Emergency WHALE! at 4corners! Tonight!

Blue Alert! It’s a WHALE! Emergency TONIGHT!

WHALE! is holding a last-minute emergency party tonight, Friday, January 27, 2012 at the newly opened 4corners肆角餐吧 bar by the Drum and Bell Tower in Gulou.

Previously, WHALE! parties were rocking Beijing with monthly gigs around town, but since winter hit, it’s been a few months without some WHALE! fun.

So what calls WHALE! out of hibernation?  A member of the WHALE! family is leaving Beijing for a few months and this is his unofficial leaving party.

Who is leaving you ask?  Well, they are all masked by alias names, but here’s one hint: It’s the only DJ who changes his alias name every WHALE! party. This time around, his name is DJ No Requests.

Who is WHALE!?  Check out CW’s article on WHALE!’s DJs here.

If WHALE! is a new concept for you, the best way to sum it up quickly: WHALE! is “200 tons of danceable rock and electro in the deep, dark hutong”.  

And the eclectic music mix will be played by the regular WHALE! DJ Line-up featuring DJ Assassin Eyes, Bobby Dropper,  DJ Fun Party, DJ Dirty Pirate and our beloved DJ No Requests.

This has been something in the works the past weeks, but they’ve only just announced it and as this is the unofficial leaving party of DJ No Requests, there will also be an unofficial dress theme: Cardigans.

I was hoping to find some quirky picture of a whale wearing a cardigan, but I guess it figures the reverse is more likely.

So here you have it: Whales knitted onto a cardigan.

Close enough.

…or perhaps you prefer this knit WHALE!?

OK. Enough fun for now.

Time to WHALE! at 4corners! TONIGHT!

Click here to see pictures from previous WHALE! parties:

• WHALE! on a Rainy Night in the Deep, Dark Hutongs
• “W” is for WHALE!
• A WHALE! of a Good Time

Event Details:

• Date: Friday, July 29, 2011
• Time: 10PM-late
• Location: 4corners 肆角餐吧
• Address:  By Drum and Bell Tower on DaShibei Hutong 西城, 大石碑胡同27号 (See map below)
• FREE ENTRY 

Beijing Art: At the Stroke of Midnight, CNY 2012

Beijing at the Stroke of Midnight: Chinese New Year 2012 by Tom Pattinson

For the past six years, I have been in Beijing during the Chinese New Year holiday and although I’m kicking myself each year for not pre-booking a tropical getaway to some sunny beach far away from this city turned ghost-town where the majority of the population evacuates, streets are empty, everything closes down, taxis are impossible to comeby and temperatures drop to -17 degrees Celsius.

In spite of these downsides of Beijing at this time of year, I also love being in this city at one specific moment – when the skies light up with firecrackers.  I’m not talking about the loud firecrackers that start at the crack of dawn or the ones that are just plain loud and cease to stop even days after new years day, but the hour where all the best firecrackers are simultaneously fired into the sky at one go.

Every year, and without fail, at the stroke of midnight on Chinese New Year’s Eve, the dark skies of Beijing are illuminated at every angle with the most brilliant, vibrant firecrackers. It truly is a magnificent sight.

And although there are plenty of awesome parties happening all across town (in the restaurant, bars and clubs who chose to remain open), who wants to be indoors or in a dark basement and miss this special moment? For me, that would defeat the whole point of ringing in the Chinese New Year in Beijing. This glorious hour of fireworks should be the main event of the week-long holiday. Whether you’re firing them off yourself or just happy to watch, it’s a sight no one should miss if they are among the few stragglers who chose to stay in Beijing this desolate time of year.

There are many excellent vantage points to view this extraordinary display of extravagant fireworks, and one of my personal favorite places is on the rooftop of a tall building in the Gulou area. Normally the square between the Drum and Bell Towers is a choice pick for a great view, but fireworks have been forbidden here the past few years. Fair enough, as fireworks are often a terrible accident just waiting to happen and probably best to steer clear of any cultural and historical relics.

So with that option ruled out, we did the next best thing: bundle up and head up to the rooftop balcony of their apartment off Nanluoguxiang and watch the fireworks display until we couldn’t feel our fingers (it was a cold night) and honestly, after an hour of listening to fireworks booming into my ears, I feared the possibility of also going deaf if I didn’t head back indoors.

Spending the new year with close friends, this Chinese New Year was one of the best I’ve had and I’d like to thank Tom Pattinson for capturing the moment with his perfect picture.

Wishing you all a healthy, happy and prosperous Year of the Dragon!

Library 98: Roundabout Charity Book Sale

From NOW until April 6, Roundabout Charity Store will be hosting a Book Sale in a new library called Library 98 located close to the Drum & Bell Tower.

They currently have a huge selection of second hand books, most are in English with a few in Chinese and French. Paperbacks are being sold for only RMB 10 and hardbacks for RMB 20.

An additional bonus – All proceeds will be used to help Children in Need.

*If you have any books you’d like to donate, they are continually accepting donations of books for this and future book fairs. Assisting more than 45 charities in the Beijing area, donating your used books and/or purchasing “new-to-you” books makes a big difference to local charities.

They are open everyday (except Wednesdays) from 9AM-2AM.

Happy Reading!

Event Details:

• Date: Now – April 6
• Time:  9AM-2AM
• Price: RMB 10 for paperback, RMB 20 for hardbacks
  
• Location: Library 98
• Address: Tushuguan 98, Gu Lou Xi Da Jie 53
• Tel: 84001532
• Contact: kris@tushuguan98.com