Sanlitun
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sanlitun (三里屯) is a bar street in eastern urban Beijing, China. It is situated in Chaoyang District.
Sanlitun's bar streets are well known throughout Beijing. Withstanding several threats to be closed down, it was fashionable with the expat community, though curiously not with the Chinese community. Since about 2002, this situation has now largely reversed, with Sanlitun main street in particular being far more popular with the Chinese than with the foreign community.
Soft drinks, hard drinks and an entertainment variety (live bands, etc.) are commonplace in most bars.
Bars run from the northern street through a (very busy) crossing with Gongti North Road to a southern street, which has fewer bars and is relatively laid back.
The Yaxiu (雅秀) clothing market, a popular shopping destination for locals and foreigners alike, is situated alongside this street.
[edit] History
Prior to 1949, the Beijing Legation Quarter was the center of diplomatic acitivity in the capital. After the foundation of the People's Republic of China, the government wanted to move the diplomatic district outside of the inner city and Sanlitun was chosen as the area where foreign legations and embassies were to be reallocated in the late 1950s. The area was called Sanlitun to designate its location from Dongzhimen gate. Tun, like dian (e.g. Shibalidian), means no more than "locality". San li means "three li", and a li was 0.5 km -- thus, Sanlitun was 1.5 km away from Dongzhimen Gate.
Sanlitun's bar business grew when, along with the reforms of the late 1970s and early 1980s, bar serving at first to expats and later to locals as well started to grow, first in international hotels, and then outside of hotels as well. Sanlitun only became a hub of bars in the mid-1990s.
The small lane known as "Nan Jie" was demolished in the summer of 2005 to make way for new buildings. However, bars and restaurants continue to operate on both sides of Gongti Bei Lu.
[edit] Tips for foreigners
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Sanlitun can be a great place to spend an entire weekend, as most bars in the area stay upon until 4 AM, some of them stay open even later. There are, however, a few caveats that the wise traveler would choose to heed:
- Never accept an offer to go to a "Lady Bar." These places can sometimes be rather foul, and the people who want you to come to them will do anything to get you there. The best way to deal with someone who approaches you asking if you would like to go to one is to quite loudly and firmly say "No." Do not pretend that you don't speak English (even if you don't) or Chinese (if you happen to be of Chinese ancestry) as that will only goad them into following you until you understand what it is they are trying to get you to do. If you do end up in a "lady bar" unsuspectingly, do not talk to anyone. It is very common for foreigners to be tricked out of large amounts of money by being charged for talking to anyone in such places- and these bars have the muscle ready and waiting for anyone who feels like they shouldn't pay.
- The best bars in the Sanlitun area are not actually located on the main street. The bars found on the main street are often overpriced, the entertainment in them is often very poor, and the pressure from the barkers outside the bars on the main street is often unbearable. Instead, most Beijing-savvy travelers will head west down the small taxi road (which is divided by the familiar white fence) that branches off of the main street, and find better bars in the surrounding area.
- Be wary of the vodka in most bars. Although most places pour their vodka from Stolichnaya bottles, oftentimes it is not Stolichnaya. The vodka that they actally give you has been reported to cause some people to have uncomfortable things happen in their digestive tracts.
- Beginning cab fare changes from 10 yuan to 11 yuan in the later hours of the night. This can change from driver to driver. Also, subways close at midnight in Beijing, but don't expect to be able to get on one after 11:30. Taxis will often begin to line up outside subway entrances when they close down.
