We had a private tour this morning to an area in the old town where family groups live around a shared courtyard. The areas are called hutongs, because the word for a well is “hutong”, and the families needed to live around a well in order to survive.
We were driven around this area on a tricycle. The young man had to work pretty hard so we gave him a good tip. He insisted on stopping frequently to take pictures of us in his bike. I could not get him to understand we wanted to take photos of our surroundings and not us.
Simon our guide then walked us around the Houhai area – a lake with loads of bars. This area is a very popular night spot. Mick wanted to get my photo with this lady who was demonstrating how to take photos without a selfie stick.
These hutongs might look rustic and basic, but they sell for about 100,000 RMB / square metre. The one we visited was 30 square metres so in our terms would have cost $630,000AU. But, the people never really own their property, they get to lease them for 70 years.
We ended up at a drum tower and bell tower, originally part of the ancient wall built more than 600 years ago. We climbed 69 extremely steep steps to get us to the top to see Beijing. Today the smog was thicker.
After farewelling our guide and driver we spent a few fun hours at a large market area (Hongqiao) where we had lunch and I bought probably way too much. We tried to catch a taxi to our hotel but on two occasions when we showed the driver our address they waved us off, so we started to walk. It was only 5 Km and the weather was good, but we were bemused.
A short way into our walk we negotiated a price for a lady to drive us on her electric bike. This was a hoot, up the wrong way on one street and through back alleys. Definitely worth the 30 RMB.
Our hotel staff explained that our hotel was too close for the taxis and that is why they refused.
We made it safely home and spent time planning our own excursion for tomorrow; it will be our last full day in China.
Jane and Mick's Holiday Adventures 