Live Your Best Lives
10:00 Explore Qianmen Street for trendy Chinese culture
12:30 Xianyukou, a Beijing-style restaurant
14:00 Royal afternoon tea beneath the walls of the Forbidden City
16:00 Longfu Temple, Beijing's earliest trendsetter gathering place
21:00 Trendy nightlife on Gulou East Street
23:00 Living in the old hutongs with a new twist: a courtyard house in Nanluoguxiang
When you think of the area east of the Forbidden City, what comes to mind?
Drum Tower, Houhai, Nanluoguxiang?
MAO, DADA, Yugong Yishan? (Beijing livehouse)
Stir-fried liver, shabu-shabu, and noodles with soybean paste?
These are all memories of me and this area. This is where I spent my childhood and youth. If I were to tell you stories about this place, it would probably take three days and three nights.
This is where I was born. When I was little, my family lived in the gray brick building that once housed the Duan Qirui Executive Government. My childhood memories are hazy, but looking through old photos reveals that I, too, once lived in the historic building, but later moved out to preserve it. Returning to this courtyard on the Second Ring Road, even though the old neighbors no longer recognize me, the warmth of the old Beijingers still comes over to chat with me when I see them holding old photos. I met a retired man who enthusiastically recounted the history of this old building. The compound that housed the Duan Qirui Executive Government was originally the site of Renmin University. Later, when it relocated to Zhongguancun, it became the university's family compound. The compound hasn't changed much in over 20 years; I still remember running around in it as a child. It now houses a bar and a music studio, and nearby is the renowned Beijing LiveHouse, Yugong Yishan. Nowadays, when you mention the name "Duan Qirui" to your peers, everyone will tacitly ask, "Are there any performances today?" This place has probably become a favorite place for Beijing's artistic youth to check in. 
10:00 Learn about fashionable Peking Opera and traditional Chinese medicine at the Museum of Natural History
A Beijing tour shouldn't start without visiting Qianmen, the heart of the city. Qianmen Street is a must-see for everyone visiting Beijing, but a hasty visit might lead you to overlook its trendiest and most fashionable activities. So, next, as a native Beijing girl, I will show you all the trendy places hidden deep in this street!
Beyond the opera scene, the theater is a popular online check-in spot. Its stylish, trendy settings create stunning photos. It also boasts a wide selection of Chinese designer clothing, including traditional Chinese clothing from international fashion shows. Simply browsing the area is a popular interactive experience, as is changing into fashion show attire and walking around – a popular activity. Various intangible cultural heritage educational activities are also held periodically, bringing this once-forgotten theater back to life.
12:30 Xianyukou: A Stylish Look at Traditional Chinese Cuisine
Heading east along Qianmen Street is an alley called Xianyukou, a street whose fame predates even the Dazhalan area across the street. Because the canal in old Beijing once flowed through here, the street's entrance connected directly to the canal docks, and this street, hence its name, Xianyukou, was dedicated to selling fresh fish. Back then, the entire street was lined with time-honored shops, and many of these shops' remains can still be seen today. After restoration, Xianyukou is still a street of time-honored food. You can enjoy the dandan noodles from Lili Restaurant, various old Beijing snacks from Jinfang, fried liver buns from Tianxingju, and siu mai from Duyichu. You can eat your fill of old Beijing food on this street.
2:00 PM Royal Afternoon Tea Beneath the Forbidden City Walls
The Dongyuan Theater, next to Donghuamen, is perhaps the only place where you can admire the Forbidden City's golden tiles and red walls from the rooftop. Looking out over the Dongyuan Theater, Changpu River Park, where the Dongyuan Theater is located, was historically part of the "Dongyuan." Dongyuan was originally an imperial garden built by Emperor Chengzu Zhu Di in the early Ming Dynasty. Also known as "Little South City," it was once used for royal practice of "shooting willows" and entertaining foreign envoys. Over the years, most of the historic buildings have been destroyed. The Dongyuan Theater, a 2,000-square-meter mansion rebuilt on this historic site, follows the traditional courtyard style. The jujube trees in the theater courtyard are all over a hundred years old.
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After afternoon tea, it's also very pleasant to ride a bicycle from Donghuamen. Walking along the moat through the tree-lined Nanchizi Street, a few blocks from Donghuamen, you'll reach Wangfujing. From Wangfujing, you can take Metro Line 5 directly to Longfu Temple, Beijing's oldest hipster hangout. Old Beijing, neither large nor small, embodies all its essence within this small space.
16:00 Longfu Temple: Beijing’s earliest gathering place for trendsetters
Speaking of Longfu Temple, most people may not know that this is the birthplace of Beijing’s trendsetting trends. Its fashion status back then was equivalent to that of Sanlitun today. Trendsetters from the 1990s likely still remember going to Longfu Temple for trendy brands and bargains. It's arguably Beijing's earliest trendsetter gathering place. 
Longfu Temple continues to attract a diverse crowd. Even the Cannes XR & 360VR Film Festival, which debuted in China this year, was held on the 9th-floor terrace of the Longfu Temple building. This is no ordinary terrace; it's like the traditional Beijing courtyard house has been brought to life. It's now considered Longfu Temple's most iconic building. To the east, you can overlook the China World Trade Center (CBD), while to the west, you can see the sunset over Beijing.
Longfu Temple is now the go-to destination for Beijing's trendy crowd. On August weekends, summer nights, there's a national trend book fair, a cloud queue, and the Cannes XR Film Festival—events swarming one after another. While Beijingers often think of the Ditan Book Fair, the Longfu Temple National Trend Book Fair is quite different. It offers everything from art books and wet-plate photography studios to vintage stationery, food, toys, and clothing. 
Recommended event in August: Cannes XR Film Festival
9:00 PM: Trendy Nightlife on Gulou East Street
Gulou's nightlife has made countless young artists fall in love with Beijing. It boasts not only the richest authentic Beijing flavor but also the most international cultural experience. Who hasn't had an artistic youth? He Yong's poem "Bell and Drum Tower" has brought back countless memories. In a changing Beijing, every alleyway holds its own story, and our youth is imprinted here. I still remember the last day of Mao's live show at Live House on Gulou East Street. Almost all of Beijing's loyal fans came to say goodbye, drinking together and taking photos in front of the rusted iron gate. The internet-famous film camera shop in Cheniandian Hutong was moving; as soon as the word got out, everyone came to help. On the tavern's last day, everyone sat outside drinking beer and reminiscing about the future...
Time has changed, but Drum Tower's nightlife remains a magnet for Beijing's youth. In the evening, head to Yao Ji Chao Gan for some stir-fried liver, paired with two taels of steamed buns. Afterward, enjoy a leisurely stroll in the square between the Drum Tower and the Bell Tower. Sitting on the stone platform beside Bell and Drum Tower Square with an elderly man strolling by, watching the residents going about their business, I quietly admired the diverse life of the city's inhabitants.
On weekends around 9 or 10 p.m., you'll find groups of stylishly dressed men and women flocking to a place called "Drum Tower Garden." Once, while hailing a taxi, the driver, out of curiosity, finally asked, "What's going on here? Are there any activities going on?" Yes, there's such a place on Gulou East Street. It's a weekend hotspot for artistic youth and fashionistas. Every weekend, there are various performances at the DADA Bar and Temple in Gulou Park. People come here to vent their stress after a week of pent-up emotions, drink and dance carefreely.
23:00 A New Way to Stay in an Old Hutong: Stay in a Siheyuan in Nanluoguxiang
After a full day of fun, our exploration of trendy and alternative ways to play in Beijing is drawing to a close. But the highlight was saved for last. Staying in a five-star hotel while traveling is no longer considered an unusual experience. However, staying in a Siheyuan in a hutong is now a very popular option. The hutongs of Nanluoguxiang are home to numerous artistic homestays that combine modern design elements with the traditional Beijing Siheyuan style. These places also have their own stories. Many shop owners here stayed because they liked the hutongs. It can be said that they are the most trendy people in the hutongs. The most amazing thing they have done is to design the old courtyard houses into boutique homestays that can be photographed like a fashion blockbuster.
Okay, Jingniu is tired after a long day of fun. I quickly need to take a hot bath in the bathroom of this courtyard with a patio. In this old Beijing, tradition and fashion continue to blend. I can be considered a member of a generation that has witnessed this gradual transformation and grown up with it. The past is now a memory, but the story behind these red walls continues.
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