With a little more experience, I have learned that there is definitely a pecking order on the streets. Bicycles have to get out of the way of cars and pedestrians have to get out of the way of both cars and bikes. It's no wonder really that the old people are keen on exercise - their life depends on being fit enough to dodge the traffic.
In the city centre, where there is a subway station, the road is fenced off so you cannot cross at ground level - you have to use the underground passageway through the station. At a few junctions, I've seen men standing between the lanes, under big umbrellas, directing the traffic. I don't envy their job. There is one significant improvement over London though. Here, if a red light applies to them, the drivers stop.
As well as buses, in the city centre there are also trolley buses - powered by overhead electric cables. And to my surprise, there are also some carts drawn by rather shabby-looking mules. Taxis are everywhere. These are very good - they are well-regulated with meters and standard fares, they are cheap, they are easy to identify because they are red and there are lots of them. Many of the bus routes stop running at about 8pm, so taxis are well-used.
In summer the weather in Beijing is usually in the high 30s, even up to 40°C. In winter it goes down to -15°. However, I've been quite fortunate in that the weather has been a bit cooler this summer. For the first 10 days it was hot, low 30s, but there was a kind of cloud which made it hazy most of the time. Then we had a couple of days with rain. The rain has been rather like monsoon rain - extremely heavy. So heavy in fact, that even a Brit does not think, "It's only a bit of rain. I'll just get wet." The water does not drain well and so lakes of water form on the roads and pavements. There are people out sweeping these away with fan-shaped, rush brooms. Even if you have an umbrella with you, your feet will be soaked in seconds. The rain lasts for an hour or more, so if you are caught, you have a long wait. To my surprise, the cyclists were among those who seemed most prepared for rain. Everywhere brightly-coloured cycle capes appeared and they rode on. Since the rain, the weather has been cooler and clearer.
There are lots of bicycle repair stands on the pavements. These are usually one of the flat-back bicycles with a specially adapted rack with cupboards for tools, spare tyres, etc. The repairs are carried out there and then on the pavement. Although these are theoretically mobile stands, they usually stay in the same spot.
On the pavements there is almost no litter and bus stops are not surrounded by cigarettes butts. I very rarely see people with pets, although I have been told that the number of pet dogs is increasing quite rapidly, and with it the incidence of rabies. There are no pushchairs, so it is common to see parents carrying a sleeping child cradled in their arms.
I'm still surprised by how early it gets dark - by about 7.30pm. It gets light at about 5.30am. This is because the whole of China is in a single time zone. The recent earthquake in the far north-west of China was at about 10am when people were having breakfast because it was only just after dawn there.