Walking around Beijing

[Publishing note -- my time stamp is 13 hours behind the actual time for me here since I cannot update my computer clock. I am just now catching up on posts due to access issues in my new hotel]
On Sunday I ventured out of the hotel in search of an ATM and took a look at the Financial District of Beijing,




Most of the Financial District is new and there are a fair number of US establishments (always with an asian twist). There is also a very high-end shopping mall with boutiques for all of the major designers. It was mostly empty of customers however.



You periodically encounter some old structures and I've come to learn that the whole area looked somewhat like this before the new buildings went up.

The bikes, by the way, were all unlocked. I guess theft is not a concern in these parts!