My first trip to Beijing was in 1982, which is so long ago that I can hardly remember what the city looked like. But I can remember the smell of the unfiltered Chinese cigarettes like it was yesterday. It's a horrible, choking smell.
Great, then, was my delight to see this sign posted in the first restaurant I went into this weekend. (The "Beijing Patriotic Health Campaign Committee" definitely sounds like a throwback to older days, though.)
Yes, Beijing looks incredibly different than it did 28 years ago, but other things are different, too.
