Last Day in Beijing

To me, this embodies the average hutong. It's a bit run-down, but no one is asking for anything fancy!

My last weekend in Beijing was wonderful, and the theme was snacks and hutongs! Hutongs are traditional alleyways with courtyard homes, and they are quite fun to explore.

On Friday night, I went out to dinner with my coworkers and the other summer associates, followed by a hip hutong bar with one of my classmates, our Chinese friend, and a new Australian friend. We stayed up late talking and eating meat skewers - including chicken kidneys and gristle - in the alley.

A countryside hutong. I wish you could hear the roosters and smell those flowers spilling over the walls!

On Saturday, I left the city for a village trip. I took the metro to the end of the line, then boarded a bus to visit some ancient Ming Dynasty tombs that house the emperors. I love village life, and getting out on my own in the peaceful countryside was just what I needed to cap off my trip. I walked through a flower field and some nearly-empty hutongs, listening to roosters, birds, cicadas, and other animal sounds. As for food, the village grows a lot of fruit, which I sampled as I walked along the county roads. I also had donkey meat in my noodles, and it was surprisingly delicious.

My very last full day involved two hutongs. In the morning, I went to some winding, interconnected hutongs behind the main train station. I ate steamed buns filled with leeks and egg and also sticky rice cooked with prunes. 

This woman is making jiaozi, which are boiled dumplings,
not baozi, which are steamed and more bread-like.

In the afternoon, my friend joined me for a walk in a touristy hutong. It was so crowded and busy, but it was a lot of fun. We ate clay pot yogurt, cool noodles, and pomelo juice.
On my way home, I finally tried the handmade green tea ice cream my friends have been telling me about. And I ate durian fruit for the first time! (It's gross, actually!)

A well-kept hutong. 

So long, Beijing!