the Beijinger

Fancy a bit of Mala Xiangguo? Order your chicken wings biantai la? Put your Sichuan friends to shame by ordering the extra spicy broth at the local hot pot joint? Then we invite you to step up and take part in the Fourth Annual Beijinger Chili Pepper Eating Contest being held as part of the Canada Day celebrations at the Canadian International School this Sunday.

Ever wondered which is the most efficient mode of transportation in Beijing? We have too. So we sent out seven intrepid movers and shakers in a race from our offices at Dawang Lu (in the CBD) to the Drum Tower at rush hour in order to uncover which form of transport is the King of Commutes. Here are the results:

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the tastiest part of the chicken is the wing. It is likewise self-evident that Beijing’s most popular wings are based on Chinese recipes, not ones from Buffalo or Kentucky – if you plan to eat in one of these joints, go early or make a reservation because they draw hungry crowds. A few other facts: nothing goes better with barbequed wings than mashed potatoes; wings should be ordered in even numbers; and “BT” (biantai  变态) or “perversion,” means a chicken wing has been loaded with a perverse amount of spicy peppers. Diner beware.

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 ultimate English language guide to Beijing's Chinese restaurants is finally here! It’s called Beijing Eats – A Food-Lover's Companion to China's Culinary Capital, and it guides you to 140 of Beijing’s best Chinese restaurants, covering 31 regional and historic cuisines.

To coincide with Beijing's Green Olympics, Immersion Guides has teamed up with wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC and Beijing-based conservation NGO Shan Shui Center for Nature and Society to bring you the Beijing Green Guide.

With detailed information in both English and Chinese, the Beijing Green Guide takes Immersion Guides' most accurate, up-to-date city map ever and combines it with TRAFFIC and Shan Shui’s knowledge of all things green in Beijing to show you the best, most environmentally friendly places to eat, sightsee and shop.

The most surreal experience was the subway ride afterwards. I squeezed through the doors, pushed through a crowd of people, and there it was, now in an entirely new light. As I gripped its shiny surface, I realized a profound truth: I will never look at a pole the same way again.

 My arms and legs ached. My shoulder was bruised. My shirt was soaked through with sweat. It had indeed been a workout.

Hours before, I’d entered a room on the 20th floor of an office building, thinking, like many others, that I’d take a crack at pole dancing. I hadn’t walked into a strip club – those are illegal here.

Hi friends and supporters of that’s Beijing magazine:

It's official – our company, the producer of "that's Beijing" magazine since its debut issue in October 2001 right through the June 2008 issue, will now no longer be involved with the brand "that's".

Our publisher, who controls the official publishing license of "that's," has abruptly ended our long-term cooperation mid-negotiation and behind our back hired someone else to produce "that's Beijing" magazine from now on.

Our company, however, will be soldiering on with a magazine you'll find to be quite similar to that's Beijing -- a magazine to be called "the Beijinger" which will make its debut with the July 2008 issue.

It features the same layout, the same content, the same distribution, and most importantly, the same team that has brought you that's Beijing since we created its debut issue in October 2001.

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”).