About China and Travel Tips

Archive for September, 2009

Almost all dishes of Chinese food are, as a rule, cooked in the kitchen by stir-frying, shallow frying, deep frying, stewing, steaming, etc. and then presented to the diners. Only the chafing dish merges the cooking and the eating processes. What is more, the cooking apparatus is placed on the table and fire is made to burn from the beginning to the end of the dinner. Doesn’t this remind you of the way of eating our remote ancestors were habituated to? Even now, in our times, those who eat together around a chafing dish must be family members or close companions. They are your good friends, if not brothers. Doesn’t this smack of a deep feeling of perfect human relationship? Especially in deep winter, when the north wind is howling and snowflakes are flying, what can surpass dinning around a chafing dish for the enjoyment of life and sincere human relationship?

It is obvious that for Chinese people the pleasure and delight of dining together is afforded not merely by the taste and flavor of the food and the drink. What must be included in addition to the sensuous excitement is the joy of human relationship which is specific to the dining table. The various kinds of Chinese cooked food gives embodiment to the group consciousness and cultural spirit consisting in unity, harmony and complete blending. For example, dishes of Chinese food, whether prepared by frying in shallow oil, stir-frying, steaming, boiling, stewing, roasting, or deep-frying, almost always have the principal element mixed with the seasoning and cooked together with it. Such a dish is to be served as one entity. Historically, there has never been an occasion when meat or fish and salt or pepper are brought to the table in this country as separate units.

Some famous big dishes styled as “The Whole Family’s Fortune”, “The Buddha Making a Trespass over the Wall”, “The Hegemonic King Bidding Farewell to His Beloved Consort (before their tragic ending)”, etc. are representative of the harmonious blending of several principal foodstuffs, or elements, all the more so because their respective tastes are blended far beyond distinguishment. What is more, according to the views expressed by China’s experts in the fields of culinary art, nutriology and dietotherapy, such harmonious blending conduces to compatibility and mutual enhancement of tastes of two foodstuffs which are opposite in certain respects. This is a highly scientific method for producing excellent cuisine.

The method used at first in China for roasting a duck was almost the same as that used in the Western world for roasting a goose. It was called “roasting duck in the hermetic oven”. As a matter of fact, its main features were essentially those that characterized the Western mode of preparation of roast goose. An oven was built by laying stones or bricks. A fire was made to burn inside the oven, so that a large amount of heat was absorbed by the walls of the oven, and the duck placed in the oven later was roasted by the heat dissipated by the walls until it was well cooked.
Epicures contend that roast duck is most palatable in three seasons, namely winter, spring and autumn. The reason is that the flesh of Beijing duck is full and tender during winter and spring. In the fall the sky is clear and seems higher as a result, the air is refreshing, and both the temperature and humidity are appropriate for making roast duck. What is more, duck are generally fat and stout at that time.
August is the time when air is crisp and temperate for the season. It is the proper occasion for tasting roast Beijing duck. How can you count yourself as one who has been to Beijing if you have not eaten any roast Beijing duck?

The era of airline travel has allowed us to travel the world and connect in ways that have never existed before. We can visit family overseas and travel anywhere in the world within 24 hours. Isn’t that amazing?

With all this ability to travel, we are also faced with the expense of such travel.

For the many who would like to find cheap air travel, we’ve put together the follwing tips.

The first thing you need to know is that you never need to pay ‘list price’. Airlines have many tiers of pricing, and the same seat can sell for prices differing in the hundreds of dollars, depending on where, when and how it is purchased. Ask the Professionals: Your first step would be to ask your travel agent for advice on when to purchase airline tickets. He or she will be able to give you some guidance as to which airlines offer discounts and when. For instance, some airlines offer ‘earlybird’ pricing, and some also drop their prices as the trip date gets closer if no one has purchased the seat. Get a Promotion: If a scheduled flight is full to capacity or overbooked, some airlines will offer complimentary upgrades in seat class to selected passengers. Although this is less common than it used to be, it still happens occasionally. Your best shot at being selected for such an upgrade is to arrive for your flight dressed in a clean-cut, professional manner, and to be polite. You can even try asking at the check-in counter if there is any chance you can get an upgrade – they may offer it to you if such a perk is available, or may offer it at a lesser price than you would have paid when booking. Success will depend on many factors, such as the mood and authority level of the ticket attendant and the way you ask for it. Note that they may also need to move passengers around for weight-and-balance purposes and can offer a better seat to assist in this process – you never get anything if you don’t at least ask! Also, you can sometimes get a free or discounted flight by being on an ‘overbooked’ flight and being willing to wait until the next one can be arranged for you, but this is not something you have any control over. Flexibility: Are you flexible in your travel times or dates? By going ’standby’ on an airline, you can hang out and wait until a seat becomes free or someone cancels, and can often get cheaper last-minute tickets. ‘Pre-owned’ Tickets: For an array of reasons, people buy tickets and their plans change. When those tickets are non-refundable, they may try and sell them to receive at least some of their money back. This is good news for you, as you can take advantage of some discounted prices (remember, if they don’t sell their tickets they get nothing, so anything they can recover is of help to them). On-sale airline tickets can be found many places, such as your local classifieds, craigslist, kijiji or backpage or other online classifieds, and auctions such as ebay. Try google as well to search.

For even more money-saving travel tips, be sure to get your copy of the Travel industry Secrets guide found at Travel-like-a-pro.com — the guide can save you money on ALL your travel expenses from now on!

This article is about the China vacations and you can find some useful information in it if you are planning your China travel now.

If music, dance and food is what you are looking for, then head to any of the popular Beijing pubs and bars. The best part of the Nightlife in Beijing is Beijing pubs and bars. Have a rocking time in some of the best bars of the world in Beijing.

Generally Beijing pubs and bars open around 5 or 6 in the evening and stay open until late night leaving everything else in Beijing with closed shutters. Featuring a perfect fusion of everything that you could ever dream of enjoying during nightlife in Beijing, Beijing pubs and bars welcome one and all.

There are people from all over the world in Beijing and you can find lots of interesting pubs here in Beijing.

1. Wan Long Bar,tel:65072617 ,Music: European and American pop and classical music, passenger capacity: 50 people.
This is the first bar in Beijing. As a pure sports bar, You can see many StarSport TV programs and golf games, football games.

2.YinHao Bar,Tel: 68911672, Music: piano, violin. Passenger capacity: 60
This is the best soccer bar in Beijing. You can find team flags,logos of Bayern,AC Milan,Barcelona,etc. It is a place for the real soccer fan!Also, this bar provides the real Italian cuisine.

3. Express Bar, Tel: 64362288-2610,music: pop,light music, Passenger capacity: 60 people.
You can see Formula One and other international car race games here everyday.There is a billiards table in the bar. You can play it while listening to the music.

4. SWING Yun-sheng Bar,Tel: 64159196 ,Passenger capacity: 30 people.
This is a typical rock and roll bar in Sanlitun and refuses soft music. You can swing with the strong rhythm. This is why this bar called “swing”.

5. NO.52, Tel: 64164697 ,Music: light music, pop.
This bar is located in the 52 SanLiTun Street and it provides 52 types of cocktails. It also has a special “No. 52 cocktail”. The coffee here is imported and very authentic. This bar is very quiet during the day and the guest can enjoy the band’s live performance in the night.

6. JAMHOUSE, Tel: 65063845,Music: pop,modern,Passenger capacity: 20 . (A good place for your China vacations)
The meaning of JAM here is “free to do it”.A famous Chinese music star Cui Jian was a performer here. There is a large balcony in the 2nd floor.JAMHOUSE is small, but you can see some great performances and music here.

7. CDJAZZCLUB,Tel :65108877-3032, music: Jazz ,passenger capacity: 110 people.
It is a senior Jazz bar in Beijing and a place for the real Jazz fans.Professional Jazz decoration,high ceiling,grand piano in the stage,great sound system,dark red curtain, all of these make people have the urge to applaud.

8. Charging bar, tel: 65064471 ,music: rock and roll,capacity: 40 people.
Like rock and roll? You can get lots of rock and roll music here.When you just get in, you will be affected by this bar’s attraction. Hard rock is the way to express your deepest feeling in the heart.

9. Boys & Girls Bar,Tel: 64166777, music: pop and modern, passenger capacity: 150 people (A good option for your China vacations)
It is famous of its previous performers.

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This article is about the China vacations and you can find some useful information in it if you are planning your China vacations now.

There are many good French restaurants in Beijing (as a Beijinger, I think these info can be very helful for your Beijing travel and China vacations, ):

1. French Bistro:
You can feel the unique French Bistro culture here and the good atmostphere will help you to relax. The steak and red wine are very “French” in this restaurant. The address is: 10 Dongsanhuanbeilu, 1st floor of the Great Wall Hotel, Chaoyang District, Beijing. Office hours: 18:00 – 22:30. The cost is about 150 rmb for a person.

2. Brasserie Flo:
Brasserie Flo is a famous brand from France. Brasserie means homely dishes in French and Flo is a very popular one in these Brasserie restaurants. The expense is not high here( about 150 rmb for a person ). You can find all kinds of classic French dishes here. Lots of Beijingers like this place. The address is: 16 Dongsanhuanbeilu, 2nd floor of the Longbo square (north east of the Changhong Bridge), Chaoyang District, Beijing. Office hours: 11:30-14:30, 18:00-23:00.

3. Bleu Marine:
This restaurant has very good toast beefsteak and pepper sauce. The dishes here are in the south French style. The address is: 5 Guanghuaxili, Chaoyang district, Beijing. Office hours: 11:30-14:30, 19:00-22:30. The cost is about 100 rmb for one person.

4. Justine’s:
It is a old French restaurant founded in 1982 (Beijing branch). Justine’s is many people’s favourite French restaurant in Beijing. You can get very traditional French dishes here and this restaurant is the only place for you to eat the Gold Kobe Steak ( I love it, ) in Beijing. The address is: 5 Jianguomenwaidajie, Jianguo Hotel, Chaoyang district, Beijing. Office hours: 6:00-10:00, 12:00-14:30, 18:00-22:00. The cost is about 200 rmb for one person. ( You can find more information about China vacations and Lhasa travel at Travel2ChinaInfo Dot COM )

5. Maxim’s de Paris:
This restaurant starts its business in Beijing from the year of 1983. I remember that my colleague have dinner with his girlfriend here in valentine’s day. Lots of Beijingers like this French restaurant. You can see the live band shows here and the atmostphere is romantic. The services are not bad but the dishes are not always so good here(it denpends on which chef cooks your dinner). The only thing which is always good here is the ice-cream, .  The address of Maxim’s de Paris is: 2 Qianmenxidajie, Chongwen Hotel, Chongwen District, Beijing. Office hours: 11:00-14:00, 17:00-22:00. The cost is about 150 rmb for one person.

6. Le Bistort des Chateaux Cafe& Restaurant:
The chef here is very famouse. Address: 3 Jianguomenwaidajie, 1st floor of the Jinglun Hotel, Chaoyang district, Beijing. Office hours: 9:30 pm – 2:00 am. The cost is about 200 rmb for one person.

7. Cuisine Galley:
The French chef here has 29 years of experience. The menu is also produced by him. There are also some interesting dishes that combine the French style and the Chinese style in this place. The address is: 2 Dongjiaomingxiang, Novotel Xinqiao, Dongcheng district, Beijing. Office hours: 11:30-14:00, 17:30-21:30. The cost is about 150 rmb for one person.

8. Frist Star:
The chef-Benson here has more than 15 years of experience (worked for the famous French restaurants such as La Couple, Wangfu Hotel, FLO). The atmostphere here is very romantic and you can see some Chinese movie stars here if you are lucky.   The address: 18 Xiaoyunlu, Chaoyang district, Beijing. Office hours: 11:00-23:00. The cost is about 150 rmb for one person.

Copyright belongs to Travel2ChinaInfo Dot COM .  You can find more information about lhasa travel,beijing flights and china vacations from our web site.
NOTE: Permission is granted by the copyright owner to disseminate this article in whole or in part provided credit is given to the author (with a link to the article’s source URL Travel2ChinaInfo Dot COM ) and this NOTE is not removed.

Looking for some exemplary Chinese restaurants in London? If your only experience of Chinese food is in takeaway form you have been seriously missing out. The best Chinese restaurants in London have been steadily getting better and better. With Tamarai, Kai Mayfair and Yauatcha racking up column inches as quickly as they can print the newspapers, the finest Chinese restaurants in London certainly justify getting dressed up for an evening out.

Is your mouth watering at the thought of the authentic and traditional flavours of Chinese food? Do you want to know where you can go to get some of the best Chinese food in London? Then look no further than our London Chinese restaurants directory. You’ll get access to a list of restaurants in the London area that can create for you a variety of mouth-watering flavours distinctive of China. So you can fulfill your craving for sweet and sour pork or for hot and sour soup. Tamarai is good place for eating out in London.

Tamarai is on Drury Lane, which is famous for pan Asian food. Tamarai’s on the pricey side, but it’s completely gorgeous. It’s a bit like a really classy discotheque: lights pulse on the jet-black walls around you. The tableware and glasses are steal-ably cool, and the music is nice, funky, and unobtrusive.

The restaurant serves Pan Asian cuisine and seats 110 for lunch and dinner with an additional bar capacity of 200. Rare among London restaurants, guests dining at Tamarai can enjoy a late night license and complimentary parking in the building below.