Korean Job Discussion Forums

[WendyRose]

Besides the Great Wall, does anyone have any must see sites/activities for Beijing? I'd love to hear about your positive experiences.

Also, regarding the Great Wall, did you go alone or book a tour? What do you recommend?

[roadballmint]

Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven, Lama Temple, the Drum and Bell Tower, Jingshan Park and the hutongs are all must-sees.

For the Great Wall- do NOT go to Badaling! Make sure you go to either Jinshanling or Simatai (Simatai is supposed to be easier to walk). I don't think a tour is really necessary. Ask your hotel to hire you a car (usually a taxi you just pay about Y800 to use for the entire day).

If you have more specific questions, feel free to PM me. I was there about 6 months ago.

[waynehead]

I agree with everything s/he said, I'd also add the snack street and shopping/haggling at some of the giant markets (can't remember the names) can be fun. I enjoyed it and I usually hate shopping.

[neil537]

As previous posters......but also:

Olympic centre (Bird's Nest and Water Cube) if you are at all into sports. Being able to lie down in the middle of the Bird's Nest and look around at a massive and beautiful stadium was amazing.

I disagree about Badaling. It depends what sort of Great Wall experience you want. Sure, if you don't want a lot of people then make sure you don't go there, it is very busy, but it is also very impressive. Not knowing much about the history of the wall, all I wanted to see was what I had seen on postcards and in my imagination, and Badaling fitted the bill perfectly. My friend and I hiked up and then took the cable-car down, it was nice to have that option too.

We took a local bus out to Badaling (can't remember the number....but you catch it near Jishuitan station, look in LP) it was really cheap and you don't have to go on any detours to silk factories or Jade mines.

[pugwall]

不到长城非好汉

[Newsa]

The Great Wall also has a kind of slide service (in which you can literally ride slides all the way back down) as well as a tram if you prefer not to do that. The slides were great fun though!

Oh yes, and the bookstores in Beijing often sell books (foreign or domestic) at very competitive prices. I think I got a Reader's Digest there for a few American cents last I was there.

Also, I'm sure you're aware of this, but just in case you're not, wear a mask of some sort, as yellow dust is nasty and you can see many things still coated in yellow dust, even though Beijing has cleaned up a lot since the Olympics.

[barbbui]

Dont forget to try the street food near Wangfujing Street... sea horse on a stick....

[lifeinkorea]

If you can, try to schedule a trip to Xian so you can see the Terracotta statues. You can take a train.

[kirsi]

quanjude peking duck restaurant... so freaking delicious. make sure you walk up and down the halls so you can see the famous people (famous leaders etc) that have eaten there.

[mmace1]

I'd recommend Mutianyu. It's about the same distance as Badaling, but a lot less crowded, and more scenic looking (prettier landscape I think).

It also has a toboggan ride...

A friend and I rented a taxi to take us there, wait 2 hours, and come back. I think it ended up being about $50/person. It was not as cheap as the tours, but faster, more convenient, and it skipped over the tourist-shops.

http://wikitravel.org/en/Great_wall_of_china < For a description of the different sections.

For me, the outstanding best parts were:

Mutianya
Summer Palace
Temple of Heaven
Tienanmen square/Mao's pickled corpse
Forbidden City (mostly just due to it's fame)

...after that:

Beijing Botanical Gardens
Ox Street Mosque
5 Dragons Pavillion
Hutongs
Marco Polo Bridge
etc.

[WendyRose]

Thank you all so much! This has me very excited!

[boatofcar]

Hi, I thought I'd bump this thread instead of starting a new one. Does anyone know the best place to shop for antiques like old books and art in Beijing? Also, can anyone else recommend some more awesome restaurants?

[prideofidaho]

There are laws restricting how old the antiques can be: http://www.artandantiquesmag.com/China-Ban

Also, when I was in Beijing I was offered a lot of 'antiques' and invited to many an 'art show.'

Be careful and don't be taken for a ride.

[boatofcar]

That's an interesting article. It's a bit old, though, and doesn't actually mention if the proposed ban was passed. I guess I was just wondering if Beijing has an Insadong-like area.

[prideofidaho]

Ok, well if you're looking for 'antiques', as in antiquey-looking things, I saw loads of places in and around the Temple of heaven area. I'm certain there are many more areas.

I went into one place that was selling just random value-less crap, and a lot of it was questionable (like cookie tins of a British nature), but there was a lot of kitchy stuff. Just be careful and don't get swindled.