I could easily list 10 things I do not like about Beijing, but at the same time I could list twice as many that I love about the city, which has been my home for 10 years.

我可以轻松列举出我不喜欢北京的10 个理由，但同时也能列举出我爱北京的20 个理由。北京是我生活了10年的家。

2 As the country’s capital, Beijing has the best of everything China has to offer,from technology and culture to talented people.I love life in the cosmopolis,with its modernity and convenience, and the international exposure it provides.

2 作为中国的首都，北京拥有中国所能呈现的最好的一切，从科技到文化到人才。我喜欢这个国际大都市的生活，享受它的现代和便利，以及它提供的国际交流机会。

3 I like the part of Beijing life that connects the present and the past, such as the retired men who gather in Jingshan Park for “bird walking” (morning walks carrying their caged birds), people fishing in the Liangma River, and the wormwood hung on the gates to the Dragon Boat Festival to ward off misfortune.

3 我喜欢北京生活中连接现在与过去的那些场景，比如退休的大爷聚集在景山公园遛鸟（早晨拎着鸟笼散步），人们在亮马河钓鱼，临近端午节在门上悬挂艾草辟邪。

Where to live: Haiyuncang Hutong

在哪儿住：海运仓胡同

4 Haiyuncang Hutong mixes the modern with the name means“barn storing grains that were transported by sea”.It is an old community full of life, 3km north-east of the Forbidden City,the vast imperial palace in central Beijing.

4 海运仓胡同融合了现代与传统。它的名字意思是“储存海运谷物的粮仓”。这是一个充满活力的老社区，位于紫禁城——北京市中心庞大的皇家宫殿——东北方向3 公里处。

5 Every morning, our neighbourhood of apartment buildings, home to some 10,000 people, is full of parents sending children to school on their bicycles,grannies holding bags of vegetables from the morning markets and old men practising t’ai chi in the park.

5 我们这个小区约有1 万居民，每天清晨，小区附近都是骑着自行车送孩子上学的父母、拎着早市上刚买的一袋袋蔬菜的大妈，还有在公园里打太极的大爷。

6 Across the street are rows of traditionalhutong(narrow alleyway) houses,along with restaurants, schools, cultural spaces, barbershops and mah-jong rooms.

6 街对面是一排排老式的胡同（狭窄的小巷）房，还有餐馆、学校、文化空间、理发店和棋牌室（可打麻将）。

7 If I want a taste of “modern” Beijing, five minutes on the trolleybus takes me to Sanlitun, one of the city’s most dynamic, fashionable and international areas, full of interesting bars, nightclubs,fancy hotels and flagship luxury stores.

7 如果想领略“现代”北京，只要搭乘无轨电车，5 分钟就能到三里屯——北京最有活力、最时尚、最国际化的地方之一，尽是有趣的酒吧、夜总会、豪华酒店和奢侈品旗舰店。

Where to have dinner

去哪儿吃

8 Beijing has several good Yunnan restaurants, but In ＆ Out, which is part of a chain, is the one I go to.The cooking in southern China’s Yunnan province is famous for its freshness and use of me, it has the best mushroom dishes of any Chinese cuisine.

8 北京有几家不错的云南餐厅，而我常去的那家连锁餐厅名叫“一坐一忘丽江主题餐厅”。云南省位于中国南部，其烹饪以新鲜食材和使用药草闻名。我认为云南有全中国最好的菌菇菜。

9 The In ＆ Out near the Workers’Stadium sports complex is spacious and simply decorated, with greenery and artwork from ethnic minorities such as the Yi and Hani.The waiting staff are from Yunnan, and are always willing and proud to answer my questions on

9 这家店靠近工人体育馆，店面宽敞，装修简单，摆放了绿植及彝族、哈尼族等少数民族的艺术品作为装饰。服务员都来自云南，对于我关于他们家菜肴的提问，总是乐于回答，言语满是自豪。their dishes.

Where to discover art

到哪儿探寻艺术

10 Songzhuang art colony in the city’s eastern suburbs is the biggest concentration of artists in Beijing, numbering of their works are reflections on social issues.

10 宋庄艺术区位于北京东郊，是北京最大的艺术家聚集地，聚集了几千名艺术家。他们的很多作品都反映了社会问题。

11 As the area has become more famous, however, property developers have been eyeing it up, and many galleries and studios have already been artists themselves, who embody a spirit of free thinking and creativity, remain committed to fighting to retain their community.

11 然而，随着宋庄艺术区的名气越来越大，房地产开发商也瞄准了这里，很多画廊和工作室已被拆除。代表着自由思想和创造精神的艺术家们依然全力争取保留他们的社区。