Leave a little corner of old Beijing alone

If the Beijing city planners are serious about turning Qianmen into an entertainment hotspot that is in the same league as Xintiandi in Shanghai or Soho in Hong Kong, they have to build some decent toilets there, for a start.

On a recent Sunday afternoon, the 846-meter long Qianmen main street, crowded by throngs of out-of-town tourists, was reeking in a foul smell from the numerous makeshift toilets.

This abomination, together with the rows of non-descript buildings painted in dark gray on both sides of the street, reminded visitors more of a re-education compound for the social misfits than a prospective playground for the social elites.