2009 Dec 02 Win Copies of the New Insider’s Guide to Beijing 2010!!
Immersion Guides is proud to announce the launch of the Insider’s Guide to Beijing 2010, the new edition of the book hailed as “one of the best, new, imaginative and informative guidebooks in a long time” (South China Morning Post) and a “Beijing Bible” (Beijing Today). The new edition will be unveiled at a launch party at The Bookworm this Thursday (December 3) at 7.30pm. Come along and celebrate with the contributors and editors of your definitive guide to living in China’s capital.
The Guide punches through the tourist façade of this mighty city and tells you where Beijingers like to eat, sleep, study, party, work, primp and play. It taps into the experience of over 40 specialists who live in the Chinese capital and love it. This gives it accuracy and currency that no ordinary tourist guidebook can equal.
This year’s talented cast of contributors includes CNN Beijing Bureau Chief Jaime FlorCruz, Ich Bin Ein Beijinger author Kaiser Kuo, Ai Weiwei translator Lee Ambrozy, Beijing Eats author Eileen Wen Mooney, Paper Republic founder Eric Abrahamsen, and Danwei.org founder Jeremy Goldkorn.
At 592 pages, the Insider’s Guide also offers unmatched breadth of content, with hundreds meticulously updated listings of hotels, restaurants, galleries, tourist sites, bars, shops, businesses and more. It also offers up-to-the-minute advice on everything from housing and health to transport, work and education, as well as tips on acing the HSK, volunteering for an NGO, starting a business or gaining CELTA Certification. It digs deep into Beijing’s vibrant arts and culture scene, and is simply unmatched in its coverage of nightlife and music.
The book’s celebrated sidebars bring depth, insight and humor. This year, you can read about Yuan dynasty engineer Guo Shoujing, a market that’s “like Panjiayuan fifteen years ago,” and a first-hand account of ice swimming with Houhai’s Polar Bears.
The book also features over 300 color photos and illustrations, and its 13 detailed color color maps, including a new map of Caochangdi, have been updated and enhanced with location points for over 1,000 venues and places of interest.
The Insider’s Guide to Beijing retails for RMB 100. You can buy an advance copy at the launch this Thursday, and in a one-night-only special you will also get a FREE Beijing Taxi Guide.
The new edition will hit stores early next week, and will be available at major bookstores like the Foreign Languages Bookstore or The Bookworm. It’s also on sale at Jenny Lou and April Gourmet, or you can get it delivered to your home, office or hotel – to place an order call 5820 7101 or e-mail distribution@immersionguides.com. If you’re reading this outside China, look for it on Amazon.com.
We have one copy of the Insider’s Guide to Beijing 2010 to give away to the first reader to answer this question: What local beer takes its brand name from an ancient name for Beijing? Send your answers to danedwards@truerun.com
Insider’s Guide 2010 Launch Party; 7.30pm; Thursday, December 3; The Bookworm.
You might also be interested in :
Into the Wilds: Beijing's Excursion Groups & Tour Companies
Beijing has a lot to offer the intrepid soul, but sometimes you’ve got to escape. Aside from the convenience and good company, group travel can allow participants access to locations and information that would be difficult to find without excellent Chinese, a lot of patience and a car. Below is a list of organizations that operate in the Beijing area.
Quickie Link: EileenEats on Nai Lao
Beijing Eats author Eileen Wen Mooney blogs about two traditional nai lao (or "yogurt," for lack of a better term) in the capital. The second spot is the well-known Wen Yu Nai Lao Dian in Nanluoguxiang, which didn't exactly do it for me when I visited with my family a few week's back. Eileen offers some interesting historical background about the shop and explains why it's done so well.In the Gallery: Ich Bin Ein Beijinger Book Launch Pics
Thanks to everyone who turned out for last night's Ich Bin Ein Beijinger book launch event at The Bookworm, where tbj columnist Kaiser Kuo regaled the 100-plus audience with anecdotes and readings from his new book, published by Immersion Guides, as well as an autograph session. Click here to view the gallery pics, and order your copy here.Beijing by Foot Walk #32: Qianmen East
In Old Beijing, this was the hub of commerce, entertainment and vice. Qianmen is named for the gate separating the inner “Manchu” city and outer “Han” city – Han residents were kicked out of the former by the Qing in 1648.Some of China’s oldest extant businesses are here, including Tongrentang (5), a traditional pharmacy opened in 1669, and Qianxiangyi Silk Store (1), from 1840. The neighborhood’s commercial bent is also mirrored in street names like Zhubaoshi Jie (“Jewelry Market Street”) and Liangshidian Jie (“Grain Shop Street”).
Quickie Link: EileenEats Laozihao List
Beijing Eats author Eileen Wen Mooney has a useful post about laozihao ("time honored brands") restaurants around town:"Laozihao (老字号):
The term laozihao refers to classic brands that have existed for many decades, in some cases for centuries, and which were run by families who handed the businesses down from generation to generation. These time honored brands were turned into a mixture of private and state enterprises in 1956 after the Communists came into power. Quality fell and these establishments lost their reputations that had been built up over time. With China’s reform and opening up, some of the descendents of the original families, have sought to reclaim control of their family establishments and to regain their former glory, but it’s been an uphill battle."
danedwards
Re: Win Copies of the New Insider’s Guide to Beijing ...
We have a winner! Congratulations to Alex Lau, who wins an advance copy of the 2010 Insider's Guide to Beijing.
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