寻找旧北京|胡同
Hutongs (simplified Chinese: 胡同; traditional Chinese: 衚衕; pinyin: hútòng) are a type of narrow streets or alleys, most commonly associated with Beijing, China. In Beijing, hutongs are alleys formed by lines of siheyuan, traditional courtyard residences.[1] Many neighbourhoods were formed by joining one siheyuan to another to form a hutong, and then joining one hutong to another. The word hutong is also used to refer to such neighbourhoods.
Since the mid-20th century, the number of Beijing hutongs has dropped dramatically as they are demolished to make way for new roads and buildings. More recently, some hutongs have been designated as protected areas in an attempt to preserve this aspect of Chinese cultural history.
Following the founding of the Peoples Republic of China in 1949, many of the old hutongs of Beijing disappeared, replaced by wide boulevards and high rises. Many residents left the lanes where their families lived for generations for apartment buildings with modern amenities. In Xicheng District, for example, nearly 200 hutongs (24 pc) out of the 820 it held in 1949 have disappeared. The Beijing Municipal Construction Committee stated that, in 2004, some 250,000 square metres (25 ha) of old housing 20,000 households would be demolished.
However, many of Beijings ancient hutongs still stand, and a number of them have been designated protected areas. The older neighborhoods survive today, offering a glimpse of life in the capital city as it has been for generations.
Many hutongs, some several hundred years old, in the vicinity of the Bell Tower and Drum Tower and Shichahai Lake are preserved amongst recreated contemporary two- and three-storey versions.
source： Wikipedia
I spent the most time in the hutongs during this trip...wandering from one hutong to another...sometimes getting disorientated. It is not easy to find hutongs in their original condition. Most have been torn down and rebuilt, in the midst of being demolished or already upgraded to attract the tourist dollars. I'd to move into the inner lanes to see the old hutongs.
>hutong play...
>hutong life...
>hutong life...
...tbc
, or Dashanzi Art District, is a part of Dashanzi in the Chaoyang District of Beijing that houses a thriving artist community, among 50-year old decommissioned military factory buildings of unique architectural style. It is often compared with New York's Greenwich Village or SoHo.
