Beijing '10 Day 5 - Taking On an Old Route, Food Delivery in Beijing

July 9, 2010 (Friday)

I really had no plans to go out but I had to eat. Getting invited to a night out with friends was an even better excuse to get me going. I had to look nice after all but I didn’t bring anything to make myself presentable because I really didn’t expect to make any friends here. I came here clad with my commuting and walking-all-day clothes, slippers and rubber shoes.

Originally, I was going through the new subway line but my instincts pointed me to my old bus route to Carrefour. Of course, I could not remember the stop name anymore but since the new subway stop’s name HuangZhuang 黄庄 sounded so familiar and there was the 307 bus stop with almost the same name, I decided to take a ride down memory lane. I knew it was after BeiDa (Beijing University) 北大 and ZhongGuanCun 中关村 and I would see a Chinese structure before the stop. I knew my instincts were right and I went down at HaiDianHuangZhuang 海淀黄庄. Carrefour was still the same but there were malls all around now with H&M, Uniqlo and other brands. I went to Sephora, bought what I came for then went home through the subway. As expected, it took a lot of turns and a winding path going up and down through the subway. I was better off riding the bus to WuDaoKou. It was way cheaper and did not require such effort. Trying to cover a stop or two by the bus is another matter though and is called stupidity. Going home, I tried to intersect the 466 Bus by one stop through a different route and it took me around 30 minutes to walk to that stop. It was a good exercise but a complete waste of time. It was a good practice though to reading Chinese characters through signs, at least you would know how to read complicated ones.

It rained so hard that the night out was cancelled. Food delivery at my Beijing apartment was the next best thing to do when you don’t want to go out of the apartment.


beijing IMG_3226

I used to have a collection of delivery menus with different cuisines in my Beijing apartment. When I go back to your home country, it was customary to give it to a friend, along with the cookware and laundry tools, who will stay or a newcomer who will learn this new culture.


Read more about Beijing:

Beijing '10 Day 1 - A Very Hot Welcome, Beijing in July
Beijing '10 Day 2 - At  HaiDian, Vegetarian Restaurant at WuDaoKou to Meet Up with an Old Friend
Beijing '10 Day 3 - Giving In to Korean Influence, Kimchi Rice, Kimbap and Koreanovela in Beijing!
Beijing '10 Day 4 - At The Golden Tripod & Lama Temple, Time Stops, Things Change and the World Goes On
Beijing '10 Day 5 - Taking On an Old Route, Food Delivery in Beijing
Beijing '10 Day 6 - Staying Awake on a Night Out
Beijing '10 Day 7 - The First Time’s the Charm
Beijing '10 Day 8 - Banking, Shopping & Commuting Tips
Beijing '10 Day 9 - In Time for the Lotus Season, the Festival at YuanMingYuan!
Beijing '10 Day 10 - Dumplings and Meatballs, YaShow Market & IKEA
Beijing '10 Day 11 - Trapped in the Rain, Eating Lamb Chuanr in Beijing!
Beijing '10 Day 12 - 798 Art District
Beijing '10 Day 13 - Tripping Through the Olympic Green, Bird's Nest & Forest Park
Beijing '10 Day 14 - Saying Goodbye With the Best Hutong Experience, SheShaHai, 100-Year Old Lamb Restaurant & NanLouGuXiang
Beijing '10 Day 15 - Going Home