BEIJINGology

Small Talk With ...The Tour Guru

April 4, Beijingers hit a three-day weekend. Not long enough to scale Everest, but perfect for a trip to Beijing's burbs. We asked Feng Cheng, founder of the Chinese Culture Club, just where to go. So, the Chinese Culture Club, how did it all start? At the beginning, I was a bit snobbish, I didn't really like the hutong or Great Wall or Forbidden City. I thought they were too touristy. I wanted to do something very cultural, very intellectual. We only started doing hutong tours in 2006! How did the CCC get so big in the foreign market? Foreigners are the target market. I don't think local people are that interested. Many of my friends who are white-collar say, “Ah, interesting!” but none of them ever once came. Not even my sister! So are you an expert on where to go around Beijing? Whether I'm an expert, I don't know, but I know lots of places because I talk to many real experts from the Relic Bureau or the Social Science Academy. So money question: What are the top five not-to-be-missed sites around Beijing? Qingshanguan near Tangshan is a nice overnight trip. You can stay in an authentic siheyuan and see a mountain of flowers. Yujiacun, the stone village, is great if you're interested in pagodas. Erdaoguan is a great Great Wall day trip. Bailin Temple has very interesting monks. Also the Eunuch Tomb and Fahai Temple. The mural there is really great. More great packages for the three day weekend in the Travel section, or find Feng Laoshi at [http://www.chinesecultureclub.org].

Everyone Is Talking About ...Gone, Baby, Gongti

Rumor mills are abuzz with talk about an Olympic Gongti shutdown, but any closings will be minor
After a China Daily article claimed that six businesses inside the Gongti complex would close for 20 days prior and during the Olympics for security purposes, Beijing's hip-hop clubbers and pizza fans began to sweat. Worse, the article stated these businesses would not receive compensation for the closings, something that the owners and managers seemed upset about. The article did not, however, say which areas of the stadium complex or which venues would be closed off during the games. Unsurprisingly, in trying to determine which venues would be on the receiving end of the Olympic axe, CW found that venue owners themselves were often completely in the dark and unwilling to go on record with anything beyond “We're going to wait and see.” Off the record, several sources pointed to a large security fence under construction at the stadium's north gate as the source of the consternation. During the games, areas outside the fence will be publicly accessible, while areas inside will be accessible by permit only. This means venues behind the fence would be cut off from the public and likely shut down. The only problem is that, given the fence's current position, there don't appear to be any venues stranded on its far side. The Sanlitun District Management Office says it has not yet received notice from higher ups about any closings, but that it does expect a notice regarding business hours for Gongti bars and restaurants during the Olympics. What is clear is that only venues on the north side of the stadium will be affected. Le Quai, on the stadium's south side, was willing to go on the record as saying they would be open during the Olympics. What to make of all this? Just like the owners of Gongti's many clubs and bars, the rest of us will have to wait and see.

News You Can Use

Beijing's Cherry Blossoms
For Beijing residents who are craving a taste of the birds and the bees, now is the time to get their fill. A plethora of public parks are approaching prime visiting season, as many flowering trees are beginning to blossom. Yuyuantan Park's cherry flowers and winter jasmines are blossiming now and will likely display themselves through May. Peach flowers (Botanical Garden), peonies (Jingshan Park) and tulip blossoms (Zhongshan Park) are best seen from mid-April to mid-May.

798's New Space
One of the greatest headaches of visitors to 798 Art District is about to be cured: Plans to create 1,300 new parking spaces for the area have been unveiled. For ages now, patrons have complained of insufficient parking spaces around Beijing's Bohemia. Let's just hope that traffic on Jiuxianqiao Nanlu will be alleviated in the process.

354 Hotels in 2008
Official figures estimate that by the end of 2008 Beijing will have opened 354 new hotels, the majority aiming to accommodate guests for the Olympics. Many of the 80,000 rooms are in hotels of ultra-progressive design. Finally: a back-up plan for when your landlord wants to raise the rent again.

Techno Union
Acupuncture Records is collaborating with its friends around town to bring us a monthly Beijing Techno Union membership card (￥200), which will get members into all Acupuncture parties, as well as other promoters' after parties. "We're collaborating with everyone to bring the scene closer together." says Acupuncture spokeswoman, Miao Wong. "Each month we'll have a new design of the card, and we'll give out prizes.”Email miao8610@gmail.com for details.