There are two things you notice immediately when arriving on the streets of Beijing. First, this place is massive. Whether you are coming into the city by plane, train, or bus, you will no doubt be met by crowds of people, roads that look more like parking lots, and horizons full of skyscrapers and construction sites. It’s not charming; it’s not inviting. It’s just huge. Second, there is no center of Beijing. Well, technically the Forbidden City is not only the center of Beijing, but also the center of the universe. But when most people think of city centers, they are talking about an old downtown, a business district, or the most densely populated section of a city. Here, everywhere is a business district. Everywhere is a residential area. Every section is densely populated. There is no point where old Beijing ends and modern Beijing begins. This means that you will never get a postcard of the skyline of Beijing. There is no famous skyline like in Shanghai or Hong Kong. This combination of old and new is what I think makes Beijing so alluring.
what Beijing used to look like (an exhibit at the Capital Museum)
It also makes it much more efficient for commuting. In most cities in the states, rush hour means a mass migration from the suburbs into the downtown or business district in the morning, and the a mad rush back to the ‘burbs at night. We look at the highway going the other direction and think “I wish I were on that side!” In Beijing, there is no empty side. Every line of the subway is full going both directions. People work (and live) east, west, north and south. The streets are full of taxis and buses going all directions. Many people intentionally live close to work so that they only have to take a short bus ride or even a quick walk. I’m one of those lucky ones who gets to commute across the entire city.
my love affair with the Beijing bus
My day starts at 8am in the west end when I walk five minutes from my apartment to the subway station. I push and shove and get very very close to my fellow passengers on lines 4 and 2. Thirty minutes later, I’m sitting at my desk in school. At 10:30am, I make my way back to the subway for a much less crowded ride. I arrive at a bus station where I have the choice of three buses to take me even further away from home, to my office in Chaoyang district. My bus ride usually takes about a half hour, but sometimes longer during the evening commute. I love my bus ride for many reasons. First, I am always the only foreigner. This gives me a great chance to just sit and listen to people talking, picking out the few words that I know so far in Chinese. It also means that the super-curious people will talk to me. They want to look at my notes, my textbook, my flashcards, and I try my best to speak the few sentences that I can put together. Time on the bus is a great time to study. With class plus an internship, I don’t have tons of down time. The bus is my chance to sit and relax. Finally, the bus is a huge confidence-booster. Anyone can take the subway (they announce all the stops in English, and the map is very clear) but the bus is much more challenging. But once you’ve done it a couple times, you feel like a master. Now that I have taken the bus to work so much, I have started to experiment with other buses around the city. It’s just too cheap not to try! It’s 40 jiao, which is 6 American cents. SIX. Six.
my office building. i work on the top floor! amazing views of...flat land with random pockets of skyscrapers
I also love riding the bus because you get to actually see the city. Most of the subway lines are underground, so you miss all the scenery (they give you TVs instead). On the bus, I learn about different areas and roads that I used to only see on the map. I discover parks, lakes, shops, and a branch of my bank that I didn’t know existed. There are over 500 bus lines in the city. There is no timetable; they come every 2-10 minutes, depending on the time of day. The subway is very frequent (and cheap) as well. There are eight subway lines right now, and more are opening very very soon. My only complaint about the public transportation (and really one of my only complaints about this city) is that it closes at 11pm. So a night out always ends with a taxi ride. Luckily, my taxi rides rarely cost more than $4.
bikes near my apartment. so far i have not tried to bike here!
It’s not just public transportation that you need to figure out in Beijing; you have to learn how to walk like a Beijinger. First is the challenge of crossing the street. Cars (and bikes) rarely mind the walk signals. So just because the green man on the pole tells you that you have thirty seconds to cross does not mean that you should step foot in that street. The best way to cross the street in Beijing is to not cross at all. Take a tunnel or a bridge that often comes with a huge boulevard. The second best strategy is to follow the crowd. Find the old ladies and walk with them. If a bus hits a group of old ladies, well, that would be a crazy story to tell your friends back home.
The second thing you have to learn in Beijing is totally counterintuitive. Whenever you can, walk in the street. It makes no sense, I know. But sidewalks seem to be used for many other things than walking: washing dishes, playing with dogs, repairing bike parts, piling bags of recycling, cleaning vegetables, selling DVDs, sitting, squatting, napping, you name it. You can find many things on the sidewalk, and most of them are for sale. Or at least used to be. The other day I nearly stepped on a dead frog. Not a tiny frog like you see in nature, no, this was a giant frog, the kind you see fried and on someone’s plate. It was near where a guy had been delivering food for a restaurant. I guess this frog got away, but his fate was no less fatal. Anyway, if you try to walk on the sidewalk in Beijing, you will soon be in somebody’s way. The best way to walk is near the curb, sometimes in the street and sometimes on the sidewalk. If a car wants to park there, they usually give you a friendly little honk to let you know that you should move over.
seriously, don't beam on the subway doors.
I love transportation. I think it’s one of the best parts of living and traveling abroad. Every day, I could tell you something interesting I saw on the subway, on the bus, and on the sidewalk. If you really want, I can send you a daily email with those three things. Actually, that would be a great way for me to practice my Chinese. Would you mind if the email came in Chinese?
SocialVibe