A Day in the Hutongs

Sunday we spent the day in Beijing's hutong district. Hutongs are narrow streets or alleys formed by lines of residences, which are usually constructed around a central courtyard. Most hutongs have been torn down to make room for multi-story buildings, and the ones that remain are generally used for restaurants and shops rather than residences.

In the morning we attended a "carnival" put on by the Beijing Cultural Heritage Protection Center. The carnival was in celebration of International Children's Day on June 1. Seth got to paint a couple of ceramics and practise the Chinese yo-yo. He was, of course, very popular; in one picture below you can see the number of cameras pointed in his direction. You can also see his picture on the CHP website. (Later in the week Seth had another Children's Day celebration at his school, and you can see pictures of Seth and me participating in that event on the CAU website.)

Then we walked a little ways to Brand Nu, a quaint little shop owned by one of our friends. The shop sells ethical trade handicrafts and a few other items--including the paper hat Seth is wearing in the bottom picture--made by rural Chinese women. Then we tried out a Mexican restaurant, which was a bit of a disappointment as far as the food was concerned. The booths were really comfortable, though, and Bob the Builder was on a big-screen TV, so we had a little trouble dragging ourselves away. (The mile walk to our bus stop didn't motivate us, either.)

It might not sound like much, but by the time we got home mid-afternoon, we were exhausted!