Thu, September 20, 2012
Remember those idyllic childhood days spent exploring and adventuring? Well you can relive them this month with Creative Hutong Golf. This afternoon of orienteering and artsy fun challenges teams to follow a map to various hutong businesses, where they must complete tasks to ‘sink a putt’ and win a point. The brainchild of The Hutong co-founder Stacey Shine and Dominic Johnson-Hill of Plastered T-shirts, the event aims to create a community among local hutong businesses, raise money for Beijing charities and offer a great day out exploring hidden hutongs for its participants.
Individuals or groups can register online for a tee-off time at one of five starting points. They will then attempt to visit as many locations as they can around the Yonghegong, Gulou and Beixinqiao areas within the time limit before reaching the finishing point at 4 Corners for snacks and a prize-giving ceremony. The organisers are keeping details of most challenges and prizes under wraps, but with a wide variety of organisations involved – from the Civilian Mobile Library to Beijing Improv theatre group – you can expect a medley of imaginative tasks to test the teams’ skills and get the creative juices flowing.
Without wanting to spoil the surprise, it’s not too hard to predict some of the tasks and do a spot of preparatory homework. You can more than likely expect a cooking challenge at The Hutong, for example, or an X Factor-style competition from Beijing Improv, with the theatre group’s mirth-makers most probably judging golf-themed skits. Still, the ambition can’t be faulted, and a day playing Creative Hutong Golf is likely to be anything but par for the course.
Creative Hutong Golf is Sat 22.
