During the day, it is crowded with tourists, and at night it is a utopia of rock music. Let's stroll around Gulou Street together!

Part.1 Gulou Street

Gulou East Street is located on the east side of the Drum Tower in the Dongcheng District of Beijing. As part of the "back market" of the capital city of the Yuan Dynasty, it is the oldest commercial district in Beijing. The area is well preserved with the characteristic hutongs and quadrangle dwellings of Beijing, standing opposite to the Drum Tower. Strolling through this area, you can feel the historical charm.

In addition to the sense of history brought by the ancient buildings, the unique charm of Gulou East Street is the fireworks rooted in people's lives. The road is lined with many time-honored stores and a variety of special snacks. Besides, there are also piano shops, vintage stores, cafes, pottery studios, record stores and so on. New fashion trends are gradually being incorporated, attracting more and more young people to come here.

Part.2 Strolling Guide

Beijing Time Museum

Beijing Time Museum is a niche art museum located at the foot of the Drum Tower. It holds exhibitions from time to time and is free of charge. The quadrangle courtyard is open with ancient trees, and you can see the imposing red walls of the Drum Tower. It is a good place to see exhibitions and enjoy the scenery.

Penthouse

This store is an Internet-popular spot in the Gulou area. The western retro style wooden entrance forms a strong contrast with the surrounding streetscape. The store operates cafe, bar and desserts. There are Livehouse shows every Thursday to Sunday night. On a sunny day, you can sit on the terrace and enjoy the scenery and coffee.

StillWater Café

Just like its name, StillWater Café is a quiet place away from the secular world. The courtyard, bamboo forest, patio, and pool instantly take you to another realm. The indoor area is filled with warm sunlight, light wood color, lush greenery and light coffee fragrance.

Indie Music

When it comes to record stores in Beijing that are worth a visit, Indie Music must be one of them. This record store has been in business for almost a decade and has a collection of tens of thousands of discs. It includes CDs, cassettes, vinyl, colored vinyl, etc. You can also find second-hand discs that are out of print. There are many different styles of music, and both old and new records are available.

PART.3 Beijing VINTAGE Street

With vintage stores of various scales, it is known as "Beijing Vintage Street". Here you can find costume jewelry from all over the world, including American, Western, luxury brands and Japanese styles. There are Mega, a vintage store that has been open for more than 10 years, Tiger Vintage, a cost-effective vintage store, as well as Miss Eliza, 1964 and so on.

PART.4 Time-honored Beijing Special Snacks

Gulou Steamed Buns

The No.1 pasta dish in Gulou is Gulou Steamed Buns, with long queues in front of the store. There are many types of pasta products such as steamed buns, sugar triangles, bean buns, etc. Each bun can weigh three or two and can be sold out as soon as it is cooked. The elderly people who live nearby are the main buyers, and they often buy a big bag of steamed buns.

Cha Tang Li

This long-established restaurant has a history of over 170 years now. Its signature was originally a palace snack, which is made of broom corn millet brewed with boiling water. Together with brown sugar, cinnamon, walnuts and sesame seeds, the gruel is golden in color, delicate in taste and sweet and aromatic. Now there are also varieties such as almond tea, lotus root tea and rhizome tea.

PART.5 The Utopia of Beijing Rock Music

Gulou Street is also an active area for rock music in Beijing, where the first Livehouses were born. Livehouses such as Jiangjin Wine, MAO and Yugong Yishan have nourished countless musicians and music lovers. Nowadays, you can still see many piano and musical instrument stores on Gulou Street. Although most of them are no longer in business, only dusty signboards remain.

Whenever an era ends, a new one is ushered in. Today, Gulou Street is filled with historical time-honored Beijing snacks and VINTAGE fashion, as well as trendy and literary stores and cafés. The inclusive nature of Gulou allows us to see what life is like.