A Very Special BGTC Post: Actually from China!

Surprise! We here at Betsy Goes to China are enjoying a rare moment of legitimacy today, as I'm actually in China, wrapping up a week spent hanging out around my old home of Beijing. It's been a fantastic trip – it was my first time back to the Mainland since I left in October 2005, and I'm happy to report that Beijing is both excitingly different and reassuringly similar to how it was when I left. I'm at the airport now and very sad to go. I already can't wait to get back.

Here's a few snaps from my time spent running around the city this week. There wasn't much spare time to really photograph all the things I would have liked to, but I managed to get in a few snaps here and there. Let's start with the new CCTV tower, which I am absolutely obsessed with. I've never seen a building like it in my life. (Plus: Actual clear skies! The trade-off was several days of absolutely bone-chilling cold, but it was worth it for the breathable air and the vibrant blue sky.)


I think I have taken this exact photo approximately 147 different times in my life thus far. Still, you can't go to Beijing without stopping in to say hi to Mao:


This was just down the street from Tiananmen Square. Security was at a new high – I think those cameras have always been there, but they were also stopping anyone carrying a big bag to do a thorough check. I saw quite a few farmers unpacking their undies on the streets of Beijing to prove there was nothing sinister underneath.


Luckily, there were still plenty of things that were their usual, charming, Beijing-y selves:


I was able to spend an afternoon wandering around the galleries of 798, Beijing's main art district. It's gotten more popular and somewhat more commercial over the years, but it never, ever fails to impress or inspire me:


This oversized Mao jacket sculpture is one of 798's more well-known pieces (I think it's been photographed in every story about modern China in every major magazine in the past five years). Looks like someone gave it a bit of an update recently:


More fun from 798:


Is there a finer street snack than a Beijing roasted sweet potato? I submit there is not. I snapped this guy in one of my new favorite areas of the city (which I will surely be writing more about on the other blog very soon).


One of my favorite parts of the week was checking out some of the amazing new construction of the Olympic buildings. I had a fantastically funny cab driver who took me around the northern part of the city to see the main Olympic sites. This is the "Bird's Nest" and it is just phenomenal:


Unfortunately, I had to peek over this rather large wall to catch a good glimpse of it:


Which was just not acceptable to my driver, who managed to park the cab on the side of the road and instructed me to climb up a dirt median for a proper view. He, naturally, enjoyed a cigarette while I made my climb through the dirt. In my knee-high suede boots. Which, let it be known, are not ideal for amateur mountaineering. Still, it was worth it. Below, the driver, the cab, the dirt…


He later found me a more easily navigable photo op. I couldn't get enough; it's really that cool:


Of course, the traffic in Beijing still stinks, but what can you do? Except experiment with taking pictures in the rearview mirror to pass the time, of course:


It was really a great trip. Oh, but that's not the end! It just so happens I stumbled across an arsenal of some of my favorite old China photos on my computer today, and I'm going to post them in a day or two when I'm back in the U.S. Most likely between the hours of 3 to 5am. I hate jet lag. You night owls are going to love me this week.