Changdian Temple Fair was similar to the Ditan Temple Fair but much more spread out. Changdian Temple is situated in Taoranting Park and much of the area is comprised of two adjoining lakes with a walking path that circles the entire park. The fair was easy to find as signs (and a massive crowd of people) lead the way to the park from the nearby Taoranting subway station. 10RMB entrance again.
Despite the apparent religious name, a temple fair really isn’t a very religious event. Instead, from what I could see, it was a gathering particularly for those from out of town or for Beijingers who rarely get a chance to visit these places on regular days. Beijing is a fast-paced city and it looks as though when workers get a chance to take a break, they do it, which might explain the hustle and bustle of even these “relaxing” days.
There were fewer food stalls, but they offered similar fare. Skewered meat, octopus, fruit juices, etc. The only problem with the fewer food stalls was that the lines were huge, a wait of fifteen minutes or more, I figured. But I saw the churros again and couldn’t help that they served MORE ice cream WITH CHOCOLATE at this fair, and so I did what I had to do: buy some churros. And they were good. A bit further on from the food stalls were vendors selling spices and other ingredients that, I imagine, cooking-types would enjoy.
I took a walk around the lakes, the same noise makers whirred by. I didn’t see any performances but there were lots of vendors and… people. Even in a place as large as Taoranting Park the place was swarming with people. It was made more amusing by the “bug ears” that were on sale. They’re not ears so much as look like the antennae of a bug. You could tell who had kids as it was usually the father that was stuck wearing the bug ears when the kid didn’t want to wear them any more.
There was an art auction and I considered buying one or two, but after watching a few get sold I figured they were simply prints getting sold at cheap prices. I waited around in hope that they would auction the big painting of a village girl with her massive sheep dog on a mountain, but after 15 minutes I gave up.
The best thing about Changdian Temple Fair is the scenery. The lakes, trees, birds, and… a snow park. They dammed up one side of the lake and built a snow park complete with slides, a skating rink and snowmobile rides. Beijing didn’t get much snow this winter so it was a welcome change of scenery. You might wonder if seeing snow makes me miss Canada. No. It does not. I did note how warm Beijing is/was (compared with Canada winters) and wondered how the snow stayed frozen. I’m thinking they were using artificial means.
The whole walk took about two hours at a leisurely pace. As I returned to my starting point I realized I hadn’t eaten anything and was eager to try something new. I spotted a vendor selling what looked to be plates of potato chips (crisps in Britain) and figured I’d give it a try. 10RMB bought me a plate of these white chips which, I think, were some sort of deep fried dough with a lot of garlic and salt. They had a weird texture as they were soft but as they hardened they became crunchy, which was a much better texture.
Overall, it was a nice sunny day in Beijing to visit the fair. In retrospect I suppose it was relaxing trip. Even with the large crowds there wasn’t a sense of “me against the crowd,” simply just how it is: lots of people. Some from out of town, others more local. All moving around the massive lakes, spinning their noise makers and sampling the dishes offered to ring in the new Chinese year.