It’s not entirely uncommon to see farm animals such as horses and donkeys in Beijing, especially as they are often attached to fruit and vegetable carts for farmers trekking in from the countryside to sell their wares.

In fact, here’s a horse (or perhaps a hinny, a hybrid from a male horse and a female donkey) chilling out in Chaowai, right outside my office in the heart of the CBD (Central Business District). This one was a bit unusual because he was simply tied up, munching his feed from his feed bag, and doing his business. My first impulse was to look for the fruit cart.

Then there was the time my sister and I were innocently walking along the Great Wall in Mutianyu, as one does, and behold! a donkey enjoying the fine autumn day with us. No one else blinked an eye, we were the only ones so gauche as to gawk.
19/01/2011 at 1:20 am Permalink
random internet comment: that first pic looks more like a hinny than a horse.
19/01/2011 at 1:42 am Permalink
Thanks for that comment, I think I just learned something, namely, what a hinny is!