Beijing by Bike

This morning for breakfast in the Mao'er B&B we had spinich-egg drop soup, steamed buns and fried eggs served with a smile by Angela and her daughter who is about 12 and always eager to help. We then set off on foot for the Cycle China office where we hoped to join the 9:00am bike tour. Upon arrival we learned that they had run out of bikes and we'd have to come back a different day. Luckily I had printed out the rival bike tour company - Beijing Bicycles. Using our newly acquired SIM card for the cell phone, I called them and was told that we could do a private tour with them at 10:00am. They were located some distance away, through Jingshan Park, alongside the Forbidden City. So we set off walking and were lured into the park by a large throng of elderly Chinese people doing Qi Gong, clapping and chanting. Also was a group of women doing Tai Chi to taped music, and yet another group of seniors doing ribbon dancing, with long rainbow colored ribbons. Gary didn't want to join any of these activities but we enjoyed watching for a bit before climbing up to the pagoda for the city view. From there, the Forbidden City rooftops looked fantastic. The sprawl of Bejing was lost amidst the yellow dusty air. It was overcast and cool with rain in the forecast.

At the bike shop we were greeted by super friendly George and David who were eager to adjust our seats, and find the best bikes to fit our bodies. Our guide, David, was a gentle, caring young man who had studied mechanical engineering in College, and then taught English for a few years. He has now settled on being a tour guide by bike because it was a 'healthy way to live' by 'being oudoors most of the time and leaving a smaller carbon-footprint.'

The Beijing bike lanes are almost as wide as the car lanes, and often there is a barrier between them so you really don't have to worry so much about car traffic. The city is quite flat as well and signs are posted in English and Chinese. We pedalled around the Forbidden City first. The willow trees lining the moat were just budding their first tender green shoots. From there we rode past the National theater, which is shaped like a bird's egg, to accompany the "bird's Nest, built for the Olympics. After that, Tianamen Square, Mao's Tomb, and then along a very wide boulevard until we arrived at another historic hutong area.

The Hutong streets are narrow and crowded with pedestrian and small vehicle traffic. We visited an a few shops where they paint large chinese scroll paintings, shadow puppets, carved jade statues, calligraphy and stone jewelry. Gary found a musical instrument shop and looked at a few Pipa's (the Chinese Lute).

As we were getting ready to leave this area David stopped at a small restaurant and asked us if we wanted to try a special fermented green bean soup drink that elderly Chinese people enjoy. He explained that only a few shops in the ancient quarters still make this drink. So we decided to give it a try. Inside there was a sign on the wall explaining how it's good for digestion, and lowers cholesterol and moderates blood pressure. The shop was small and sparkling clean. We ordered one bowl for about 30 cents. It came with some pickled radish and a fried dough that did not look so healthy to me. We thought it tasted good, so David ordered one for himself, and another local Beijing snack that was some sort of fried chips with green vegetable in them. Not bad. Then a man came in and ordered a huge plate of steaming dumplings. We ordered one of those for about $1.50 - chopped cabbage, ginger and scallion. They were pretty good too. Our first Chinese dumplings in china. During this time the owner, who sat at a table smoking, started to ask questions about why Ariela looked Asian. When we explained about the adoption he said "Oh we were good people to do that, and she was a lucky girl." What I liked most about this place was the local people eating there were all friendly and chatting with one another, and included us in the conversation too.

After lunch we rode over to the Temple of Heaven. It was quite a long ride. A wind had picked up and at one stop light David asked if my hands were cold. When I said yes, he pulled out a pair of gloves for me. He then offered to call the office to have them deliver some warm clothes for us, but we thought we'd be OK. Ariela and Gary put on the rain ponchos they had provided to help cut the wind.
The Temple of Heaven was where the emperors used to come to pray to the god of heaven. When we visited there in 1994 it was 20 degrees outside and the trees were covered in heavy frost. Today, it wasn't so cold, but it was fun to remember our visit 15 years ago, and reflect on how much our lives have changed in that time. The Temple was packed with Chinese tour groups.

From here we rode back to the office, exhausted and happy to have our feet on the ground. When we left, the staff at Beijing Bicycle directed toward Wangfujing Shopping Street where we could find some camera shops to buy a battery charger for one of our cameras (seems we forgot to pack it). We headed in that direction and David soon caught up with us. He escorted into a shop and helped us bargain for the charger - got it down to half the price.

Next we wanted to get a cab over to the Dashilan pedestrian street that has a history dating back to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). I had read an article online about this area and wanted to check it out. David wrote the directions for us in Chinese but we had a difficult time getting a cab. They weren't allowed to stop in this area. David stayed with us, and finally figured out where we had to go so the cabs could legally pull over. So he got in the cab with us because he wanted to make sure that we arrived safely at our destination. He then said goodbye and headed to the subway.

The ancient shopping street has a few memorable old shops. The Neiliansheng shoe shop has been selling hand-made cloth shoes for 150 years. It was here that the traditional black cloth shoes were invented as well as some beautifully embroidered silk slippers. The interior is beautifully maintained and the shoes are displayed in glass showcases with a sales clerk every 10 yards or so. The prices are very reasonable and we had fun trying some on. Gary bought a handmade wool felt cap.

We also wandered around the Ruifuxiang Silk Shop whic is the oldest cntinually operting silk shop in China, opened in 1893. Across from that is the Tong ren tang traditional chinese pharmacy that has been open since 1669. The founder became the Imperial Doctor for Emperor Kangxi during the Qing Dynasty. It is also in a traditionally restored architectural building. We wandered around, found some ATMs, bathroom and post office along with ginseng roots that sold for thousands of dollars. This lively area is now selling more modern versions of classic goods.

After walking several more miles (it seemed) to find the subway stop, we finally saw a cab pull up to drop off someone, and we jumped in, handed him the little map with directions to our B&B and then Gary proceeded to pull out our map and show the driver how to get there. It seemed a miracle that we got back to our cozy, warm and beautiful home after such a long and exciting day.

After a nice nap, hot bath and jasmine tea, we set off for dinner. We tried sichuan hot-pot style dinner that was delicious. Afterwards, strolling down the huton alley we passed a massage center. Since it was nicely decorated and a foot massage was only $5 for 30 minutes we decided to check it out. We ended up having just about every service possible for an hour and half. Lots of fun. Home at midnight, tired but re-energized and happier all around.