Frank Langfitt, former Beijing bureau chief for The Baltimore Sun, returns to the capital to revisit old acquaintances, the Gong brothers, who once lived together under a single roof in their hutong home. But over the past six years much has changed. The Gongs’ house was torn down and the brothers were scattered across the city. Now, one brother drives a BMW, another lives a modest life. The third, who is not covered in this, the first of two programs, faired the worst. Listen to Part I here.
For more information about Beijing’s changing cityscape, in particular its hutongs, check out the following video about Michael Meyer, an American who has spent years living in and researching the capital’s alleyway neighborhoods (h/t Danwei.org). Meyer recently published The Last Days of Old Beijing: Life in the Vanishing Backstreets of a City Transformed.
