Beijing: Yeah, Maybe Not For Me...
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- Either turn off the heating or switch on the AC. 2. As for viruses, well, that's out of our hands now that Beijing's open to the world and everyone's coming. 3. Reservations are a must because, again, the whole world is descending on Beijing – it's a classic 'too many wolves, too little meat' situation. For safety, some people just won't get in. 4. Likewise, to keep tourists safe, crowd control is essential to prevent stampedes. 5. Beijing boasts a wide variety of local snacks, definitely close to a hundred. Don't just fixate on the ones with overpowering tastes.
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Exactly! I also miss those childhood days when you didn't need a reservation for anything.
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I couldn't agree more! I'm not sure where the original poster is from, but I came from Guangdong and have been in Beijing for several days now. I haven't enjoyed any of the local food – Siji Minfu Peking Duck, douzhi (fermented mung bean milk) with jiaoquan (fried dough rings), shaobing (sesame flatbread), luzhu (pork offal stew), chaogan (stir-fried liver), baodu (quick-fried tripe), or copper pot hotpot – none of it suits my palate. Everything feels so rich and heavy, and it seems they're really fond of sesame paste and sesame-based dishes here. The first bite of Peking Duck is amazing, but it gets incredibly greasy after a few more. Plus, the heating makes the cold air so dry; my nose started bleeding by the second day. And do people in Beijing not drink bubble tea? There are surprisingly few bubble tea shops around.
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I'm from Zhejiang, and I actually really enjoy Cantonese cuisine, haha! Our tastes are quite similar in some respects.
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When you get fed up, you can just go home. We've been fed up for ages, but what choice do we have?
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It's so dry here. I started coughing and feeling 'heaty' (a traditional Chinese concept of internal imbalance) after just two days.
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Same here! I kept thinking I'd eaten something that made me 'heaty,' but it turns out I'm just not used to the environment. Guangdong definitely suits me better.
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Static shock! I'm so over it. I'm actually scared of getting zapped now.
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Haha! I get a shock every single time I touch an elevator handrail.
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When I visit the South, I can't get used to the food either, and the climate is so damp, chilly, and overcast. It's rainy for half the year, with barely any sunshine. Then July and August are oppressively hot and humid, with surface temperatures hitting 40°C+. In winter, laundry never seems to dry properly, and it's bone-chillingly cold inside. The South just feels relentlessly gloomy – at least, that's how Zhejiang is. Oh, and don't get me started on the roads, swarming with reckless, beat-up e-bikes weaving everywhere.
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That's just how it is with adapting between the North and South – it's common not to be used to things.
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I'm planning a trip to Beijing in April, but hearing your experience makes me second-guess it.
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It should be less crowded in April, so it's still worth going.
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Everyone I know who recently traveled to Beijing came back sick. I'm going next week... shivers.
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Seriously? I'm also going next week! I even got time off school for my kid to come along.
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Just a general reply to everyone: I'm back home now. I wasn't trying to criticize Beijing, just sharing some of the more noticeable discomforts I experienced as someone from the South visiting for the first time. Beijing, as the capital, offers a great sense of security, and its attractions are truly unique – the Forbidden City and Chang'an Avenue are especially breathtaking. My less positive impressions are based on just a few days there, so my understanding isn't as deep as a local's, and I didn't really figure out any solutions. I'd definitely love to visit Beijing again, but having seen the Spring Festival crowds, I'll make sure to go during an off-peak time next time!
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All I can say is that the signage at the Great Wall is pretty chaotic.
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I'm from Guizhou, and when I was in Beijing, the most delicious meals I had were Sichuan takeout, KFC, and pizza, hahaha!
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For my last meal in Beijing, I had chaogan (stir-fried liver), and I really couldn't stomach it. The flavor was just too intense.