SEOUL

HI SEOUL FESTIVAL
+82 2 744 1119 www..hiseoulfest.org/en/

An annual event since 2003, the festival, which aims to promote the south Korean capital as a city of class and culture, has expanded to become a year-round celebration. And, following on from spring’s historic theme and summer’s focus on vacationing and water sports, autumn’s events are set to centre around the arts. Promising to be fresh and experimental, activities, displays and shows will take place across the city from 3–26 October.

BEIJING

AMAN
15 Gongmenqian Street, Summer Palace，+86 10 5987 9999

For a taste of old China with the conveniences of modern-day living, the Aman at summer Palace by Amanresorts cannot be beat. Located just steps from the east gate of the 250-year-old summer Palace, the Aman boasts 51 guest rooms adorned with period furniture and an imperial suite comprising three separate dwellings – private living accomodation, a study and a business-style meeting room – that can cater for up to 28 guests. This UnesCO heritage site also has three restaurants, as well as spa services, a 300m² gym, cigar room and library complete with Chinese calligrapher. (Rates from Us$480)

BANGKOK

BANGKOK WORLD FILM FESTIVAL
+66 2 3383 6189 www.worldfilmbkk.com

Held at the Paragon Cineplex (991/1 Rama 1 Road) from 24 October to 2 november, the festival aims to be a showcase for independent short films, documentaries and animations from Asia and around the world.

BEIJING

1949 – THE HIDDEN CITY
Courtyard 4, Gong Ti Bei Lu, Chaoyang District，+86 10 6501 1949

Already beijing’s most popular bar area, sanlitun just got hipper with the addition of 1949 – The hidden City. Transformed from a former factory site, the 4,000m2 complex is made up of bars, restaurants, cafés, a private members’ club and an art gallery. Many of the newly built buildings have been styled to reflect the original factory, with high ceilings, exposed beams and brick work and wide oak-panelled flooring. 1949 – The hidden City is set to please the sophisticated beijing crowd, not least because of its host of stylish eateries such as Duck De Chine, which serves up scrumptious duck dishes washed down by glasses of bubbly provided by the restaurant’s own (and China’s first) bollinger Champagne bar.

OSAKA

MIDOSUJI PARADE
+81 6 6942 2007 www.osaka21.or.jp

Every autumn, over a million people fill osaka’s main thoroughfare, Midosuji boulevard, for the spectacular Midosuji Parade. Celebrating the so- called osaka 21st Century Plan – a number of large-scale projects aimed at developing osaka into a cosmopolitan, cultural city for the 21st century – this year’s event takes place on 12 october and will see around 100 performing groups taking part. Floats, marching bands, baton twirlers, acrobats and groups from all over the world make this an occasion not to be missed. now, in its 26th year, the parade starts out from oe-bridge in front of osaka City hall and wows crowds all the way to namba, two miles away.

SHANGHAI

TENNIS MASTER CUP
+86 21 962288 www.masters-cup.com

The eight best men’s players in the world this year descend on Qizhong Forest sports City Arena from 9–16 november for the culmination of the men’s season. new world no 1 Rafael nadal will be hoping to wrest the cup away from last year’s winner Roger Federer. however, novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will doubtless have something to say about that.

weekender
CHENGDU

By Susan Sun, director of communications, Shangri-La Hotel, Chengdu

The Bookworm (2-7 Yuejie East Rd, +86 28 8552 0177) is a great place to catch up with friends on a Friday night. The relaxed ambiance provided by the bar, café, restaurant, library, bookstore and cultural centre is just what i need after a hectic week at work. saturday might see me take a trip out to Blue House art space in the nearby suburb of san sheng Xiang. Filled with nondescript warehouses, it’s home to some of Chengdu’s most famous contemporary painters and sculptors. in the evening, i’ll head to the shunxing Old Tea House (198 Century City Boulevard, +86 28 8538 0007). Keeping alive the tradition of the tea ceremony, it also puts on sichuan opera performances between 8pm and 9pm, complete with the mesmerising bian lian or face changing. On sunday, i’ll take my family to the shang Palace at the shangri-La Hotel (9 Binjiang Dong Road +86 28 8409 7333) for the dim sum lunch. We’ll then go with friends to san sheng Xiang to play mahjong, before rounding off the day at one of my favourite hotpot restaurants, such as san Zhi Er (10 nijiaqiao Lu, +86 28 8553 0188).

afterhours
TAIPEI

By Joshua Samuel Brown Translation by Hsiaofeng Pang

Though the shilin night Market has undergone some cosmetic changes, this Taipei landmark is still hands down the best spot for those looking for a late-night feast. From the familiar – barbecued chicken and sautéed crab – to the truly Taiwanese, like grass jelly soup and fermented tofu, shilin has it all. if you’re still up past the night market’s closing time, head to Fuxing south Road, where a host of 24-hour restaurants serve everything from multi-course hotpot feasts to warm soy milk and sweet potato porridge.

Indian Beer House (196 Bade Rd, section 2, +886 2 2741 0550) is a Taipei institution. Covered in massive dinosaur fossils (inside and out), it serves good food and great beer in an atmosphere you’ll struggle to find anywhere else. saints & sinners (114 anhe Rd, sec 2, +886 2 2739 9001), meanwhile, has everything you want in a bar, including darts, a pool table and big-screen TVs.

From touring comics to open mic nights, there’s always something funny going on at the Live Comedy Club (Basement, no.24 Taishun st, +886 2 2369 3730). One of the biggest, trendiest and hottest clubs in Taipei, Luxy (197 Zhongxiao E Rd, sec 4, + 886 2 2772 1000) thrums and throbs with music from sundown until the break of dawn.

three of a kind
HANGHOU

It’s hard to go wrong for great food in the birthplace of one of China’s eight major schools of cuisine

By Nicole Chabot Translation by Hsiaofen Peng

LOCAL

ZHI WEI GUAN
10-12 Yanggong Di，+86 0 571 8797 1913
Located in area 72 on the city’s famous West lake, this authentic local restaurant excels in dishes harvested from the sea, such as crab with orange, fish and lobster. The setting, food, and traditional chinese decor conspire to form an intimate atmosphere perfect for couples.

RURAL

FUYANG BAI HE VILLAGE CLUB
Dongzhou Street, Fuyang village，+86 0 571 6311 7766
Set in the rural area of the Hangzhou countryside, this village is a 10-minute drive from the city centre. There are more than 20 eateries within the enclave. restaurant Kuai Huo lin is commendable for its pumpkin, wild herbs and chicken dishes. Diners can munch through breakfast, lunch and dinner for a grand total of just RMB30.

ROMANTIC

FLORENCE
35 Changsheng Lu，+86 0 571 8792 2205
This quiet, romantic restaurant enjoys a good reputation and is lauded for its well presented, tasty chinese cuisines with a new twist. its comfortable surroundings complete the dining experience.

we love
SHANGAI

CHINESE GRAN PRIX

Formula One has reigned as the king of motor sports since the first champagne cork popped in 1950. Yet china had to wait until 2004 to get invited to the party, when the shanghai international circuit hosted the inaugural chinese Grand Prix. Heralded as the race circuit for the new millenium, the 5.4km track is shaped like the chinese character ‘shang’, which means ‘high’ or ‘ascend’ with the team buildings, arranged like pavilions in a lake, resembling the ancient Yuyan- Garden in shanghai. Petrolheads are more taken with the circuit’s high-speed straights which see cars reach speeds of over 300km/h. The main grandstand, with 29,000 seats, provides a spectacular view of almost 80% of the circuit, while the drivers circle a dizzying – and deafening – 56 times. i missed that, what did you say?

17-19 October at the Shanghai International Circuit
www.formula1.com

space


audi forum, tokyo
Designed by British architect Benjamin Warner and dubbed the iceberg, this 52m structure boasting 120 icy-blue transparent panels is definitely not your typical car showroom.
6-12-18 Jingumae, Shibuya, Tokyo