Learn Hardcore Chinese: zhōumò wǒmen xǐhuan qù zhège chéngshì běibian de gōngyuán sànbù. - On weekends we like to go to the park in the north of this city to take a walk.

Time words usually appear before the verb.
They can be before the subject or between subject and verb.
Putting 周末 at the very start (周末我们…) can make the time feel a bit more prominent, like setting the scene first.

Why is there no 的 after 城市? Shouldn’t it be 这个城市的北边的公园?

Place words such as 上边、旁边、前面、北边 often follow a noun without 的:

学校门口 (门口 of the school)
公司旁边 (beside the company)
我家对面 (across from my home)
这个城市北边 (the north side of this city)

You can say 这个城市的北边, but in everyday speech:

这个城市北边的公园 is shorter and more natural.
这个城市的北边的公园 is grammatical but sounds heavier, with a double 的 that people often avoid in speech.

So 这个城市北边的公园 is the usual spoken form.

What exactly does the 的 in 北边的公园 do? What modifies what?

的 links a modifier to a noun.

Here, the whole phrase 这个城市北边的 modifies 公园:

这个城市北边的公园
= the park (that is) in the north of this city

Structural breakdown:

这个城市北边 = “the north side of this city” (a location phrase)
这个城市北边的 = “(the) … north-side … (something)”
这个城市北边的公园 = “the park on the north side of this city”

So 的 is just turning the location phrase into an adjective-like modifier for 公园.

Does 这个城市北边的公园 mean “a park in the northern part of this city” or “a park north of this city”?

By default it is understood as:

“the park in the northern part of this city”
(i.e. in the north area of the city)

If you wanted to stress that the park is outside the city, to the north of it, you would usually phrase it more explicitly, for example:

在这个城市的北边有一个公园。
“There is a park to the north of this city.”

But in real-life context, 这个城市北边的公园 could sometimes be interpreted as “the park on the north side of the city” whether just inside or just outside the city boundary; people rely on context.

Why is there no 在 before 这个城市北边的公园 after 去? I thought locations use 在.

There are two common patterns:

去 + place + action
- 去公园散步。
- 去朋友家吃饭。
- 去北京工作。
In this pattern, 去 already expresses movement “to go to”, so you do not add 在 before the place.
在 + place + action
- 在公园散步。
- 在朋友家吃饭。
- 在北京工作。
Here you are just stating where something happens; there is no “go to”.

Your sentence uses pattern 1:

喜欢去这个城市北边的公园散步。
“like to go to the park… to take a walk.”

So 在 is not used here.

Can I say 周末我们喜欢在这个城市北边的公园散步 instead? What’s the difference from …喜欢去这个城市北边的公园散步?

Yes, both are correct, but the focus is slightly different:

周末我们喜欢去这个城市北边的公园散步。
- Emphasis on the going there and walking.
- Implies the park is a destination you head to.
周末我们喜欢在这个城市北边的公园散步。
- Emphasis on the activity in that place.
- Feels a bit more like “We enjoy walking in that park (as an activity).”

In practice, they can often be used interchangeably; the nuance is subtle.

Can 喜欢 be followed directly by a verb phrase like 去公园散步? I thought 喜欢 only took nouns.

In Chinese, 喜欢 can take:

Nouns
- 喜欢音乐
- 喜欢这个公园
Verbs / verb phrases
- 喜欢唱歌
- 喜欢看书
- 喜欢去旅游
- 喜欢去这个城市北边的公园散步

So 喜欢 + 去公园散步 is completely natural:

喜欢 [去这个城市北边的公园散步]
= like [going to this city’s northern park to take a walk].

Why doesn’t 公园 have a measure word like 一个? In English we say “a park”.

Chinese does not always need a measure word when English uses “a” or “one”.

You add a number + measure word when you want to specify how many:

一个公园 – one park / a certain park
那个公园 – that park
这几个公园 – these several parks

But when you talk about something in general or it’s already clear what you mean, you can just use the bare noun:

我们喜欢去公园散步。
“We like going to the park (parks) for a walk.”

In your sentence, the park is a known, specific place (“the park in the north of this city”), so 这个城市北边的公园 already identifies it; adding 一个 would either be unnecessary or would sound like “one (of several) parks in the north of this city”:

这个城市北边的公园 – the park in the north of this city
这个城市北边的一个公园 – one park in the north of this city (among others)

What’s the difference between 北, 北边, 北面, 北方, 北部? Why use 北边 here?

Brief overview:

北
- Literally “north”, often used in compounds: 北京 (“northern capital”), 华北 (North China).
- Not usually used alone for “the north side” in everyday speech.
北边 / 北面
- Very common in speech for the north side / to the north of.
- Largely interchangeable here.
- Concrete, physical direction: 房子北边 (north side of the house).
北方
- “The north (of a country/region)”, often larger-scale and with a cultural or climatic feel:
  - 中国北方
  - 他是北方人。
- Not usually used for “north of this particular city” in a small, local sense.
北部
- “Northern part (of a given area)” and more formal/written:
  - 城市北部
  - 法国北部

Here, 这个城市北边的公园 sounds natural and conversational for “the park on the north side of this city”.
You could also say 这个城市北部的公园, but it feels a bit more formal or like written style.

Why is the word order 这个城市北边的公园 and not something like 北边的这个城市公园?

Chinese puts all modifiers before the noun, in a fairly fixed inside-out order. For place phrases describing location of the noun, the usual pattern is:

[bigger place] + [more specific location word] + 的 + [noun]

So:

这个城市 + 北边 + 的 + 公园
学校 + 门口 + 的 + 小卖部
河 + 对面 + 的 + 咖啡馆

Reordering to 北边的这个城市公园 changes the structure and sounds unnatural / confusing. It would be interpreted more like:

“the ‘north-side’ this-city park” (which doesn’t really make sense)

So the natural order is:

这个城市北边的公园 – “the park that is on the north side of this city”.

How do we know the sentence means a habit (“on weekends we like to…”) and not just one specific weekend, past or future?

Chinese does not mark tense like English. Instead, we rely on:

Time words and
Context / type of verb

Here:

周末 (weekends) + a verb like 喜欢 (“to like”) usually suggests habitual behavior.
There is no aspect marker like 了, 过 to show a completed event.
English would naturally translate this habitual meaning as:
“On weekends, we like to go to the park in the north of this city for a walk.”

If you wanted to talk about one specific weekend, you’d usually specify:

上个周末，我们去了这个城市北边的公园散步。
“Last weekend, we went…”
这个周末，我们打算去这个城市北边的公园散步。
“This weekend, we’re planning to go…”

Is 北边 pronounced with a neutral tone on 边? Does it matter if I say běibiān instead of běibian?

In modern standard Mandarin:

北边 is usually pronounced běi·bian – 北 (běi, 3rd tone) + 边 with a neutral tone.
Dictionaries may write běibian, but in practice the second syllable is commonly neutral in speech.

If you pronounce it as běibiān (full first tone on 边):

People will still understand you.
It can sound a bit more careful or slightly unnatural in casual speech.

So aim for běi·bian (neutral second syllable), but don’t worry too much—communication won’t break if you use a full tone.