Beijing makes a splendid scene in winter, says Gary Yu. The photo shows him on the frozen Kun Ming Lake at Beijing's Summer Palace.

Since I left Beijing, the past two years have gone in a blink of an eye. But my memory of the city is like yesterday on the calendar, with the last page only just turned over.

To give you a taste of Beijing, I won't take you to the built-up financial streets in the west or the luxurious CBD in the east. We can also skip the Chang An Avenue that traverses the capital, and the magnificent Forbidden City and Royal Gardens. Let me instead share with you the feel of Shi Cha Hai (Shi Cha Sea), a perfect place to enjoy the city's grassroots life.

Although called a sea, Shi Cha Hai is in fact a lake covering about 40 hectares. In the eyes of older Beijing residents, it is not simply a lake looking to wards the open sea; to them it "chants a timeless tone" and defines their feelings of home and freedom. Among native Beijingers, the ability to "see the world in a grain of sand" is commonplace.

Shi Cha Hai is located in downtown Beijing, north-west of the Forbidden City. It is a Xanadu where typical traditional "Hutong" residences and culture are preserved alongside the city's dazzling modernisation program. Shi Cha Hai consists of "the Front Sea" and "the Back Sea", with Yin Ding Bridge (the Silver Ingot Bridge) standing between them.

"The Sea" is surrounded by numerous "Hutongs", the best known being Yan Dai Xie Jie (Crooked Smoke Bag Road). A back street no more than 4.5 metres wide, it is crowded with stores decorated with classic elegance, selling all sorts of handicrafts from old Beijing. An old man sits in a shabby cane chair having a cosy nap, birdcages hang on wooden door beams, a half-naked man squats in front of his door grasping an emerald cucumber, carrying a huge bowl and gulping the fat, chewy, doughy noodles with soy bean paste. It is a timeless picture of grassroots Beijing life.

But Shi Cha Hai is also turning into another bar district like San Li Tun. Different kinds of bars stand in rows near the water. When night falls, ripples in the water reflect the lights from lanterns and neon signs. People in twos and threes either wander leisurely or drink together talking in whispers, as gentle sea breezes infuse the age-old district with the latest elements of fashion.

Contact: Claudia Liu

Phone: 02 9351 3191

Email: 31542006253a17273131602927315a533f