The other side of tourism's golden promise

Several tourists excitedly hold their selfie sticks to take pictures. A young couple anxiously queue up for fried chicken chop and iced milk tea. A few cyclists ring their bells and shout "Out of the way, please", trying to get through the crowds.

If you want respite you can flee to the 16 narrow alleys that shoot off to each side from the main one. An elderly woman is pruning vegetables on the roadside. A few meters away from her house is a small bar decorated with pretty flowers and beer bottles from all over the world. Suddenly, a pedicab driver is passing by and recounting a tale about the hutong to his customers.

It is difficult now to imagine that business here was sparse in the early 2000s, just a few newish bars and restaurants in the central artery. It was just another one of those quiet Beijing residential hutong, with a few small shops and a hairdresser's.