The Joy of Six: Huangqu

This month, we’ve checked out all the stops on Line 6 to tell you about the gems that you shouldn’t wait to discover in our station-by-station Going Underground special.

SELLING POINT
Shop till the leaves drop.

GREENERY
It’s Changying Park by name, but closer to Huangqu station by the lay of the land. A direct translation would be “Regular Business Park” and it’s true to the name if your regular business includes such things as admiring the ginkgo trees, playing oversize chess and dabbling with diabolo (in the cunninglymonikered Diabolo Square). If you want to switch up your regular pavement pounding, there’s also a jogging trail which clocks in at one click so you can easily measure when you’ve clocked up your eight kilometers for the day. Those who miss the falling foliage that gives the season its name will not be disappointed in the near-750,000 square meters of arboreal parkland.

SHOP
Most of Beijing’s French-style hypermarkets are not that accessible by any mode of transport other than taxis. Well, no longer. Exit D leads straight to Auchan Supermarket. This is great if you want to do your Friday Big Shop in a less crowded environment; take advantage of the bulk-buying behemoth and its pocket-friendly prices. The only downside is that to bring those groceries home, you’ll have to subject said groceries to the glare of the Huangqu station’s X-ray machines, so you might not escape the judgment of Beijing’s subway security squadron.

This article originally appeared on page 18 in the February issue of the Beijinger.

Photo: Lova