“NEW” BEIJING

Note: To better understand this article, please read first my previous article, “Old Beijing”, dated May 11,2006.

It was 2 ½ years ago when I first visited Beijing. Back then, Beijing was just an “old” romantic city in the midst of a construction frenzy in time for the 2008 Olympic. My latest visit however had astounded me beyond my imagination. Beijing has changed so radically that I could barely recognize it. So much so, that I even thought that I was in fact in a different city altogether. However, I wasn’t in a different city. This is Beijing – post Olympic. It is a Mega City filled with tall buildings, glittering Shopping Malls, new Apartment Building Complexes, wide boulevards, and paved avenues. In addition to that, the buildings here in Beijing are well “aligned” and looked neat, most likely, a product of well thought-out urban planning. In fact, looking from the window of a plane several thousand feet in the air, one could easily recognize the geometric neatness of the cityscape. It seemed that all the construction frenzy that I saw 2 ½ years ago had not only been completed but several dozen more structures must have been added to Beijing, embellishing a proud capital eager to show to the world. One of such structures is the conspicuous sub – way stations that dotted around the city. Also, unlike before, one can no longer see the bicycles roaming the city streets instead, cars literally choked the streets. There are so many cars out in the street that the traffic is already as bad as those in Manila (I was getting a bit impatient waiting for the traffic, which I didn’t felt during my trip in 2006) even though Manila has lesser roads and highways within the city limits. Even the sanitation facilities received a massive upgrade. Long gone are the stinking neighborhood toilets that cater to the locals and in its place are malls and fast food joints, hotels, and fancy restaurants with supposedly clean and modern sanitation facilities (they still stink though because it wasn’t properly maintained). Even the star rating system of public sanitation facilities are fast disappearing, leaving only popular ancient tourist spots like the Forbidden City complex to sport such an “ancient” relic. Speaking of the Forbidden City, in the “Old” Beijing, the center of Beijing is the grand Tiananmen Square (天安門廣場) and the resplendently colossal Forbidden City (紫禁城) including its environs. In the New Beijing, the center of this universe is the Olympic village represented by the massive Bird Nest and the breathtaking Water Cube. While both landmarks provided dignity to such an august place like Beijing, the Olympic Village ostensibly lacks the romantic atmosphere of the old wonder that it replaces. Clearly, modernity has triumphed over history. The enormous facelift that Beijing has undergone has left it unrecognizable to an occasional traveler like me but strangely, the New Beijing looked so familiar to me not because of the ancient jewels that are left standing in the midst of this modern jungle rather the post – Olympic Beijing looked surprisingly like another Chinese city, Beijing is beginning to resemble Shanghai. In fact, one can say that Beijing has been thoroughly Shanghai – nized. Except that, in Shanghai, the architectural structures are more stylish and imposing while in Beijing, the buildings are less towering and a lot more staid. Even so, it is quite easy to see the shadow of Shanghai in Beijing. With this huge burst of modernization in the characterization of Beijing, Beijing has definitely joined the ranks of the great world cities of the modern age. It can now be compared to cities like London, New York, Shanghai, Taipei, and Hong Kong. Despite that, the New Beijing seemed to lose something that old one had. It no longer looked romantic. Call me a romantic fool but I liked the “Old” Beijing better. Outside what used to be the old city walls is that great battlefield of the old where together the invaders and the defenders consecrated the ground with their blood……….. That same spot now is inhibited by huge malls and fancy hotels. KFC and McDonalds, parking lots now stands in the ground of those who have fallen some centuries past. Sigh. The old Hutong (胡同), Beijing’s back alleys where one could see the low lying tiled houses of the old is fast vanishing like an endangered species. These ancient houses are actually an eye sore (and I definitely agree) but their disappearance to give way to newer buildings seemed to have permanently altered the character of the “Old” Beijing more than anything else. And the haze, that toxic cloud of pollution; it used to look romantic and picturesque whence the sun sets or rises among the trees and the old houses. Now, the same haze, the smog that covered the skyline emanating from tall chimney stacks in and around Beijing has become an irritating symbol of the “New” Beijing. Alas, what can I say. This is Beijing.