Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Beijing is an incomprehensibly large city. Stand at the top of any tower in its center and
you'll look upon nothing but a sea of steel and concrete that engulfs every inch of land
from that below your feet to the horizon in the distance. Fortunately—at least for sanity's
sake—the expat population tends to organize itself into relatively specific locations, mak-
ing it feel more manageable and sometimes even incredibly small, socially. The immensity
of the city and the choking unrelenting traffic mean that people prefer to lay their hat close
to work or school so as to avoid hours on the road or being jammed up in subway cars. This
means there are various expat-friendly zones across the city, supplying foreign residents
with home comforts and cushioning their daily experiences with moderate to high levels of
English and international facilities.
The classic location choices for Beijing expats include Haidian district for students,
Shunyi district for families with kids, Chaoyang district for city lovers, and Dongcheng
or Xicheng for young singles or couples who want to experience traditional Beijing but
can't quite tear themselves away from the convenience of city life. As Beijing is changing,
however, the distribution of foreign residents is also changing. New subway lines are mak-
ing previously bus-only neighborhoods more appealing, and the bloom of government-driv-
en science parks is dispersing the population into new corners of the city.
