This is Beijing-Beijing English blog

That is for sure Beijing  is a great place for shopping. From the latest fashions to fine arts to more types of tea than you can think of, it is most likely that it can be found in the capital.

    Here are 10 streets for great shopping as recommended   

    Liulichang Street

    Liulichang, or Glass Street, near the Hepingmen metro station on subway Line 2, aka the “loop line,” got its name from the colored glaze factories set up in the Yuan (1271-1368) and Ming (1368-1644) dynasties. It evolved into a commercial area focusing on traditional Chinese culture starting at the beginning of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) when merchants opened the first antique stalls along the street.

    If you have an interest in calligraphy and art, china or traditional Chinese ornaments, and you’re looking for a memento of your trip other than Olympic souvenirs, Liulichang is highly recommended — and don’t forget to try on the eye-catching jewelry if you fancy something.

    Almost 100 traditional-style shops on both sides of the street will take you away from the bustle of modern life into a Qing bazaar.     

    Shishahai Bar Street

    After cheering for your country or favorite athlete at the Games, you may want to wet your whistle at Shishahai bar street. The best way to get there is by cab. Just tell the driver to take you to the north gate of Beihai Park – or Beihai gong yuan in Chinese.

    Modern night life in a traditional Chinese courtyard makes the street a favorite for foreigners in Beijing. It’s also a great place for a little shopping. We recommend a stroll down Xieyandai Street.

    The 200-meter-long alley is lit by palace lanterns glowing above the steps of the small shops. The establishments here mainly win the hearts of shoppers for their collection of designed stationery, jewellery, stylish clothing and accessories, which shop owners have gathered in their journeys to such areas as China’s southern Yunnan province, Tibet, India and Nepal. Its highly possible that what you pick up here will not be found anywhere else in the world.     

    Nanluoguxiang, South Gong and Drum Lane

    The history of this 800 meter-long, south-north lane, which is just a block east of Shishahai, can be traced back to the Yuan Dynasty.

    It is up to you to push open the wooden doors to the shops and discover fine silk shawls and various handicrafts designed by local artists. Like some of its counterparts in Beijing, Nanluoguxiang is also featured by its fusion of the modern and old, East and West. Among the popular shops is the t-shirt store Plastered. Its British owner has Chinese characters of the famous Beijing dish gong bao ji ding, or kung pao chicken, printed on white t-shirts and it sells well.

    Creativity is a major attraction of Nanluoguxiang as many shops are owned and run by local designers and artists. Places like Le Tian and Shi Jie specialize in handmade potteries. At 55 Nanluoguxiang you may ask craftsmen to make old Beijing paper-cut works in accordance with your own design. Clothing shops like Shanghai Tailor offers custom-made outfits. We recommend you have an on-line tour at Nanluoguxiang’s English website (www.nlgx.org) beforehand. It contains a detailed directory of all the shops and recreation sites of the lane.     

    Maliandao Tea Street

    This is a must for both local tea lovers and foreign visitors who wish to take home some cha as a gift. The 1,500-meter-long street is located outside the Guang’anmen (a famous city gate) in the west Second Ring Road and can be reached by buses 46, 414 and 609.

    The largest tea market in the city, it is home to more than 100shops and five large tea stores. The beauty of the place is you could pick up your cup of tea from among a variety of tea products coming in from all the major production regions around China. This gives you more choices than most individual tea shops in the city. You may smell and taste any kind of tea before making your final decision. Shop owners will offer you tips on how to make genuine Chinese tea.     

    Wangfujing Street

    Directly east of Tiananmen Square, this may be the first stop on your shopping tour after arriving in Beijing. It is on subway Line 1 and the routes of many buses.

    Stretching more than 1.8 km, it’s often crowded with window shoppers, checking out the famous brand name stores, most of which are found in the grand Oriental Plaza mall.

    Sun Dong An Plaza, a magnet for the young, is another popular mall: bright and full of life.

    Check out the Wangfujing Arts and Crafts Building for traditional Chinese art and craft works as well as quality jewellery.

    You also should not miss the chance to see time-honored Chinese brands, such as Shengxifu hats and Tongbihe shoes.

    And if you’re looking for a good book, you may find it in the Wangfujing Book Store. 

    Wangfujing food street

    For visitors not familiar with traditional Chinese street food, what they put in their mouth could be strange, or even challenging. That said, the seemingly scary deep fried scorpion, locust and cicada pupa have a reputation for being surprisingly tasty snacks. Beijing’s famous speciality, bingtang hulu, or sugar-coated fruit, is a must.     

    Dashilan and New Qianmen Street

    If you’re wondering how it was to shop in ancient Beijing, we recommend a half-day trip around Dashilan commercial area and New Qianmen Street. It can be reached by taking subway Line 2 to Qianmen. The whole area now is near the end of a reconstruction launched in May and will open to the public before the Olympics.

    Founded nearly six centuries ago, Dashilan is famous for its ancient architecture. It has been home to many time-honored Chinese brands with histories as long as the buildings. Liubiju pickled vegetables, Zhangyiyuan tea, Yueshengzhai stewed pork and Ruifuxiang silk and fabric are household names locally.

    Tongrentang drugstore is a good place to learn about traditional Chinese medicine. Its founder was Emperor Kangxi’s royal doctor back in the Qing Dynasty. You can see how shopkeepers weigh and mix different kinds of herbs in accordance with doctor’s specific recipe to make one package of medicine for a patient.

    Upon completion, New Qianmen Street would be where the old meets the new, China specialties meets Western brands. You can sip Starbucks after tasting the famous Beijing roast duck at Quanjude Restaurant.     

    Gulou East Street

    Located beside the subway station of Gulou on Line 2, this is a great shopping stop for electronic game players, cartoon lovers and music fans.

    The young owners of the 36 specialty shops along the street sell a variety of gaming software, PSP, PS2 and a rich collection of cartoon souvenirs.

    The traditional Chinese musical instruments displayed in the 16music stores along the street are another major attraction.    

    Panjiayuan Antique Market

    Panjiayuan, long a major attraction for visitors from home and abroad, is a few minutes walk from Jinsong subway station on Line 10, scheduled to open by the end of July. Alternatively, you can take buses No. 36, 34 and 434.

    Founded in 1992, it is China’s largest market for folk art and covers 48,500 square meters. Stalls selling paintings and penmanship, jewellery and jade, folk art, old books, coins and other paraphernalia are open year round. The weekend bazaar attracts dealers and buyers from around the country. Hilary Clinton shopped here during her visit to the city.     

    Sanlitun Bar Street

    Running between Baijiazhuang Road and Dongzhimenwai Street near the east Third Ring Road, this well-known night spot has a few interesting places for shopping.

    The Yaxiu (Yashow) market is frequented by foreigners living and working in Beijing for its reasonable prices and wide range of clothing.

    Sanlitun, however, is more famous for its bars. With the neighboring embassies of 79 nations on its border, the area has around 200 bars.

Secrets of why we can get wholesale pricing of clothes at Zoo Market in Beijing.
What:

Zoo Market is a collection of wholesale clothing malls ¨C the most famous of which are Dong Ding, Jin Kai Li De, and especially Tian Le ¨C opposite the Beijing Zoo.

Why You’re Interested:

All the cool, non-brand clothing stores you frequent in Xidan, Wudaokou, and Xinjiekou probably get their merchandise from Zoo Market ¨C at half the prices they charge you. Naturally, you’ll say to yourself, ¡°Why am I paying Xidan prices? Why don’t I just go directly to Zoo Market and get the same clothes at wholesale prices?

Why You Shouldn’t Be Interested:

Well, sure you can buy that hip, pink T you saw at Xidan for half the price at Zoo Market. But to get that pricing, you’ll have to buy two dozen of them. Let’s say it again: Zoo Market is a collection of wholesale clothing malls ¨C which means selling and buying in bulk.

If you’re a normal shopper, meaning you’re interested in buying only one of a particular item, then there are plenty of reasons why Zoo Market is not for you:

1) Many vendors won’t even be interested in dealing with you. They could be rude.

2) If a vendor does deal with you, you won’t necessarily get a price that’s lower than what you’d find in Xidan.

3) Zoo Market is not in any way geared toward normal shoppers. Opening hours are from 5am to 3pm; good for the trade, but not for normal shoppers. The shopping environment is very basic. Volume buyers care about the merchandise and price; vendors don’t decorate. You can’t try on clothes.

For Serious Shoppers:

If you lack reason, and are of the unswayable mentality that, ¡°If Joe Xidan gets wholesale pricing, then I should, too,¡± then embrace me, my friend.

I am here to tell you that if you want to buy only one of a particular item at Zoo Market, and want wholesale pricing, it can be done. I will teach you my secrets.

Basically, what you have to do is pose as a volume buyer interested only in a sample, but likely to buy a many more.

To pull this off: First, make sure you bring a big, black, plastic garbage bag with you to the market. They are ubiquitous in the market, part of the uniform of all volume shoppers, and will make you look like you’re buying for your store in Xidan. You should even fill your bag with clothes from home to make yourself look more like a big fish.

Second, when you see an item that catches your eye, don’t immediately ask, ¡°How much?¡± Rather, ask questions such as, ¡°How is the market for this? Is this selling well?¡± Only after you ask these market-type questions do you ask the price. If you’ve succeeded in giving the impression you’re a volume buyer, the vendor will offer you a wholesale price.

At his offer, say that for now you only want one piece as a sample to show your boss, but that you’re sure your boss will love the piece so you’ll soon be back for many more. Since you can’t try on clothes at Zoo Market, make sure you know exactly what you want from first shopping for and trying on clothes in Xidan.

The problem with the above method is you can never go back to the same stall again. But, there are thousands of stalls in Zoo Market.

(Source CRI)

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Visiting Panjiayuan is an experience in itself – whether you actually choose to buy something or not. The market is located a couple of miles east of the Temple of Heaven.

In the large courtyard, salesmen sit in rows with blankets filled with various jewellery, statuettes, vases, china, Mao-related items and more curiosities. To get the best experience, go there on weekend mornings, when the most salespeople are in position.

But even if you are not an early riser, there is a good chance that you will find something here. Besides those of the yard sellers who choose to stay until closing time, there are a hundred or so small shops around the yard. Here you will find art, pearls and jewellery, apart from more of what we already mentioned.

Salepeople and atmosphere

If you do not speak the language, it can be difficult to maintain any longer dialogue since most of the salespeople do not speak English. The negotiability of the prices varies a lot depending on the individual salesperson. Sometimes you hardly need to bargain at all. In the shops surrounding the yard, however, you should bargain harder.

Clothes:

Xidan Area

Silk Market

Hongqiao Pearl Market

Yashou Clothing Market

Wudaokou Clothing Market

Sunny Gold Street Market

Art and Antiques:

Panjiayuan Market

Hongqiao Pearl Market

Yueshou/Yuexie Fashion Market

Sunny Gold Street Market

Sunny Gold Street Market is popular among tourists staying at Lido Hotel, which lies only a block away. If you happen to be staying in the neighbourhood, this market is definitely worth a visit, especially if you are looking for clothes or accessories.

Although the building itself is not particularly large, both floors are absolutely packed with merchandise. You can find clothes, purses, silk products, shoes, sunglasses, traditional Chinese clothes, some MP3/MP4-players and golf apparel, watches, jewellery, art, toys, and even a tailor.

Shopkeepers and atmosphere

The market is packed with tourists from the hotels nearby, resulting in many salesmen being pretty good speakers of English. The suggested prices are very high, so be prepared to drive a hard bargain.

In Beijing’s north-eastern parts there are many universities. The Wudaokou area contains a particularly large number of students, which explains the popularity of Wudaokou Clothing Market amongst them. Therefore, the range of clothes is also targeted especially towards students.

The market is not the biggest in town, but the two floors are jam-packed with clothes, shoes and accessories. Many of the clothes are of the hipper/trendier kind and you will seldom find the same clothes in two different shops. Should you get tired of shopping you can head up to the top floor and get your nails painted for just a small sum. You can also find a few odd shops selling jewellery, sunglasses, posters, and simple electronics such as MP3-players, etc.

Shopkeepers and atmosphere

Few shopkeepers speak English but they are friendly and not very intrusive.

Many of the passages between the shops are narrow, so on afternoons and weekends it can get quite crowded at the market.

This market, known as Yuexiu in Chinese, lies right across the street from Bainaohui/Buynow Computer Shopping Mall and Wonderful Electronic Shopping Mall.

With its four floors, it offers a selection of clothes well able to compete with places like Silk Market and Yashow Market.

On the basement floor you can find shoes, accessories, pearls, jewellery, jade, art, MP3/MP4-players, golf clubs, toys, etc. Floors one to three mostly sell clothes. On the third floor you can also find several tailors offering a broad choice of suit- and silk fabrics. In addition to traditional Chinese clothes and art, there are also a dozen shops selling children’s clothes and children’s shoes.

Shopkeepers and atmosphere

The shopkeepers speak the usual “shopkeeper English”. Considering the selection of clothes, it is remarkable that relatively few of the large tourist groups have found their way to this market. In other words, with a little bit of luck you will be able to peruse the shops relatively undisturbed.

This market is situated at Sanlitun, the popular bar street in Eastern Beijing. If you have been to the Silk Market, you will recognize the concept. Shoes, suitcases and handbags are sold in the basement. On floors one, two and three there are mainly designer’s clothes, and on floor three there is also a tailor with a large selection of silk and suit cloths. This floor also holds some children’s clothes and silk products.

Floor four has a little of everything. Mp3/Mp4-players and other electronic goods, watches, pearls and jewellery, some tea and tea-related stuff, Chinese ornaments and quite a lot of toys. A small beauty salon is squeezed in along one of the walls, offering you to get your eyebrows trimmed, your nails painted and your feet massaged. The prices are low and so is the quality, but after the long walk up to this floor, it can still be relaxing.

Salespeople and atmosphere

Since this market is mainly visited by foreign tourists, its salespeople speak English pretty good.

Despite the name, HongQiao Pearl Market has more to offer than only its three floors of pearls and jewellery. On the ground floor you will find lots of MP3-players, digital cameras, web cameras, memory cards, DVD-players and various other electronics articles. There is also a large selection of watches and also some silk products, underwear, socks, Mao kitsch, flasks, etc.

On the second floor you will find brand wear, traditional clothes, more silk products, shoes, suitcases and handbags. Many of the shops here offer exactly the same products, which means there are good chances to push the price down if you are good at haggling.

The third floor is divided into two sections. The first section contains traditional Chinese art, ornaments, porcelain and chopsticks. It is in the second section that the Pearl Market proper begins. It stretches to floors four and five, where the shops are somewhat more exclusive than on the third floor.

If you have children, make sure not to miss HongQiao Toy Market, which lies behind the right side of the main building. This building also contains office equipment, Chinese tea sets and some sporting goods.

Atmosphere and prices

HongQiao Pearl Market is a market popular with both Chinese and international visitors from all the corners of the world. All shopkeepers speak English. Those on the first three floors tend to be quite persistent, whilst those on the top two floors are significantly less intrusive.
The asking prices are often quite high so it is important to haggle.

Up until 2005, this market was called Silk Street and had the same location but was an outdoor market. Today, everything is covered by a roof and this market is probably the most visited by foreign tourists in Beijing.

Just like HongQiao Pearl Market offers more than pearls, Silk Market offers a lot more than just silk.

In the basement floor you’ll find shoes, belts, handbags and suitcases etc. On the first and second floors there are mainly designer clothes. Be careful to try on everything you buy here, to be sure you get the right size.

Silk products are sold on the third floor: ties, tablecloths, traditional clothes as well as dressing gowns, underwear and many other products made of silk, and children’s wear. There are also tailors here, willing to make suits or dresses for tourists that often pay a little more than they should.

Floors four and five have jewellery, pearls, Chinese crafts and art, watches, electronics etc. Having walked all the way up here, you’ll probably be quite tired of all the yelling salespeople pulling at you. In that case, continue to one of the restaurants on floors five and six, where you can sit down and eat something.

Salespeople and atmosphere

Since there are a great number of foreign tourists on this market, salespeople here are pretty good at speaking English. Moreover, they often know a few selling phrases in a number of other languages, like Spanish, Italian, German, French and Swedish. The salespeople are extremely pushy and the prices they suggest are high, so bargain a lot.