Moms Travel TipsTravel Tips and Vacation Ideas for the Whole Family

Lao She Teahouse, sitting at the center of Beijing not far from the Avic Hotel is where tourists get a taste of old Beijing life while sitting down for a good cup of tea.

Among its eminent customers are former U.S. president George H. Bush and Jordanian queen Rania.

Indeed, it has so much to offer that you may hope to move to Beijing enjoy everyday.

The building itself reminds you of a Qing dynasty loft, and as soon as you see it, you feel as if Beijing of the 19th century has come into life! The waiters are all in ancient outfits, and welcome you in with an old-time greeting that seasoned Beijingers say invoke the feel of old Beijing teahouses.

Despite being called a teahouse, Lao She is more like an entertainment venue, where some of China’s finest traditional performing arts are staged every night. Here you can watch acrobatics, Kung Fu shows, comic dialogue, Peking opera, ventriloquism, and the celebrated face-changing dance while enjoy a good cup of tea.

One of the biggest hit here is the well-known face-changing dance that comes from Sichuan province. By simply waving his arms and twisting head, a perform can change his mask in less than a second. The top performers can change their masks up to 30 times with the flick of a wrist. Because of difficulty of changing masks in such a short time, only a handful of artists can perform this dance today. There are also occasionally such performances around the Beijing Hwa Apartment Hotel.

Another program that also amazes many is the ‘Han Deng Da Gu.Singers of this ancient folk art don’t sing in the normal way. They sing with such a holder in their mouths as is mounted with a few of burning candles.

They have to keep the candles in a good balance with the face muscles, otherwise the candles will fall. Singers of Han Deng Da Gu at the Lao She Teahouse are all masters. They sing so masterfully as if there is nothing in their mouth. Around China, there are only a very limited number of singers who are able to perform this ancient art because of the difficulty.

For tea lovers, there is even more to celebrate at Lao She Teahouse. Here waiters perform a kind of acrobatics to pour tea. The pot they use to pour tea is pretty bizarre: it has a long spout that can measure up to 1.5 meters. When serving, the waiter will first flip the pot around his body for a while, and then pour tea from the long and thin spot without splashing a drop. This is not a task that anyone can accomplish, and is much appreciated by the audience.

You can also enjoy a variety of Beijing snacks as you enjoy the shows. Rolling Donkey, or Lv Da Gun in Chinese, is a serving of glutinous rice balls stuffed with bean paste and eaten as a light meal. Millet Much, or Mian Cha in Chinese, is porridge with sesame and peanut butter. For your sweet tooth, Wan Dou Huang-small cakes made of beans-is always a good try.

Prices are reasonable; an average of 50-60 dollars should be enough to cover the fare of the shows, tea and a couple of snacks. The teahouse remains open from 14:00 to 22:00.

The Lao She Teahouse’s location in central Beijing is very convenient, and you can book a Beijing hotel here.