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Autumn in Beijing, it's so good to live it again

By Daniel Garst (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-10-25 08:00

Autumn in New York, why does it seem so inviting? Autumn in New York. It spells the thrill of first-nighting Autumn in New York, it's good to live it again.

These lyrics to Vernon Duke's 1934 bittersweet ode to fall in the Big Apple could also certainly be said about Beijing in September and most of October.

Although April is my favorite time in the city, mainly because of the spring flower blooms, autumn here ranks a very close second. It offers a welcome change from my least favorite season in the capital - summer.

I still cannot get used to summer's endless succession of foggy, cloudy days, when the air is thick and steamy, wrapping itself around one like a hot and heavy wet blanket. The season is so gloomy and oppressive, and matters are made worse by the impact of the clouds in trapping the acrid smog.

However, in late August, just when I feel like moving from the capital, temperatures start to fall and, after that month's last big thunderstorm, the air finally clears and blue sky days become the norm.

From mid-September through mid-October, it's always comfortably cool outside. I want to spend every waking hour outdoors, exploring the city's streets and hutong or relaxing in its numerous outdoor cafes and restaurants, taking in a leisurely meal and a drink or two.

During this period, Beijing is bathed in a soft and almost magical light. It's the perfect time to view and photograph the city's still considerable extant historical architecture, many striking contemporary structures and beautiful parks. If I happen to be in the vicinity of the Gulou Dajie, I head over to one of its many cafs with rooftop terraces to sip a glass of wine and watch the sun set over the neighborhood's courtyard houses. It really makes me feel alive again.

But unlike April, the fall palette of colors here adds a bittersweet touch to this sense of renewed life. April's brilliant natural color is defined by the blooming flowers and is vibrant with the promise of life. The fall's natural color, provided by tree leaves turning red at the botanical gardens and Fragrant Hills, is certainly gorgeous. However, it has a more subdued and melancholy air, forecasting the rapid onset of winter.

Autumn in Beijing brings an added bonus, namely not just one, but two holidays. The authorities, of course, have sought to encourage tourism by making the National Day holiday into a weeklong break from work, and many Beijingers have seized this opportunity to take extended vacations to other parts of the country. However, I prefer to stay put and really savor this special time of year in Beijing.

Beijing is perhaps China's premier tourist destination, so it's crowded with visitors during the National Day holiday. Places like the Forbidden City and Summer Palace really become, as the locals would say, a "people mountain, people sea".

But there are plenty of other places those of us who stay here can visit that are not so crowded. For example, the White Clouds Temple, Beijing's most important Taoist shrine, had very few visitors when I went there during the most recent National Day holiday. And during last year's National Day holiday, I enjoyed a very pleasant and crowd-free afternoon at the beautiful courtyard house in Houhai that used to be the residence of Madame Soong Ching Ling.

Indeed, even during the National Day holiday, people searching for quiet solitude amid nature can actually find it in urban Beijing, in the lovely Olympic Forest Park. The park was another of my destinations during that holiday last year. While its south end was filled with people, the paths on its north side, behind the small knoll in the park's center, were practically deserted.

Finally, there is the weather. Last autumn, residents of Beijing enjoyed five days in a row of pitch-perfect blue-sky days. On one of those days I visited Madame Soong's old residence and before going there, while having lunch on the rooftop terrace of a nearby Houhai cafe, I could see the high towers in the distance off in the CBD area.

Like all good things, autumn in Beijing comes and goes much too quickly. Following mid-October, the weather quickly begins to turn cold, telling us that winter is just around the corner. But for about two months, I say to myself every day: "Autumn in Beijing, it's good to live it again."

(China Daily 10/25/2010)