Well written piece. But I think the sample is too small and too Beijing-centered.
Beijing and Shanghai are not China. They are China’s political and financial front windows, heavily curated, expensive, cosmopolitan, and often emotionally distorted by elite pressure. If one wants to understand today’s China, it is essential to spend time in second- and third-tier cities: Hefei, Changsha, Chengdu, Suzhou, Foshan, Zhengzhou, Xi’an, Wuxi, Ningbo, or many smaller manufacturing cities.
That is where much of China’s real transformation is happening: industrial upgrading, EV adoption, logistics networks, local fiscal stress, youth employment pressure, factory automation, service consumption, real estate adjustment, and the everyday confidence or anxiety of ordinary households.
A few days in Beijing can produce sharp impressions, but it can also turn a very specific urban elite atmosphere into a general diagnosis of China. The country is too large, too uneven, and too internally dynamic for that.
I am surprised to read your statement that foreigners can’t use Weixin as a payment method. I have been in China for 3 weeks on my current trip, travelling alone, I was here for a month in 2025, and I have used Weixin on both trips with no trouble at all. I am British with a UK Iphone (not a Chinese phone) with 2 British credit cards & my American Express card bound to my Weixin account. I also use Didi & the 12306 online train booking system with no difficulty. I also have Alipay as a backup but rarely use it. And all the above has been true all across the country from Beijing via Qufu, Zhengzhou, Anyang, Luoyang and Xi’an to Yan’an where I am now (May 30th).
Interesting observations! I have just got back from a trip back to Beijing myself, and will soon write something about it. Everyone notices different things, and it was interesting for instance to know that you noticed more tarot shops and interest in spirituality than before.
I just have one little quibble: you seem to be saying that less people speak English in Beijing compared to a decade ago. I really don't think that's true. It seems to me that the most educated and cosmopolitan classes speak English better than they used to, while the rest of the population doesn't, but then they didn't ten or twenty years ago either.
Thanks, Gabriel! Looking forward to reading your essay and observations of your trip. The people that spoke English well, such as cosmopolitan classes, definitely still do. And it’s not like people no longer understand it. But I do notice, for instance, young people I engaged with to be less comfortable with the language than people their age would have been a decade prior. This isn’t random either — it’s the result of China’s education policies. I also feel like some people’s English is rustier, which makes sense — they have had fewer opportunities and people to practice it with the past few years.
Interesting. It's true that the importance of English has been downgraded in China's educational system, and I suppose there are less foreigners around (not like there were ever that many). I just didn't notice any decline in the average English skills, but it's true that I generally get around in Chinese when in China. You may have a point.
Well written piece. But I think the sample is too small and too Beijing-centered.
Beijing and Shanghai are not China. They are China’s political and financial front windows, heavily curated, expensive, cosmopolitan, and often emotionally distorted by elite pressure. If one wants to understand today’s China, it is essential to spend time in second- and third-tier cities: Hefei, Changsha, Chengdu, Suzhou, Foshan, Zhengzhou, Xi’an, Wuxi, Ningbo, or many smaller manufacturing cities.
That is where much of China’s real transformation is happening: industrial upgrading, EV adoption, logistics networks, local fiscal stress, youth employment pressure, factory automation, service consumption, real estate adjustment, and the everyday confidence or anxiety of ordinary households.
A few days in Beijing can produce sharp impressions, but it can also turn a very specific urban elite atmosphere into a general diagnosis of China. The country is too large, too uneven, and too internally dynamic for that.
100% agree, and I caveat this in the post. Hopefully one day I can go back and spend more time in other parts of China.
Thanks for reading and for the feedback!
I am surprised to read your statement that foreigners can’t use Weixin as a payment method. I have been in China for 3 weeks on my current trip, travelling alone, I was here for a month in 2025, and I have used Weixin on both trips with no trouble at all. I am British with a UK Iphone (not a Chinese phone) with 2 British credit cards & my American Express card bound to my Weixin account. I also use Didi & the 12306 online train booking system with no difficulty. I also have Alipay as a backup but rarely use it. And all the above has been true all across the country from Beijing via Qufu, Zhengzhou, Anyang, Luoyang and Xi’an to Yan’an where I am now (May 30th).
Fascinating — I was not able to connect my card to WeChat. Will try again next time.
Interesting observations! I have just got back from a trip back to Beijing myself, and will soon write something about it. Everyone notices different things, and it was interesting for instance to know that you noticed more tarot shops and interest in spirituality than before.
I just have one little quibble: you seem to be saying that less people speak English in Beijing compared to a decade ago. I really don't think that's true. It seems to me that the most educated and cosmopolitan classes speak English better than they used to, while the rest of the population doesn't, but then they didn't ten or twenty years ago either.
Thanks, Gabriel! Looking forward to reading your essay and observations of your trip. The people that spoke English well, such as cosmopolitan classes, definitely still do. And it’s not like people no longer understand it. But I do notice, for instance, young people I engaged with to be less comfortable with the language than people their age would have been a decade prior. This isn’t random either — it’s the result of China’s education policies. I also feel like some people’s English is rustier, which makes sense — they have had fewer opportunities and people to practice it with the past few years.
Interesting. It's true that the importance of English has been downgraded in China's educational system, and I suppose there are less foreigners around (not like there were ever that many). I just didn't notice any decline in the average English skills, but it's true that I generally get around in Chinese when in China. You may have a point.
And last year it was also true as I travelled through Changsha, Wuhan and Hefei to Shanghai on my way to Beijing.