Beijing & 798 Art District – March 17

Although it felt that we were there for a lot longer, we returned to Beijing from the trip to the Great Wall with half of the day ahead of us. The plan was to visit the 798 Art District and then see a Chinese acrobatic show before a dinner of Peking duck.

The 798 Art District is an area that began as an industrial zone, thriving on manufacturing. Then, the factories closed down and the buildings stood empty for a while. Recently, artists and art enthusiasts have begun to take over, turning the former factories into art galleries and shops.

The leitmotif of our entire trip to China is “I wish I had more time.” I would have liked to spend a couple of days in this area rather than a few hours. Someday I will return to explore on my own. I felt like I was in a cage. Oh. Wait. Maybe that was an art piece designed like a cage.

One of the first places that we visited was an old factory that was converted into an art gallery.

The art was varied and there were some pieces that I really liked.

The students liked these statues.

They decided to create interactive art.

From there we explored the area, visiting shops and enjoying the views.

We visited a few shops and there were also people selling pieces they made in the streets.

Douglas and I were attracted to this wall of “machinery” and the 3D train at one shop.

There was graffiti everywhere.

Even the trees were decorated. I am not sure if the shirt in the window next to the tree is supposed to be art or not.

The architecture and old industrial remnants were fascinating.

It seemed that around every corner there was another statue or sculpture. Some of them were old school.

Others were modern.

These statues caught my eye, but I was a little surprised by the view from behind.

Some of the buildings have been converted into bars or restaurants. Douglas and I really like the lighting fixture in this one.

One of my favorite activities is people watching. I am fascinated by people, and the ones in the 798 Art Zone did not disappoint me. I loved seeing how much people were able to transport on their bicycles.

Everywhere we went throughout China there were brides and grooms having their pictures taken. Many of the brides were wearing white, but I liked when they wore the traditional red instead.

I am not sure what this guy was filming. I suppose it was part of an advertisement for a car. Maybe we will be in it!

While I love people, Douglas prefers dogs. He made one friend in the 798, but the black dogs attacked him when he tried to greet them.

Once we left the 798 Art District, we headed to a theater to watch an acrobatic show. The theater was beautiful. We were not supposed to take pictures, but I snapped a few before the show began.

This is a bad picture, but it cracked me up that this guy was out there painting the stage right before the show began.

The only problem with the show is that we were all jet lagged and exhausted from a busy day at the Great Wall and the 798 Art Zone. The absolute worst place to bring jet-lagged people on their first afternoon twelve hours around the globe is the theater. Most of us fell asleep for at least part of the show, but it was a good nap! The motorcycles in the cage woke me back up. There were seven of them in there!

Finally, we went to dinner at Dongzhimennei Dajie, a street with a lot of restaurants and night life.

The duck was my favorite meal of all, and I enjoyed most of them!

The students loved watching the chef carve the duck.

We were back at the hotel and in bed by nine. It was an early night after an adventurous day. I have found that the best way to chaperone teenagers is to keep them too tired to get into trouble! Check back in next Monday for another China update.

Happy Travels!