五道营胡同

Did a quick stroll at Yonghegong (雍和宫), which is also the Lama Temple. When I last visited, its political significance was lost amidst teenage angst and concerns. This trip would be more meaningful. I wondered how the revered Tibetan Lamas in the Yuan and Qing Dynasty have fallen so much from grace with the ruling powers in history; from esoteric Buddhism being the official religion to being a religion to be wary of, and today, to hold its believers in suspicion. Or dare I suggest, persecution even.

The importance of esoteric Buddhism back then is evident in the architecture and artifacts in the temple compound. Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty ordered the conversion of this palace into a place of worship and to build a new annex (Jietailou, 戒台楼) in 1780 to host the Sixth Panchen Erdeni during his visit to the capital. The uneasy truce between Tibet and the Yuan Dynasty Emperors, and the Qing control over the region (struggling for either autonomy or eventual independence) finally exploded in 1959, and that drew a new page in Tibetan and Chinese political history that is unresolved till today.

Crossed the road to Wudaoying hutong (五道营胡同). The last time I saw the hutongs (胡同), I probably didn't appreciate it at all. Realizing that there're many fun new commercial outlets at the refurbished hutongs, I decided to check them out. Wudaoying hutong (五道营胡同) is one of Beijing's oldest hutongs, and has now been refurbished. No better way than to view a contrast of old and new. Very charming.

It was a sunny day, and perfect for a walk. I poked my heads into those that were under renovation. Decided not to bother those that had workers hard at work. I'd be an annoying tourist and a nuisance! Went into a couple that had no workers. As I stepped into the rubble, I gingerly picked my way across the space, wondering how it all looked like in the past. At my own risk of course. I didn't think the roof was going to collapse. In those days, hygiene aside (could be a problem putting in sanitation pipes for the whole street), hutongs can be a fire trap, especially large families of 10 or more live in one.

The original homes have been revamped into shops selling vintage stuff (radio, telephones, cups, thermos, etc), clothes, fashion, knick knacks, restaurants and eateries, dessert cafes and bars. It's a fairly lively area in the nights, but not easy to grab a cab home. Often, it's a 20-minute wait and you'll have to negotiate the delicate matter of who's first in the queue along the street. A dicey matter.

Some of the shops and eateries have put in their own toilets and washrooms, but many opted out of it. There're a couple of public toilets along the street. They seem fine, really. Probably because this has developed into a tourist spot. VA Bar & Cafe Vanguard is right at the start of the lane. It hosts live bands on Wednesdays and the weekends, spewing everything from singer-songwriter compositions to indie punk and mostly jazz. Plenty of construction going on day and night. Many are being torn down and in the process of rebuilding. Some are oddly, amidst the construction, still home to local residents for the now. Very glad to see that the facades have been kept, and most of the roof tiles have either been replaced by identical or closely matched new versions. The quaint magic of a bygone era is still in the air.

Finally hungry, I stared at the eateries along the street, and decided it was to be lunch at The Veggie Table (吃素的). Grinned a little at the online reviews that slammed the place. Yes, the servers are a tad clueless. But the food isn't that bad. It's probably improved a fair bit from opening blues. For some reason, they disallowed photography. But I got some shots anyway. (Read here for a more detailed review.) The pita bread I had was decent, and the hummus, after adding onions and mushrooms was rather delicious. Their juices were good too. My favorite choice of juice in China is the Chinese pear (雪梨汁), followed by apple. Crisp, naturally sweet and refreshing. I like how eateries in China always offer freshly squeezed juices on the menu, and will lay off the additional sugar or honey if you tell them not to. It was a perfect quiet hour before heading off to meet the friends for tea.