Authentically Beijing?

This is the Beijing I love: welcoming, diverse, cutely bohemian, vibrant, international in its own quirky way, and, of course, smoking. Sure, you might say they are poseurs, but then, I am looking for poseurs. Maybe they are a bit pretentious – but people have been leveling the same accusation at me since I was fifteen – but I would say that they just like to keep their world a little magical. I am drinking ginger ale out of a champagne flute at the moment. Even those who constantly lose themselves in escapist fantasies need to stay sober once in a while.

These two young ladies aren’t haughty or cold, but really quite welcoming in a way. Are they authentic or are they just mimicking the way that hipstresses like them dress in other parts of the world?

Nels Frye is a freelance writer, photographer, consultant and stylist, based in Beijing. Focuses are on street style, other consumer trends, and broader social issues.

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