Living and working in Beijing

by Jerry Guo on

I spent a chunk last year living and working in Beijing, something that I’ve always wanted to do. I grew up in Tianjin, which is an hour’s train-ride outside the capital, and so I have fond memories of the place.

There’s been so much press–and no doubt it’ll consume us completely by this summer–on Beijjing’s rampant growth and construction, leading up to the Summer Olympics this August.

But what tourists this summer will be drastically different than what goes on the other 50 weeks of the year. Here’s a gallery of life for ordinary Beijing-ers, as well as shots from Beijing’s famous snack street (there are actually two near the Wangfujing subway stop) and general nightlife.

Hope I’ll see you in Beijing come August.

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The modern couch potato

by Jerry Guo on

While I was backpacking across Peru the last couple weeks, I kept hearing about couch surfing. (And not the lazy TV-watching kind). Apparently it’s become the rage of late, traveling not hostel to hostel, but couch to couch.

The most established organization–and nonprofit to boot–that connects you to complete strangers who will host you while you’re traveling is the Couch Surfing Project. We introduced it last year, when it was already a couple years old (but still considered in its infancy).

Now it’s hit prime-time. Membership has apparently tripled in each of the three years it’s been up, averaging roughly 5,000 new members each month. The editor of Budget Travel, Erik Torkells, nicely sums up the reasoning behind the phenomenon’s booming popularity. “If I couch surf I could be on some cool ex-pat’s or local’s sofa. I’ve already leapfrogged barriers. It would take weeks under ordinary circumstances to get in someone’s home.”

I think the next time I’m in South America, or anywhere else, I’m going to try being a couch potato.