• If You Love Your Uncle, Avoid These Chinese New Year Taboos!

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  You have probably heard enough of Spring Festival traditions and customs, but what about taboos? People do not usually tell you of such things until you break a cultural taboo or step on someone's toes. For example, if someone has their hair cut anytime during the first lunar month, bad luck is supposed to fall upon their maternal uncles.

• Monkey Business: Beijing’s 6 Best Temple Fairs

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  For Beijingers, attending a miaohui (temple fair) comes second only to the family reunion dinner when it comes to Chinese New Year observances. Though miaohui started taking shape as early as the Wei dynasty (220-264 AD), the temple fair as we know it dates in earnest from the Tang era (618-907 AD).

• Drumroll, Please: And the Winners of the Beijinger's 2016 Reader Restaurant Awards Are …

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  After a grueling month-long process which included the collecting and analysis of over 13,000 ballots, the list of Beijing's Best Restaurants for 2016 is becoming clear – and we're releasing a partial list below.

• Beijing's Mysterious Line 3 to Finally Begin Construction

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  At the government affairs consultation in late January, Dai Mengdong, the deputy director of the city's major affairs office stated that Beijing's Subway Line 3 was due to begin construction in 2016.

• An open door is much more inviting

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  While dozens of cities started offering 72-hour visa-free visits to third-country transit travelers in recent years, the Yangtze River Delta enacted a 144-hour visa-free policy on Saturday - a week before Spring Festival.

• Excessive emissions a big problem in 59 cities

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  The national environmental authority found severely excessive pollution emissions during inspections of 648 companies in 59 cities in December, and it promised tougher punishment this year under a newly enacted air pollution control law.

• When chatting with Chinese, know your emojis

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  A collection of popular emojis on instant messaging software QQ in China.

• Prepare for Sanlitun Traffic Mayhem this Weekend as City Adjusts Traffic Rules

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  New traffic restrictions will be introduced this Saturday (Jan 30) in and around Sanlitun in an attempt to end the perpetual traffic jam at the intersection of Gongti Beilu and Sanlitun Lu, directly in front of Taikoo Li. Sanlitun Bar Street will remain open to two-way traffic, but with numerous restrictions on turns onto it and at nearby Changhong Qiao.

• Incentives needed to boost urbanization's full benefits

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  China must overcome hesitancy on the part of both municipal governments and rural residents in order to boost the numbers of migrants settling in cities, the country's top economic planner said.

• Agency plans expansion of duty-free

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  Li Jinzao, head of the China National Tourism Administration, said on Friday that one of the major tasks in 2016 is to expand the tax refund policy to more cities to attract more overseas tourists and promote their consumption.