Foreigners and young Beijingers looking for a night out in the Chinese capital may have a more enjoyable time than just drinking and dancing at the famous Sanlitun pub street in the future.

The Beijing municipal government has decided to enlarge and enrich the functions of the street, where people will also have easy access to more vivid and colorful recreation centers, such as gymnasiums, shopping malls, cinemas and even find a pond for anchoring.

A new Sanlitun street, with an area of more than 50,000 square meters, will be established, across the old pub street across the street. All the buildings on either side of the new street will be four-storied and not higher than 18 meters.

The old Sanlitun street, with a reach of 68 foreign missions in one of Beijing's two leading embassy districts, absorbed the first pub in 1989 and by 1998, the street had housed more than 80 pubs, where people from around the world as well as young Beijingers sing, dance and chat at night.

It is estimated that pubs in the street have a total annual sales volume of more than 10 million yuan (about US$1.2 million) by 2002, according to the latest statistics available.

(Xinhua News Agency August 24, 2005)