Beijing Shichahai

As I come out of the Bell tower, I bump into Ms Zhou again. And now she has a little bit more time to share her knowledge about the place with me.

This time Ms Zhou brings me to the central spot of Shichahai area, the Yinding, or "Silver Ingot" Bridge. It serves as a connection between the beautiful Houhai and Qianhai lakes. The Hutong, the alleyways here, symbolize the lifestyle of Old Beijing, much of which has disappeared in other parts of the city. Beijing is turning into another modern metropolis, a faceless juxtaposition of buildings made of concrete, steel and glass. Ms Zhou was kind enough to let me deliver her last newspaper in Dajinsi Hutong, to a family that opens its home to tourists.

I was surprised to be greeted by a young English speaking man with his hair dyed yellow and wearing blue contact lenses. And I wasn't the only guest.

"Are you his friends?"

"No, we are staying here. They provide bed and breakfast accommodation."

"Where are you from?"

"We are from Vienna"

Riding a bicycle through the Hutong is a pleasant experience. You can easily get lost here, but it doesn't seem matter too much. It's just fun to hang around without any particular direction.

Hutong is the name given to the narrow alleyways between courtyards. An alleyway that is about one point five meters wide is called a Hutong. Anything wider than this could be categorized as a Street.

If you try to drive a car around here, at least you take the risk of getting your car scratched.

We can't help imagining what it would be to like to grow up around a neighborhood like this: to go to school on a bike, or ride in a rickshaw, and to navigate your way back home through endless alleyways, passing all the doorways behind which live your neighbors who've known you since you were a baby.