The Beijinger Blog - Paul Pennay

Video of the Week: The Menu Stealer

thebeijinger — Fri, 01 May 2009 15:00:34 +0800

Take a peek at ChinesePod's fun new series of videos called The Menu Stealer. The videos tell the story of a foreigner who teaches himself Chinese by stealing menus from various restaurants in China. You can see the introductory trailer here and the first episode here. Keep an eye out for upcoming episodes over the next few weeks.

Prize: The Menu Stealer may resort to petty crime but how far would you go to improve your Chinese? Tell us the most extreme lengths that you would go to in order to improve your Chinese. The best response wins a 6-month Premium ChinesePod subscription care of ChinesePod.

CCTV Headquarters on Simpsons

thebeijinger — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 11:00:15 +0800

Via Shanghaiist (though, they really should change their name to Chinaist), comes an indication that the CCTV Headquarters in Beijing has entered the global, or at least American, public consciousness. The Shanghai site report that a model of the big pants - minus the burnt boot that currently sits forlornly by the impressive structure - appeared on a recent episode of The Simpsons. You can watch the full episode on Youku.

World Reading Day 2009 in Beijing

thebeijinger — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 19:00:07 +0800

Today is World Reading Day or 世界读书日 (shìjiè dúshū rì) in Chinese, also known as World Book and Copyright Day through out much of the rest of the world. Unlike last year, none of the big bookstores in Beijing will be offering hefty discounts. Though it seems the National Library of China is organizing a few activities. But never mind the absence of sales, the digital age is here and you can go and read some classics over at the World Digital Library for free instead.

Beijing's Automatic Recycling Machines

thebeijinger — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 17:00:49 +0800

A young child places a plastic bottle into a recycling machine and waits with glee for his 1 jiao coin reward. According to a small article in today's Beijing News, the recycling machine pictured above can be found by the South Gate of Chaoyang Park. The report concludes by announcing that more of the machines are set to gradually start appearing througout Beijing's residential areas.

But it seems that the machines aren't exactly new - last August, China Economic Net reported on the presence of the Beijing-made plastic eaters on Shanghai's Nanjing Lu.

Let the Voting Begin – The Beijinger's 6th Annual Reader Bar & Club Awards

thebeijinger — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 11:00:54 +0800

Click here to vote

We're excited to announce that voting in the 6th Annual Reader Bar & Club Awards has begun. The Opposite House's relative newcomer to the Sanlitun bar scene, Mesh, has topped nominations in this year's awards. Long time Beijing watering hole The Den came in second place with 9 nominations in all, while perennial favorites Centro, Q Bar and Rickshaw all received 8, as did year-old Sanlitun venue Tun.

In all 84 Beijing bars and clubs have been named in 29 categories on the
ballot, which was chosen by a panel of 200 Beijingers drawn from all
walks of life. New categories this year include Best Survivor
(in business for longer than 5 years); Best Bartender; Best Regular
Events and Bar/Club Most Worthy of a Long Cab Ride.

Let your voice be heard (and win yourself a pair of tickets to Shanghai, an invite to our May awards bash, or one of many other prizes) by casting a ballot here.

Balloting is live through May 8.

More Fluff

thebeijinger — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 11:00:43 +0800

The season of fluff is once again upon us. So expect more arguments about whether the catkins getting up your nose and in your eyes are originating from willow or poplar trees (we think it's probably both, but there are more poplars in Beijing). Also expect more queries about what happened to the grand "sex change plan" that was announced a few years back. For more details, see this post from last year. The above image was snapped on April 14 last year in Xicheng District by a photographer from the Legal Evening News.

New Openings: Wen Ding Xiang Chongqing Chicken Pot

thebeijinger — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 09:00:00 +0800

If you like opportunities to extend your culinary horizons beyond laowai cai, you’ll welcome the arrival of this small, unassuming joint that does great bubbling pots of chicken (jigong bao), guaranteed to warm and soothe. The broth into which ingredients are dipped is more akin to a medicinal chicken soup than a conventional Chongqing hot pot piled with mouth-numbing Sichuan peppercorns and fiery chillies – though four levels of spiciness as well as a bu la option are available. At meal’s end, the soup has transformed into a rich hearty stock chock-full of warming goodness – we recommend soaking it up with bingsi (shredded Chinese-style flat cakes). Although other pots and appetizers are listed on the bilingual, budget-friendly menu, it's probably wisest to stick to the house specialty.

Images of the Week - Winners of China's 5th International Press Photo Contest

thebeijinger — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 15:00:13 +0800

Last year we reported on the controversy surrounding China's 4th International Press Photo Contest. This year, unaware of any claims of digital manipulation, we simply present some of the winning images. Aside from all the Olympic photos entered in the sports news category, none of the other images seem to have been taken in Beijing. Click here for Sohu's gallery of all the winning images, view last year's winners here or keep reading below for a selection of some of the winning images from this year's competition.

Earth Hour in Beijing

thebeijinger — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 13:00:39 +0800

Links and Sources
Reuters: China goes dark for Earth Hour
Jan Zdzarski: Earth Hour in Beijing / wwf.org

Guo'an Take on Australia's Newcastle Jets Tomorrow Night at Gongti

thebeijinger — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 17:00:52 +0800

It could be a triumphant return to form for the local Beijing team as they come home to Workers' Stadium for the 2009 season which kicks off on Mar 21 (click here for fixtures). Guo’an have received a RMB 20 million investment from the Beijing Sports Bureau which has helped them replace some of the big name internationals that they lost at the end of the 2008 season. Along with other clubs in the CSL, they've also received a big cash injection from Nike (see earlier post for details).

Beijing were runners up in the 2007 season and a strong finish to last season, despite being marred by on and off field distractions, saw them finish third on the ladder. By doing so they qualified for this year's expanded AFC Champions League. Tomorrow night the team host Australia’s Newcastle Jets in the first group match of the AFC at the Workers' Stadium.