Michael Crain moved to Beijing five years ago as Chief of Staff at the U.S. Embassy. After completing his tenure at the Embassy, Michael opened his own consulting firm, eventually merging his business with the global law firm Bingham McCutchen, LLP. While not seeking out new restaurants to keep his ever-expanding waistline sufficiently stretched, he enjoys finding new apps on his iPad, Laffy Taffy, 80’s sitcoms and the smell of fresh cut Texas grass in the summer rain. He has two adopted Chinese twin daughters who keep him both motivated for the future and longing for the days of uninterrupted weekend naps. His wife Joanna is currently in the process of becoming the first living person officially canonized into sainthood for tolerating his shenanigans for the past 11 years, 13 if you count the two years Michael spent convincing her of his worthiness as a life partner. In an effort to do his part for those less privileged and as an excuse to keep eating at all of Beijing’s amazing restaurants, he founded Chi Fan for Charity (www.chifanforcharity.org) three years ago and is thankful for the wide-spread support the event has received. As a special thanks to Beijing for its amazing support, Michael agreed to share his all-time favorite places in his perfect day in Beijing!

My perfect Day

First and foremost, for it to be a perfect day not only would traffic not be an issue but the city would definitely be free of pollution that day too. True blue skies, here we come!

My days start early. Not because I want them to start early but because I don’t sleep that much, so this day would be no different. I am sure I would brew some Earl Grey tea, glance at the China Daily, check emails and then grab my girls Mackaylee and Mackenzie and head off to Ritan Park, which is a short walk from our apartment. The serene atmosphere found early in the morning is almost enough to make you forget about the 20 million other Beijingers out there. But when two three year olds invade the scene, everything changes. The locals are always kind to the laowai with the twin girls who arouse much curiosity.

We then make our way to the pool at the Westin Chaoyang Hotel for a quick dip, and if I’m lucky, a quick spin in the whirlpool for a minute or two of relaxation. Next stop, Chaoyang Park, where the girls love to run in the grass and chase those huge metallic flying saucer baloons. They’ll beg me to buy one and, of course, I’ll cave. We’ve packed a picnic lunch. Maybe the amazing sandwiches from Hercules or a special preparation from Chef Daniel at Mosto, who wins the record in my book for most consistently good meals ever produced. Unfortunately, M&M still need naps so we’ll come home after whiling away the lunch hour in the sun.

While M&M are home napping with the ayi (yes, she is probably napping too), my wife Joanna and I head to the Summer Palace. We’ll trek to the top of the hill and look out over the lake – a beautiful, majestic site. Before departing, we wander around the lake and gaze at the sea of lotus flowers near the water’s edge. After changing for an evening out, we hit Atmosphere on the 80^th floor of the China World Summit Wing Hotel. Remember, it is a blue sky day in Beijing, so the view of the vastness of Beijing leaves us pondering our existence as we sip mojitos (cue island music in our heads).

We then jaunt, as having no traffic makes one amazingly efficient, over to Capital M for one of their unmatched infused concoctions. The fiery red sunset over Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City is incomparable on a night like this one. We meander down Qianmen imagining what the street may have looked like in its heyday 100 years ago, and I ponder if H&M offered the same great styles at the same great prices even back then. While the food at Capital M is outstanding, we have made plans to meet friends at Black Sesame Kitchen in Nanluoguxiang. Candice is a friend, so it is almost like she is hosting us in her own kitchen. We share stories, eat and drink until the wee hours, which makes Candice a little nervous as all-you-can-drink wine and beer is included in the very reasonable price.

My perfect day ends with a foot massage at Bodhi where we wind down and then beg someone to carry us home or at least to the car. On the way home, we have a change of heart and head to the airport to catch a plane to Shanghai or Hainan where I am crossing my fingers that we would get another perfect day tomorrow!

 

Ritan Park 日坛公园

Daily 6am-8pm (summer), daily 6.30am-8pm (winter). 6 Ritan Beilu, Chaoyang District (8561 6301)

朝阳区日坛北路6号

 

The Westin Beijing Chaoyang 金茂北京威斯汀大饭店

7 Dongsanhuan Beilu, Chaoyang District (5922 8888)

朝阳区东三环北路7号

 

Chaoyang Park 朝阳公园

Daily 6am-10pm (last entry at 9pm). 1 Nongzhan Nanlu, Chaoyang District (6506 5409)

朝阳区农展馆南路1号www.sun-park.com

 

Hercules

Daily 11am-midnight. 2/F, Tongli Studio, Sanlitun, Chaoyang District (6415 0299)

朝阳区三里屯同里2楼

 

Mosto 摸石头

Sun-Thu noon-2.30pm, 6-10pm; Fri-Sat noon-2.30pm, 6-10.30pm. 3/F, Nali Patio, 81 Sanlitun Lu, Chaoyang District (5208 6030)

朝阳区三里屯路81号那里花园3层

 

Summer Palace (Yiheyuan) 颐和园

Daily 6.30am-8pm (last ticket 6pm); 7am-7pm (Nov-Mar: last ticket 5pm). Yiheyuan Lu, Haidian District (6288 1144)

海淀区颐和园路 RMB 30 (Apr-Oct), RMB 20 (Nov-Mar), students half price.

 

Atmosphere

Mon-Fri noon-2am, Sat and Sun noon-4am. 80/F, China World Summit Wing, 1 Jianguomenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District (6505 2299 ext 6433)

朝阳区建国门外大街1号北京国贸大酒店80层

 

Capital M

Mon-Fri 11am-2.30pm, 6-10.30pm, Sat-Sun 11.30am-5pm, 6-10.30pm (afternoon tea between 2.30-5pm). 3/F, 2 Qianmen Pedestrian Street (southeast of Qianmen), Chongwen District (6702 2727)

崇文区前门步行街2号3层

 

Black Sesame Kitchen

3 Heizhima Hutong, Dongcheng District (136 9147 4408, blacksesamekitchen@gmail.com) 东城区黑芝麻胡同3号 www.blacksesamekitchen.com

Bodhi Therapeutic Retreat 菩提会所

Daily 11am-12.30am. 17 Gongti Beilu, Chaoyang District (6417 9595) 朝阳区工体北路17号 www.bodhi.com.cn