Reviews of Holiday Inn Beijing Downtown Hotel, Beijing, China

The first thing that struck me...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Board Basis:

Bed & Breakfast

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2005

Tour Operator:

Booked Independently

Submitted By:

carolmid

Comments:

The first thing that struck me about Beijing was the traffic. Not just the sheer volume of it – but also the abundance of near misses! Cars, vans, rickshaws and bicycles swarmed haphazardly from lane to lane, some obeying red lights, some not. It seemed that the order of the day was that if there was a gap, go for it. Surprisingly, road rage was rare as drivers accepted being ‘carved up’ as a natural process.



Our hotel, The Holiday Inn in Downtown Beijing, was excellent. Meals were either buffet style or à la carte, and the wide variety of dishes suited even the fussiest appetite. A sushi bar at one end of the air-conditioned terrace provided creative meals for the more adventurous and the bar sold a wide variety of cocktails, both alcoholic and alcohol free.



The following day we visited The Forbidden City, so named because it was accessible only to the Emperors and their court. The huge wall that flanked it prevented entry by the ‘common’ people of China, who were only able to glimpse the rooftops of the city. Despite the crowds, the symmetry of the buildings and gardens provided an atmosphere of peace and tranquility, though there was much evidence of the pomp and ceremony that had taken place there. I discovered that ‘The Last Emperor’ had been filmed there and resolved to buy a copy on my return to England. It seemed as I wandered from building to building that the ghosts of the past were everywhere and I could imagine the pageantry and vibrant colours of the royal household.



Next we visited a Hutong district of Beijing, the oldest part of the modern city. Narrow streets wound their way through dwellings that resembled little more than primitive shacks. Nothing could have been farther from the truth. Our guide invited us into the home of an elderly lady who had lived in the Hutong all her life and it became clear that the modest facades of the houses concealed charming interiors with modern kitchens and cool, air-conditioned rooms. A disadvantage was that one bathroom and toilet was shared by three other families but apart from that I couldn’t see any other inconveniences. With a tinge of sadness in her eyes our elderly lady told me that many of the houses would soon be demolished to make room for the modern high rise flats that the young people of Beijing prefer.



The markets in the Hutong streets were bustling and chaotic. Fruit and vegetables shared counters with washing powder, bread with DIY equipment, cheese with electrical goods. In the main shopping street, known as the 5th Avenue of Beijing, the shops were more organised and teemed with colour and scents, jasmine, tea, coffee, bread, fish, roasting meat, all combined mouth-wateringly to remind us that it was time for lunch.



But first we were invited to take part in a Tea Ceremony. At home we put the kettle on and fill a tea-pot. In China the process takes over half an hour! The pots are scalded and drained together with the tiny cups with lids that allow water to pass through the fragrant leaves. There is much turning until at last you are allowed to take a sip. But the first cup must be drunk in exactly 4 sips if you are to enjoy good luck! The leaves used in our ceremony were sweet and fruity and I understood why milk and sugar weren’t added.





Each afternoon ended with a dip in the hotel pool, though I avoided the Exercise Room. Then we would shower and change for dinner. All the food we ate was lightly spiced and freshly prepared and, whilst the quantities weren’t vast, the small dishes combined to provide a deliciously satisfying and varied meal.



Beijing is a haven for the shopper. Large malls contain everything under the sun for a fraction of British prices and the quality is excellent. I bought a dress and several tops and John bought a lot of T-shirts. We found the Hard Rock Café, of course, and were amazed at the low prices. The main problem with shopping was that all the signs and some of the prices were written in Chinese and we didn’t find many people to help us translate. We muddled through, though and passed a most enjoyable and interesting week in this lively, exotic city.