China Auto Pictorial had me find a few stylish people around Nanluoguxiang and take pictures of them with this Ferarri Enzo.  Check out their August issue!

Unsurprisingly, I not only do not own a car, but also actively oppose the auto culture which so perverted the landscape of the United States and is now making life in Beijing more and more unbearable.  My thoughts are similar to the editor who assisted me on this.  Of course the issue is more complicated than just saying “I oppose cars”.   I also thought it would be proper to acknowledge here China’s status as the world’s newest and potentially greatest Automobile Kingdom.

This hipster above is one who did not actually appear in the magazine.  Below are the ones who did.

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I encountered this lovely young cartoonist on Nanluoguxiang.  She is actually a local Beijinger.

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This fellow is a freelance photographer for Modern Weekly and other publications.

虽然看起来很普通，但这个穿着有一些值得学习的地方。

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Ces, who appeared last year on Stylites, is an editor at Chinese Men’s Uno.  He was walking at a very leisurely pace down Nanluoguxiang.  This is his blog.

Ziggy is a fashion design student at Qinghua.

Visiting from Shanghai, Esta works in event planning and most enjoys shopping at fabric markets.

从上海来的Esta做的是活动策划。她最喜欢在布料市场购物。

This young graphic designer sits in this chair outside of Ruxi nearly every day, often with a bottle of beer.  He hasn’t been able to find a job for around three months.  Over the last few nights, he has partied till every sunrise.  Does that qualify as a life of leisure?

These hutongs are making her feel brand new.  And being somebody in the China City is almost as good as being somebody in the World City.  Sylvia is just in from Nanchang, capital of Jiangxi province, and is planning to live here permanently perhaps working in a magazine.

从江西省省会南昌来的Sylvia觉的到了北京以后让她感觉焕然一新，这个新的城市给她朝气，可以给她站在世界舞台上的机会。她准备在这个新的城市里面做出自己的一番事业，她的目标？杂志社～

She had several lackeys photographing her on Nanluoguxiang.  I joined in.  She is a makeup artist.

Probably best known by foreigners at least for its appearance in 希望（xiwang – to wish/hope for), the character 希 means “rare” or “infrequent”.

看到这个字外国人肯定会马上想到“希望”。

The shades lighter than navy should appear more, especially in coats.  It brightens the mood in a winter landscape, too often dominated by black and gray, especially in horrible puffer coats.

Blue coats always make me think of Julien Sorel, the protagonist in the Red and the Black.  He was given one by his patron, the marquis, and this enabled him to feel on a level with the aristocrats whom he was attempting to impress.  Of course, I would think that the coat in that case was a dress garment and not an outdoor coat.

我希望大家会穿更多这各蓝色的外套。北京冬天超难看的黑色羽绒服太多了。

From Australia, Tana has been in Beijing over ten years. She started what was probably the first vintage shop in Beijing on Yandai Xiejie, near Houhai. The items she sold were brought in from abroad and included Levi’s and other such items.  The shop has not been open for several years, but vintage clothing has become much more popular here lately.

从澳洲来的Tana十多年在北京。因为她喜欢收藏很独特的衣服，丝禁，鞋，袜子，帽子，等，她原来开国第一个卖二手衣服的商店在烟袋斜街。她卖的东西原来主要是从国外进口的，像一些Levi’s牛仔裤，70年代的衣服等，但价格卖的不是很高因为这个她的爱好。 她的11岁的女儿, Lily。女儿受到母亲的影响，也穿得很特别，也喜欢戴大的墨镜。我真羡慕她女儿，能说世界两个最重要的原因说得很流利。

An art student from Hong Kong on Nanluoguxiang. 香港来得艺术学生在垃圾桶旁边抽烟。

He didn’t care that China Fashion Week had ended.

From a small town in Yunnan, Peipei runs Bye Bye Disco, one of the most notable shops on Nanluoguxiang, with boyfriend Pang Kuan, a member of disco-punk hybrid act New Pants.  More on Bye Bye Disco on the website of That’s Beijing, a magazine that is now defunct.  This place is beloved of foreigners, who come for the iconic Feiyue sneakers (available all the way up to size 47 at Bye Bye Disco).  Feiyue is so hip these days that there is even a blog.

Graphic designer June picked up her dress at a second-hand shop on Gulou street.

She has quite a collection of pendants.

This one is of a bus.

Vanessa is from Harbin and her boyfriend is from Shenyan.  She is a graphic designer and he makes 3D cartoons or something like that.  They have been to Beijing for less than a year, but plan to stay.

By the way, Harbin is one of my favorite places in China.  Feed a duck to the tigers in Siberian Tiger Park.  The suspense is intense as the tiger awkwardly paddles through the pond in pursuit.  The ducks just nonchalantly cruise along as if there is no monster cat a meter behind, but they sometimes do even escape, unlike the chicken or pheasants who have no chance.  Also make sure to have a shot of an obscure vodka at the Russian Café, on Zhongyang Lu, probably my favorite café in the world.  Shenyang is not such a must-see, though it does have a very manageably-sized mini-Forbidden City built by Nurhaci as well as several late-90s examaples of provinical “shock-architecture.”

Regina Ye, who makes me think of this girl, is studying fashion design here in Beijing.

Today the wind was blowing like it was about to go out of style.  But, of course, it is one of the permanent things come October.  We can debate whether wind creates beauty or disorder, but let us agree that it brings a mystery mixed with vulnerability to some pedestrians as they protect themselves from its gusts.  One fact we know is she likes that sweet cheese concoction so popular on Nanluoguxiang.  I think her succulent cashmere shawl comes from Woo Scarf, just down the street.

When I got home, my eyes were red and filled with dust, perhaps including some tasty fertilizer runoff particles just blown in from the countryside.