CCC guides you to north Xuanwumen area, southwest Beijing within second ring road. We will meander along New Culture Street and pass by many historical celebrities and buildings and learn related history and fascinating stories. 

We will first visit the Republic Era building of Lu Xun School, which was the former Beijing women's Normal Collage, where writer Lun Xun lectured here during 1923-1926, Xu Guangping, a student of this collage later became his wife. ; Lun Xun wrote "In memory of Miss Liu Hezhen" after the death of the girl student Liu Hezhen and others during the March 18 Massacre.

Then we will pass the Prince Keqin (Qunwang)'s Mansion (one of the eight one of eight great families in early Qing Dynasty), where it was the private mansion of Xiong Xiling, who was appointed by Yuan Shikai as the Premier and Finance Minister in 1913.

We will also visit the Former Residence and Museum of Li Dazhao, chief librarian and professor of history at Beijing University, co-founder of the Chinese Communist party with Chen Duxiu in 1921. He was the first important Chinese intellectual to support the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia and began to study and lecture on Marxism. His career was cut short when he was seized and hanged by the warlord Zhang Zuolin, but his ideas of a revolution of the impoverished peasantry were brought to fruition by Mao Zedong.

The "Cathedral of the Saviour" is a surviving western church in Beijing. It was designed and built by Bishop Charles Perry Scott, Church of England, in 1907 with the money from Boxer's Indemnity from Qing Government. It served until 1958 as the seat of the North China diocese, after which it was decommissioned. From that period until its restoration in 1996, the building served at various times as warehouse and workshop.

Liu Ren's Papercut House is another surprise of this tour. This is the only papercut artist in Beijing who owns a courtyard style studio and open it as a private museum.

We will then vanish in the winding hutongs and of course we will always encounter local residents in their neighborhood playing chess, the elderly sitting in front of door basking. Or you will see workers delivering coals with their three wheel cart to the courtyard houses, bycycle man repairing tires and second-hand goods vendors hawking, etc.

Meeting place: in the lobby of Grand Mercure Hotel, (hotel number 66036688, for directions only), XuanwumenNei Dajie, Xidan, Beijing. CCC staff will hold a flag waiting you in the lobby.

The nearest subway:
Xidan (Line One, exit E, then turn left and walk to the main intersection and turn left again to the Xuanwumennei Dajie, the hotel is along the street.) 
Xuanwumen (Blue Loop Line).


About the CCC "Backstreet Beijing" Walking Tour Series
This is a cultural tour series designed to rediscover some of Beijing's old districts and lanes .We will walk through areas which used to be bustling with interesting popular shops, theaters, shrines and temples and residences of important people. Over 20 walking routes have been carefully designed by CCC since 2004, covering almost all areas of old Beijing within the second ring road or beyong. CCC guides will take you back in time to rediscover the history of the lanes and get a glimpse of the authentic atmosphere of old Beijing. Along the way you'll meet some unplanned surprises, some long-time, elderly residents and interesting characters, including descendants of famous people. You'll hear their stories of the streets and neighborhoods and of China in the past century. Of course, architecture, design, the artwork of the courtyards, and other cultural aspects will be discussed as well.

Note: This series is for lovers of Beijing lore and history and those who like to walk . The talks and discussions will be detailed and the walking/tour time will be 3-4 hours or more. Each tour will be limited to 20 people.