After a crisp early morning run north along downtown’s historic Ming Wall Park, I met our China Mojo’ers in the lobby at 9:00 am. For our second day in Beijing, the group decided to head northeast on the subway to the Beijing Zoo. We arrived at the zoo around 11:00 am, after a breakfast of jianbing and a leisurely stroll through the hutong neighborhood just north of our hotel, and down Nanchizi Street along the Forbidden City’s east gate. And our east Tianan’men subway stop One of the best ways to soak up all that China has to offer is to rise early, get out of the hotel, and experience street culture as a big city like Beijing is waking up. And so we did.
Our favorite "jianbing" street food vendor in Beijing.
China Mojo "groceries up" for our zoo trip. Note the dragonfruit at center.
Morning walk through the hutong - modern autos meet vegetable lattice'd garden.
First built in 1906, the Beijing Zoo is a big tourist destination for both Chinese and international visitors alike, and the prize show animal, of course, is the panda, which the Chinese government has leveraged as an international symbol – “panda diplomacy” – over the years. We spent three hours exploring the zoo’s many exhibits, shooting photos, and interacting with other visitors. Highlights of our visit included the pandas (of course), whom are well cared for in large glass enclosures (indoors) with a fair bit of “roam around room” in their outdoor areas, as well. The rhinoceros gave us quite a show with her sidling about, and the red pandas (known as the “lesser panda) and monkeys proved a hit, especially for Rob, who has a thing for red pandas. The zoo grounds are beautiful, well maintained and easily navigable, with plenty of green space, beautiful willow trees, and curved walking paths. Our entire group expressed sadness at the treatment of the elephants and the big cats (lions and tigers of various descriptions) who were confined to small indoor cages that looked and smelled just like jail cells. Watching visitors yell at the animals to try and get them to “perform,” and seeing the animals ‘listless” fugue’like state, proved depressing.
Partying with the pandas at the Beijing Zoo.
Zoo lunch - fried rice, veggies, and cold Chinese brau.
After some street shopping on the way back to the Jade Garden, we commandeered three taxis from the hotel and headed to the Xinjiang Crescent Moon restaurant for Uighur barbecue. I had been to this place on my very first visit to Beijing for a phenomenal meal, and I could still conjure the taste of fresh veggies dipped in Xinjiang yogurt, Uighur beer, and lamb kebabs. After some drama arranging for taxi pick-up (rush hour, driver changeover, language barriers – we made sure that everyone had their room keys, passports, and directions to the restaurant written out in Mandarin), we all managed to arrive at the Crescent Moon, located deep in a hutong neighborhood northeast of our hotel.
The Uighur are the largest of China’s ethnic minority groups in the western province of Xinjiang, and their food is one of my favorite Chinese regional cuisines. The beautiful green-eyed and darker skinned waitresses, dressed in traditional Islamic embroidered Uighur outfits head scarves, quietly and efficiently set us up in a back room (so as not to scare the locals, no doubt) and we left no culinary stone unturned, ordering a wide variety of Uighur fare – fresh vegetables, yogurt, cooked sheep head (better than it sounds), lamb kebabs, and, of course, their famed nan bread and Uighur Sinkiang beer (which could give Vermont microbrews a run for their money). The Crescent Moon is unpretentious, a bit hard to find, and quiet – but well worth the effort to try some of the best Uighur food in Beijing.
Eating Uighur at Crescent Moon resto - so good.
A touch of Islam in Beijing - don't miss this fabulous Uighur restaurant.
The best part? Seeing our Champlain Mojo’ers dig in without reservation – our group is game for anything – even cooked sheep head. Mojo a’go go!
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