Beginner's guide to Beijing districts

[tortue]

Hello friends,

I will probably attend a language course in a school near Dawanglu station, so I am trying to find out where the ideal place to live for me during that (short) time could be.

This would be a kind of 'authentic' (i.e. real life, I don't care much about western lifestyle, expat nightlife etc.) place where I'd have a decent chance to find a regular (shared) apartment for rent for only a couple of months.

I read a bit the "your accommodation" thread and I find it very hard to actually locate the places mentioned there and in other threads. I use google maps, and entering the name of a district or neighborhood rarely gives a precise result. I have some basic mandarin knowledge which is a big help I think, but often this does not get me there either.

If anybody has a link to a good geographical picture of the central neighborhoods i'd greatly appreciate. I have only found images like the one on wikitravel beijing districts, but it is not very detailed.

Also if you would like to comment on the 'feeling' of the different parts of the city, please go ahead!

Thanks a lot,

Chris

[cui ruide]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_administrative_divisions_of_Beijing

http://wikitravel.org/en/Beijing#Districts

You said you'd found these already, but might as well put them up...

When I capitalize something, it's because I've heard it refer to a location

Inside the 2nd Ring Road, the heart of the city is divided pretty much in half: XICHENG (west) and DONGCHENG (east). There is new development, but there is still a lot of "old beijing" still intact. Hutongs, historical landmarks, courtyards, etc. DONGCHENG, in particular the area east of HOUHAI and Qianhai lake (sometimes referred to as GULOU after the Drum Tower, sometimes referred to more generally as HOUHAI) and west of YONGHE GONG (the lama temple) is pretty hopping--lots of bars, cafes, boutiques, nicer restaurants, music venues. Also lots of "didao" normal Beijing shops, etc. This is all pretty far north from Dawang Lu, though--and unless you're an intense biker, not very realistic. Southern DONGCHENG gets more commercial (i.e. WANGFUJING mall area) and political (embassies). I can't speak much to XICHENG, so maybe someone else can talk about that.

CHAOYANG encompasses most everything east and north-east of the 2nd Ring Road. This is very developed and especially in the southern reaches (GUOMAO, JIANGGUOMEN, DAWANG LU(?)) rather foreigner-heavy. Lots of embassies and foreign businesses. It's a very big district, though, so hard to generalize.

HAIDIAN encompasses most everything west and north-west of the 2nd Ring Road. This area is also rather developed. And stretching from the west 3rd Ring Road north through WEIGONGCUN, and over to WUDAOKOU you'll find lots of universities. HAIDIAN is also huge, so hard to generalize.

The southern districts I really don't have much an idea of, so I'll leave those to someone else as well.

Edited September 15, 2009 at 05:14 AM by cui ruide

[yueni]

Also like to add for Haidian, this district includes Zhongguancun, which is considered the "Silicon Valley" of Beijing (China?). A lot of IT companies are based out of there, and if you want cheap electronics, that is one of the places to go. If you're around the Wudaokou area, it's pretty lively at night, lots of foreigners, though these tend to be students (particularly of Korean/Japanese/Western origins), and not expats, who tend to congregate in Chaoyang.

[adrianlondon]

Not much of a district review, but if I was ever going to live in Beijing I'd pick somewhere around Houhai. I love that area. And armed with a bicycle, I could cycle to most places relatively easily.

[cui ruide]

Agreed. My district description betrayed my bias... I just moved into a hutong by Gulou...

[templxq]

Perhaps I can help you with your problems. I am Chinese, and came here all by chance. Now I am doing my research in an institute near Hepingli, around Noth 3rd Ring Road, Chaoyang District. Here I sugest that you can use google china maps to help with your location and traffic problems. It is very usefull, whenever I have problems, I turn to it for help. Here I am glad to introduce a fantastic city map, in which you can even move your position and look around with a real 3D view. This is very usefull and interesting. The only fly in the ointment is the map updates a little slow.

China maps are here: http://ditu.google.cn/

3D map of Beijing: http://bj.city8.com/

[tortue]

Thank you all for your comments!

Probably it is just a matter of experience and language skill to easily locate a certain address or area...

templxq, big thanks for posting the link to city8.com, it is really great to have a "street view" available for beijing!

Chris