5-minute Hutong Journeys
Bada Hutong & the Brothels of Dashilar
In the early 1900s, prostitution was legalized in Beijing. A trade that had existed in a grey zone outside the city wall ever since the capital was built was now placed at center stage. A new breed of republican customers – not least politicians – made the brothels multiply. The lawmakers needed private spaces to discuss their views and reach agreements. Some republican politicians who were publicly against prostitution argued that privately they had to go to the brothels, otherwise they would simply not be at the table when important decisions were made.
The Water World of the Hutongs
How was it possible to supply the million strong population of Beijing with grain during the dynasties? The short answer is: water. Today we have all but forgotten the Hutong waterways, but they are still running under our feet.
Guild Halls of Old Beijing
The trades of Beijing were originally controlled rigorously by guilds. A person that conducted business without obtaining a permit from the guild authorities would often have his tools confiscated and sometimes he would even be imprisoned inside the guild hall. The city government would not interfere because controlling a trade was seen as purely a matter of the guild.
The Merciless World of Beijing Opera
In in his remarkable 1927 book “Sidelights on Peking Life,” Robert Swallow delves into the merciless world of Beijing opera. He recounts that “the system is hard and in many ways a cruel one, the youngsters being herded together in dark insanitary rooms, and no mercy is shown to those who fail to satisfy the demands of their instructors. In fact the system is known tas hsi（打戏）,“beating” (in) the theatrical (idea), and the stick was, and is still looked upon as its only means of persuasion.”
Hutong Ghost Stories
In Confucius’ Analects, the great philosopher acknowledges that ghosts exist, but he also advises people not to disturb the spirits of the underworld. However, when Robert Swallow lived in the Hutong alleyways of Beijing in 1927, he collected so many strange tales and descriptions of haunted houses that it seems that not everybody listened to the old sage….
Street Vendors of the Hutongs
“Almost everything that the Chinese householder needs may be bought at his door” Robert Swallow wrote in 1927, does that sound familiar compared with today?