Trending in Beijing: Hot Pot Quests, Fully Electronic Train Tickets, and the D&G Shitstorm

The fun, the strange, and the what-on-earth-is-this: a wrap-up of top stories in Beijing as told by the trending hashtags, local press, and general power of the internet. 
 

1) If you can only choose three ingredients to put in your hot pot, what would they be?

The Chinese internet is asking truly important questions this week, and what is a more essential element for getting through Beijing winter than steamy and fiery hot pot?

Weibo netizens are pondering the hashtag #如果火锅只能吃三样菜# (if you can only eat three ingredients in your hot pot) and pulling their hair trying to decide what those three magical ingredients should be. Two distinctive camps are visible: those who head straight for the meat and veg, and those who prefer to discuss the finer points of sauce and condiments (garlic, vinegar, sesame paste etc). While some are playing honestly and choosing bamboo shoots over potatoes, and shrimp over pork, others are trying to be smart: "choose vegetables, meats, and a staple food." From where we stand, this last recipe sounds a lot like using one of your three wishes to ask for unlimited wishes...
 

2) A series of unfortunate events for Dolce & Gabbana 

Domenico Dolce may still be quite dolce* but Stefano Gabbana needs to stop gabbin'**. This all comes after cack-handed D&G video, which as supposed to express the brand's love for China, but completely missed the mark and backfired given that it relied almost entirely on tired, outdated stereotypes about Chinese women. As if that wasn't bad enough, screenshots from a conversation between Stefano Gabbana's account and a fashion editor on Instagram were published, in which the designer raged against the ad being pulled, and equated China to feces emoticons, among other things. Chinese stars promptly began boycotting a scheduled D&G Shanghai fashion show, and it was eventually canceled. Click through for a more detailed story here.

Amongst the top 10 hashtags trending on Weibo, a whopping four are about the story.

While the company issued an apology, claiming that their accounts were hacked, few netizens accepted the statement. Some even used the post as a moment for self-betterment, using red to point out the grammar mistakes in the post itself. 

This is not the first time D&G has incensed the Chinese public; last year they came under fire for a photoshoot which depicted Beijing as a poor, underdeveloped city, which to be fair, parts of it are (it was in these parts where the photoshoot took place).

D&G's PR SNAFU wasn't the only Instagram-based controversy last week. As we reported on Thursday, The Rosewood Hotel Beijing had to do some pretty awkward backpedaling after a poorly-thought-out Instagram post by their hotel manager incensed the public.

*sweet
** talking
 

3) Electronic Train Tickets 

Forget standing in queues only to be redirected to another side of the station because you can't actually pick up your ticket from the place you've just stood patiently for the past hour because electronic train tickets have indeed arrived. Well, if you're the lucky holder of Chinese passport or a residence permit, at least. The pilot project will begin on Nov 23 in Hainan, and if it goes well we can only assume that the rest of the country will follow. 

Netizens are following the cutting-edge developments under the hashtag #电子火车票来啦#, with many hoping that the system will be implemented nationwide in time for Spring Festival. "Maybe then I can get a ticket home" one netizen mused. 
 

4) You on your best friend's camera roll

With all the beautified, filtered, and otherwise altered-beyond-comparison selfies flooding the internet every day, the occasional hashtag calling for the ugly pictures is a true breath of fresh air. The hashtag #闺蜜相机里的你# (you on your best friend's camera) calls for the posting of candid and natural shots of what true beauty looks like. Malicious? Sometimes...

It's not clear whether the pictures are being posted with the consent of their subjects, but let's just say with pictures like those above, it's unlikely. Time to grab your friend's phone and start deleting!

Now Urine Trouble: 'Racist' Instagram Post by the Rosewood Hotel Manager Incences Netizens

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Email: tautviledaugelaite@thebeijinger.com

Images: Weibo