LEISURE HOLIDAY IN BEIJING

Unwind At China's Northern Provinces
Beijing/ Chende/ Tianjin

22-7-2004 (Thursday)
It was nine in the morning when we boarded a Malaysian Airlines flight to our dream getaway, Beijing. Our group totalled seventeen and out of this number, eleven of them are from the restaurant hospitality trade. Only four members are not connected to us but we embraced them as our new found friends. Welcome to our world on a quest for culinary adventure.

Six hours later, we were thrilled to land at Beijing International Airport. I looked forward to viewing the capital of China, a place teemed with history. Beijing occupies an area of 16,800 sq. km and houses a population, currently at 16 million. This is quite close to our total population in Peninsular Malaysia. We share a same time zone but gosh, the sky is bright as early as four a.m and does not get dark till eight in the evenings. They have the four seasons and this month of July is the summer. The weather is quite identical to ours, hot and humid. With school holidays around, the whole city is thick with tourists.

Gingko trees are planted everywhere as the slight of it is as common as our tropical coconut trees being grown extensively in the rural areas. As China is going to host the Olympic Games 2008, the whole place in Beijing gets an extended air of activity. Planning such a worldwide sports event is in itself a major undertaking. Wooden structures are erected at many venues, a stark contrast with the beautiful historic buildings alongside.

23-7-2004 (Friday)
Today is reputed to be the focal point of this tour as we are going to see one of the Eight Wonders of the World. The Great Wall Of China is really great as the total length spans some 6,500 km and was the only visible man-made structure seen by the astronauts who viewed Earth after they set foot on the moon 35 years ago. According to our tour guide Lim, he reckons one would need 500 days to pace the full length of the wall. How about that?

The next significant stop was at the huge royal tombs where late emperors of the Ming dynasty were buried. One of the massive and sprawling imperial tomb was opened for public viewing. It was 18 meters underground and temperature reading dropped to 20 degree celcius as exterior temperature was around 32 degree celcius. There was no spooky feeling as one feel the cool air forcing its way out.

Travelling works up an appetite so we tried the famous Mongolian Hotpot similar to our steamboat. The Mongols introduced their taste of dairy produce, mutton. This is the main ingredient for the firepot. At Tong Lai Shun Restaurant, a Muslim restaurant of over 100 years, it served halal food. The mutton topside meat has beautiful marbled fats and sliced paper-thin. You blanch the meat in a central firepot filled with boiling stock. Eat the cooked meat dipped in a special sauce. It has no gamy taste and the sauce is prepared with a combination of seven ingredients. Comprising sesame peanut sauce, pureed chives' juice, chilli oil, Chinese cooking wine, cooked prawns' oil, fermented white beancurd and soy sauce. Minced Chinese coriander and minced white sections of spring onions can be added if desired. A selection of sliced chicken meat and beef are available too. After this wonderful meal, we had a ride around the city. I noticed many restaurants had signboards which bore a very similar name to the original eatery of Mongolian Hotpot. Can be rather tricky for tourists to work out the true-blue.

24-7-2004 (Saturday)
The climb of many steps leading to the first point of the Great Wall Of China had taken its toll on a fair number of our members, who generally do not do much physical exercises. Today, we may have to struggle and keep pace with ten thousand scores of people who have lined up at the gate entrance to Tian An Men (The Gate Of The Heavenly Peace) for a glimpse of Chairman Mao's Memoriam Museum. Coupled with a weekend and school holidays, the crowd jostled for space with a sea of umbrellas to shelter off the sweltering heat.

It was an amazing afternoon as we walked across the street to view The Forbidden City. This is definitely something not to be missed as this extraordinary huge palace used to be the official residence of former late emperors, queens, concubines and the royal households. It was also the country's administration centre. Official occupancy began during the Ming dynasty and Qing dynasty. It has housed a total of 24 late emperors for a span of 500 years. The total built-up land area is 720,000 sq. meters, has 890 different chambers and a total of 9,000 bedrooms. The inner courts are bared of big trees, mainly because too many birds may perched on tree branches and chirpped noisily besides the disadvantage of being hideaways for assasins. A beautiful Kunming Lake and Longevity Hill formed the serene background. It was the ideal recreation garden for past royals. The United Nationals Educational Scientific And Cultural Organization had obtained an order for China to preserve this splendour as a heritage for the world to see and know the country's rich history and culture. Impressed with the beauty, we were all thankful to have viewed the magnificent building.

In the early evening, we set out for a place to savour tea. Tour guide Lim, ventured to the back portion of the shop where one can order Shanxi noodles but did not look special as it was rather similar to our Malaysian panmeen. Main difference lies in tapioca flour was added to the dough, to give it a springy touch. The cook's skill in slicing the dough was incredible. His left hand moulded a dough and placed it on his left shoulder. His right hand deftly wield a special-designed knife to shred at the dough with amazing speed. Fine, lengthy noodles flew their way into a pot of boiling water nearby, never missing a single strand. Scalded noodles are drained and mixed with a braised stock, garnished with some condiments like Chinese celery, chilli oil and taupan sauce (bean sauce).

According to Lim, cooks of olden days were shaved bald and wore white caps to perform this feat. The doughs were placed on their heads then. This art calls for terrific skills.
Evening was free of activities so Mrs. Sia Say Tee, her daughter Boon Chin, daughter-in-law Chai Ching, son-in-law Mr. Chu Tiong An, Richard & I decided to enjoy a trishaw ride. We employed three trishaws to roam around. Finally, we barged into a Shanxi restaurant for supper. The Northern cuisine is noted for its spicy noodles, floral-coiled noodles, saucy pig's ears, saucy pig's trotter, spicy eight wonders sauce, Chinese escargots, skewered mutton meat and a pot of good brewed tea. The coiled noodles was interesting as the noodle strips was placed in dimsum baskets to steam. The surface looked like a bee's nest and you pick up the strands to eat with a unique mushroom sauce. Condiments of pickled cucumbers, carrot strips and minced garlic made it all the better. Cost came to £88.00 or RM44.00. This is a terrific deal at an inexpensive price.

25-7-2004 (Sunday)
After a simple breakfast at the hotel, out coach driver took us to the southern edge to view The Temple of Heaven. The land area is outrageous, a total of 2.73 million sq. meters, probably tripled the size of 'The Forbidden City'. The origins of this place dates back to the time for sacred prayers performed by the former emperors since 1420. Yearly, they will pray for adequate rain for agricultural crops growth, bountiful harvests reaped and well-being for their royal families. After this, we had a Hutong (lane) tour on trishaws, viewed the a factory that produces Jing-Tai-Lan (Cloisonne Ware), The Confucian Temple and The Big Bell Temple where the copper bells are reckoned to be the largest in the world.

Dinner was served at a Sichuan restaurant, not far from our resident hotel. The food is authentic as it had the strong spices and was mouth-burning. Hot taste is associated with Sichuan cooking as their Mapo Taufu, Twice-cooked Pork had us breaking out in sweats. Another dish named 'Fish Cooked In Water' sounded simple enough. The cook heated up some oil to stir-fry Sichuan peppercorns, dried chillies and spring onion till aromatic. In goes the beansauce, Sichuan peppercorn powder and fiery hot small peppers. Water was added in for flavours to fused together. Live fish was sliced into pieces and cooked in the above concoction. The cooked fish slices were removed and placed in a big bowl. Hot oil was drizzled in and Chinese celery was scattered on top. The waitress removed all surplus chillies and peppercorns before serving it to us. Fish was sweet and smooth textured, it must have been a good beansauce as it smelled fragrant. But the spicy degree had deaden our tastebuds momentary. This preponderance of hot, spicy food has its roots in history as geographical factor of Sichuan is bonded by mountain ranges and the climate is cold.

26-7-2004 (Monday)
It rained in the middle of the night and cleared the hot air. With a wet morning, all roads were choked with traffic. At midday, we were whisked to this Archery Watchtower over the Qian Gate. This gate was right in front of Tian An Men as it was built on good fengshui area. An hour later, we proceeded to a lecture hall. A fengshui master gave us some insights on good omen. Naturally, we all bought some decorative pieces as it may nurture good blessings.

Unquestionably the most famous Beijing roast duck restaurant is Quanjude. With 140 years of survival, it must bear some good testimony of truth. Chef Huang Yong Qi has worked here for 20 years and over. We listened to his theory of a good roast. The duck's (a special breed) cavity is filled with water before putting it to roast. A special piece of fruity tree wood is embedded in the stomach cavity to seal the opening. It goes through a colouring process before being roasted in wood-fired ovens. This is no ordinary wood but comes from the date trees as it produces a special aroma. Water retained in the ducks helps to maintain the moist meat whilst the exterior is roasted to a crisp with succulent taste. In Beijing, there are an uncountable number of shops selling this delicacy but only Quanjude reigns supreme.

At 2.30p.m, we left Beijing city to Chengde, a city 250 km away. This was a popular retreat for the royals to hunt and the famous Summer Villa is situated here. Due to the rainy weather, our four hours journey had prolonged to seven hours. At 9.30p.m, we finally reached the destination. Dinner was some game meat but we preferred the spud dish. It was potatoes shredded and deep-fried.

Next, it was immersed into a golden thick syrup. You picked up a piece of the sugar coated potato and soaked it in icy cold water. The sugar coagulates instantly into a sweet mass but taste was superb.

27-7-2004 (Tuesday)
The market near the hotel was a hive of activity at early six in the morning. The morning air was cool and crisp, we decided to peek at what they have to offer for early birds. At the end of the street was a little shop that had stacks of fried pancakes filled with either chives, cabbages or gherkins. The unassuming eatery served this delicious pancake with a vinegared dip, something to soothe away the heatiness. It is best to eat it with millet, green beans porridge or barley, millet porridge. Pretty refreshing to have a bowl of hot porridge in the early morning, probably, this is what draws the crowds.

Chengde local tour guide, Ms Zhang took us to view the Summer Villa, a former retreat for the royals from the extreme heat. What a sheer-coincidence, the fliming industry people were making a film here. We watched some film-shooting before ascending to our next destination, the Putuozongcheng Temple. As Ms Zhang led the way up, our group diminished in size. Not everyone is able to walk the length and breadth of 27 storeys high places. A quick lunch was eaten before we headed back to Beijing by coach.

Enjoyed the evening stroll to Wangfujing Street, this place is jammed with unique stuff. 88 food stalls rivalled for attention and we can’t believed what food was put up for consumption. Deep-fried scorpions, maggots, sea-urchins, blacken smelly taufoo, fried tripes and mutton offals' soups were just some of the food-ware. This is a fear factor challenge as we tried a little of each. The taste was a different story as it was crunchy and quite a delight. Another shop sold wantan soup and baked biscuits. Nothing special as the taste was very ordinary.

28-7-2004 (Wednesday)
Very early this morning, we left the hotel to view the underground city of Beijing. A maze-like structure that has a spider web network layout, deemed longer in length than 'The Great Wall Of China'. This is a man-made place and only a small portion is kept opened for public viewing. We journeyed on to Tianjin, a city, two hours ride away. At a legendary pau shop, we tasted the superb paus. You dipped them in vinegar or chilli oil and the fillings in the paus are either meat or seafood. Long queues are a common slight here.

Tianjin is a place breaming with fine jade ornaments, antiques, cheongsam clothings, tea leaves, tea brewing sets. You can find anything associated with Chinese handicraft at this culture street right in the city hub. It was enjoyable as every item was dirt cheap.


29-7-2004 (Thursday)
Did some last minute shopping for clothes at the famous 'Women Street'. It was a hurry-burry shopping as we had to proceed to the airport. Had lunch at a restaurant with a wacky name. The name of this place makes imagination soar as it is known as 'The Jin San Yuan Pazhulian'. They sell a brew of 33 herbal ingredients and the cooked pig's head is infused in for taste to develop. Later, the head is removed and sliced into pieces. A wrapper made from cornflour is used to wrap the sliced meat, spring onion and beansprouts. After folding the wrapper into a neat fold, dip it into a special sauce before eating. Quite unusual a dish as it is tasty.

Eight days a trip is too short for us to cover such a vast city. We had only been introduced to the tip of the iceberg of Chinese cuisine. What we have sampled may only be a fraction of the glory of the cuisine as good cooking has always been an intergral part of Chinese culture.

北京/承德/天津逍遥行
2004年7月22日（星期四）
上午九时，以愉快的心情搭乘马航，直飞一个我们向往已久的古都，中国的首都北京。同行还有十一位餐饮业朋友，另加两对各自报名的团友共十七位。

坐了６个小时的飞机，终於到达北京国际机场。北京有１万６千８百平方公里，人口一千六百万，与我国人口接近。没有时差，只不过夏天昼长夜短，早上４点多天已亮，而晚上８点天才黑。北京气候有四季之分，七月是夏天，和我国气温大同小异，而当地正放暑假，是旅游旺季。这里到处都可看到银杏树（白果树），所以白果对北京人就像我们的椰子一般普遍。历史悠久的古老建筑到处可见；与为了迎接２００８年奥运会而到处大兴土木的现代设施，形成强烈对比。

2004年7月23日（星期五）
第二天进入行程首个景点，游览世界八大奇观之一，全长６千５００公里的万里长城。导游小林说：“跑完万里长城需五百多天。”由月球往地球看，万里长城是唯一被认的建筑物。过後，参观明朝地下宫殿，皇帝十三陵之一的定陵，所谓‘陵’就是皇帝的坟墓。这是目前唯一被发现及开放供参观的皇陵，深十八米的地下宫殿冬暖夏 凉，当天温度三十二度，陵内气温大约二十度，湿度奇高，凉风一阵阵由内往外吹。

来到北京，我们当然不忘一尝这里的著名美食。傍晚，我们到一间具有百多年历史，著名的‘东来顺’享用涮羊肉。东来顺是一间穆斯林餐馆，没卖猪肉。肥瘦相间的羊腿肉以机械切得薄如纸，夹一把羊肉片放入炭烧铜火锅内涮一涮即熟透，将熟透的羊肉片放入沾酱。羊肉特别鲜嫩，毫无膻味，沾上混合的沾酱入口芳香，非常可口。沾酱是以七种酱料混合而成，计有芝麻花生酱、韭菜花汁、辣椒油、绍兴酒、虾油、腐乳及生抽，再加点芫荽碎及葱白碎混匀。除了羊肉片之外，还有鸡肉片及牛肉片可选择。

上车之后，我们沿途看到西来顺，兰来顺，北来顺，又一顺，XX顺，无数采用‘顺’字做招牌的涮羊肉餐馆，这些餐馆大概都沾到些光吧！

2004年7月24日（星期六）
行动方便是到中国旅游条件之一。经过一天爬万里长城及参观帝皇陵後，平时鲜少运动的团友开始喊脚酸。隔天一早，导游小林带领我们到世界最大的天安门广场参观，适逢星期六及当地学校假期，只见数以千计的人潮撑着阳伞在天安门广场前大排长龙，排队两个小时以进入毛泽东主席纪念馆。

由天安门广场步行进入隧道越过马路，穿过红色城墙进入紫禁城。 紫禁城现称故宫，位于北京市中心，是过去皇帝及后妃生活起居和处理朝政之处，华丽的宫殿先後有明、清两朝24位皇帝在此居住，统治中国近500年。紫禁城占地72万平方米，各式宫殿890座，房屋9千多所。宫内看不到大树，据说不允许有小鸟在树上吱喳乱叫及避免刺客藏身。故宫后门紧接颐和园，在1998年被联合国教科文化组织列为世界文化遗产，被称为中国众多古典园林之首，内有多棵数百年古树、昆明湖及万寿山，是古时候候皇家休闲的花园。

傍晚在一间茶叶专卖店喝过茶後，小林安排我们到茶坊后座餐厅享用晚餐。其中一道刀削面，看似板面，不同点在搓面粉时加入薯粉使面团富弹性。只见厨师左手将擀至结实的面团放在左肩，右手以一把特制的削刀熟练地将面团削至细长，面条准确无误飞入沸腾的滚水内。不一会，烫到熟透的刀削面被捞起放入一大碗内，淋上卤汤再放些芹菜，吃时可配些辣椒油或豆板酱。小林说：“以前厨师剃光头，带上白帽後将面团放在头顶，双手如飞一刀刀熟练地削面，功夫一流。”

晚上自由活动，我们与施太、文君、采芹及朱先生分乘三辆人力三轮车到附近超市逛，过後误打误撞进入一间山西人开的餐馆吃宵夜，店名是‘一家人食府’。我们点了山西辣拌莜面、莜面卷、酱猪耳、酱猪手、辣酱八宝、 福寿螺、羊肉串及一壶上等龙井茶。莜面卷是一卷卷薄薄的面皮整齐地排在一个点心小蒸笼内蒸熟，由上面往下看好像蜂巢一般，卖相极佳。以筷子夹起一卷，沾上冬菇酱、酸醋青瓜、红萝卜丝及蒜米碎，味道很特别。这一餐只费88圆人民币，相等於马币44零吉，非常值得。

2004年7月25日（星期日）
北京游进入了第四天，在酒店用过简单早餐後，司机小杨将我们载到位於北京城南端的天坛公园。这个公园面积大约273万平方米，相等於故宫三倍大，是古代帝皇祭天、祈雨及祈求五谷丰收的圣洁之地。之後集体乘人力三轮车游览胡同、参观景泰蓝琉璃厂、去孔庙祭拜孔子、到大钟寺参观世界最大铜钟等。

晚餐，我们被安排到住宿酒店附近一间非为旅客而设的川菜馆用餐。这里的麻婆豆腐及回锅肉等麻辣菜令大家吃得满头大汗。我们另外点了一道‘水煮鱼’，厨师将花椒、辣椒乾及葱一起加入热油里大火炒香後，加入豆板酱、花椒粉、辣椒粉及小辣椒，再倒入水煮 滚，加入切片的活鱼煮熟後盛入大碗内，淋上滚烫的辣椒油，再撒点香菜即上桌。服务生将多余的辣椒干及花椒粒捞起，大家即大快朵颐。鱼肉鲜甜幼滑、豆板酱咸中带香、花椒令舌根麻痹、辣椒乾刺激食欲、加上香菜中和，整桌人大喊够绝！

2004年7月26日（星期一）
半夜下了一场大雨，早晨细雨绵绵，空气变得清新。路上多处积水，每条进入市区的公路皆严重堵车。第五天上午参观正阳门箭楼，它是故宫城墙正门，在天安门广场之前，也是风水之门。一个小时後，我们在此听国家级风水大师畅谈北京风水。入宝山岂能空手回，离开时手上多了数件风水宝物。

午餐到享誉140年，北京最著名的全聚德享用北京烤鸭。在职20多年的总厨王荣起金牌大师傅将鸭子灌满水後以果木封肚，上色後挂在枣木为燃料的火炉内烘烤至熟。王荣起师傅说：“枣木让烤熟的鸭子别有风味，灌水的作用是使鸭子烤好时外乾内湿。”烤鸭在北京到处比比皆是，到北京吃正宗烤鸭，指明全聚德。

下午2点半离开北京，往250公里外的承德出发，承德是古代皇帝打猎及避暑的地方。雨，依然在下，四个小时车程花了七个小时，到达目的地时已是晚上九点半。野味是这里的特色，满桌佳肴，我们独爱马铃薯（土豆）拔丝。将切块马铃薯炸熟，另将粗糖煮溶至金黄色，加入炸薯块捞匀上碟。将一块薯块浸入冷水中，黏黏的糖丝遇冷顿时凝结结实及脆口，味道超好。

2004年7月27日（星期二）
在承德的早晨6点天气凉爽，酒店旁的菜市场已经闹轰轰，我们信步到街尾一间小食店一尝地道的当地早点。这间小店现做现煎的煎饼有韭菜、包菜、菜瓜三种不同馅料。食用时点上黑醋，可以中和煎炸的火气；再配一碗大米绿豆粥及炸菜丝，或薏米大米粥，将整个胃装得暖烘烘。

地陪小张带着我们到避暑山庄游览，当地拍摄队伍正在取景，连续集还珠格格的烟雨楼及漱芳斋均在此。接着到小布达拉宫，高27层楼的阶级才能到顶，小张一路在前面领，跟在后头的团友却越跟越少。午餐后，我们打道回府到北京。

夜晚，漫步在北京市著名的王府井步行街。这里货品琳琅满目，吸引我们的是一排长长的东华门美食坊，88个小食档整齐地排开，挤满人潮。稀奇古怪的小食如炸蝎子，炸蚕蛹，炸海星，黑色的臭豆付，爆肚羊杂汤等挑战你的勇气。我们各种都试一些，味道并没想象中那么恐怖，炸蝎子香脆可口，炸蚕蛹味道像炸鸡，臭豆腐很有咬劲，而爆肚则骚得难以入口。接着到街头一间导游小林推荐的‘馄饨侯’馄饨专买店试了不同口味的馄饨及烧饼，味道一般。

2004年7月28日（星期三）
隔天一早，我们到藏在一个豪不起眼民宅的北京地下城参观。通道星罗棋布如蜘蛛网的地下城长度比地面上的万里长城还长，是以民工挖掘的防空洞，现在只开放一部分给旅客参观。过后到离北京两个小时车程的天津。我们到闻名的“南市狗不理饱铺”享用狗不理包子。一盘十个狗不理包子，分肉馅包及三鲜包，沾上醋及辣椒油，一口一个，味道奇佳，难怪大排长龙。买手信、玉器古董、旗袍、茶叶茶具、手工艺品，天津的文化街，货品多而价钱相宜，最值得买。

2004年7月29日（星期四）
最后一天，细雨纷飞下到北京女人街，做最后一场血拼买丝绸衣服。离开北京之前到靠近机场，一间获奖无数，得到当地高官显要垂青的“金三元扒猪脸”餐馆用午餐。侍者将半边以三十种草药焖五小时的猪头切片，取一片放在玉米面皮上，再加入青蒜及豆芽包起，吃时沾上特制酱料，这也是导游小林特别推荐的一道美食，果然很有特色。

时间太短，北京太大，八天七夜北京走马看花当充电，难得的是有缘与数位餐饮业行家同行，品尝美食后交流，让味蕊进一步提升。