Photo Credit: Stuart DeSpain
Great trip: great people, great food, great city. I can’t say Beijing was ever on my short list of places to visit, but it should have been. I’ve discovered my favorite hotel (The Opposite House) and many wonderful places I can’t wait to share with Tina.Â
I already wrote about the first night in an earlier post. The second night we visited a more traditional Chinese restaurant. I don’t recall the name off the top of my head, but we had many lovely dishes, including a lovely Peking Duck.
Wednesday we all went to a trendy Yunan restaurant in Sanlitun (blocks from my hotel). The Middle 8th is probably the best place I’ve been to so far. While they offer an assortment of insects (yes, I had some) the real good stuff comes from more conventional sources. I particularly enjoyed the lemon chicken and some beef dish that, sadly, remains nameless. My advice: go there and just order what looks good -- it will be.
Thursday my fellow travelers and I enjoyed the hospitality of a good friend who lives just outside of Beijing proper. He and his wife whipped up a terrific buffet. They were thoughtful enough to order some pizza for Americans weary of an all-Chinese diet. But my favorite was the homemade dumplings. The food was second only to the company -- which was delightful.
My last night in Beijing was spent with my friends drinking it up in the hotel bar. After many cocktails we headed to a nearby pizza joint -- the Tree. This restaurant serves wood-fired pizza in a converted hutong alley. The space is as nice as the food. It’s great to know there are so many wonderful places in my adopted neighborhood.
Saturday morning I had the pleasure of breakfast with my friend, Leo, who runs the hotel cafe. We talked about everything from public transit (Beijing has a great subway) to world travel. I always look forward to my morning chats with Leo; he’s a wonderfully friendly conversationalist. I suspect that comes in handy in his line of work!
As I write this I’m flying back to Seattle on Hainan Airways. Tina will be meeting me at SeaTac and, while I’ll always look forward returning, I’m ready to come home. One week away from wife and dogs is quite enough, thank you!