Going Underground: Jianguomen

Jianguomen, Lines 1 and 2

Selling Point

Not long ago, Jianguomen was one of the city’s busiest stations. When there were only two lines subway lines in Beijing, which were called the East-West Line and the Circle Line (now lines 1 and 2, respectively), this station was the entry point for many foreign residents and visitors, with the Diplomatic Residence Compound at its northeast corner. It was a long walk from two of Beijing’s original, five-star hotels, the Jianguo and the Jinglun, but easier than booking a taxi and somewhat more scenic. Today, the Jianguomen station is a key interchange, taking line 1 riders from as far away as Tongzhou to other stations around the inner city, and vice-versa. The area is home to numerous embassies, including Mongolia, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Poland and Albania. There’s a lot to see and do in this area, making it a convenient and important stop in our underground city.

Trade

The Silk Market has always been one of the area’s biggest draws, from its earliest days as an awning-covered alleyway to today’s multi-storey shopping mall. Five hundred meters east of Jianguomen’s northeast exit, find here silk garments of varying quality, shoes, electronics, and souvenirs. It’s one-stop shopping for kitsch and tchotchkes to take home. Other stores nearby offer more of the same, with slightly better quality and somewhat higher prices.

If quantity is trumping quality on your shopping list, venture 300-400 meters north of Jianguomen’s northeast exit to the Russian Market. This series of stores caters to traders visiting primarily from Russia and Mongolia, and are buying furs, clothes, and simple electronics in bulk. There are some deals to be had, but try to buy more than one, bargain hard, and, well, learn some Russian or Chinese first.

Given its proximity to the Silk Market and other foreign-oriented shopping outlets, it’s also appropriate that the International Post Office is based there, as it is probably the best place to get all those items shipped home. Walk about 300 meters north along the Second Ring Road side road from Jianguomen’s northeast exit. Prepare for a bit of struggle: in order to ship packages abroad, the container, whether it’s a box or padded envelope, needs to be purchased at the post office, although packing material can be brought from elsewhere. Bring a passport or Chinese ID and be prepared to fill out multiple forms in triplicate. Packages must be left open for inspection prior to sending, and boxes will be machine-sealed. It will take a couple of hours, and shipping packages may take a couple of months to receive, but it’s certainly less expensive than baggage charges.

Sightsee

As all of line 2 recalls Beijing’s long-gone city walls, one of the best reasons to alight at Jianguomen is the Ancient Observatory, just outside its southwest exit. The Ming Dynasty emperors had a strong interest in astronomy, and this observation point was built in 1442 on what was then one of the highest points in the city (really). In the 17th century, Jesuit knowledge of astronomy and Jesuit interest in working with the ruling dynasty led to the observatory being placed under the auspices of Father Ferdinand Verbiest. The site is now administered by the Beijing Planetarium, and offers occasional, Chinese-language talks and observation of celestial bodies in Chinese. Admission is RMB 20, from 9am to 4pm.

About 300-400 northeast of Jianguomen’s northeast exit is Ritan Park (Temple of the Sun Park). Extraordinarily pleasant and frequented by local visitors, this was once one of four sacrificial altars (not human, of course) where the emperor would come to pray for good harvests. More recently, the altar area at the park’s center was used by U2 producer Brian Eno for a sound installation. It’s a great place to watch early morning taiqi, sit in the shade and read, or watching grandparents play with their grandchildren.

To the south is Dongbianmen Watchtower, another former gate to the Inner City that now houses Red Gate Gallery that regularly holds art exhibitions, about 500 meters south of the station’s southwest exit.

A version of this article appears in the September 2013 issue of the Beijinger

Photo: wallpaperstravel.com