0 What Does China Think? and The Beijing Consensus

I've purchased a number of cheap used books on Amazon.com over the past couple years. Access to low-priced titles on very niche topics - like Chinese politics - is one of the many wonderful benefits of the internet. I've found some really nice gems doing this. What I'm finding often times, though, is that there's a reason books are available for a dollar or two.

What Does China Think? by Mark Leonard and The Beijing Consensus: Legitimizing Authoritarianism in Our Time by Stefan Halper are a couple cheap books that were misses for me. They're not really about the same thing, but I'm going to discuss them together since I don't have much to say about either.



Leonard's What Does China Think?, published in 2008, is a survey of intellectuals spanning China's ideological spectrum. Leonard, the executive director of the European Council of Foreign Relations, thinking that the balance of power was moving east turned his attention towards China around the turn of the millennium. Over the course of several years, he developed an impressive rolodex of relationships with influential Chinese thinkers and profiled those thinkers' ideas in his book.

Halper's The Beijing Consensus, published in 2012, is about how China is creating a new world order that eschews traditional western notions of democracy. Halper, a Henry Kissinger acolyte, like Leonard, has an impressive resume that spans academia and government service.

Leonard and Halper both know their stuff. Their books are intelligent, well-researched, and full of information. I didn't enjoy reading them, though.

What Does China Think? and The Beijing Consensus are too wonky and theoretical for me. I took away little from them. All of the talk in them about the "new left," the "Washington/Beijing Consensus," think-tanks, soft power, etc. wore on me. I was simply bored as I read page-after-page and chapter-after-chapter. I struggled getting through both of these books (even though they aren't particularly long), was happy when I finally finished them, and couldn't remember much about either after having just finished them.

Detail: What Does China Think? and The Beijing Consensus

0 Top 10 Attractions to See in Beijing

As the capital of the super power China, Beijing is expected to live up to the nation’s reputation – which it undoubtedly does. That is why many travelers find it a great need to visit the city and witness for themselves the spectacular of this city.

1. Great Wall

The Great Wall of China is perhaps the most famous attraction in the nation, and a famous point of entry to the area is in Beijing. Walking on this great fortress which is hailed as a Wonder of the World is definitely a one-in-a-million experience.

2. Forbidden City

Another famous destination in Beijing is the Forbidden City. An imperial palace complex which was founded several centuries back, it features imposing buildings and structures which basically symbolize the glory of Chinese history.

3. Tiananmen Square

Known as the largest central city square in the world, the Tiananmen Square is an icon of Beijing. More so, it serves as a home of culture and history as within its vicinity, many notable buildings are situated. This includes the National Museum of China, Tiananmen Tower, Mao Zedong Memorial Museum, etc.

4. 798 Art Zone

Also known as the Dashanzi Art District, the 798 Art Zone is a 0.6-kilometer area in Shanghai which concentrates on featuring modern arts. There are many galleries, exhibition halls, studios, even fashionable shops located in the area; making tourists enjoy it more.

5. Qianmen Street

The famous Qianmen Street is located in the center of Beijing City. It is a pedestrian street which holds a history of over 500 years. Tourists would love the area because the absence of transportation and the presence of Chinese-styled shophouses contribute to a good background for photo ops.

6. Beijing Bell & Drum Towers

Bells and drums are typically used for musical purposes but for many early Chinese people, these two instruments are also used to tell the people what time it was. Visiting the Beijing Bell & Drum Towers will surely enlighten a lot of tourists about this unusual yet interesting fact about the city’s history.

7. Beijing Zoo

Tourists who wish to see those cute pandas in person can buy cheap flights to Beijing and visit the Beijing Zoo. Situated in Xicheng District, this zoo also features other animals which the whole family would surely enjoy looking at. It also has an aquarium which displays various marine creatures.

8. Stone Flower Cave (Shihua Cave)

Located in Fangshan District is the wonderful and scenic Stone Flower Cave. It features impressive stalactite and stalagmites formation, which beauty is emphasized with colorful lights. The experience it provides people is truly worth remembering!

9. Beijing Botanical Garden

An A-grade composite scenic spot, the Beijing Botanical Garden is undeniably a must-visit when in the city. The place boasts of different themed gardens which showcases the different plants and trees in the city. Aside from tourism, the garden also helps in scientific research and studies.

10. Taoranting Park (Joyful Park)

With its more than 50 hectares of land emanating a cultural feel, the Taoranting Park is definitely a spectacle. It features not just plants and ponds, but also pavilions. There is also a beautiful temple in there.


Beijing is such an interesting city to delve deeper into. Visiting it is not much of a problem as cheap tickets to the city are easily available to the traveling public.

Detail: Top 10 Attractions to See in Beijing

0 Xijiao Hotel, Beijing, China

Located in the popular Haidian district not far from the centre of Beijing, the Xijiao Hotel is a good comfortable choice if you are trying to avoid the extremely high prices in the capital. Do not expect world class luxury; think of class, casual sophistication and a warm atmosphere.

Set in pleasant gardens, the Xijiao Hotel is a good place to stay whilst enjoying a tour of the city or even if you are here on business. Not far from the Olympic Building, the shopping centre, the Beijing Language University and the subway station, it is perfect as a base to get around Beijing.

The exterior has a distinctive Asian-meets-20th-century look to it and inside it is much the same. The reception staff are very friendly and look presentable (although management itself could take a leaf out of their books and smile once in a while), and the design continues.

The Xijiao Hotel offers 475 guest rooms and suites, all overlooking the lush blooming courtyard (in spring and summer, in winter it is a landscape of hauntingly beautiful snow and ice). Standard rooms are quite spacious for Beijing hotels, decorated in warm buttery tones and Pan-Asian mahogany furniture. They are located in the heart of the courtyard and while there are no balconies, they do have fantastic views.

The Executive Luxury Rooms are by far the best here. With top-of-the-range bathrooms with tubs you can just sink into, welcome baskets of fruit and flowers, a separate seating srea, these rooms get a big thumbs up.

The Xijiao Hotel has a restaurant to suit any craving you might have – the Xiyuan Seafood restaurant serves up anything that can be found in the sea; the Ginkgo Western brings American and Continental breakfasts to life in this sun drenched restaurant; the Dongyuan is the height of traditional Chinese cuisine; the Shanyuan is casual dining at its very best and you can relax after a hard day’s tour of the city by relaxing in the Yiyuan Coffee bar with either a coffee or a special drink.

If you don’t fancy the crowds in the city, explore what the Xijiao Hotel has to offer; you won’t be disappointed. The swimming pool is fantastic, the bowling alleys fun, the tennis courts professional and the spa facilities some of the best in the city. With both traditional Chinese and Thai treatments, you may never want to explore Beijing.

With meeting rooms that can hold up to 400 people, a banquet hall and top of the line equipment, the Xijiao Hotel certainly delivers all business expectations.

Detail: Xijiao Hotel, Beijing, China

0 Top 10 Attractions to See in Beijing

As the capital of the super power China, Beijing is expected to live up to the nation’s reputation – which it undoubtedly does. That is why many travelers find it a great need to visit the city and witness for themselves the spectacular of this city.

1. Great Wall

The Great Wall of China is perhaps the most famous attraction in the nation, and a famous point of entry to the area is in Beijing. Walking on this great fortress which is hailed as a Wonder of the World is definitely a one-in-a-million experience.

2. Forbidden City

Another famous destination in Beijing is the Forbidden City. An imperial palace complex which was founded several centuries back, it features imposing buildings and structures which basically symbolize the glory of Chinese history.

3. Tiananmen Square

Known as the largest central city square in the world, the Tiananmen Square is an icon of Beijing. More so, it serves as a home of culture and history as within its vicinity, many notable buildings are situated. This includes the National Museum of China, Tiananmen Tower, Mao Zedong Memorial Museum, etc.

4. 798 Art Zone

Also known as the Dashanzi Art District, the 798 Art Zone is a 0.6-kilometer area in Shanghai which concentrates on featuring modern arts. There are many galleries, exhibition halls, studios, even fashionable shops located in the area; making tourists enjoy it more.

5. Qianmen Street

The famous Qianmen Street is located in the center of Beijing City. It is a pedestrian street which holds a history of over 500 years. Tourists would love the area because the absence of transportation and the presence of Chinese-styled shophouses contribute to a good background for photo ops.

6. Beijing Bell & Drum Towers

Bells and drums are typically used for musical purposes but for many early Chinese people, these two instruments are also used to tell the people what time it was. Visiting the Beijing Bell & Drum Towers will surely enlighten a lot of tourists about this unusual yet interesting fact about the city’s history.

7. Beijing Zoo

Tourists who wish to see those cute pandas in person can buy cheap flights to Beijing and visit the Beijing Zoo. Situated in Xicheng District, this zoo also features other animals which the whole family would surely enjoy looking at. It also has an aquarium which displays various marine creatures.

8. Stone Flower Cave (Shihua Cave)

Located in Fangshan District is the wonderful and scenic Stone Flower Cave. It features impressive stalactite and stalagmites formation, which beauty is emphasized with colorful lights. The experience it provides people is truly worth remembering!

9. Beijing Botanical Garden

An A-grade composite scenic spot, the Beijing Botanical Garden is undeniably a must-visit when in the city. The place boasts of different themed gardens which showcases the different plants and trees in the city. Aside from tourism, the garden also helps in scientific research and studies.

10. Taoranting Park (Joyful Park)

With its more than 50 hectares of land emanating a cultural feel, the Taoranting Park is definitely a spectacle. It features not just plants and ponds, but also pavilions. There is also a beautiful temple in there.


Beijing is such an interesting city to delve deeper into. Visiting it is not much of a problem as cheap tickets to the city are easily available to the traveling public.

Detail: Top 10 Attractions to See in Beijing

0 Beijing Qianyuan International Business Hotel, China

"Hotel reviews: Beijing Qianyuan International Business Hotel, China"

In a fairly convenient location in Dongcheng District, the Beijing Qianyuan International Business Hotel is a comfortable if not bland choice of accommodation in the capital of this colourful country.  A good point about this particular hotel is the fact that it is not far from the brilliant night food street - Dongzhimen Street – famous for being the place where every style of Chinese cuisine can be found.

There are 202 rooms and suites placed in different categories – executive suites, deluxe rooms, business rooms as well as standard rooms. At £45 per night for a standard room and much higher rates the further up you go on the upscale ladder, you would expect the rooms to be much better. Sadly, not the case.

Not to say that the rooms are hideously ugly or worse, uncomfortable, but they are fairly featureless.  Pale colours on the walls, relatively comfortable bedding, and dim lighting – décor is not the Beijing Qianyuan International Business Hotel’s strong point. In the smarter rooms and suites, there are more amenities and larger windows which make stays more enjoyable.

Do not expect fine dining at the Beijing Qianyuan International Business Hotel, but what it does serve is very good. The restaurant is located on the third floor and provides guests with a selection of Western and Chinese meals. The menu may be as boring as the décor, but the food is tasty and after all, that’s what you want from a restaurant.

It is a good thing that the Beijing Qianyuan International Business Hotel receives marks for its good location otherwise travellers would be disappointed with it. Leisure activities fall a little short in this regards – there is a souvenir shop in the hotel, plus a hair salon and a tour desk, but that’s it. If you are looking for a hotel with a gym, sauna, spa facilities or swimming pool to pamper yourself with after a hard day’s exploration of the city, you won’t find them here.

The tour desk, on the other hand, is fairly decent. The staff here, although who could certainly do with learning how to smile a bit more, provided good information about the various tours in and around Beijing.

As a hotel catering primarily to business travellers, this is the area where the hotel shines more brightly than any other aspect of it as a whole. The business centre is comfortable and practical and the equipment just as good.

Detail: Beijing Qianyuan International Business Hotel, China

0 Beijing Sha Tan Hotel, China

Yeah, Very few hotels in Beijing can offer such a fantastic location as the Beijing Sha Tan; with the Forbidden City literally just around the corner and Tiananmen Square not far, this hotel is extremely popular with independent and business travellers from around the globe.

A solid three star hotel funded by CNPC Petroleum, the Beijing Sha Tan is a blend of traditional Chinese features with modern designs, a mixture that works wonderfully well. The lobby has incorporated the traditional red lanterns into a fantastic lighting system, a tall Ming vase stands next to a modern Asian mural and potted plants makes it feel unique.

Rooms at the Beijing Sha Tan are decorated in simple and tasteful ways. Rooms are quite spacious for Beijing and come in a range of different categories. The triple rooms are perfect if you are bringing the family along with you and need more space; the deluxe double, standard and suites also have ample space for a comfortable stay here.

No matter which type of room you choose, your rooms are decorated in creams and muted gold tones with good quality red textiles. The triple and deluxe rooms have wall to wall windows where you can bask in the beauty of this ancient city.

When it comes to dining at the Beijing Sha Tan, the only way to describe the restaurant is ‘ancient China in the 21st century’. The tables and chairs are set in rows down two lines on either side of the room, with wooden and glass floors and innovative lighting on the ceilings and walls.

The restaurant serves good quality food from the southern regions of the country, mainly Fujian, Hunan and Sichuan. The menu is solid, but for a treat order the Purple Dragon – a Hong Kong seafood dish that is so fresh it’s almost still swimming on your plate.

In addition to the restaurant, the hotel also has a bar-cum-pub where guests can relax with a drink after a hard day’s exploration or meeting.

The Beijing Sha Tan is a good solid choice if you want a hotel with leisure facilities. With a casino to gamble away a few yuan, a few souvenir stores to purchase some gifts for family back home, a tour desk to arrange different excursions in and around Beijing, plus a beauty salon to pamper yourself in, the Beijing Sha Tan has everything you need for a comfortable stay.

The Beijing Sha Tan offers a choice of three conference rooms, all elegantly and practically designed, making any business meeting a pleasure. Each room has all the necessary equipment you will need. We give top marks for the reliable and informative business staff here.

Detail: Beijing Sha Tan Hotel, China

0 Hotel reviews: Novotel Beijing Sanyuan Hotel, China

Novotel Beijing Sanyuan Hotel, China - Conveniently located in Chaoyang District, the Novotel Beijing Sanyuan looks just like another mid range hotel found anywhere in the world – towering, box windows and uninspiring manicured grounds. However, inside is a totally different story.

The designers obviously couldn’t do much with the exterior so they devoted all their energy into the interior. As soon as you step through the glass doors, the hotel screams a 1980 modern design. Complete with orange reception desks, zebra printed rugs on the floor, little square chocolate leather boxed seats, and weird textured walls, the Novotel Beijing Sanyuan was obviously meant to be industrial chic. However, it falls short in the ratings for design.

This industrial chic design has been applied to the guest rooms and suites. Fortunately, they seem to work a little better here than what they do in the reception and public areas downstairs. Bedrooms are quite comfortable, spacious and contemporary. Think creamy walls, lots of heavy dark wooden trimmings and furniture topped off with red leather.

Bathrooms are wonderful to soak away the stresses of international travel. One of the best things about the rooms is that they are incredibly bright – through natural and artificial lights.

The Novotel Beijing Sanyuan has a restaurant, bar and lounge for guests to sample. The Square is a good place to sample both national and international fusion dishes, all with freshly prepared ingredients.

The setting is, obviously, ultra modern; heavy wooden floorboards, granite pillars, leather trim – but this design actually works in here. Along with artistically presented dishes, The Square Restaurant is by far the best feature of the Novotel Beijing Sanyuan.

The lobby bar is such an eye-sore – think garish zebra printed rugs, uncomfortable leather box seats and displays of weird looking art. If you love the 1980s then you may actually like it. Traditionalists will absolutely hate it. However, the dreamy cocktails may improve it in your eyes.

The Novotel Beijing Sanyuan receives a few gold stars for its leisure activities. The swimming pool is of a decent size and the gym facilities good in a bright setting, but it is the spa treatment centre which gets the highest marks here. In addition to this, the tour desk offers some amazing tours in Beijing and around the rest of the country.

Through extensive experience, the Novotel Beijing Sanyuan has built up a good reputation for its business services. The meeting rooms here look the best rooms in the entire hotel and feature everything a company could need. Wonderfully, each meeting rooms is named after a different dynasty.

Detail: Hotel reviews: Novotel Beijing Sanyuan Hotel, China

0 Redwall Hotel Beijing, China

Redwall Hotel Beijing, China - Few hotels in Beijing can boast of prime location, but the Redwall Hotel Beijing can hold its head up high above the rest in this. Wonderfully situated in the Commercial Centre in Dongcheng District, the Redwall Hotel is a stone’s throw away from the Forbidden City and the Imperial Park.

The shiny glass façade allows the hotel to shine out and the interior is no different. Instead of using glass in the reception and public areas, the hotel shines through the marble floors, the polished cherry wood furniture and the brilliant smiles of the highly informative and friendly reception staff.

With around 200 guest rooms and suites, the Redwall Hotel provides oodles of space that you will find extremely difficult to find in Beijing. Even the single rooms can adequately house up to five people.

Rooms are simply decorated, with rich colours on the walls and undemanding furniture (chairs, a table and dressers). The beds are comfortable enough to get a good night’s sleep after a hard day’s work or touring the city. The only thing that could be improved in the standard rooms would be to provide more lighting – the rooms do seem a little dim.

Business rooms are the best rooms here. Not only do they feature a comfortable king sized bed with nice linen, but there is enough room to hold a party, wall to wall windows with billowing curtains, plus a good working and sitting area. Perfect for business travellers, whom the hotel caters primarily for.

The Redwall Hotel’s Chinese restaurant serves up some fantastic dishes, both Chinese and Western. The black mirrored ceiling is adorned with red and cream lit lanterns, the tables decorated in red and gold silk, white linen and balloons. The garish table decoration catches your eyes so that you don’t realise that the rest of the restaurant seems a little dull; however, the food here is surprisingly good even if the menu is as boring as the restaurant.

There is also the Glanviue Coffee Bar where you can sink into one of the comfiest red sofas and sip on a coffee or other beverage and catch up with newly found friends.

The Redwall Hotel has some surprisingly good leisure facilities. The beauty salon and the health centre offers first-class treatments by professionals; the sauna room is good for relieving stress and for those who want to exercise their brains, the chess rooms is a great place to provide a challenge.

The Redwall Hotel mainly advertises its services to business people and as such, they provide some fantastic business services. There are two main meeting rooms, large enough to hold most conferences, plus all the first-class equipment and a beautiful banquet hall.

Detail: Redwall Hotel Beijing, China

0 Xijiao Hotel, Beijing, China

Located in the popular Haidian district not far from the centre of Beijing, the Xijiao Hotel is a good comfortable choice if you are trying to avoid the extremely high prices in the capital. Do not expect world class luxury; think of class, casual sophistication and a warm atmosphere.

Set in pleasant gardens, the Xijiao Hotel is a good place to stay whilst enjoying a tour of the city or even if you are here on business. Not far from the Olympic Building, the shopping centre, the Beijing Language University and the subway station, it is perfect as a base to get around Beijing.

The exterior has a distinctive Asian-meets-20th-century look to it and inside it is much the same. The reception staff are very friendly and look presentable (although management itself could take a leaf out of their books and smile once in a while), and the design continues.

The Xijiao Hotel offers 475 guest rooms and suites, all overlooking the lush blooming courtyard (in spring and summer, in winter it is a landscape of hauntingly beautiful snow and ice). Standard rooms are quite spacious for Beijing hotels, decorated in warm buttery tones and Pan-Asian mahogany furniture. They are located in the heart of the courtyard and while there are no balconies, they do have fantastic views.

The Executive Luxury Rooms are by far the best here. With top-of-the-range bathrooms with tubs you can just sink into, welcome baskets of fruit and flowers, a separate seating srea, these rooms get a big thumbs up.

The Xijiao Hotel has a restaurant to suit any craving you might have – the Xiyuan Seafood restaurant serves up anything that can be found in the sea; the Ginkgo Western brings American and Continental breakfasts to life in this sun drenched restaurant; the Dongyuan is the height of traditional Chinese cuisine; the Shanyuan is casual dining at its very best and you can relax after a hard day’s tour of the city by relaxing in the Yiyuan Coffee bar with either a coffee or a special drink.

If you don’t fancy the crowds in the city, explore what the Xijiao Hotel has to offer; you won’t be disappointed. The swimming pool is fantastic, the bowling alleys fun, the tennis courts professional and the spa facilities some of the best in the city. With both traditional Chinese and Thai treatments, you may never want to explore Beijing.

With meeting rooms that can hold up to 400 people, a banquet hall and top of the line equipment, the Xijiao Hotel certainly delivers all business expectations.

Detail: Xijiao Hotel, Beijing, China

0 The Forbidden City in Beijing - China

Beijing may well be an enormous city, returning in second as a result of the most important city in China. It's additionally the capital city of the country and was formerly the seat of the dynasties, Ming and Qing. The Imperial Palace from every these dynasties is currently said because the Forbidden city in Beijing – China. The Forbidden city in Beijing – China is situated right at intervals the guts of city, at intervals the Dongcheng District.



The Forbidden city in Beijing – China could also be reached via the subway or bus. There are a subway lines that you just can take to attain this specific sight: Line one and Line a pair of. For Line 1, you may alight from either the Tiananmen West or Tiananmen East Terminal. From now, go towards the northern side until you reach the Gate of Heavenly Peace and then walk past this upon that you will reach the South Gate of city.

For Line 2, alight at the Qianmen Terminal and then walk towards the Gate of Heavenly Peace all over again until you reach the South Gate. For buses, there are several utterly completely different routes that you just can take to attain the Forbidden City: bus numbers 101, 103, 109, 124 likewise as 814, 202 and 685 will take you straight to the Forbidden city Terminal.

The Forbidden city in Beijing – China may well be an enormous sophisticated that homes just about a thousand buildings with around eight thousand and seven hundred rooms. The sophisticated is enclosed at intervals the Imperial city; the Imperial city is enclosed by what is said because the Inner city and south of the Inner town is that the Outer town.

The City usually has two parts: the Outer Court and so the Inner Court. The Outer Court was mainly used as a section where special ceremonies are held whereas the Inner Court was where the Emperor lived. This was additionally used as an workplace of sort for daily affairs of the Emperor. One notable structure is that the Hall of Supreme Harmony that's that the largest of the structures at intervals the sophisticated, standing at just about a hundred feet. It's additionally the most important surviving wood edifice at intervals the country. Surrounding the sophisticated are gorgeous gardens. It's additionally currently home to the Palace Museum where collections from the Qing Dynasty are on show, among different things.

The Forbidden city in Beijing – China was created some time at intervals the year 1406 beneath Yongle Emperor, Zhu Di. It took around fifteen years to complete the full sophisticated. This humongous enterprise required over 1,000,000 laborers and so the wood used was a special moderately wood found solely in SW China.

Between the years 1420 and early 1644, city served as a result of the seat of presidency for the Ming Dynasty. From October 1644 up until regarding 1911, it had been the seat of the Qing Dynasty. At intervals the year 1912, the Forbidden city not served as a result of the seat of presidency for the country when the last Emperor of China abdicated the throne beneath the new government of the Republic of China. By 1924, it ceased to be the residence of the emperors of China. it had been enlisted as a UNESCO World Heritage web site at intervals the year 1987.

The cost to travel to the Forbidden city in Beijing – China is 40 CNY from the primary of November until the thirty first of March, and 60 CNY from initial of April until the thirty first of October.

During special holidays, the number of people allowed to travel to the Forbidden city in Beijing – China is additionally restricted. Throughout these times, sure components of city could also be closed. It's steered that you just initial check the schedule throughout special holidays before your visit.

Detail: The Forbidden City in Beijing - China