From The Fragrant Habour to The Forbidden City

Earlier this week, my former "buddy" and friend from Hong Kong visited Beijing for a short mid-term holiday. Pui Pui was designated my "buddy" when I first attended Hong Kong University last year by the university as part of a scheme to connect incoming exchange students with local students.

It's been over a year since we last met and so it was a great pleasure to see her again, albeit relatively briefly. In our time together we visited a number of areas around Beijing and most notably the Forbidden City at the heart of Beijing.

Pictures and video footage when Pui Pui and I manage to transfer them from her memory card (now in HK!).

We also visited Wudaokou (五道口)* a commercial and residential district positioned close to many major universities here in the Haidian district, including Tsinghua. Undoubtedly Wudaokou has been integral to my experience in Beijing, not unlike most other students here at Tsinghua. Its array restaurants, bars and clubs, (including Starbucks ;-) railway station and shops provides a unlimited opportunities to spend time/ procrastinate off-campus and only a short bike ride away. And so it was great to share this major part of our Beijing experience with Pui Pui. Besides a brief trip to Tsinghua campus, time was also - and inevitably - spent in Sanlitun, one of Beijing's major clubbing and bar district.


When I was unable to accompany her, Pui Pui visited a whole range of other famous sites such as the Great Wall and the Summer Palace (featured in a short blog post of mine below) among a number of others.

So impressed, Pui Pui - approaching the end of her undergrad at HKU - is tempted to enroll on a similar Chinese course next year!

* Wudaokou Insight Blog Entry - A Day as a Student in Beijing - Coming Soon!

Check out Wudaokou, Sanlitun,