Maria Gustava and her twins Luciano and Stella (ages 18) moved to Beijing from Mozambique in 2018. The twins recently graduated from Beanstalk International Bilingual School (BIBS). As a typical diplomatic family, only three of the seven Gustava family members moved to Beijing. The family is fascinated by China’s rich history, diversified cultures, cuisine, and ethnic groups. Aside from the numerous museums and historical sites in the city, one of the things that the Gustava family loves is the sense of unity and work culture of the Chinese people. “We witness with admiration on how all nations came together against COVID-19.”

Maria

Living in Beijing has been an amazing experience for me and my family. Being a diplomat I really had the opportunity to become an international citizen, to be able to appreciate, understand, and be tolerant with others. I had the chance to move around the world, meet different peoples and cultures, and learn a lot from it. Therefore, my first and primary resource for self-help and self-improvement is the people’s experiences, daily life challenges, books, and newspapers. Apart from the Bible, especially the chapter on Proverbs, one of the books that I found very inspirational and I read it in just one weekend was “Becoming” by Michelle Obama. Also, I like to hear the talk shows of Oprah, since they are motivational. I also love the books from the Mozambican writers such as Mia Couto and Paulina Chiziane.

Luciano

For help and self-improvement resources, one of the most influential platforms that inspires me to improve my way of thinking and view that I would recommend to anyone is the Joe Budden Podcast. The podcast gives you weekly motivational content, knowledge, and advice pertaining to current and past events while being entertaining. It’s a platform where listeners enjoy a broad array of tips that you can introduce to your daily life. Although the podcast may seem boring, I can assure you will find yourself laughing and captivated for hours.

Stella

The Disney Movie “The Princess and the Frog” has always been my favorite since I was a child. I often use Tiana as my inspiration: the first black princess who is resilient with her dreams, hardworking, carries her family and values in her heart no matter the circumstances. This may sound silly to some but this kind of representation creates a meaningful impact on a young black girl. Although she was a frog for the majority of the movie, you could feel her presence and character shining through.

KEEP READING: A Friendship Strengthened by the Pandemic

Photos: Uni You

This article appeared in the beijingkids 2020 September issue

This year has been like no other. Most Beijingers have spent the past seven months stuck in the same house with the same people doing the same things over and over again. It’s like we’re suspended in limbo. But even though we still can’t travel far, there are many great things to do around Beijing to help you reclaim 2020 with your family.

All ages and experience levels are welcome at Le Cool Ice Rink.

Live Your Ice Princess Dreams at Le Cool Ice Rink 国贸溜冰场

Beihai Park has a lot of activities, but boating must be on your list!

Boating in Beihai Park 北海公园

If you’re looking for a more scenic option, Beihai Park is one of Beijing’s oldest and best-preserved imperial gardens and it’s a must-see, especially with the lotuses in full bloom.

For RMB 120 an hour, you can rent a small motor or pedal boat and explore the garden via the water. The boats fit up to six people and give you free rein over the giant lake and the view that comes with it. It’s the perfect spot to take Instagram worthy photos and is surprisingly leisurely, even for families with young children.

Exciting for the kids and relaxing for parents, Beihai is the perfect spot to learn about Beijing, escape from the city life, and maybe even see a couple of ducks.

Address: 1 Wenjin St, Xicheng District 西城区文津街1号

Opening hours: Daily 6.30am-9pm* May be subjected to change due to COVID-19. We suggest going around midday.

Price: RMB 120 per hour +RMB 400-500 deposit. Park admission: RMB 10, RMB 5 for students. Tickets need to be booked at least a day ahead of time.

Phone: 6403 7972

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Jump your troubles away — as a family.

Reclaim Your Childhood at Latitude 乐图

Also for fans of the vertical life, trampoline parks are a must-go. These popular birthday party destinations are wonderful places to drop the kids off for some fun.

While this activity seems more for the children than parents, it’s just the thing to bring out your inner child. Trampoline parks are stocked full of foam ball pits, climbing structures, sports equipment, and, of course, trampolines. Pull on some anti-slip socks, grab your water bottle, and get ready to jump!

798 always has something new to discover.

Borden Your Horizons at 798 Art District

Love art? 798 is a modern Beijing must-go and a great location for families with older children. Explore what used to be an electronics factory and is now a steampunk art district. You might find pipelines the size of cars, graffiti that reaches three stories high, or long-abandoned industrial plants straight out of a dystopian movie.

Take a stop at one of the many coffee shops, bars, and restaurants. Visit some galleries and support local artists. Take a stroll among the street art and make up stories about all the sculptures. Was that one a monster now frozen in time? Does this one come alive at night to protect our city? Let your imagination run wild.

Feel the freedom of skydiving in a comforting indoor environment.

Indoor Skydiving at Happy Flying Home 飞行家太空体验馆

Ever wanted to go sky diving? (For most people, probably not). Ever want to skydive without hurdling 60 meters per second out of a moving plane?

That you can try right here in Beijing. For two minutes, don a flight suit and experience the thrill of flying in a specially built wind tunnel. While there is a minimum weight limit for some youngsters, indoor skydiving is the perfect family adventure for those who dreamed of soaring through the sky.

Address: Bldg 12, South Sector, Zhongliang Xiangyung Xiaozhen

顺义区中粮祥云小镇南区12号楼

Opening hours: 10am-9pm

Price: RMB 240 per 2-minute session

Phone: 138 1010 4809

Hot & Spicy Fest 2020

This year’s Hot & Spicy Fest was a weekend of fun, music, drinks, and (of course) a ton of deliciously spicy food, and a great crowd showed up to celebrate despite the threat of bad weather. Luckily, the rain never came and the good times rolled on! It just goes to show that when it comes to having fun, there’s no stopping us Beijingers. Stay tuned for more food festivals coming up later on in the year.

For food lovers, there’s more to come! The Beijinger‘s annual Burger Fest is just around the corner. This year’s superhero-themed festival will be held on Sept 18 – 20. What’s more, the fest will feature the superpowers of our title sponsor JSS and their caped delivery crusaders, a great way to get your favorite burger – or just about anything else, from fine foods to fresh groceries – brought straight to your door.

Meet Our New Deputy Managing Editor

Beijingkids welcomes Cindy Marie Jenkins as our new Deputy Managing Editor. Jenkins hails from Los Angeles where she was a writer, director, and marketer for theaters and nonprofits. Her published works address the intersection of parenting, travel, culture, and work. Cindy consults with both work-at-home-parents, employers who want to hire them, and most recently helped live theaters pivot to virtual experiences. She lives in Beijing with her husband and two kids aged four and six. She read beijingkids for four years before moving here and we’re so thrilled for her to join the team!

We’ll Miss You, Anna!

As we welcome in our new Deputy Managing Editor Cindy Marie Jenkins, we say farewell to Anna Pellegrin Hartley who’s been an integral part of the beijingkids team over the past few months. Pellegrin Hartley has been a part of the True Run Media family for 2 years, first working as the Senior Editor and Digital Media Strategist at the Beijinger before moving over to beijingkids. Pellegrin Hartley’s personality was like a ray of sunshine and we’re going to miss seeing her in the office every day. We wish her all the best in her next big adventure!

Summer Well Spent

We’ve had such an amazing time working with our interns this summer. This group of talented young writers contributed their unique voice and views of our beloved city. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank Dorothy Asiedu, Qinglan Du, Jack He, Olivia Li, Pranav Sundararajan, Eloise Wester, FeiFei Xu, TianTian Xu, and Lauren Zhou for their hard work. We’re so impressed with the quality and maturity of your work, and know that you will achieve great things in life. It’s been a privilege working with you guys!

KEEP READING: Liangma River Revamp Shapes up Nicely, More Than Half Now Open

Images: Uni You, Heidi Vale Photography, unsplash

This article appeared in the beijingkids 2020 September issue

I was born with a best friend – my older sister. She actually wanted a big sister but got me instead. She didn’t choose me, and I didn’t choose her. Yet we love each other because we are sisters.

When I was little, I would follow her around everywhere and worship her every move, convinced that she could do no wrong. Then I grew up. I stopped playing with her so much, got impatient with everything she did, and began hunting for my own friends.

I was in second grade when I met Lauren at a summer camp in Seattle called Yick, Yack, Yuck. We bonded over a dead squid.

Saying goodbye to my sister at the start of camp, moments before I met Lauren

Lauren named him Mr. Squid. Our assignment was to dissect him. We laughed through his entire ink sack removal surgery, we talked about how to break the news to his family when he died, and we pretended to cry at his “funeral” when we threw him into the trash can.

That’s how we became best friends.

But I live in Beijing, and she lives in Seattle, so we only saw each other over the summer.

Each year, I look forward to seeing Lauren. We like to exchange gifts, eat Molly Moon’s ice cream, and catch up during sleepovers at her house.

A dead squid helped two strangers become best friends

But this year, we could not visit Lauren, or anyone else outside of China.

We began to call each other more and more during the spring, making plans for the summer and hoping the pandemic would be over by then. We looked for other camps to join and locations for a road trip. But the pandemic kept raging, so none of these things were possible. We had to find other ways to spend our summer together.

We alternated from WeChat to Instagram to iMessages, calling each other almost every day. She would wake up when I’m getting ready for bed. With 15 hours apart, there is no ideal time for either of us. We’re both groggy and struggling to stay awake, but we push through to make the most of the short window of time we have together.

Screenshots of us during our video calls, one during the day (left) and one at night (right)

Even though we live half a world away, we still manage to bullet journal together and gossip about our day. This week, I watched live as she chased an ice-cream truck down the street, her sister hurriedly handing her a mask. They bought strawberry shortcake and cookies’n’cream popsicles. It was my first experience with an American ice-cream truck.

But what we spend the most time doing is talking, sometimes for hours. I would teach her short words in Chinese, like, best friend – guī mì, and how to say my last name – Xu, which is not pronounced “shoe”. She would recommend some of her favorite science fiction or fantasy books and let me gush over her adorably wide-eyed and overweight cat Skittles, who was still a kitten the last time I saw him.

Refreshments with Lauren last summer

Friendship really helped me get through the pandemic. It kept me sane. It gave me someone to talk to. And most of all, it helped me escape reality and forget about the deadly virus.

It has always been hard for me to keep friends because my family moves so much. I will always have my sister and Lauren will always have her sister. But we all need to find friends outside the family. I am lucky I found Lauren.

Last summer when my sister and I hung out with Lauren and her sister in Seattle

I realized that the distance between us is not what matters. Since the pandemic, all relationships have become long-distance, but Lauren and I feel closer than ever. We have actually spent more time together virtually than during our short annual visits.

Whether your friend lives next door, or in another country, it’s the effort you put into your relationship that matters most. I hope we stay friends for many years to come, with or without a pandemic.

Feifei Xu is a Chinese-American rising Grade 9 student at Western Academy of Beijing who has a strange obsession with dogs and her best friend Lauren. She loves spending time with her family, although quarantine has been pushing her to her limits. At school, she is either hanging out with friends or hiding in the library alone.

This article originally appeared on Inkblot WAB. To read more from Inkblot WAB, scan the QR code below.

KEEP READING:What Does it Take to Be a Good Big Sister?

Photos: Courtesy of Inkblot WAB

Fourteen years ago, I stopped being an only child.

My parents must have misunderstood. When I asked for a sister, I meant a BIG sister, not this… wrinkly little thing they call a baby.

I wanted a big sister because I wanted someone who’d play with me, someone who’d protect me and teach me the ways of life. All a little sister does is make me a big sister. I went from being the center of attention to sharing my life with a mini human I was expected to adore and get along with.

Scarier than that, I was supposed to become the responsible sister and role model. All eyes were on me. And I was only two years old!

As humans, we’re obsessed with categorizing everything. We tend to put people into boxes, whether or not they actually fit. It’s easy to project yourself into certain traits if society expects them of you. What child hasn’t heard adults bragging about their “responsible oldest daughter” or “trouble-making” little ones”?

In Chinese, you’re either a jiejie or a meimei – an older sister or a younger sister. In English, there’s no such difference. You are sisters either way. But in Chinese culture, even twins, born only seconds apart, are often subjected to these expectations. You see them on their parents’ social media posts, referred to as jiejie and meimei – translation: the responsible older one and anything-goes little one.

“When I asked for a sister, I meant a BIG sister, not this…”

Throughout my early childhood, I was the perfect jiejie. My little sister was the reason I would always ask for extra cake and candy during class birthday parties. Not because I was greedy, but because I had to save it for my meimei. Everything I talked about included my sister. When my favorite teacher in second grade told us she was leaving, my immediate response was “oh no, you won’t teach my sister!”

My sister and I were inseparable, we never fought, and all the grownups praised me for being a good big sister.

But after I discovered chapter books, we stopped playing together as much. All I ever wanted to do was read. While I hid from the real world through fiction, my sister seemed to move on beyond me until it felt like I had nothing left to offer her. She even took on the role of the stereotypical responsible “older” sister.

We lost that easy communication and started butting heads. In the blink of an eye, she was all grown up. She stopped blindly following me anywhere and looking at me with that light in her eyes.

On a deeper level, the tension between us has always been over something we had no control over: the stereotypes and expectations based off nothing more than birth order. As soon as we stopped fitting into those boxes, I was no longer a good big sister.

“Throughout my early childhood, I was the perfect jiejie.”

Because when the question of “how can I be a better big sister” comes up, you’re really asking how can you get along with your younger siblings and get them to admire you the same way they did when you were young children. In other words, how can you force your way back into those boxes that say, “good sister”?

But there is more than one right way to be a good big sister.

It’s the reason why so many grown siblings keep telling you it gets better when you’re older. They say you’ll one day be each other’s best friends, but they don’t tell you why.

I think being a good big sister means being a good sister first. And being a good sister isn’t just about being a role model or showing your sister the secrets of life. To be a good sister is to understand that you are equals and can learn from each other. It’s about learning to lean on each other and facing the world together.

None of us will be children forever. It’s taken me a while to understand that we’ll never be able to go back to the way we were before. But that’s okay. My sister may be younger than me, but she is just as capable. She won’t need my help forever. In fact, these days it’s her teaching me internet lingo and how to “meme”.

Since the start of quarantine, we’ve spent a lot more time together playing and laughing, just like we did when we were little kids. We work together in silence for hours and coming up with stories late into the night. Yes, we still fight, but we understand that’s just part of what it means to be sisters.

“I think being a good big sister means being a good sister first.”

If you were to ask me how to be a good big sister, I’d have no answer. I am by far not a perfect jiejie. Sometimes I can be scatterbrained and childish. I don’t have much advice on being a teenager, never mind the secrets to the universe. But none of that matters.

I only have two years before I leave for college. I intend to spend them with my sister, as friends and as equals. And that makes me a pretty darn good jiejie.

KEEP READING: The Impact of Birth Order on Parenting Styles and Children’s Personalities

Images: courtesy of TianTian Xu

My family absolutely loves board games. Whenever my father comes back from business trips we immediately plan a game night. We gather at the dining table, play some jazz music, and spend hours on end playing games such as monopoly, charades and UNO. Board games give us a chance to enjoy quality time together away from our screens.

Why should you encourage your children to play board games?

Board games entertain people and bring them together through a cooperative and competitive game. Many popular games such as monopoly and scrabble do not only entertain but also provide children with educational benefits.

Board games help children develop essential skills such as problem-solving, by presenting various obstacles, pushing players to find solutions to problems that arise. Children are encouraged to assess which solutions will effectively help them win a game and implement them. Their brains will retain and build cognitive associations, allowing complex thoughts and memory formation. Furthermore, keeping your mind engaged will enable you to exercise it and make it stronger. These games also improve focus and patience. Sitting down for over an hour to play a board game requires concentration and commitment to play to the end.

Candy Land (Ages:3+)

This game is an all-time favorite, and 2-4 people can play at a time. Players are required to follow a rainbow path; the goal is to be the first to reach King Kandy’s castle. Players will encounter certain obstacles, such as cards that send you backwards.

This game encourages players to exercise patience, identify and match colors, tests motor skills and the ability to follow rules and directions.

Hasbro Connect 4 (Ages: 6+)

The goal of this 2-player game is to stack four discs together in any direction (vertical, horizontal, and diagonal). As long as a player gets four-in-a-row, they win. However, players should also attempt to block their opponent’s discs to prevent them from winning.

The game teaches fundamental problem solving and provides a chance to detect patterns. Furthermore, the game encourages players to plan and predict the outcome of certain moves, teaching them to prepare and stay one step ahead.

HedBanz Family Quick Question Guessing Board Game (Ages: 7+)

Hedbanz is a fun and simple family guessing game. Players can ask “yes” or “no” answer questions to figure out what category (food, animal, object) their cartoon falls in and what it explicitly illustrates. 2-6 players can play, and the headbands can adjust to different head sizes.

This game teaches your children how to use reasoning and problem-solving skills to deduce what their cartoon illustrates. It also teaches them to ask clever questions and listen carefully to clues given.

Monopoly (Ages: 8+)

During this game, all players roll two dices to move around the board. Players can buy and trade properties, allowing them to collect rent from opponents. Money gained can also be used to further develop real estate properties with houses and hotels. The ultimate goal is to earn money and purchase real estate in order to drive your opponents to bankruptcy.

This game teaches your children financial basics. To understand modern-day virtual transactions, your child must have a basic understanding of exchanging cash. It also encourages them to do quick math when paying rent and purchasing real estate, causing them to keep track of their income. Finally, the game illustrates real-world issues, such as economic inequality.

KEEP READING: Behind the Scenes: The Asideu Family Share Their Favorite Documentary Films

Photos: Taobao

According to the Australian police, a number of Chinese students in Sydney were recently targeted in a scam in which they were forced to “kidnap” themselves, and ask their parents for ransom. In one case, a frantic father sent USD 2 million to the scammers. According to Australian police Detective Chief Superintendent Darren Bennett, some “[families]have basically paid every cent they’ve got.”

The Australian government official reports that there have been a total of 8 cases reported, with over USD 3.2 million transferred to the blackmailers. The scams appear to have been conducted through encrypted apps such as WeChat or WhatsApp, making them more difficult to trace. The victims were usually first approached by a Mandarin-speaking person, who pretended to be from the Chinese authorities or Embassy, and told that they were involved in a crime back in China.

Students are coerced into faking kidnapping pictures

The scammers then threatened the students, saying that the only way to get out of trouble was to pay a huge ransom, lest they be arrested or deported. If the students were not initially convinced, the scammers then continued the harassment with more threats, until the victims complied. The victims were told to move into a hotel and pose for a kidnapping picture, or send a voice mail to their families in China asking for help. 

A student bounded in a hotel room

After making contact with their families, they were then instructed to cut off any contact with the outside world, and to stay in the hotel, thereby cutting them off from their families, who may have helped them realized that they were being scammed.

Most of these cases were not initially reported to the police because the victims felt embarrassed. While the scammers are yet to be caught, the Australian police are currently working with Chinese forces to break the case.

KEEP READING: What to Expect When You’re Filing a Police Report in Beijing

Pictures: via AFP, Fox News

China is (thankfully) not well known for anti-vaxxers, it has had its fair share of turmoil when it comes to vaccines. Before the Vaccine Administration Law was passed on December 1, 2019, so-called ‘underground clinics’ did a roaring trade distributing the latest foreign vaccines before they had been giving official approval in China, sometimes even upon the recommendation of public hospitals. In 2011 however during a government crackdown on the practice, one such clinic, Meihua Clinic received an “administrative punishment” for distributing the illegal vaccines and in 2017, their founder was prosecuted and sent to jail.

Although Meihua’s legal team claims that the children injected with the vaccine showed no complications, other companies did not fare so well. Back in 2018, Changchun Changsheng Life Sciences Ltd. was exposed for selling thousands of unregulated vaccines, which left children with permanent disabilities. 

Do vaccine schedules apply to everyone the same?

The topic of mandatory vaccines sometimes comes up in parenting groups, with foreign passport holders wondering if their children have to get the same shots as Chinese children, particularly if they are planning to leave the country soon after the birth of their child. To get some clarity on the vaccines topic, we spoke to Dr. Wennie Balawis, a pediatrician at Oasis International Hospital here in Beijing.

Although different countries do have different regulations and mandatory vaccines, Dr. Balawis says that the same schedule applies to all children in China, regardless of nationality.

“Here in China, we follow one vaccine schedule for everyone as recommended by the Chinese CDC. The recommended primary vaccinations here are almost the same as in any other country. Actually, each city or province will have slightly different policies – but with the same vaccines – but the main framework of vaccination guidelines is still coming from the Chinese CDC.” She adds that the main difference is that the timing of administration (what age they are given), and if or how the vaccines are grouped together.

“Some countries like most European countries do not give certain vaccines like BCG because tuberculosis disease that this vaccine prevents is not endemic in these countries. On the other hand, other countries recommend certain vaccines that are not necessary in China, for example, yellow fever vaccine because this disease is not prevalent here.”

Ok, so we have to get vaccines in China. But which ones?

Dr. Balawis explains that in China, vaccines are divided into two categories: Category 1 vaccines are mandatory for all children, and free of charge as the cost of vaccinations is borne by the government. Many kindergartens will not accept kids without their shots. Category 2 vaccines are not obligatory, and the cost is borne by the parents of the child being vaccinated. However, Dr. Balawis stresses that they are highly recommended. 

Category 1 Vaccines

We’ve also translated this handy chart from the National Immunization Program at the Chinese Center of Disease Control, which breaks down Category 1 Vaccines in the order of when your child must get them, as many vaccines require multiple follow-up ‘booster’s hots.

After Birth: Hepatitis B (1st); Bacille-Calmette-Guerin vaccine (BCG) for tuberculosis
One Month Old: Hepatitis B (2nd)
Two Months Old: Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV)
Three Months Old: Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV); Diphtheria, Tetanus, acellular Pertussis vaccine (DTaP) (1st)
Four Months Old: OPV (2nd), DTaP (2nd)
Five Months Old: DTaP (3rd)
Six Months Old: Hepatitis B  (3rd), Meningococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine (MPSV-A) (1st)
Eight Months Old: Measles (1st), Japanese Encephalitis – Live (JE-L) vaccine (1st), JE-1 (1st and 2nd)
Nine Months Old: MPSV-AC (2nd)
Eighteen Months Old: DTP (4th), Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) (1st), HepA-L (1st); HepA-I (1st)
Two Years Old: JE-L (2nd); JE-I (3rd); HepA-I (2st)
Three Years Old: MPSV-AC (3rd)
Four Years Old: OPV (3rd)
Six Years Old: DT (1st); JE-I (4th); MPSV-AC (2nd)

Thanks largely to vaccinations, polio cases worldwide have decreased by over 99% since 1988

Category 2 Vaccines

Category 2 vaccines include coverage of some rarer diseases that are not considered endemic in China, such as rabies, Cholera, and Human Papilloma Virus.

Other than providing additional coverage for your children by giving your child Category 2 vaccines, Dr. Balawis says there are other advantages including the fact that more vaccines are grouped under single treatment, thereby reducing the number of visits to the doctor that a child must make.

She cites the Category 2 ‘Pentaxim’ (DTaP-IPV-HiB) vaccine as a good example, as in one go it covers children for multiple maladies. To get the same mandatory vaccines in Category 1, the child would have to go in for at least 3 separate shots.

As with everything relating to children’s health, parents are advised to discuss their options in detail with a trusted pediatrician.

KEEP READING: “So You Want to Become a Doctor?”: Facing the Reality of Medical School

Images: Aditya Romansa (via Unsplash), Wikimedia Commons

When the Asiedu family moved from the US to Beijing in 2010 following a long-held dream to experience a new culture and city, they figured they might be here for two years in total. Two years flew by, then five, then… well, you know how it goes. Eldest daughter Dorothy (16) and her sister Diane (14) are students at Dulwich College Beijing, while their youngest Elizabeth (12) goes to Daystar Academy. Dad Kenneth is currently stuck in Philadelphia missing his leading ladies, but Geena credits FaceTime for keeping them all connected during this tough time.

We quizzed the Asiedu family on their favorite documentary films, and we were not disappointed!

Dorothy – American Factory

In 2014 Chinese auto-glass company Fuyao opened a factory in Dayton, Ohio. The documentary shows how the local American and Chinese workers, who are brought over to train them, try to overcome their language and cultural differences such as safety, unions, and work ethics. By the end, most of the workers had been replaced by machines, and I now appreciate how Artificial Intelligence is affecting the global workforce.

Geena – The Last Dance

This documentary series is a fascinating and detailed look at the 1997-1998 season that culminated in the Chicago Bull’s historic sixth and final N.B.A. championship title, led by His Airness Michael Jordan. Jordan says that God created him to play basketball, and I am still in awe of his excellence and relentless pursuit of greatness. I am not a competitive person so watching Jordan tap into his competitive side to achieve excellence has been inspiring to me.

Elizabeth –  Blue Planet II

Blue Planet II shows mesmerizing ocean scenes and animals. The production crew was able to place cameras on sea creatures such as whales, and I enjoyed seeing this point of view. Sea creatures are as protective of their little ones just as human parents, and I was sad to watch the part where a mama whale was so sad that its baby had died. Blue Planet II also shows us the impact of human activities and climate change. It is important for each of us to do our bit to make sure that sea creatures can thrive in their natural habitat.

Diane –  Becoming

Becoming shows parts of Michelle Obama’s life before, during, and after her time as the First Lady. It was interesting to see the contrast between these different stages, and I have come to appreciate how she learned to establish herself as an individual, and dealt with negative press. Michelle makes lots of witty and inspiring comments, and one of my favorite lines is a quote about young girls, “We can’t afford to wait for the world to be equal to start feeling seen”.

Kenneth – Minimalism

This Netflix documentary makes a persuasive argument for the benefits of living a minimalist lifestyle. There is nothing inherently wrong with owning material possessions, but we often have more than we need. We have been conditioned to give too much meaning to the material stuff we collect. Minimalism can assist us to find freedom from the trappings of our consumer-driven culture.

KEEP READING: How About Just a Little Sip? Beijing Parents’ Views on Underage Drinking

Photos: Uni You

This article appeared in the beijingkids 2020 June issue