The Bar Bonanza 
cctv.com 03-25-2005 17:38
Today we鈥檙e going to be visiting some cities and towns around china.Looking into and checking out one of life鈥檚 more pleasant pleasures!
Connected to the old emperors imperial gardens and great Bei Hai Lake.Shi Cha Hai, IN Beijing锛 represents a truly and very Chinese approach to bar design and development.
SHI CHA HAI is a fusion of delights of sights and sounds and atmosphere of people, nature, bars, restaurants and private homes.It鈥檚 a place to wander off and lose yourself, in the time-less-ness of old lanes and alleys and rediscover the REAL OLD Beijing.
In London, it鈥檚 Chelsea,in Paris, Mont Matre, in New York it鈥檚 Greenwich Village. Here, in Bj. it has to be SHI CHA HAI with its narrow, full of life streets that meander down to the lake.Seems like here, It really is possible to TURN BACK THE PAGES OF TIME.
There鈥檚 an old Chinese saying that, 鈥 A Broken mirror cannot be put back together again.鈥 BUT, fortunately, the mirror we can see, still reflects the customs and lifestyles of the ways it used to be. Here the romance of a bi-gone age can still be sensed and absorbed. Perhaps it鈥檚 this feeling that you can reach out and touch the past, that makes places like this in the world,so precious, so romantic and simply so comfortable to be in and come back.
When the sun goes down and the work day ends, a new type of phenomena is taking hold of the after hours night scene in small towns and large cities across china.
The great and still very influential Chinese sage and philosopher Confucius is said to have remarked"A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words" So, with that very insightful observation in mind, here are the sights and sounds of SHI CHA HAI as day dissolves into the shadows of night and the aspects of monochromatic beauty, transform into a technicolor world of fairy lights and twinkling color reflected in the sparkling ripples of the ancient waters of SHI CHA HAI lake.
In the many small and intimate bars of SHI CHA HAI we can experience the elegance of an understated Imperial influence.
This is Qing In Law. It was one of the 8 most famous and popular restaurants in Bj. over 200 years ago, during the Qing Dynasty. Today, it鈥檚 been given a new face and new personality. Today this historic bar stands as an observer, watching the changes that come with modern bar development.
So many choices and so little time,but if you do take the time to explore up a dark and winding staircase,you could just stumble across an amazing experience like this. No, it鈥檚 not a scene from the old Hollywood movie SHANGRILA. In reality we have just entered a slice of life from another world.Suddenly it seems like we 鈥榲e passed through a magic door that鈥檚 lead us directly in to the mysterious land of TIBET. Would you believe, here in the very heart of BEIJING. this totally authentic Tibetan Bar and restaurant is real in almost every detail. Look closely and you鈥檒l see everything and everyone HERE actually comes from the Tibetan Region.
This sure is an amazing and a fun way to indulge yourself in Tibetan culture and cuisine without the hassle, time and cost of having to fly to Lassa. All the waiters, cooks and waitresses are actually country people who have come here directly from their homes in Tibetan areas.
Here on bj鈥檚 famous san li tor bar street, not too far from the embassy district, would you believe there are over 200 bars and lounges, marching along, cheek by jowl in neat chronological order.And each offering something just a little different in size style and venue. It was here on this very street that today鈥檚 bar culture phenomena got started, in china, 25 years ago.
Now of course the really difficult decision, for anyone coming here for the first time, is deciding, which bar, from the dizzying number of choices, to go into and explore.
