Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Laying your hat on the west side of Houhai can sometimes feel like you're cutting yourself
off from places like Sanlitun or your friends in the east, but if you keep Line 6 or bus 118
in your mind when house hunting, you may not feel so stranded. A bicycle ride from here
to Sanlitun may take as little as 20 minutes, depending on your pedal power. The neigh-
borhood is overflowing with character, and many argue that this is truly the best place in
Beijing to live.
Study the area on a map. There is west Gulou, the wedge that sits between the west
side of Jiugulou Dajie and Houhai. Of all of Xicheng, this is probably where you'll find
the greatest concentration of residential expats. There are some fabulous old
sìhéyuàn
com-
plexes and older-but-solid local apartments here. Transport remains hyper-convenient, and
you'll have copious bars, restaurants, and live music venues right at your doorstep. I would
hesitate to say that there are many establishments of actual premium standards in the area,
but beer is cheap and the karaoke plentiful. On top of that, Nanluogu Xiang and Baochao
Hutong are just a short walk away.
Three of the major features of the area are obviously the Drum and Bell towers and
Houhai, but another important structure is Deshengmen Bridge, which sits on the Second
Ring Road just north of Houhai. This was once part of the northern city wall, which pro-
gress knocked down for the Second Ring Road and Line 2 subway track. The full tower is
long gone, and its ancient archery tower and barbican are all that remain. Today it is the
synapse for the Ring Road and the Badaling Expressway.
Moving southwest of Houhai, Western culture makes way for Chinese. The
hútòng
are
lined with mom-and-pop stores selling everything from inner soles to specialty
báiji
ǔ
or
soy sauce. Elderly people sit out by the street on small stools and crowd around tables to
play cards or
májiàng
(mahjong).
Housing
Key names to look out for when doing your search include Ping'anli, Di'anmen, Xisi,
Deshengmen, and Xishiku. Go to the area and wander around looking for a real estate
agent rather than relying on expat resources. A two-bedroom
píngfáng
is likely to cost
around RMB13,000 per month, while a small two-bedroom Chinese-style apartment may
cost RMB5,000-7,000. If you're keen to share, you should be able to find a place where
you're paying RMB2,500-4,000 per month for an apartment. A luxury
sìhéyuàn
can easily
go for RMB25,000 or more per month. If this is your interest, there are companies such as
Four Star Realty (
www.shanghome.cn
), which deal primarily in these kinds of properties.
