Strangers looked at us with curious eyes while they performed their daily rituals within these spot-stained, ancient walls. I felt comfortable that no one was bugging me to buy anything. I was actually pleased to be ignored. With that, we continued this little tour of ours quietly under their silent watch.

I saw cute, grubby kids with rosy cheeks playing along the alley.  They looked happy. I saw old folks sitting leisurely on rattan chairs staring into space. Some looked happy. Some not so. Then there was an old men smoking from a pipe, a cobbler and a fruit vendor with her three-wheeled cart. The air had a faint scent of freshly baked bread, coal and raw meat. Weird mix but it wasn’t unpleasant. As I made our way through these narrow walkways, I got more intrigued by the way the poorest in Beijing live their lives. At each sharp turn which twist and turn with no rhyme or reason, I can never foresee what lies around each corner and that was the thrill of exploring a hutong.

Before wide boulevards and high rise apartments, almost all the folks in Beijing live in these narrow alleys called hutongs. Along these alleys lies the courtyard houses which then link up and form a network of hutongs. I peered into one of the courtyard house and found that while the exterior were preserved, the clear cut design of a Si-He-Yuan was totally messed up inside. Sadly, there seem to be ugly extensions of all sorts in the house and the original structures have been lost in almost every case. Messy. Ugly. Sad. The fact that almost all hutong residents don’t see their neighborhoods as historic districts is disheartening.

Originally designed as a building complex formed by four houses around a quadrangular courtyard, it was meant to house one family! But the 1950s went awry for the Chinese if you knew what happened. Since then, most of the Si-He-Yuan were converted to house several families as tenants. That probably explains the overcrowding and unsightly extensions. What a pity! Really hope the preservation works will turn out well.

Sorry no pictures here. I hid our camera as I wandered along these old lanes because this residential estate felt so private and exclusive. Snapping pictures just felt so awkward! Took the extra care not to be rude and invade the locals’ private spaces. Ah it was extremely fascinating to wander through the maze of old Beijing! Do take a walk along these hidden paths if you’re not afraid of getting lost!

In any case, the hutong today is fading into the shade for both tourists and inhabitants. Out from the maze, we strolled along the riverbank of Houhai where the more tourists-targeted shops, restaurant and hangouts are located. I must say that I had more fun exploring the maze of old hutong neighborhoods than shopping at the touristy haunts in the same area.

Here are some pictures.

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The setting looked like a movie set!

Was getting bored of this Clarke Quay lookalike place until we chanced upon a rundown eatery that proudly displayed a ‘China’s Time Honoured Brand’ at its entrance. This dilapidated shack is a gem.

Good thing all of us are feeling adventurous! We ordered 2 plates of odd-looking snacks and a bottle of Tsing Dao to share. That mass of black stuff is fried pork tripes while the white one should be boiled sheep innards.

Both are springy and chewy. Too bad if you’re into innards. These wobbly pieces of protein goes really well with the peanut sauce!

Lots of love to Hao, Libei, Betty, Zhenyi, Sirui, Isaac, Ruth and Shuyan. I miss all of you loads!

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I have no idea how many time I’ve said this but I’m gonna say it again! I love Beijing! This beautiful city is one of the world’s most important historical site. Don’t you agree that is exudes a unique ambience balancing ancient and modern? But it takes hard work to keep a balance between these two extremes. As Beijing gets giddy with the rest of China to rapidly urbanised, it is saddening to know that the atmospheric hutong lanes, traditional residential homes and Si-He-Yuan courtyard houses all are fast disappearing. So you better start making plans if you want to catch a glimpse of Beijing’s past.

To get to Shichahai area: take bus 60, 13, 118, 701, 42, 823 to the north gate of Beihai Park. You”l see the Lotus Market. The entrance of the Shichahai area is just right opposite.