Mooncakes enjoy a 3000 year history and are traditionally eaten on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month. This date in the Gregorian calendar changes from year to year; in 2010 it falls on September 22nd. Read More>>

Not just bread but heavenly, moist, freshly baked pieces of bliss. While bread is staple food in most daily eating regimens, it has received a cursed name from the diet world in recent years; the truth is, irrespective of speculation, baked goods are a ... Read More>>

Beijing is a megalopolis. One thing you don’t fully appreciate before you touch down at the airport is just how large the city is. For newcomers this can be daunting; not only to understand the logistics of finding your way around such a large city – ... Read More>>

Beijing’s bar and club scene is evolving endlessly and if you stay cooped up at home too long you’ll soon discover that the city has transformed into a wild jungle of unknown drinking dens. This summer has proven to be a very fertile month for bar births ... Read More>>

Photo: the beijinger.com We take an in-depth look at Beijing’s club scene, mapping out some of the biggest DJs and music collectives in the city, followed by a brief discussion of nightlife and the broader music scene with Punk resident DJ Saul D. DJ ... Read More>>

The ever classic burger: a favorite for all and perfect in every season. It’s easy enough to slap a burger on a menu, but to take home the prize of boast-worthy burger is much more of a challenge. Several restaurants in Beijing boast a fantastic burger but ... Read More>>

Domestic help is something that most foreigners in Beijing are unaccustomed to; paying someone to clean up after them or have them do their laundry is an alien concept for some. Many, after a period of living in the capital come to realize that having this ... Read More>>

Finding the best pizza is a daunting task, especially since there are so many different variations, toppings, shapes and sizes. Some like them thin and crispy, others thick and doughy. However, the city may be peppered with numerous pizza restaurants, a few ... Read More>>

In Beijing, expat life outside of work can be one long succession of indulgent evenings out wining and dining, interspersed with evenings of DVD box sets. For many, their only adrenaline rush is the mad dash to the elevator before a less civically minded ... Read More>>

The Beijing National Aquatics Center, more commonly referred to as the Water Cube, was one of the main architectural highlights of the Beijing Olympic Games. Nothing could cast the cube-shaped, membrane covered “bubble” building into the shadows – not ... Read More>>

There are nine million bicycles in Beijing. And that’s a FACT (probably…). In fact, the number of bicycles in Beijing is likely to have increased inline with Beijing’s ever expanding population since Katie Melua crooned those immortal words back in 2005. ... Read More>>

International schools have already broken up for summer and what a long summer it is. With the novelty of being off school wearing out; kids soon get bored of having nothing to do or only the Nintendo Wii and DVDs to keep them amused. Best that you find the ... Read More>>

Tattoos have a long history in China. They even have a place in traditional literature – Shijin, a character in Water Margin, has tattoos of 9 dragons on his back. Many hundreds of years ago, people bearing the mark of a tattoo were much maligned. During ... Read More>>

With a rapid developing construction industry and infrastructure, Beijing, as China’s capital, is an international window to the modern face of China. With the blossoming of entertainment and leisure industries as well as increased interest in sporting ... Read More>>

Do you spend more hours a week watching mind-numbing TV shows or surfing the net than you have to? Do you wish you spent your time more constructively? Do you feel empathy towards people, animals and/or the environment? Do you want to ... Read More>>

Things change fast in Beijing, and this is especially true for the live music scene. Just over four years ago, one could pretty much count the number of live music venues with the fingers of two hands. The old Yugong Yishan, D22, 2Kolegas, Star Live, ... Read More>>

From missionaries to mosques, religion in Beijing has not been confined to Buddhism and Taoism. Today, there are many religious communities flourishing in Beijing, and Catholics and Christians, Jews and Muslims, Taoists and Buddhists all have ... Read More>>

Rumors and speculation about the fate of Beijing’s Bird Nest have been doing the rounds even before the Olympic Games kicked off in 2008. However, well over a year ago, an unidentified official of the National Stadium revealed that the now iconic landmark ... Read More>>

With what seems to be a continuing global economic crisis, people all around the world are tightening their belts in various ways. In times of uncertainty, one thing is for sure: partying and enjoying the nightlife is something most people don’t want to ... Read More>>

With air conditioning units now finding themselves switched on, the gents in shorts and ladies in those gravity defying skirts, and people taking to the streets in the evening again, it is safe to say that summer is finally here in Beijing. What better way ... Read More>>

Welcome to Miyun, a picturesque suburban county north east of Beijing where the hills are green, the air is fresh and pollution at bay. The area is known for its beautiful natural environment and rich history, but what makes Miyun even more attractive is ... Read More>>

With spring well and truly on its way, many people will be thinking about coming out of hibernation, casting their DVD box-sets and take away pizza boxes aside and taking a weekend break. Echinacities brings you some of the best getaway locations around ... Read More>>

With many people tired of the meat market atmosphere of Beijing’s many bars and the pop-oriented dance scene, a game of pool is an often forgotten but very viable alternative to going out on the razzle. If you are tired of shouting into the ears of people ... Read More>>

The first foreign language library for children opened on the eve of Children’s Day in Haidian District, Beijing. The new library, which is located in Haidian Children’s Palace (海淀少年宫), occupies a floor space of over 80 square metres and contains over... Read More>>