Classics and modernity coexist, tradition and fashion merge,

Rich and colorful, not enough to describe its charm and vitality

This is Beijing, east of the Forbidden City

If you want to discover more different ways to play in Beijing like me, you have to take a closer look! Walking east of the Forbidden City will definitely subvert your understanding of Beijing.

When many friends visit Beijing, they will find that there is a gift unique to Beijing, which is the rabbit boy wearing a golden armor and a red robe. The Rabbit Man first appeared in the early years of Zhengde in the Ming Dynasty and was used to worship the moon on the 15th of the eighth month of the lunar calendar. Legend has it that Rabbit was born during the Qianlong period. Because Qianlong was born in the Year of the Rabbit, this also gave Rabbit a certain royal aura and was sought after by people.

Nowadays, there are some people who are working hard to preserve these traditional objects. Tujifang (the production workshop is located in Tongzhou District) is one of them. They still make every rabbit by hand, and have also given birth to a new member Ji Xiaotu, which combines the current trendy entertainment elements and promotes a new trend in literature and art in Beijing. Today's rabbit culture has become a new business card in Beijing.

Now Xinhua Bookstore (Huashi Store) is developing a New Beijing, Beautiful Life-Intangible Cultural Heritage Cultural Experience. Books can enrich cultural life. Don't miss out on the intangible cultural heritage experience activities here while reading. It is still very commemorative to personally make many intangible cultural heritage experience projects such as Jitufang Rabbit Master, hairy monkey, Ru porcelain, paper-cutting, and round fan.

The Guardian Art Center is adjacent to the Forbidden City. The entire building has a space of about 5000 square meters. In addition to hotels, there are many art exhibitions, auctions and other activities. From services to exhibition types, art lovers will pay regular attention to them. This time, I spent an afternoon viewing the two exhibition halls. From the beauty of Mu Xia's lines to the modern "five-sense architecture", the "visual feast" that spans time and space is here.

Eternal Mu Xia·The magic of lines, from the layout of lighting to the display of exhibits, is my favorite of the entire exhibition hall. From Mu Xia's boyhood to gaining international reputation, to establishing her own unique painting style, she perfectly combines decorative patterns with winding curves. In order to fulfill her dream, Mu Xia also worked as a stage decorator and decorated the interior of the manor until the birth of "Gismunda". This poster that made Mu Xia famous was matched with harmonious composition, flowing lines, elegant and soft colors, pushing the advertising poster to the realm of art.

The "Five-Sense Architecture" abandons the first sense of vision and resonates with architecture. Every building has a unique smell, and buildings are not just about living... Through detailed architectural manuscripts, scale models, pictures and images, we can have a more comprehensive and deeper understanding of the architect's concepts and works.

What does Beijing look like from a high place? The revolving restaurant on the 28th floor of the Beijing International Hotel will surely solve this answer for you. It is 108 meters high and turns around every two hours, just in time for afternoon tea, and views Beijing at 360 degrees.

The Paint Guild Hall is a century-old building and is said to have been established by pigment merchants in Pingyao, Shanxi. The current place is called Yueheyan Club, located at No. 22 Qingyun Hutong, Dongcheng Area (Navigation Pigment Club). It specializes in New Beijing cuisine, but I did not go the usual way, but chose the online celebrity afternoon tea + evening opera special performance here.

Yueheyan·Clubhouse-Afternoon Tea

The pigment quicksand cake has value for beauty, the rich bergamot cake is highly recognizable, the osmanthus red bean cake is sweet but not greasy, the rose cake is full of flower flavor, and the Sanlihe koi carp comes with fairy spirit.

Yueheyan·Guild Hall-Special Performance of Zhezi Opera

Listen to another drama at night, at 19:30 every Friday and Saturday night. The program list changes every week and requires an appointment in advance. The ancient charm has been passed down for a long time, and the familiar excerpts have also made me a fan of the theater.

The alleys on the side are more worth visiting, as if they have changed the area. The small bridges and flowing water accompanied by the afterglow of dusk made me exclaim as if I were in Jiangnan. Even the walking path on the side seems to travel through time and space to arrive at a paradise outside the world. It is completely impossible to imagine that this is in the central area where every inch of land is precious.

The predecessor of Jixiang Grand Theater,"Jixiang Garden", is a famous century-old theater in Beijing that everyone knows. After a century of changes, the Grand Theater will reopen in July 2021! The current new location of Jixiang Grand Theater is located on the seventh floor of the North District of Yintai in88, No. 88 Wangfujing Street. The "Thirteen Wonders of the Same Light" hanging under the signboard of Jixiang Grand Theater is made of silk enamel painting, which will definitely make your eyes shine; the interior of the theater is decorated with complex and gorgeous castles, and the arches are painted with auspicious signs, echoing the auspicious meaning of the theater.

Jixiang Grand Theater is not large for many theaters today. It is small and refined. The elegant and beautiful interior has made better design and application of acoustic design, sound and light equipment, and wall panels. Sitting in any position, you can listen to it with an ear-catching feeling, and the audition effect is excellent, bringing the audience's emotions into it more realistically. The repertoire changes regularly. For example, the modern dance drama "The Fantasy Tea Mystery Sutra" I saw this time has only been performed three times. If you like it, you will come soon, but if you miss it, you will not know how long it will be. The "Fantasy Tea Mystery Sutra" originated from a world-class royal tea set owned by Emperor Xizong of the Tang Dynasty, a cultural relic unearthed at Famen Temple in Fufeng. Taking tea as the cause and dance as the guide, starting from the perspective and clues of national treasures, we launched a mysterious dream journey.

Speaking of Dongsi, from the Yuan Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty, there lived the most prominent relatives of the new imperial family. Today, the hutongs here not only retain the hutong culture of old Beijing, but also add courtyard-themed boutique apartments such as No. 78 Dongsi.

This is the first time I have encountered a novel model that focuses on long-term renting and combines short-term living. The living atmosphere of the hutong in Jingxiang, the winding corridors are still turning, the layout of the small courtyard is well organized, and the carefully laid out loft rooms contain craftsmanship. Thinking. Without the rigidity of the hotel, it adds a sense of belonging to home.

There are only 14 rooms in the courtyard, which is very tight. If you want to stay here for a few days, remember to book in advance.

One day is not enough time to understand the east of the Forbidden City, discover more new ways to play in Beijing, and understand the different Forty-Nine Cities, where classics and modernity, tradition and fashion collide with a new "Beijing" color.