Getting around

Beijing Workers Stadium story2

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

A look into the future

In Beijing Workers Stadium story2 focus on a CGTN video by French guy Olivier who shows us the Workers Stadium under construction and what it will look like.
The French video, French only, is best here.
also here on YouTube.
With English subtitles (not that complete), see here.

Some screenshots of the video.
The main underground parking entrance would be on gongti dong lu, see the last pic.

The subways

Lines 3 and 17 will have major stations on the corner of gongti bei and gongti dong lu.
It is planned to have an underground connection with Taikooli shopping center

A good insight on the today situation and future subway lines in the area, see here and here.

Beijing Subway Line 3 (first phase)
open by the end of 2023
Dongsi Shitiao to Dongfeng – Length: 15.6 km  – Stops:10
Future Transfer with Other Lines: Dongsi Shitiao: transfer with Line 2 and Gongren Tiyuchang (Worker’s Stadium): transfer with future Line 17.

Extension Plan of Beijing Subway Line 17
The northern section of the first phase of Beijing subway line 17 is under construction. The whole project of the first phase of line 17 will cover 49.7 km with 21 stations. After completion, it will start from the Weilai Kejichengbei in the north, pass through Changping District, Dongcheng District, Chaoyang District, and finally reach the Jiahuihu Station in Tongzhou District in the south.
Future Transfer with other lines: Gongren Tiyuchang (Workers’ Stadium): Transfer with Line 3

Tuanjiehu Station at the East side of gongti bei lu is serving Line 10.

Dongdaqiao station further down South from gongti dong lu is currently serving Line 6.
M28 (planned name) – before called CBD
Dongdaqiao to Guangqudonglu with 9 Stations line length   of 8.877 km.
Planned opening: 2025.

26 Oct. 2021 Rotary talk on learning to fly

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Mosto in Nali Patio, Sanlitun

For our 26 Oct. 2021 Rotary talk on learning to fly we had as speaker Daniel Zhang on the topic: “Joy of Flying”.

Food was reasonable but I was not convinced by some of the dishes.
Another weak point: the private room is pretty noisy and listening to the talk was not made easy.

Highlight of the talk

Flying is the new freedom! At the October 26th meeting, Rotarians and guests got to find out what it was like to take off on wings, piloting an airplane. Private aviation has not been easy in China, but Daniel Zhang, who studied aviation in the US, came back to China to start Enjoy Fly Club. EFC gives private flying lessons. Piloting a single-engine propeller plane might not take you across borders in the new pandemic world order, but it does take you off ground to new heights. Sharing his passions for flying, Daniel also told a story of his 85-year-old customer Wang Deshun who recently completed his pilot license. To a room of sitting-behind-desks Rotarian executives, this was a flying challenge.

Bloomberg Caution in Sanlitun

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

A hidden pub bistro

Through a Wechat group I learned about Bloomberg Caution in Sanlitun and I went to check it out.
It is a bit hidden but it is actually easy to find if you know it is through the East gate of Zhaolong Hotel.
The place is a bit unusual and pretty large. It has a large outside terrace, two separate inside seating areas; on the other side of the alley there is a large covered bar area and a kind of ball room area, all actually in the back of Zhaolong Hotel.

It is open for dinner only and it seems most customers tend to come in the late evening. Also a favored place of one of the major motorbike groups.

Many connections with friends

Talking with the friendly owner Jason, a Beijinger with fluent English, I learned he is close friend of Kent and his sons. Several paintings of Kent are displayed. Kent’s sons also are regulars, as well as Dieter, one other of our Old China Hands. Small world!
See: Old China Hands 7 May lunch https://www.beijing1980.com/2021/05/16/old-china-hands-7-may-lunch/
Several of the friends had parties there, for birthdays of playing music. Jason showed the picture of Kent making one of his tasty dishes.

Food and drinks

Extensive menu, many different dishes. I tried the beef salad and fried tongue. Being on an alcohol-free week I could not try the beers. Other friends find their beer prices a bit high

Chez Soi Bistro in Beijing

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Been there more than once!

I had several visits to Chez Soi Bistro in Beijing, see also earlier post: “Discovered Chez Soi“. That was in August 2020. Since then the bistro has tried its best to improve the food, organize events and have more staff.

See some pictures from my visits on 2 July, and in May on 12th, 16th, 17th, 24th and 29th.
On 29 May Chez Soi celebrated its anniversary with a free buffet and drinks. It was a pleasant evening.

New menu

I tried the couscous, it’s tasty but not the real stuff. The have specials every day, they organize a number of activities and also have life music every Wednesday. Caroline is trying her best!
Sometimes the dishes take a “creative” turn away from the official recipe (e.g. the Niçoise Salad) but it is all enjoyable. Some of the pizzas are tasty. The Basque Chicken got also better.

The unspoken disadvantage of the Chinese HSR

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Many specialists but zero clarification

The unspoken disadvantage of the Chinese HSR leaves me puzzled and none of the so-called China Rail Buffs pays attention.
Here a pretty good introduction about the impressive Chinese network:

High-speed rail (HSR) in China is the world’s longest high speed railway network and most extensively used — with a total length of 37,900 km by the end of 2020. The HSR network encompasses newly built rail lines with a design speed of 200–350 km/h. China’s HSR accounts for two-thirds of the world’s total high-speed railway networks. Almost all HSR trains, track and service are owned and operated by the China Railway Corporation under the brand China Railway High-speed (CRH).
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-speed_rail_in_China

One of the maps showing the network.

A great network

As a former engineer & project developer in rail projects, I can fully appreciate the impressive state-of-the-art of the Chinese trains and network. There are certainly improvements to be made, especially for foreigners, but if you travel between Beijing and Shanghai the HSR is highly recommended.

Arriving in Binzhou, Shandong, after another train trip.

I am also impressed with the stability of the HS trains.

180610 coinintrain

Yeah it took some patience but see the clip I made with a coin stable at 300 km/h! (click to play)

The unanswered question

However one critical issue is overlooked. A practical question:
“I arrive from Belgium by air in Shanghai and I want to take the train. The checked-in luggage for my flight from Europe has a bottle of whisky, anew  kitchen knive (so difficult to buy in China), deodorant spray and shaving foam. Now how can I go to Beijing?”

Well the answer is clear: YOU CANNOT.
All items mentioned are prohibited and will be removed during the “security check”. Those are just some of the “prohibited items” but are very realistic examples. Think also about your Swiss knife, hair lotion, some sunscreen types, nail clippers, …
I have not been able to understand if there is any kind of “checked-in luggage” system for the trains. I heard some vague stories there would be a some kind of service to send those items somewhere before entering the railway station, but it is not clear how and when those items can be retrieved on arrival. And then, how do you remove and repack those after landing?

In other words all the blabla of environmental issues and why you would fly instead of using a train is totally flawed. When arriving in China from another international (or even domestic) flight you cannot continue your voyage by train. Also, if you travel within China many of those items are needed during your journey.
I guess all the rail buffs now fall silent.