Time-traveling through Beijing, the dragon next door
On our first Trippies outing, we visited the superpower next door: China. My co-host Pepe Diokno and I consider ourselves fairly well-traveled, and both of us had been to China before, but amazingly, neither of us had been to its capital, Beijing. Even then, we assumed that since we eat siopao, drink jasmine tea, haggle for bargains in Binondo, and watch Kung fu movies, Beijing would already be familiar to us. Our trip proved to be an education.
Our itinerary had a time travel aspect, moving from historical sites over a thousand years old, to new architectural marvels that seemed to rise up in a snap. The first stop was the Great Wall of China, which we were once told was the only manmade structure visible from the moon. In fact you cannot see it from the moon — assuming you can get to the moon — but it is massive. That was my first takeaway from this trip: Chinese building projects are massive. The Great Wall snakes along the border for over 21,000 kilometers, like a giant dragon watching over the populace.
It was pouring rain on the day we climbed the Great Wall, but there are advantages to a rain-soaked visit. Sure, the stairs can be slippery, but there are fewer tourists about so you can take in the dramatic view of the hills. While taking shelter, we got to talking with some German students on a tour of Asia. Everyone noted that all the Chinese people they’d met were friendly and helpful, and the language barrier was quickly overcome with hand signals. In any case, I suggest having Google Translate on your phone, as well as the address of your hotel and the Chinese characters for “washroom” and “water.”
“Massive” was the adjective of the day. Having seen the film The Last Emperor a few times, I thought I was prepared for the sight of the Forbidden City. It is — all together, now — massive. And it’s right in the heart of modern Beijing, so it’s a little disconcerting to stand in the middle of the huge square and see the skyscrapers that surround the complex.
Constructed in the 15th century, the Forbidden City was the imperial palace for 24 emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. You couldn’t enter the complex without the emperor’s permission, hence its name. According to historians, the construction required over a million workers, including 100,000 artisans who carved and painted every intricate detail.
According to our guide, thousands of girls between the ages of 11 and 16 would come to the Forbidden City for the chance to be chosen as one of the emperor’s concubines. A thousand concubines lived in the complex, and if they did not gain the emperor’s favor, they would be retired at age 25 and sent back to their province. Grandeur and harshness always went together.
What do these massive palaces and monuments tell us about the Chinese? That they don’t go for half-measures. When they decide to do something they will carry it through, no matter what the logistical requirements. Their political will is awesome to behold.
There’s nothing like walking around huge historical sites to work up an appetite, and Beijing is a great place to satisfy that appetite. As a frequent traveler, I owe a debt to Chinese cuisine: I know that if I get hungry anywhere in the world and I’m on a budget, I can get a good meal at the nearest Chinese restaurant. In Beijing, the typical menu included hot and sour soup, braised beef, barbecue, stir-fried lamb, and fish in various sauces. If I had my way, Peking duck would be served at every meal, but I’m not sure my systems could take that much excitement — especially since the duck is sometimes served with sugar. You take a piece of skin gleaming with fat, and dip it in sugar, which counteracts the fattiness. Be still, my heart.
Outside of the historical sites, Beijing looks like a brand-new 21st-century megalopolis, with gleaming skyscrapers and wide avenues packed with cars. I’d come to Beijing half-expecting people who lived in traditional houses and practiced ancient arts. All that changed in 2008 with the Olympics, Beijing’s official introduction to the modern world.
According to Toby, a Filipino expat who moved to Beijing 10 years ago, the change happened so quickly that if you left the city in 2006 and came back in 2008, you might not recognize it at all. “I was offered a job and I was clueless,” Toby recalls. “I thought it would be like Hong Kong, where there are so many Pinoys and everyone speaks English. I had the shock of my life.”
In 2006, few locals spoke English and all the signs were in Chinese. Everyone assumed that Toby, being Asian, spoke Chinese. When he hailed a taxi to go home, the taxi brought him to the airport. “I learned that I needed address cards for the office or wherever I wanted to go. It’s easier now because you can get the information on your smartphone. The Olympics put Beijing on the world map. It was a really awesome time to be here: I was able to see everything change in front of my eyes. For example, when I moved here 10 years ago, they had about three subway lines. Now they have more than 20 subway lines.”
In Beijing, I had expected to do some major shopping in huge bazaars at bargain prices. Unfortunately for me, the cut-price bazaars teeming with cheap merchandise have been moved to the provinces. Bargain Beijing is gone; the new Beijing is a shopping mecca for branded, signature items. But I still needed to sate my shopping craving, and after some inquiries, we ended up in a market selling Chinese arts, crafts and “antiques.”
Before we ventured in, we reviewed shopping tips from experienced bargainers. First, you ask how much an item costs, but you have to look like you’re not that interested. The seller tells you what it costs. If you speak no Chinese and the seller speaks no English, you communicate by calculator. Your first bid should be 80 percent less than the price they named. Type it into the calculator. At which point the seller will probably cry, “No, no, no!” But it’s not over because they don’t let you go. You have to keep bidding by calculator. In theory, if they keep bargaining with you, it means your bid is not bad. If they turn their backs on you, that’s the end of negotiations. I recommend you do some acting and pretend to walk away, giving them a chance to call you back.
The 2008 Summer Olympic Games is regarded as modern Beijing’s grand debut on the global stage. To prepare for the Olympics, old hutong neighborhoods were cleared and relocated, the airport renovated, and the subways doubled. Thirty- one Olympic venues were constructed, of which the centerpiece is the Beijing National Stadium, known as The Bird’s Nest.
Neither Pepe nor I can claim to be athletes, but I know I can compete on an Olympic level in my chosen field: sleeping. (I can sleep anywhere — for five minutes between tour stops, or for nine hours straight on a plane.) At The Bird’s Nest, the Olympics 2008 venue designed by Pierre de Meuron, Pepe and I got to do something only athletes who have qualified for the Olympics get to do: lie on the grass.
Speaking of massive, the Beijing National Stadium continues the Chinese tradition of humongous building projects. As in the Great Wall and the Forbidden City, resources and people have been marshaled for a single purpose, demonstrating the state’s power to unite the people towards a common objective. Lying on the grass and looking at the sky reminded me that China has a space program. Whatever China sees, China makes up its mind to reach.
So far we had done instant time travel from old Beijing to contemporary Beijing, but we were still seeing the city from the outsiders’ points of view. To really know a city beyond the guidebooks, you have to hear from its people. What is it like to live and work in this world capital? What’s it like to be young in an ancient city? And how does Beijing define itself in the new global society? These were among the questions we asked as we continued our trip through Beijing.
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