Just as the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea is marked by the pillars of Hercules, the gates of Beijing’s Worker’s Stadium are also adorned by twin outcrops—the nightclubs Vick's and Mix. Whilst the two garish and rather tacky Chinese clubs may not quite match the rock of Gibraltar in terms of pure scale and splendour, they can often prove to be epic enough on the right evening.

The European side of the Gibraltar straits is by far the most famous, similarly there is also something of a disparity between Vick's and Mix. Vick's has the more elaborate entrance, boasting an illuminated and elevated walkway that winds its way around the exterior of the building, but unfortunately the place seems to loose its lustre once inside. Mix on the other hand saves its delights for the interior.

As mentioned in some of my other journal entries, my judgement in relation to nighttime venues is often open to question; particularly for places I would frequent in the latter stages of the evening when significant quotants of alcohol have been consumed. This is particularly true of Mix, where things do not start to liven up until well beyond midnight.

The interior of Mix is something of a maze with three or four different dance floors hidden on various levels, each one usually rammed with different styles of music pounding away. There are also plenty of atmospherics: the combination of body heat, deep red lighting and smoke gives an intimate yet intense impression.

Mix is generally crammed to bursting on a weekend. However, on a Friday and Saturday there is a 30RMB cover charge and often a long line involved before you can get in. To me this just works to emphasize how Mix is one of Beijing’s best attractions on a weeknight. Whereas other dancing venues such as Poachers or Suzy Wong’s are sparsely populated mid-week, Mix still manages to pull in the crowds.