Beijing's Ancient Hutongs | Welcome To My Local Neighbourhood (含中文字幕)

For three years I have lived in what I would consider the best location in Beijing. Right in the centre of the city is my local neighbourhood which is a series of alleyways which are called the Hutongs. Beijing's ancient Hutongs are a popular place as they really show the essence of the city. Around every corner is something interesting to see. In this video, I want to show you what makes my hutong neighbourhood so special.
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[@nileshbhattacharya2526]

Once you visit China, you will see the whole world like a vintage place ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ ...

[@relaxwhc]

Beijing: from polluted sky to clear blue sky, and the western media keep quiet about it 😂💥🔥

[@Nicofilms]

No, but people always think they grey skies in our videos is pollution when in fact it’s usually rain 🤣

[@glowndark1]

Why seek their verification? After all those misinformation about China, what makes you think they will report it as it is?

[@kevinchen7903]

Love how much research went into her works. Learn so much in her videos

[@Nicofilms]

Thanks!! I’m pleased you enjoy our videos and notice how much effort we go into.

[@lyx124]

My parents lived in a Siheyuan in their childhood, they could never imagine the shabby tiny dorms they were living in can turn into luxury mansions that worth a billion yuan😂

[@user-qs5yb7co3m]

Hi Nico, I am from Beijing. Now, I am in the Netherlands for grad school. No one in the Netherlands wears mask which makes me very anxious. I really miss home. I miss Beijing. I miss Hutongs. Your video reminds me of my home and ease my anxiety a lot. Thank you so much.

[@windyskye5039]

I love China the culture, food technology, landscapes, history, wimin and everything

[@windyskye5039]

@Rehan Ebrahim I did say everything but thx for reminding me of that

[@diandoushiwo9769]

wellcome to china!

[@Runningbowels]

I can see you retiring in China in a small rural village with a beautiful scenic view accompanied with lush green mountains.

[@wuhui]

Thank you for showing this beautiful part of old Beijing

[@Nicofilms]

I’m pleased you liked it. I love living here.

[@sjfbrkdnjrkdkajdjoajfok-2]

No one can imagine that a Siheyuan in Hutong can be valued more than 10 luxury high-rise apartments in New York.

[@soul832006]

The hutongs are a must to experience if you ever visit Beijing. We tried out 2 types in 2019. First was very small and traditional with electric pump for the toilet and literally a tiny living room and bedroom. Not much else. The area had a lot of character. The owner had setup the space well. Second place was a larger and very well kept complex. 4 buildings with a courtyard. We stayed in one wing with a huge living room/kitchen and bedroom. Complete with kitchen, dining table, fish tank, modern stereo, comfortable large bed, modern bathroom with seat warmer etc. Loved both experiences and how central they were to different parts of the city. First place felt a bit far away but we could walk along the river bank and we discovered a bar street and lively night market. Second place was much closer to Tiananmen. It's a shame that so many rentals are being removed from Airbnb at this time. It's hard to say what the future of travel to China will look like post pandemic.

[@ellashy6539]

what I love is the ancient architecture of one country and not the highrise skyscrapers, the landscape is just so beautiful and the community is so vibrant, now that is truly a gem of a country

[@Nicofilms]

Totally agree! I love that this is the centre of the city and not skyscrapers.

[@finnlam35]

Apart from the informative video, your attitude, preparation, seriousness, and presentation skills really convey the concept of ‘beauty’ Love from Hong Kong

[@relaxwhc]

If you enjoyed this video, raise your hand 🙋✋💥

[@Nicofilms]

🙌🙌🙌

[@windyskye5039]

🙌🙌🙌🙌✋✋✋✋🖐🖐🖐🖐🖐🙋‍♀️🙋‍♀️🙋‍♀️🙋‍♀️🙋‍♀️🙋‍♀️

[@budics2226]

🙋

[@AaronSchroder]

We visited Beijing in 2019 and checked out some hutongs near the Confucius museum. A great video that showed a real insight into those local communities. Thanks from New Zealand. 👍

[@shiwang8989]

We stayed in a hostel right inside the hutong and we absolutely love it! Can't wait visiting China again. Thx for sharing, be safe Nico!

[@Nicofilms]

That’s awesome! We did too when we were visiting there are some great places. 😁

[@JLiang-kv7hj]

I do like your videos. I can also show them to my friends both in China and those from western countries because there are Chinese and English captions which are very helpful. It is not easy and it is a lot of work. Thanks for the efforts. I also promote your videos to my students to know more about China. Thanks.

[@Nicofilms]

Thank you so much for this comment. We try our best to get them translated but it takes a lot of time and money but people seem to just expect it so I appreciate this comment.

[@Thumtwiddler]

I miss Beijing and most of all I miss the hutongs. Nothing like cycling around them on a summers day.

[@Nicofilms]

I couldn’t agree more! I love it!

[@STRATLOB]

visited one 3yrs back, hutongs have more direct sunlight.

[@davepsk7334]

Nothing better than a good old neigbourhood that's got charactor and friendly welcoming community. I could imagine myself retiring there.

[@Diesel735]

Interesting old place with lots of character. Doesn't appear to have homeless or druggies wandering around.

[@relaxwhc]

No homeless people, no tents 👍🏻🔥

[@rosesarered2432]

Beautiful area! so jealous you get to live in such a place!

[@Nicofilms]

I know we love it!!

[@CFLARROW]

I was there last week and might come by this weekend if I don’t have anything going on

[@ahhhlvin]

Loved it!

[@Mariobrownio1989]

The hutong homes are amazing!

[@Nicofilms]

They really are!

[@akraen1858]

Thank you so much for doing research and providing information in your videos. Many travel videos just show the sights, but it is great to also learn a bit!

[@alvinphk]

Hi Nico and Jack, I am Alvin from Singapore. Got to know of your channel through Bondie's youtube video. Thank you for sharing another perspective of China. Really like it. The first time when my wife and I went to Beijing was back in 1996. We had a good experience with a few of the locals who were very friendly and kind. One of them even invited us to have lunch at her home even though we just met each other at the Great Wall in the morning. After that, we went to China a few times with our young kids. China has many beautiful and worthy places to visit such as 张家界 (Zhangjiajie), Hangzhou and many more. Until our next trip, will watch the video on your channel to learn more about China. Thanks for sharing your lives in China.

[@Nicofilms]

Hi Alvin thanks for your message and sharing your story we really appreciate it! I’m pleased you found us, welcome to our channel!

[@rickd3777]

I’m from Beijing, and I’m happy to see this video!!

[@Nicofilms]

I’m pleased you liked it!

[@megaiang8133]

Nico one of the best China content youtubers, unbiased, rich content and amazing editting

[@MariaAlvarez-sm8bv]

Lovely video and explanation Nico!!!

[@Nicofilms]

Thanks a lot!

[@qin7989]

great quality video

[@cosmoray9750]

Thanks for the tour of your Hutongs. 👍

[@banja1470]

Great introduction about hutongs!

[@pcphilipchan]

Nico, good job!!!!!!

[@megthornton1371]

Thank you for this video

[@DannyChean]

Great content Nico! Lovely style with the narratives and nice shots.

[@Nicofilms]

Thank you very much!

[@shinesunbeam3677]

Miss my homeland and home city. Have not been home 2.5 years due to covid. Hope can go back soon.

[@byshagi]

great piece . the hutongs are my esxape

[@joewong438]

Thank you for your research and producing this interesting video. Looking forward to seeing more. Great job. Have been travelling for 20 years and it is refreshing to see something different and new!

[@sabinthopra6257]

You surely enjoying your time in hutong

[@Ringa-bz4rc]

This channel needs more subscribers👍

[@Nicofilms]

I agree! KZbin please share my content more 😂

[@chriswang6180]

Thumbs up, commented and subscribed long time ago!

[@Nicofilms]

Thanks a lot! Every time helps us out so we appreciate it.

[@phangliuca2362]

Fantastic ❤️ alleyway in Beijing

[@colinbrown1321]

Great interesting and informative mini documentary with a personal touch.

[@Nicofilms]

Thank you very much! I'm pleased you enjoyed it.

Very nice video. Living in Beijing myself, you did a excellent job in showing the life in Beijing that i love. I share that video on my facebook!!

[@Nicofilms]

Thank you very much!

[@frankgao6138]

Thank you for sharing and introducing my hometown to the world.

[@Nicofilms]

Thanks for watching!

[@1005332]

really loves the bars in hutong😂

[@cheese-df1yx]

you live in so special hutong. that's is a old traditional neighbourhood. already not so many of them in cities. it is great to see some of them are still preserved and we'll maintened. Beijing is a mixing between modern China and old China.

[@fredm5245]

Envy you Nico. Miss Beijing....

[@dunwallghost7315]

I heard about another theory about Hu Tong: It's Ancient Chinese‘s split up. The word in Middle Ancient Chinese had two syllables, in this case, it's the ancient word “巷”. 巷 in old days pronounce like "共" (gòng) with "long" sound, like "gulong" or "hulong". In southern China like Shanghai, this word become “弄”(nòng) which is still means narrow streets; in Northern Beijing this become two separated words: 胡同.

[@squarepeg1023]

Super interesting, thanks for sharing!

[@tubeqi]

Thanks for showing us. Living around here for 10 years about 20 years ago but now in UK.

[@Nicofilms]

We swapped! I bet it looks a lot different now but it’s such a great area. Where are you in the U.K.?

[@tubeqi]

@@Nicofilms Yes, swapped. Living in Cambridge now. Not much different for HuTong, but not many left now. Miss the HuTong ZaoShi very much and you can buy everything fresh from there. By the way, watched every piece in your channel, great works. Thanks.

[@Nicofilms]

Yes I love that too! Aww thanks for watching we appreciate it!

[@samuel-louisbandy2542]

Great video. What neighborhood is your hutong in? It reminds me of when I stayed in the Haidan district a few years back.

[@HxH2011DRA]

I can get behind these aesthetics

[@relaxwhc]

The Chinese normally don't quite like giant house like a mansion or castle, because the yin chi of the giant house is very strong, and it'll suck out the yang chi from the body, very bad 💥 Big Chinese house balances the chi with a lot of court spaces and day lighting that allows the sun ray to come through the middle of the house. 🔥

[@apollux012]

Currently living in Dongzhimen. Cool videos and I can only confirm everything 😊

[@Nicofilms]

That’s so close!

[@apollux012]

@@Nicofilms think I just saw you in April at East Gate 😂

[@Nicofilms]

@@apollux012 Yes!! I was in April's last night picking up some museli haha

[@zekariastedla728]

thnx Nice

[@vailewalders1395]

I want to see a tour of your new home

[@davienotellin4313]

2 thumbs up!! Yes the hutongs got the nostalgia feelings, but.........they will disappear with the incoming of highrise buildings and modern shops, kinda like what happened in Singapore. Thank you for pronouncing "Bei- Jing" correctly!

[@Nicofilms]

Yes I agree this might happen but I really hope it doesn’t. 😞

[@kelvinyschun]

Great video I got my favorite tiny bamboo goldfish kite from a professional. Seen any kites?

[@sfbluestar]

It's amazing to live on a street that the Kublai Khan commissioned to build.

[@RespectOthers1]

This is like a well-produced quintessential guide to Beijing hutongs. :D

[@Nicofilms]

Aw thanks! I’m pleased you like it!

[@waylonzhou4898]

great

[@GyacoYu]

Hint: don't miss the Five Pagoda Temple in Beijing. It's carving is epic, with Ranjana.

[@ben8718]

interesting tastes.

[@jerrygreen5360]

actually it is super rich area if you have house like this in beijing city area. beacause the land price should make your become crazy!

[@svvtriveni8210]

25th like from 💖🇮🇳India

[@Nicofilms]

Thanks!!

[@windyskye5039]

@S V V TRIVENI god bless India 🇮🇳 and other countries in the world

[@windyskye5039]

@Rehan Ebrahim I’ve obviously never been to India so idk what it’s like there 🤷‍♀️but every country has flaws and every country is good in its own way

[@svvtriveni8210]

@Rehan Ebrahim Every person in the world 🌍 Never dislikes/tries to harm any other person. It’s all fault of the government and the media who tries to separate us. Even many of the Chinese drama are loved by Indians like My gf is alien, descendants of sun,when we were young and so on.... Even We love to visit China 🇨🇳 and we respect their traditions.Moreover our school textbooks has also have the revolutions,Rulings,Traditions,Cultures Of China.Please donot write your own scripts of people of other countries. India and China are only the two countries, once visited we cannot leave them. Might the government and soldiers fight, what happens to our common people? We are all the Best friends forever 😊👍🥰

[@ahmadalexander1843]

@@svvtriveni8210 YES it's politic. We better not get into politic. It's prejudice mostly, unfairness, bias, one-sided, and lead us to fight against other nation, people or certain group of people or clans. That's nasty. And the nastiest thing they say is they do it in the name of nation, country or even God! God wants us live along in peace with every human in this world! What on earth is happening with their head? ^_^ Anyway, I love this video, and I have never been to Bei Jing. May be someday.

[@tommath5468]

If you are really in favor of "HuTong" and ancient Beijing culture, you can read the books written by YeGuangLin(叶广苓) who is from Manchu and grows up in Beijing. Something precious has been lost nowadays, but you can find it in her books.

[@jeffreysoo8779]

Would love to stay in a hutong.

[@Officialtraveller374]

Neighborhood ❤️...Nico ❤️...China.. ❤️....Love ur videos..

[@Nicofilms]

Thanks a lot, I’m pleased you liked it!

[@Officialtraveller374]

@@Nicofilms huge fan 🙏🙏....God bless you

[@Nicofilms]

Thanks!!

[@yaziwo2477]

thumbs up!

[@petercua6158]

Those alleys must be like a maze, especially if you are new to the area.

[@xelkim9666]

🙏

[@johnsoncao3114]

If u don’t worry about housing issue, Beijing is quite ideal for living: cheap food, cheap transportation and wide range of culture, the best health care system in China, the safest place in China.

[@recuerdo5845]

This is my neighbourhood....

[@ronnievermillion5608]

Hi beautiful. Do you ever visit Shenzhen?

[@clairezhang660]

Is this Beijing thing or it also happens in other city in China, that young people call them " uncle"?

[@yingxu7908]

where is Jack my friend，Nico？

[@bernardfong1019]

Charmant.

[@kangkanglu8932]

So many "快递" icons in Hutongs😂

[@kkw6320]

Living in a foreign land, follow the way of native who live in it - When in Rome, do as the Romans do 👍🏻

[@Nicofilms]

That’s why I love living in the heart of the city.

[@Crom21]

i am so lazy to work out since long.

[@yueyinggong9344]

So expensive to rent in Hutong.

[@recuerdo9526]

💝😳😃😀😘👍💗😊

[@kimjongun4634]

Haha 👍🏻 Yuan Dynasty then Ming dynasty Northern Chinese people took Beijing back .

[@squarepeg1023]

Yep, that's right!

[@kimjongun4634]

@@squarepeg1023 of course

[@eddchan543]

Working class neighbourhood? I was told only rich people live Hutong nowaday... I may need to verify....

[@hangzeng1491]

In the past, the rich and noble class lived in hutongs. Later lower and middle class occupied hutongs. Unexpectedly, nowadays people who still live in hutongs are the rich again. BTW, the map of modern China you quoted has some mistakes in boundary(I guess you've never realized that), if you would post this video in Chinese social media, please pay attention to this in order to pass the check.

[@e49grafix]

I do very much like seeing your video`s, but I feel that the type of tourists and expats you aim for is high earners etc. For me I would love to retire to China but I am still searching for a place I can call home. I will always watch you vids, but please now and again show where to live on a moderate earnings of a Pensioner. Again thank you

[@ryanawilson8549]

Double fisting coffee 😆

[@Nicofilms]

Haha Jack had the camera so I had to hold both 🤣

[@suneast7394]

Haha Dats it Bravo Perfecto A bit of Plang Writg Realy mk a vry gd vid Its lik c Travel shw On tv Got story Histry Surprise discvry Naratn Stitc 2 A lovly fabric Nex chalen Hw use Putonghua Or watvr dialec In a story Fr dat D star need Som prac / may b nt A kangua stuntlaD Insted

[@jaydendean6939]

If this is communism, I want to live there😀

[@emmaillidge8733]

wow this is SO incredibly racist

[@thewiseone7286]

You commented on the wrong video. This video is pertaining to China.

[@92wsnqyf]

中国人太多了 ，居住空间太挤了，人人脸上都是生活的艰辛