Shopping: Beijing is a great place to indulge in a spot of retail therapy on account of its large number of markets selling traditional Chinese goods as well as high streets that are home to stores selling international goods. Wangfujing street is perhaps the most famous shopping street in the city and houses the Oriental Plaza, an enormous department store selling all manner of goods. If you are interested in Chinese silk products then this is the street to head for. Xidan is another popular shopping area while markets such as Hongqiao (Pearl Market) and Panjiayuan are also certainly worthy of mention. Visitors interested in buying Chinese antiques should check out Liulichang Antiques street.
Eating out: as Chinese cuisine is universally accepted as being one of the finest in the world, you would be foolish to come all the way to Beijing and not sample as many of the local delicacies as possible. Food is much more about just eating to stay alive in China and visitors will notice how integral it is to both social and business affairs. Seek out the food markets where, if you’re brave, you can just point to something that looks interesting and give it a go or head for an expensive restaurant where you might get an English description of the food on offer. A higher price is not necessarily an indication of better food in Beijing and often the places that the locals like to frequent offer food as tasty and authentic as you’re likely to find anywhere in the country.
