dividing the streets. There were people just randomly doing karaoke- it was AMAZING. We kept walking through hustings toward’s the Beijing Postcards shop where the tour ended with some fun adult and kid friendly beverages and snacks while we browsed the shop and all the fun items Lars and his team cultivated. Worth the tired kiddos on the did ride home!

So as you can see, wowza we packed.it.in!!!! We still have more on our “expats playing tourist in Beijing” list…..here’s what we still have to tackle- The Great Wall (really wanted to research and take our time on deciding how we wanted to go about visiting it), The Olympic Park, Universal Studios, Fragrant Hills, Summer Palace, Lama Temple, Other markets including the Silk Market and Panjiayuan Market. We cannot wait to continue to settle in and explore. Thanks for reading and I promise I will get to writing a more thorough insight on our move to Beijing sooooooooooon!

Cheers~

Kimbra xx