CITY GUIDE >Hotels
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CITY GUIDE >Hotels
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Dream chance
By Ji Tao (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-09-04 10:01 As the waiting staff pours out hot brown chocolate on a marble-like ball made of white chocolate, the ball melts from the top and unfolds, petal by petal, like an ostentatious flower, revealing a luscious thick and beautiful chocolate truffle cake. The dessert, sometimes with a ring sneaking inside the ball with the help of the chef, has won many hearts, especially on Valentine's Day, according to Ning. It has also won a gold medal for Executive Chef Bill Wang during the gourmet competition between hotels of the InterContinenal Group in Beijing this year. The daily life of an NBA star, or even many business people, would not be complete without a gym session. While some hotels tend to tuck the fitness room in the basement, InterContinental Beijing Financial Street reserves for it the most sunlit space in the building. Thanks to the 18-story atrium above the gym, sunlight glistens on the training floor through the glass ceiling. Guests can enjoy the state-of-art facilities under a blue sky and white clouds, something to covet in the center of Beijing. The other service that would have been seriously tested by NBA players is the hotel's I-Spa, where TCM philosophy informs almost every treatment on offer. Renovated from the hotel's administrative offices three years ago, the spa has become a popular choice with both business and leisure travelers. Joanna Zhang, the spa manager, says they have been introducing therapies meant to soothe and energize both the soul and body. Even though the beds are not custom-made to fit NBA sizes, and the therapists have mostly smaller builds, the spa sessions must have worked in some way, based on the players' winning performance throughout the Olympics. When the exciting moment finally came and the Dream Team eventually won the gold medal, the whole hotel joined them in celebrating their victory. Some of the staff were lucky enough to get the autographs of the players, even without asking for them. "It was a really rewarding experience for all of us," says Ning.
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