Dashilar Hutong: Tripping through Time (6)

A server at the Hejian donkey meat restaurant noted that renovations over the last decade or so have improved the buildings and the roads, "but things haven't changed so much." Having lived and worked there for so long, he is no stranger to Dashilar culture. "Beijingers live here but they don't' like to spend time here," he said, matter-of-factly. "It's an ancient hutong so other people like to come here and look around, but Beijingers don't care. We were born here so of course we're not curious about this place."

Of course, visitors to Beijing are the very definition of curiosity, hence Dashilar's popularity. Of all of Beijing's hutongs, Dashilar offers the biggest variety of cultural environments to absorb. Booming consumerism, historic eats, modern art, local life and more. And all squeezed into less than one kilometer.

Getting there: From Qianmen subway station (line 2), walk south on Qianmen St. 10 minutes. Dashilar Hutong will be on the right, as marked by an archway.

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