Houhai
Houhai is one of the most up-and-coming nightlife hot-spots in Beijing -- classier than Sanlitun (where I went on Friday), with a younger crowd than some places more downtown, Houhai is a ring of restaurants and bars surrounding a gorgeous lake. At night, lights come up all around the water's edge -- twinkling gold and silver fairy lights outline building edges, while strings of glowing red lanterns, bobbing everywhere in the breeze, are doubly reflected in the water's rippling surface. Throngs of people stroll along the edge of the lake, while music of every kind -- from techno to reggae to soft Chinese pop -- floats out from the gorgeous facades of the various clubs. Hou Hai is the kind of place I would never, in a thousand years, have the money (or general poshness) to go to back in the US, but here in China, anything goes! The restaurants and clubs are simply beautiful -- aside from the gorgeous sparkling lights and the slowly-moving rented paddleboats trolling the lake's surface, the decor of these clubs, bars, and restaurants is simply unbelievable.
Sara and I had dinner outdoors at a restaurant featuring Hakka cuisine -- we split a delicious bowl of taro and squash soup, in a creamy broth reminiscent of potato soup, while discussing the various ways in which cultural immersion improves one's listening comprehension (Sara's is awesome, while mine is nearly nonexistent, though I think improving a little) and marveling at the beautiful scenery. After a quick spritz of bug spray (thanks to my new travel-size OFF! -- thanks mom!! :) we navigated through a mass of middle-aged and elderly Chinese couples trying (with mixed success) to execute ballroom dance steps to some waltz music being piped out of big speakers by the main gate (seen in the picture above). Although the dancers were far from perfect and the area was bustling, there was something kind of magical about the sea of people holding each other's hands, looking at each other's faces, and moving with a fumbling grace to the foreign music. After passing through the dancing mass and pushing past the ever-present throng of people trying to sell you things -- particularly, for some reason, massages* -- we finally made it through the main gate and had our pick of almost inconceivably swanky bars.
Although our initial quest to find a lychee martini was eventually thwarted, I was almost glad of this, since it enabled us to examine a number of Hou Hai's establishments -- one with a velvety red interior, with plush circles of couches open to the balmy air outside, one with Chinese pop and silvery reflective surfaces and a very classy-looking crowd, and many others -- before finally settling at one which had a live band playing reggae (Sara's favorite!), and whose entrance featured a huge number of tropical plants, a small moat filled with floating candelabras, and large tropical-printed cushions on every dark wooden seat. The waitstaff all wore loose white tops with wide-legged, magenta silk capris, and we sipped our drinks (my first cocktail, ever!) and talked about China as the night grew darker and the lights brigher along the lake's busy edge.
*Speaking of which, in my effort to simultaneously take a video of the entrance to Hou Hai and fend off the crowd of people offering massages and flowers, I accidentally took a picture in this guy's face -- bu hao yi si, as we would say here, but it was only an accident. My reaction to this faux pas, as well as footage of the actual entrance and crowds of Hou Hai (which is really the point of the recording, although I feel compelled to explain the audio), can be found here. Note the gorgeous lights and lantern everywhere... what a place! I can't wait to go back.
posted by Kelly @ 10:35 上午
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