Upper East Side

Not a bad place in terms of convenience to services/amenities, but can take a lot of adjustment if you don't speak Mandarin or are not used to locally managed apartment complexes. Issues such as water, electricity, maintenance etc are all more of a hassle at UES as compared to, for example,a Park Avenue/Central Park.

Therefore, probably best for those that have already lived for a while in Beijing, or whose Mandarin is good enough to communicate with the Management office.

Pluses - convenient to cafes, restaurants, Jenny Lou's, local shopping mart opposite, walking distance to Indigo shopping centre (15min), Si-de Park (20min walk), etc. Not too difficult to get taxis outside the complex. A Citibank is outside the main entrance. Beanstalk primary school is behind the complex.

Minuses - little english is spoken, maintenance is slow and sporadic, grounds are not as well lit at night as they could be. Electricity failures occasionally happen in some of the blocks (eg. Block 1)
Taxis don't know the place by name, and even the street address can cause issues.
Security is present but pretty lax.

Lovely complex, modern facilities and very near all important amenities. Helpful and warm security personnel. Problem with business center [editor: property management office] as English speaking staff is not always there and very difficult to talk to for important repair needs.

A very convenient location to almost everywhere in Beijing and the airport (20-25 min). It is quiet and close to many parks. A very good fitness center is nearby. Two major international Hospitals, SOS Clinic and Union Family, are not far away. There are many trees and nice gardens in Upper East Site. The management is not bad in general but the capability of the service workers are not very good (Sometimes, I need to teach them how to fix minor problems). There are not many choices of restaurants in walking distance. If you prefer to stay in a quiet and convenient location of the city (rather than the suburban area like Shunyi) with good surrounding gardens and are patient to wait a while before fixing apartment problems, it is a good choice. I have stayed there for more than two years now. I like it for most time.