Anna's Next Adventure: Beijing - sunny, clear skies, 22 degrees. Nice.

Hostel entrance.

There is something so exciting about arriving at the airport and checking in. I was in a bit of a fluster yesterday as I didn't check my ticket until late in the afternoon, only to realise that it left a little earlier than expected, so I had a mad rush as I threw my things into my backpack and raced off ready to jump on the plane to Beijing. I felt a lot more relaxed once I was on the plane (despite having forgotten a few things, I soon realised!) and I met a lovely woman from Suzhou and we exchanged details, so I can catch up with her in a few weeks. I arrived in Beijing, feeling very exhausted, and made it to my accommodation, a gorgeous renovated hostel in the hutongs - the traditional alleyway housing in Beijing.

Courtyard at the hostel.

The hostel.

I was up and ready to go early this morning. I ate a yummy breakfast while sitting in the sunny courtyard at the hostel. I spent the morning criss crossing across the hutong alleyways, enjoying the sunshine and watching people go about their daily lives. The hutongs are fascinating places to look at, you would never guess that behind the busy streets of Beijing, there are so many people living in these small houses off alleyways that are so easy to get lost in. I came across so many friendly people, but also so many unfriendly faces. It made me think that there is a really fine line between observing and invading, and that there are probably many people who cross that line, hence the unfriendly faces from locals. As travellers, sometimes it's hard to know what is the correct thing to do in some situations. On one hand, you want to experience something unique and authentic but on the other hand, you don't want to cross that line and upset people. I'm conscious of that all the time, but then I feel it goes the other way too - often the locals don't show respect towards visitors with the staring, taking photos without permission and harassing. But, as a Year 5 boy told me this week when the class was trying to define 'culture', 'We are all the same, we all have thoughts and feelings'. Sometimes, some people need to be reminded of this.

Washing in the alleyways.

Hutong doorway.

It's quite amazing to see the difference between life in hutongs and life in 'modern' Beijing. Everything in the hutongs appears a lot slower and things are done the old fashioned way. I felt a lot happier and more peaceful meandering through the alleyways than I did when on the main streets. Beijing's skyline also looks so different to that of Shanghai. In Shanghai, it is quite easy to get your bearing, as you can always recognise a tall building somewhere. Here, in Beijing, it is a lot harder as the city is predominantly made up of single story buildings.

Hutong alleyways.

After a morning of walking in the sun, I was in need of a rest, so I headed back into westernisation, and found myself at The Bookworm, an English bookstore/library/cafe. I was in heaven! I spent a couple of hours doing some reading on ESL in preparation for the conference on Monday and Tuesday, whilst sipping a bottomless cup of tea. Then, I headed into the dangerous section of the store - the actual bookstore. I restrained myself though, and only purchased a couple of out of date magazines (cheaper and still a good read!) to take to the Phillippines, and a new journal.

Courtyard living.

Heavy load!

Because I had forgotten a few things and hadn't looked into the weather, I found myself in need of a few new items, so I headed down the road to what was obviously a foreigners area - a huge shopping centre. I ended up buying a t-shirt (it's really warm here!) and a small daypack because my handbag was killing my shoulder and I'll need it tomorrow. I didn't feel the same sense of calmness here - it was just like going to the big shopping centres back at home.

Bike pumps in the hutongs.

Renovating the hutongs.

After a relatively stressful shopping experience (I hate shopping when you have to buy something), I headed back to the hostel for a nanna nap and some reading in the courtyard sun. Tonight, I am going to meet Ben, an Aussie guy that Gunnar and I met in Japan, at his hostel for some beers, followed by some Beijing duck! Tommorrow morning, I have to be up early as I'm heading out to the Great Wall for a second trip - this time for a hike (hence the daypack) on a non-touristy section of the wall, about 120km from Beijing. So, while I'm not doing any running this weekend, I'm doing some authentic training!