[More pictures of hutongs, subways, and our excellent dinner]
After getting back from the Great Wall I did some money withdrawing and shopping before we headed off that evening to get Peking Duck. The restaurant was in a hutong, which is a neighborhood with one story buildings and small windy streets. They used to be quite common in Beijing but are steadily being replaced with denser developments. They also don’t tend to have many amenities, so restrooms are often outside of the houses and communal. The PRC’s concept of eminent domain doesn’t have nearly as many protections as in the West, so not surprisingly all the bad things that can happen when your neighborhood gets razed are a bit more common here.
The Peking Duck place was actually quite class even so. I’d never had it properly before. Apparently the routine is to get a crepe, put soy sauce on it via a cucumber slice, get a slice of duck, and then roll them all up and eat the crepe like a mini-burrito. All of this should be done with chopsticks to really do it right. Took a little effort but I could pull it off. The dinner was quite tasty and an excellent note to end the official part of the trip on.
Afterwards Rick and I went to take one last look at Tiananmen Square at night. Unfortunately, while it was just a ten minute walk away the group took a bit too much time touring the hutong the restaurant was located in, so the lights were already out. The square proper was actually fenced off and had the occasional patrolling guard, which is apparently not standard practice. After taking the subway back, I hung out a bit with my fellow travelers and slept my last night in China for this trip.
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