Best of the Blog: Notable Posts From October

Every month we tally the hits from the Beijinger blog and bring you the top five most viewed blogs from our website. Here's a look back at what got people talking in October.
 

1. World’s Largest Trash Incinerator to Hit Full Production Next Month, Downwind of Beijing
The world’s largest garbage incinerator is set to be turned on full blast next month, downwind of the center of town. The incinerator, built by the Shougang Group, has been operating under test conditions for about a year and will go full blast in November, China Daily states.

2. Chinese Tourists Outspend Foreign Counterparts by USD 77 Billion
Chinese tourists spent USD 77 billion more during the first three quarters of 2014 than foreign visitors did in China over the same period. Ninety-five million trips were made to China, versus 85 million outbound trips during the same period. The deficit between the groups’ spending habits for the year could be as high as USD 100 billion.

3. Government Gives City a Week Off to Host APEC Summit in Nov
The city government has canceled work for non-essential government employees and is closing all public schools for a week to host the all-important Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)summit, for which the heads of state of the trade bloc’s 21 member states will be descending on Beijing from November 7-12.

4. The New Drum and Bell Tower Square Unveiled
The entire area has been pedestrianized, with smooth paving replacing the roads on either side of the square. The most striking change is that the bars and shops that used to line the square have been replaced with a low gray wall dividing off the houses behind. 

5. Distance-based Subway Pricing Coming, But Still No Date When
Beijing’s subway fares are to change to distance-based pricing in the near future, as if they hadn’t already told us that numerous times since last March. The city finally declared it could no longer support one of the world’s busiest subway lines with one of the world’s cheapest fares. The exact fare increases were eventually released, which we blogged about here.

Photos: images.China.cn, gbtimes.com, shanghaidaily.com, ing.qz.com, xinhuanet.com