Exploring Tianjin | China's European City

We left for Tianjin early in the morning. Just a 35 minute train ride from Beijing we were optimistic that we'd break through the cities almost constant smog into a cleaner environment. We also hoped to see the countryside as until that point we hadn't left Beijing's boundaries. Unfortunately neither happened. Tianjin is just as smoggy as Beijing and on the train you get barely a glimpse of greenery. However Tianjin as a city is a gem in itself. If you're looking for a strange mix of traditional Chinese culture and European architecture then it's the place you want to go. It's a breath of fresh air from Beijing, the amount of people is considerably smaller and getting around is much easier. 

We stayed at the Cloudy Bay hostel, one of my favourite hostels yet. It's designed like a villa, bright white walls with aqua blue borders. Leading up the rainbow staircase you step into an airy reception/living/bar area. There's wooden chairs and tables, nautical pieces everywhere and a guitar hanging from the wall. The staff speak enough English to make checking in easy and comfortable. The rooms are standard hostel style with bunk beds. One of the reasons we specifically picked this hostel, apart from its handy location, is its two floored terrace. Up there you have endless seating, cool wall murals and even a BBQ. Legend says that in Summer there are some amazing rooftop parties.

One of the biggest lures of Tianjin is the Italian District (also known as Italian Style Town or Italy Street). A more correct name would probably be the Italian District-with-some-German-beer-bars-and-Chinese-souvenir-shops. It's a quirky little area where you can eat Italian-style food which is a godsend when you need a break from rice and noodles. You'll be paying an arm and a leg for a good meal but if you've been pasta-starved for a month it's definitely worth it. The restaurants tend to be traditionally Italian, with white and red checkered table cloths and waiters with napkins over their right forearms. You'll probably be seated next to a noisy American like we were who enthusiastically asked a distinctly middle eastern waiter which part of Italy he was from. He then repeated his joke to his colleague which was met with a hearty laugh and confused side-ways glances from the Chinese-speaking waiter.

Although Tianjin's Italian District is an interesting European Easter egg in China's usually very distinguished architecture it's unfortunately, like a lot of places, overrun with boorish tourists; the two men on a business trip who decide to eat Italian and insult the waiters and the group of middle-aged women who become exasperated trying to explain to the waiter what they want in slow deliberate English while staining their lips red with cheap wine.

Some interesting bars to go to include Club 13 in the Italian District and Love House Bar. Club 13 regularly has live music from young musicians and bands who live in and around Tianjin. Expect lots of alternative, indie and metal tunes. Although Love House Bar sounds like a brothel it's actually a classy tiki-looking bar. It was definitely one of those gems that you just stumble across only to be pleasantly surprised as you walk in. You wander through a convenience store, up the stairs and you're transported into a snug two-floor bar area. They also do live music, a much more intimate affair as the musicians are slap bang in the middle of the bar, less than a meter away from the booths.The highlight of the bar was their cocktails. Each with their own signature twist with fresh fruits and tangy tastes.

Looking for your typical weird and wacky tourist spots? The Porcelain House is bound to catch your interest. The entire building is infused with all manner of porcelain vases and mosaic structures. You can enter the house and have a wander around the museum for a small fee although the outside is just as impressive. It's a short 3 minute walk from Cloudy Bay Hostel making it a great warmer to start your day. Another place to check out would be the Tianjin Eye which proudly boasts that it 'overlooks the world'. I'm not sure Tianjin is the kind of city to do such a thing but the 45 loop of the structure is definitely worth it. I'm scared of heights, but I'll still scare myself silly for a cool experience. As far as heights go I was not okay with the Tianjin Eye, especially after spotting a big cloud of smoke on the horizon which I convinced myself spelled the end of the world.

As a whole Tianjin is a great weekend trip away from Beijing. Hiding some hidden gems, undoubtedly with more to be found, it can be a place to revisit again and again.