By Bus to Badaling Great Wall

Bus 877: Deshengmen ⇔ Badaling

Bus 877 is your first choice. It departs from Deshengmen, about 10 minutes' walking from Jishuitan subway station (Exit B2) of subway line 2. It is a non-stop bus, taking about an hour and costing CNY 12 per person. The drop-off site is close to the pulley car lower station and about 10 minutes' walk to the entrance. Please note that the last departure from Deshengmen is at 12:30.

Operating Time:

From Deshemngmen: Apr. 1 - Nov. 15: 06:00-12:30;  Nov. 16 - Mar. 31: 06:30-12:30

From Badaling: Apr. 1 - Nov. 15: 10:30-17:00;  Nov. 16 - Mar. 31: 11:00-16:30

Tourist Bus Line 1: Qianmen ⇔ Badaling

Boarding Point: southwest of Qianmen Arrow Tower, to the south of Tiananmen Square

Hours at Qianmen: the end of Flag-Raising Ceremony on the Tiananmen Square (5:00-7:30) to 11:00

Destination: Badaling Guntiangou Parking Lot

Hours at Guntiangou: April to October: 9:00 to 17:00; November to March: 11:00 to 16:30

Duration: 100 minutes

Frequency: 30 minutes

Fare: CNY 20 per person paid in cash; transportation card is not applicable.

Tip: The bus to Badaling has a stop at Juyongguan Pass, but the return bus runs directly back to Qianmen. There is a tour guide on each bus.

Special Note on Bus 919:

Bus 919 is not recommended any more. It used to be a non-stop line from Deshengmen to Badaling. However, it now does not run on expressway and has many stops on the way. It takes 2 hours and costs CNY 12 to Badaling, which is just an intermediate station. The bus is always crowded, with no seat left. In addition, the drop-off site is 1.5 mi (2.5 km) from the entrance. You need to walk or take the free shuttle bus to the ticket office.

If you fail to catch bus 877 before 12:30 or the tourist bus line 1 before 11:00, and want to go there in the afternoon, you can choose 919. Please note that bus 919 has many branch lines heading for different destinations. Please confirm with the driver your destination Badaling before you board a bus 919.

By Train to Badaling Great Wall

By Train: S2

The trains depart from Huangtudian Railway Station, which is near the Huoying Station along subway line 8 and subway line 13. One should get off at Badaling Railway Station; the entrance to the scenic area is a 15 to 20 minutes' walk. Just follow the passenger flow or direction boards and one will get there easily. A single rail ride takes about 1.5 hours and the fare is CNY 6. There are free shuttle buses between S2 train station and cable car station. If you don't want to walk, you can queue up to take it.

A stamp for the upcoming Chinese Year of Rooster by Chinese artist Han Meilin.

Chinese artist Han Meilin, known for his versatility, is to have two of his works featured on postage stamps which will be issued for the upcoming Chinese Year of Rooster.

One of the paintings features a rooster while the other has a hen caring for two chicks.

The stamps will be released on Jan 5 by China Post, which issues an official stamp set every year to correspond with Chinese zodiac animal that is assigned to each year in the 12-year cycle.

Meanwhile, other rooster paintings by Han can be seen at his ongoing exhibition, titled World of Meilin at the National Museum of China through Feb 12, to mark his 80th birthday which falls on Dec 26.

The Michelin Guide published its first edition on the Chinese mainland for 2017. China Daily's Xu Junqian asked the chefs of several starred restaurants in Shanghai to pick a dish they think helped them win their awards.

Restaurant: Kanpai Classic (one star)

Dish: Wagyu beef and sea urchin sushi roll

Kanpai Classic is the only yakiniku (Japanese grilled meat) restaurant to have won a star in the inaugural Michelin Guide Shanghai.

Chef Ryo Ishihara believes that the dish that helped his restaurant stand out among the hundreds of others in the city is the Wagyu beef and sea urchin sushi roll. While marbled beef has long been a favorite on the grill because of its fat content, chef Ishihara believes that it is the leaner part of the meat that has been underrated. He says that he decided to pair the meat with sea urchin, a coveted seafood in Shanghai, because it added a different flavor dimension and visual appeal to the dish.

"Cooking is like math. Mediocre cooking is doing addition. Good cooking is about multiplication," says Ishihara.

Restaurant: Jinxuan Chinese Restaurant of Ritz-Carlton Pudong, Shanghai (one star)

Dish: Braised Chilean cod with mushroom and spring onions in casserole

If there is one thing chef Daniel Wong has learned during the 24 years he has spent in Cantonese kitchens, it is that the freshness of fish is determined by the minute. For Wong, that means fish should only be steamed.

To preserve freshness, however, Wong has his fish delivered braised, a quick browning step over high heat; then he adds a little liquid to finish cooking the fish. The dish has become a year-round favorite.

"To qualify as a chef, you only need hands to follow the rules and cook. To excel, you need everything above your neck," says Wong.

Restaurant: Yong Yi Ting of Mandarin Oriental Pudong, Shanghai (one star)

Dish: Braised lobster with gnocchi and winter bamboo shoot in sour broth

Chef Tony Lu isn't quite sure if "gnocchi" is the appropriate term to use, since the food, pronounced "mian ge da" in Shanghai dialect, is a low-budget dish that is mostly made at home as an "emergency food" when a housewife has little time to prepare for a proper meal. Regardless, the dish has proven to be a crowd favorite. He has tweaked the taste profile of the dish by using marinated yellow peppers from Southwest China's Guizhou province for spice and lemon for sourness. These ingredients, he says, are more effective at helping diners stay warm during winter.

"I am often asked if this or that is quintessential Shanghainese cuisine. The essence of Shanghainese cuisine is, like the city, inclusive and adaptable," says Lu.

Restaurant: Sir Elly's (one star)

Dish: Sea-salt smoked black cod

Most of the dishes on the menu at Sir Elly's are available for just three months but the smoked black cod is an exception because it is "feminine", jokes chef Hans Zahner, by which he means it is healthy, refreshing and light. Zahner uses olive oil and tomato consomme instead of butter and cream to achieve this lightness. He uses mashed green peas as the base and smokes the cod with only sea salt in order to maintain the natural flavor.

"I don't sauce the fish. I like to sauce around it, on one condition only－the fish is good enough," says Zahner.

Restaurant: Phenix Eatery & Bar of The Puli Hotel and Spa (one star)

Dish recommended: Compressed Strawberry 95

Chef Michael Wilson notes that he isn't the creator of this hit dish at his restaurant. Rather, he got the recipe from a fellow chef in Amsterdam after being captivated by the aroma and flavor of the basil cake.

Having made a few tweaks to the recipe, the Compressed Strawberry 95, a seasonal special, has since been immensely popular with diners. The dessert features strawberries, crushed ice, yoghurt and vanilla, with a sprinkle of meringue pieces and basil leaves to add a little excitement, he says.

"This dish looks simple, but it's actually not that simple to make," says Wilson.