Beijing Today (January 4, 2013)

BEIJING TODAY

Bell tolls on Gulou

PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY January 4 2013-January 10 2013 NO. 604 CN11-0120 HTTP://WWW.BEIJINGTODAY.COM.CN CHIEF EDITOR: YU SHANSHAN NEWS EDITOR: HUANG DAOHEN DESIGNER:ZHAO YAN

Oscar-winner does dance doc

Page 6

After a false start, plans to renovate the area around the city’s historic Drum and Bell Towers are moving forward – officially, this time, after public outcry postponed a 2010 plan to turn the Gulou neighborhood into “Beijing Time Culture City.”

Under this new plan, 136 families will be relocated next month before renovation begins. Once again, the development has roused spirited debate: how can the city maintain and upgrade dilapidated historic neighborhoods while preserving culture and heritage?

Read more on Pages 4-5

Charity you can’t trust Page 2

Dying on one’s own terms, with dignity

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January 4 2013

News

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The transparency of Chinese foundations disputed

By Liu Xiaochen

A spate of negative events for Chinese charitable organizations have occurred in recent years, resulting in a crisis of public trust.

In order to promote the transparency of foundations in China, the first domestic transparency evaluation system, the Foundation Transparency Index (FTI), was officially launched in August.

According to the first annual review list “FTI Charts Ranking List 2012,” published on Wednesday, more than 60 percent of domestic foundations are unqualified.

BEIJING TODAY

Editors: Yu Shanshan Liu Xiaochen Designer: Li Qian

The latest data

At the press conference for the “FTI Chart Ranking List 2012” held by the China Foundation Center (CFC), an information service platform for foundations in China, the average transparency score for Chinese foundations was 45.8 points, which is lower than the passing score. 63 percent of foundations have been deemed unqualied as of December 26, 2012.

The FTI consists of 60 objective evaluation indexes including 40 qualied indexes and 20 advocacy indexes. The content of the indexes includes basic information, nancial information, project information and donation information. In the full mark of 129.4 and the qualifying mark of 48.8, the rst three kinds of information account for most of the score.

The data sources for the list mainly consist of annual inspection documents that foundations led according to requests from the Civil Affairs Department in 2011, as well as their ofcial websites.

percent. The total assets, annual donation income and annual public expenditure have reached 60.4 billion yuan, 33.7 billion yuan and 25.6 billion yuan, respectively.

But some foundations ignored the desire for transparency and even committed crimes such as embezzlement.

After being exposed, these behaviors have seriously damaged Chinese philanthropy’s social credibility and hindered its healthy development, which has led to a crisis of public trust.

The FTI, initiated by CFC, was launched in 2010 by 35 Chinese foundations. Experts from the School of Public Policy and Management at Tsinghua University provided consultation to the FTI. “For public donors, the establishment of the FTI can be a reference. Highly transparent foundations can be more reliable than those with low transparency, and will reduce less moral and legal

Background

Since 2004, four laws and regulations have been enacted.

Foundations in China develop fast. According to CFC’s statistics, as of last month, the total number of domestic foundations has reached 2,912 with an average annual growth rate of 20

CFC’s CEO Cheng Gang answers reporters’ questions.

Professor Cheng Wenhao gives the FTI report.

Photos provided by CFC

Professor Li Chengyan offers comments on the current transparency of domestic foundations. risks for the public. For the government, it can learn the transparency of domestic foundations and nd out blind spots so as to strengthen management. For domestic foundations, they can understand their level and nd out gaps to improve,” said Cheng Wenhao, professor of the School of Public Policy and Management, Tsinghua University.

Problems

“But more than 60 percent of foundations haven’t publish their information according to the regulations, while they were all able to pass the annual inspection.” Cheng Wenhao said, suggesting problems in his report on the “FTI Chart Ranking List 2012.”

“More than 40 foundations exist without any contact details, more than 20 of which only had a name.

Authorities didn’t implement the supervision system strictly stipulated in regula-

tions and laws, which pampered them to an extent.”

But even some of the largest foundation systems with ofcial backgrounds were also unqualied.

There are 276 foundations in the system of the People’s Education Foundation in different areas of China. The system’s average score is 43 points, which is worth considering as total donation income accounts for over 10 percent of all domestic foundations, and most of that income is generated from the public.

“Domestic foundations should learn management from enterprises if they want to create a good image, because enterprises are always in the pursuit of innovation, otherwise they will be eliminated.

Competitive mechanisms should also be established. Foundations are growing rapidly every year. If some foundations have been

ranked in the bottom 30 for over three consecutive years, they should be eliminated so that the FTI is not only a ranking list but also has some effect. At the same time, for outstanding foundations, we should give good rewards,” said Li Chengyan, professor of the School of Government at Peking University.

Trust should not replace supervision.

“Supervision through the Internet is the most inuential method today. We should pay more attention to it,” he said Cheng Wenhao agreed.

“Excessive trust equals indulgence. Real trust can be guaranteed only by supervision,” he said. “FTI is the minimum requirement. If a foundation cannot get full marks in the FTI, it is not transparent.”

But not all foundations have problems with the new system, as some passed with relative ease.

“We are in accordance with the information disclosure standards of the FTI, including arranging and presenting the program. It is a kind of inspection on our own work. If the internal management is good enough, we cannot nish it,” said a staff member of One Foundation, ranked rst, from Shenzhen.

“We believe that we don’t need to report in our own previous way, because the requirements of the FTI are detailed enough for us to use this as the new standard.”

January 4 2013

CFP Photos

Luo Diandian medical workers know about living wills but 62 percent of them said they would sign one.

Quite a few medical experts joined to promote and co-run the website.

Liu Dunqi, former director of the cancer department at Beijing Military Sub-area Head Hospital, is one of the consultants. He currently helps by replying to netizens’ questions about cancer. He said for untreatable cancer, palliative care can help relieve their pain and comfort their souls.

“Facing death, rescue is not the only choice,” Liu said. “We can have many choices.”

The biggest surprise of the survey is that among the respondents who insist on not giving up on family members, 60 percent said they would give up cardio-pulmonary resuscita-

tion for themselves.

It reects the difculty in implementing living wills in China. Luo said it has to meet three requirements: all the information is authentic; the patient is in the terminal stage, meaning death is imminent within six months; and the doctor in charge and another medical expert both admit that they cannot cure the patient.

The last part is problematic. Yu Xuezhong, director of the emergency department at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, said it can be difcult to judge whether a patient is brain dead. There is no standard.

Yu also said the nal judgment is still in the hands of the patient’s family. As long as one of them doesn’t agree to give up treatment, doctors cannot follow anything written in a living will.

“We are often troubled in medical disputes,” Yu said. “How can it be possible for us to follow the living wills and stop treatment?”

During the last six years, no hospitals have accepted Luo’s proposal to display materials about living wills and the website.

Luo said she often has to explain to the Civil Administration Department that her plan isn’t the same as euthanasia.

Still, she sees hope. She said she believes that people will gradually come around to the idea, which is that when it comes down to it, they do have a choice for death.

Feature

mote, as China’s living wills aren’t legally binding. Also, it’s difcult for people to openly talk about death.

During the rst four years, the website gathered less than 300 users.

Each user has to sign the document with a family member. Users are allowed to revise their living wills and even delete them at any time. Every year, the staff of Choice and Dignity sends emails to remind users to update and conrm their information.

“When a patient is too sick to make decisions, his family members will be able to know what he wants from his living will document and make the right choice in accordance with his will,” Luo said.

She did a survey at the end of 2006 that showed 64.5 percent of respondents in Beijing and Shanghai who have witnessed a death in the family were more willing to talk about death with others, and tend to give up life support systems and are more willing to write living wills.

The number of users grew to more than 2,000 last year after Luo published a book on the issue and promoted it on several TV programs. The number reached 4,000 in November.

Eight doctors and 16 nurses at Peking Union Medical College Hospital wrote living wills on the website last year.

In 2010, hospital staff did a similar survey on Beijing citizens that showed just 37.8 percent of

Editors: Yu Shanshan Bao Chengrong Designer: Li Qian

By Bao Chengrong People may have control of their lives, but death is another matter.

Advanced medical techniques make it possible to lengthen a dying patient’s life, but does it improve the quality?

Luo Diandian, founder of the website Choice and Dignity, tries to bring hope to those who want to die the way they wish.

“Emergency medical techniques are applied on untreatable patients nowadays to extend their process of death,” Luo said. “But over-treating a dying patient actually brings him great pain and may even make his nal days undignied.”

As a former doctor, Luo has witnessed many patients suffering in their nal stages. Together with some doctor friends, Luo organized a “nointubation” club. But she didn’t take it seriously until she learned more about natural deaths in other countries, particularly in the US. California was the rst state in the US to pass the Natural Death Act in 1976, allowing dying patients to pull the plug on life support. Citizens of 35 states in the US are now allowed the right to die naturally through living wills.

It inspired Luo to introduce the idea to China.

She started out studying living wills from other countries before deciding to learn from “Five Wishes,” designed by Jim Towey, a former law consultant of Mother Teresa. The document would be kept in the US Living Will Registry Center and given to doctors when the time is right.

With the help of medical experts and law consultants, Luo came up with her own living will format – “My Five Wishes.” Every consumer is required to answer ve sets of questions: the medical services I want and don’t want, whether to use life support, expectation for other’s treatment, the things that I want to tell my family members and friends, and the people I want to get help from.

Detailed questions with yes or no options are designed to supplement each major question. For instance, the rst part includes whether users accept taking medication to relieve pain.

In 2006, Luo founded the Choice and Dignity website to test her living wills. But she found it difcult to pro-

BEIJING TODAY

Death can be a choice

3

January 4 2013

Center stage

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"ELL RINGS FOR N

By Yu Shanshan 4HE BELL HAS lNALLY TOLLED FOR A RESIDEN TIAL NEIGHBORHOOD NEAR THE $RUM AND "ELL 4OWERS 0OORLY CONSTRUCTED BUILDINGS IN THE AREA WILL BE DEMOLISHED NEXT MONTH WITH FAMILIES HAVING ALREADY BEEN ASKED TO

Editors: Yu Shanshan Zhao Hongyi Designer: Li Qian

ISTS LAMENT THESE DEMOLITIONS BUT FAMILIES IN THE AREA SEEM PREPARED TO MOVE TO A BETTER LIFE )T S A DILEMMA HOW CAN THE CITY COMMERCIALIZE AND IMPROVE CULTURAL HERITAGE SITES AND NEIGHBORHOODS WITHOUT DESTROYING WHAT HAS BEEN THERE FOR AGES

0ART 4HE ROAD TOWARD RENOVATION

By Zhao Hongyi The Drum and Bell Towers, or Gulou, has been a popular attraction in Beijing for nearly 1,000 years.

Beijing renovated the area last decade, and wanted to again in 2010. The plan aroused hot debate, and was postponed.

Beijingers are still trying to figure out how best to protect their historical sites while maintaining an atmosphere of culture and heritage.

The latest renovation plan was announced in mid-December: to restore and reinforce the towers and renovate the 4,700-square-meter area surrounding it. It’s a significant downgrade from the 2010 plan that would have renovated 15,000 square meters of structures.

The Dongcheng District government and Dongfang Cultural Capital Management Co, the project developer, expect to renovate the smaller area according to historical layouts.

Under this revised plan, 136 families still have to move out by February 24.

Local residents are arguing that the atmosphere around Gulou won’t be the same once the residents have left.

The original plan, designed by Boston Interna-

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MOVE OUT WITH CASH COMPENSATION ! FRESH ROUND OF DEBATE HAS RISEN -UCH OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD WAS SCHEDULED FOR DEMOLITION THREE YEARS AGO BUT STRONG PUBLIC DISAPPROVAL SAW THE PLAN DELAYED /LD "EIJING NOSTALGICS AND PRESERVATION

tional Design Group, was more ambitious.

In 2010, the district government set aside $5 billion (about $800 million) to renovate the area into “Beijing Time Culture City.�

The final phase of the renovation was a 12.5-hectare (nearly 15,000 square meters) space with ancient designs, architecture and buildings.

In the northern end would be “Beijing Time Square,� in the east would be the “Beijing Time Seal� and in the south would be “Beijing Time Celebration Square.�

They wanted to build a watch and clock market on the square as well.

The Dongcheng District government stressed that the program was totally a non-profit charity project. They offered new apartments to the local residents as compensation.

But this blueprint met criticism from the day it was released. Beijing Culture Heritage Protection Center (CHP), a non-government organization, held a public symposium arguing that the locals are part of the towers’ heritage and shouldn’t have to relocate. “They’re damaging the last part of Beijing history!� said Hu Xinyu, executive director of the center in a statement released after the symposium.

The district government and developer withdrew the original initiative. They released their new plan last month.

In 2005, the Gulou Street was widened, causing some residents to move away.

This program was opposed by a group of NGOs led by Liang Congjie, son of Liang Sicheng, a 20th century architectural expert.

The Drum and Bell Towers were first built in 1272 during the Yuan Dynasty. Due to various wars, the tower has been rebuilt several times in the Ming and Qing dynasties.

The tower was used as the standard timebearer for nearly 1,000 years, not only for the districts around it but for the entire country.

Following the end of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, the tower was no longer needed. Now, the bell is only beaten as part of celebrations to welcome the new year. “The revised project will start early next year,�

Xu Xi, deputy district governor of Dongcheng District, told local Beijing media in December.

Niu Qingshan, governor of the district, said the number of families scheduled to move out has reduced from 500 to 136. “Our purpose is to restore the historical image of the Drum and Bell Tower Plaza,� Niu said.

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By Liang Xiying As an ancien ture, China faces old countries: ho while stimulatin

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January 4 2013

#ASE TO STUDY

t country with a lot of culs a problem shared by other ow does it preserve history g economic growth?

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was founded at Shikumen, meaning “stone gate,” a special form of old residence in Shanghai a century ago. More than 9,000 houses – covering 60 percent of the residential area in Shanghai then – were built in this style.

In the early 1990s, a lot of shikumen houses were demolished because of largescale reconstruction.

In the new century, however, Shanghai people began to recall their history and remember the old residential area.

Hongkong Rui’an Group led a project over $150 million in investment to restore shikumen homes from 1999 to 2001.

The project revitalized the idea of shikumen and injected it with new vitality.

Xintiandi features a brick walkway, with buildings having black doors and lintel carved with Baroque-style flowers, much like the Shanghai of the 1920s and 1930s.

The building interiors are modern and fashionable, with European-style fireplaces and modern paintings.

Beijing Qianmen The renovation of Qianmen was more complicated and controversial.

Led by the Beijing government, the reform was meant to evoke images of Beijing from 40 years ago. The project started in 2007 and finished before the opening of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

They first cleared the old houses around Zhengyang Gate. Then the government rebuilt the gate of Dashilar commercial streets.

Dashilar represented the main part of the project. Now, many time-honored brand shops sit on the main street alongside stores that sell global brand items. It’s become a symbol of tourism in Beijing.

By Chen Nan In the novel Bell and Drum Towers (Zhonggulou), Liu Xinwu depicts a small group of Beijingers’ courtyard life on a normal winter day in 1982. Their emotions and social activities all revolved around this simple unit.

In the 20 years after the novel was published, the economy has prospered and high-rises have sprung up on the capital’s skyline. More people have left the courtyard life behind.

A young netizen surnamed Li and his family – 10 people spanning three generations – used to share an old courtyard in the Gulou area, but were forced to move out to make way for Subway Line 8.

As a former Gulou resident, he says life in the district has advantages and disadvantages.

“Many families can live in one quadrangle courtyard,” he said. “During the summer, while neighbors chat under the shade of trees in the courtyard, their children can run and play together.

He added, “Neighbors help and support each other whenever necessary, living like one big family.”

“Hutong adjacent to towers are like living museums, especially at night,” he said. “If I walk around the hutong behind my house at night, it’s so tranquil and there is so much to see. It seems that every stone has emotional and historical attachment.”

He captured a glimpse of the towers from a distance, giving him an illusion that he was in a historical picture, not a noisy capital city: it’s more like living in a little village inside the city.

However, these symbols of Beijing and of traditional Chinese architecture to some extent represent a headache for local residents themselves.

He named several problems that have been bothering courtyard dwellers. Utilities don’t always work, such as water, electricity and heating systems.

Electricity overloads, especially during the extreme cold and hot seasons, cause frequent short-circuits because houses are not properly equipped.

During winter, a lack of heating forces residents to burn coal for heat, which increases pollution and even jeopardizes health.

Outside the courtyards, the debate is about how to save the memory of these yards for people who have never experienced life here.

Fang Zhenning, an artist, architect and art critic, has been thinking about this problem for years.

He conducts numerous independent research projects and suggests ideas for the preservation of historical sites. “There should be three principals: preserving original objects, sites and shapes,” he said.

He has collected detailed information through interviews with courtyard residents.

When he heard about the renovation around Gulou, he quickly went to the site to take pictures.

His effort has prompted others to offer their ideas for solutions. They often leave ideas on his website.

“Most of the courtyard houses are traditional folk creations rather than cultural relics; they should not be treated the same way as cultural relics,” said Li Peiqi, a commentator.

Some people prefer tearing down old courtyard homes because the density of the population has made people uncomfortable, and building new homes in the old style isn’t feasible. But perhaps the government can encourage courtyards to be rented out as small hotels and restaurants, or offices and art shops.

The courtyards can become attractions for visitors both home and abroad, and can offer economic benefits for owners.

Building imitation courtyards isn’t the way to go, as it often results in more costs and fewer cultural elements, netizen Wang Qiang said.

Qin Yingnan, a researcher in the Shanghai Construction and Communication Committee, said nowadays citizens often take part in discussions about what to do with old buildings.

Qin said renovation or relocation projects, however, should strictly follow the overall plans and designs of the city planners.

Editors: Yu Shanshan Zhao Hongyi Designer:Li Qian

0ART ,IFE GOES ON AS DOES TALK

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NEW LIFE

Center stage

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January 4 2013

Indie lm

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Taste of Body Dance documentary attracts attention

BEIJING TODAY

Editor: Yu Shanshan Designer: Li Qian

Photos provided by Wang Fan and Yan Fei

By Chen Nan Wang Fan won best documentary at the 4th China Image Film Festival last month with her modern dance documentary Taste of Body.

Premiered at the recent Beijing International Film Festival and nominated at Montreal World Film Festival, it was shot in Beijing and New York and took Wang three years to nish.

The 52-minute documentary is Wang’s directorial and producing debut. Collaborating with Oscar-winning documentary director Allan Miller, Wang records stories about the Beijing Modern Dance Company’s rehearsals of Offering, created by Chinese choreographer Gao Yanjinzi.

It also captures how Tere O’Connor, a well-known choreographer in the US, tries to convey the idea of improvisational choreography to young dancers from Beijing Modern Dance Club. The two storylines run parallel.

As the rst part of a trilogy, Taste of Body is mainly about the exchange of dance concepts between China and the US.

Cultural collision and exchange

The language alternates between English and Mandarin. Patience was required from Wang in order to capture scenes that embody both Chinese and Western values.

To record the notions of two choreographers is not an easy job. “On one hand Gao coaches specic movements and steps so that dancers would mimic her; on the other hand O’Connor focuses more on the idea of improvisational choreography,” Wang said.

In 2007, choreographer O’Connor proposed a question: “Is it necessary for modern dance to tell a story?”

A member of the Beijing Modern Dance Club answered: “If it is a dance for two people,

performed by a woman and a man with different movements, there should be a clear storyline.”

“Wow!” O’Connor was surprised.

This is one of the cultural collisions between the American choreographer and the dancers he worked with.

“His approaches are opposite to the way most Chinese choreographers work,” Wang said. “What he expects from dancers is different from Chinese choreographers; mimicking his movements is not his teaching goal.”

He endeavors to help dancers show their inner world and dig deep into their emotions.

“What I can’t express in life can be expressed in dance,” one dancer said after rehearsal.

O’Connor thinks dancing can be cathartic and “improvisation is what you’re doing in your mind all day long.”

“But I don’t think I’m more advanced, I think it’s just different. In dance, diversied cultures can be blended together,” he said in the lm.

“The difculty is not the choreography itself, but how to express your intention, and improvisation is just an approach.” Gao said.

Dancer direction

Wang grew up in Xi’an. At ve, she acted as a ritual girl to

receive a delegation of ofcials from the Whites House.

A little girl from the United States held her hands and began to dance; Wang naturally followed the rhythm and shook her body.

“That was an amazing experience,” Wang recalled.

So when she was seven years old, she signed up for a dance course, taught by a Russian coach. The dancer instructed the pupils to do some rhythmic movements, but Wang always slightly changed the rhythm and movement.

She didn’t like to obey rules blindly.

In essence she likes to be free and creative. So she became a choreographer.

During the years she learned to create pieces, she got exposed to modern dance, which was a relatively avant-garde art form when she was younger.

“Every movement in ballet has a certain meaning. But contemporary dance is like a colossal forest, embracing every unique tree with its own shape; everyone has chance to take part in it,” Wang said.

Making a documentary about modern dance was not an abrupt change for Wang.

As a lmmaker, she has worked on China-Foreign coproduction lms since 2004,

Director Wang Fan

including features and dance documentaries.

In 2006, she visited New York. She found her calling as a dance lmmaker during that trip.

A piece shown in the United States changed her outlook. “It really struck me that combining freedom with creation is irresistibly beauti-

ful,” she said.

She watched a piece called Baby, created by Tere O’Connor. It shocked and fascinated Wang.

She said: “I think his piece conveys a feeling like a movie; his presentation on stage is similar to some sort of movie, so I was touched by the work.”

She was determined to choose O’ Connor as her subject.

Wang found producer Allan Miller, winner of the 1979 best-feature-length documentary Academy Award for From Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China, as her co-producer, when Miller lectured at the Beijing Film Academy.

But when she told Allan about her plans to shoot O’Connor, he said, “That’s almost impossible.”

Seeing her as a young lady without much lmmaking experience, Allan believed the tight schedule of the famous choreographer in the US would stop her plan.

After much lobbying, Wang, accompanied by Miller, met O’Connor and shared her creative thoughts on how to present modern dance in a documentary.

“Michelle (Wang’s English name) refreshed me,” O’ Connor told Miller after the conversation.

The following year O’Connor was invited by Wang to Beijing to collaborate with troupes and explain his improvisation idea.

Since 2008 Wang has been engaging in lmmaking, gaining experience on the sets of the 2007 China-Russia co-production Mongol, the ChinaAustralia co-production Mao’s Last Dancer in which she played a role, and modern dance documentary trilogy Modern Dance in China.

Wang’s next project, still in the recording phase, is a romantic feature lm embracing modern Western dance elements and Chinese folk dance.

January 4 2013

Stay happy, warm and active in winter

By Annie Wei Since December 21, we’ve officially been in the coldest 36 days of the lunar calendar.

The most practical way of keeping warm is not to stay in a heated room or the car. Instead, one should dress warm and exercise to make the most of the holiday season.

Adidas down coat

Shopping

7

Down coats

Every few years, one needs a new down coat as the feathers inside start to escape. Adidas’ colorful sportswear is warm and light. You can wear it daily or use it when you go skiing.

Adidas Where: S11, Sanlitun Village, 19 Sanlitun Lu, Chaoyang District Open: 10 am – 10 pm Tel: 6416 2233

Chucky pants tucked in many layers of undertrousers are the most practical way to keep warm. However, for many young women, it’s not a stylish look.

Many brands now have new products that are light and warm, such as Levi’s WarmMax jeans, which it claims are made of special bers that retain warmth more effectively than cotton. There is also a layer of warm insulation inside the jeans.

Down trousers have also become popular in recent years.

Many factories are selling down trousers online. However, do not buy pants with only down at the front, otherwise your backside will be freezing.

You can also try leather pants, which are more expensive.

Leather is good at retaining warmth and protecting you from the cold. Many leather pants are thin, so it’s better to nd a pair lined with cashmere. Bel Air leather pants are 3,000 yuan, but you can enjoy a 50 percent discount online.

Websites: shopbop.com Belair.com

Fur accessories

Nothing is as warm or light as fur. To nd stylish fur accessories, try brands like Maje or Bel Air, which have no actual stores in the Chinese mainland but are available in Hong Kong. A Maje rabbit fur hood or clutch is around 3,000 yuan.

Website: maje.com

CFP Photos

Photo provided by Maje.com

Editor: Wei Ying Designer: Zhao Yan

Warm leggings

BEIJING TODAY

Levi’s WarmMax jeans

January 4 2013

Food

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Wallet-friendly delights Mina restaurant popular among Songzhuang artists

By Annie Wei The food scene changes frequently in Beijing. This week, Beijing Today finds four cheap eats that don’t skimp on taste.

If you are interested in the country’s art scene but annoyed by 798’s commercialization, Songzhuang is where artists from all over the country gather.

Songzhuang, located in the southeast suburbs of Beijing, has fewer people, more space and cheaper rent.

In this area, Mina restaurant is famous for its home-style Chongqing cuisine. The restaurant is quite laid-back, set in a normal countryside brick courtyard. But it attracts a lot of artists and dealers.

The restaurant’s Chongqing cuisine is quite authentic. You can try gongbao tuding (58 yuan); kung pao rabbit meat, tender rabbit cubes mixed with golden peanuts and scallion in a sweet, sour and spicy sauce; or paojiaoniuwa (58 yuan), pickled chilies stir-fried with bullfrog.

The restaurant also makes its own plum soup and is renowned for its employment of persons with disability as wait staff.

Mina restaurant Where: North side of Songzhuang Art Museum, Songzhuang Zhen, Tongzhou District Open: 11 am – 10 pm Tel: 6959 7552

Rabbit legs

Inexpensive Japanese eatery at Xinyuanli

BEIJING TODAY

Editor: Wei Ying Designer: Zhao Yan

There are a few small Japanese eateries in Xinyuanli near Sanlitun, with Hutailang one of the most popular.

The restaurant mainly sells fried foods and sukiyaki. You can order grilled set menu (31 yuan), which includes seven skewers of meat, seafood and vegetables. The house sauce is quite delicious, and not greasy at all. Sukiyaki is priced around 200 yuan. You get quality meat, well-stewed soup, eggs, and chewy and delicious noodles.

Other snacks include white radish salad (15 yuan), fried chicken (25 yuan), and vegetable and tofu salad (25 yuan).

Hutailang Where: 2 Xinyuan Jie, Chaoyang District Open: 5 pm – late Tel: 6462 1086

Spicy eels

Photos by Lu Di

Guangdong and Hunan home cooking

Looking for comforting Guangdong meals with a spicy twist?

Lu Di, the food photographer, recommends No. 8 Kitchen.

Although dianping.com has some average reviews of the restaurant, the food is surprisingly good.

We ordered baiqieji (48 yuan), chicken boiled in consomme, then cut and served with ginger-and-scallion dipping sauce. The tender chicken is shipped from the Guangdong or Guangxi regions.

The Guangdong sausage and rice bowl (38 yuan) is authentic and tasty, paired with a small plate of soy sauce and scallion.

No. 8 Kitchen Where: Xi’anmen Dajie (near Xisi subway station), Xicheng District Open: 11 am – 9 pm Tel: 6602 0278

Spicy pork intestine

HK Simplicity at Laonanhai

Barbecue meats

Sour beef salad

Photos by Lu Di

Laonanhai is a new addition to the many restaurants at Baiziwan Lu and the surrounding Pingguo Compound. Meaning “old boys,” it offers authentic Hong Kong style cuisine.

The menu is very much like any cafeteria in Hong Kong. The portions are not big, but most are delicious. Vegetables start from 22 yuan, while most other dishes are between 36 to 58 yuan.

Barbecue meats start from 45 yuan and noodles are 35 yuan and above.

Laonanhai Where: 16 Baiziwan Lu, Chaoyang District Open: 11 am – 10 pm Tel: 5114 8016