I posted this earlier today, I know it. I even saw it in my rss feed. And now it’s gone, so I’m posting it again…
I posted this earlier today, I know it. I even saw it in my rss feed. And now it’s gone, so I’m posting it again…
I’m off to Beijing for a week, from this coming Saturday to the next. I’m being sent thanks to the tremendous courtesy of my full-time employer, the Ottawa Citizen, to kick the tires on the Olympic facilities and related infrastructure. The official itinerary includes a lot of visits to food inspection sites and sewage treatment plants; I’m hoping to put together an unofficial itinerary that will yield experiences that people back home might want to read about.
I was last in China almost exactly eight years ago. My father and I visited Tiananmen square on May Day, got shepherded around a mall by a pair of strange college girls from Harbin, and found ourselves chased through the hutongs by an irate rickshaw driver. Good times.
So back I go, to see just how much the place has changed. Apart from going back to Tiananmen, I plan to skip the usual touristy stuff (Forbidden City, Great Wall, etc.) Any and all suggestions on what to see, where to eat and drink, and where to go are most welcome, especially things I can do in the evening. Is there a nightlife? Any rock music? Cool bars? An arts scene? Any expats looking to find a place to watch hockey are especially encouraged to drop me a line.
I’ll be blogging plenty from over there — more info to follow.