Michaela Kabat
Double Feature
Life as a twin in Beijing
This June-July joint issue of tbjkids had us seeing double. Suddenly, we found ourselves feeling curious about all things paired, and we started wondering: What would life be like if you were born with a partner? We sent Michaela Kabat to find out by tracking down some of Beijing’s twins.
Destination: Sydney, Australia
Sights, surf and plenty of seafood
The Travelers: Jonas Stahlbage, a Swede, and Monica Mak, who hails from Hong Kong but spent half her life in the US, and their son Gustav, age 14 months.
The Destination: Sydney, Australia.
The Plan: Jonas needed to go to Australia for a business trip, and Monica and Gustav jumped on board for a weeklong seaside escape. Self-described “foodies,” Monica and Jonas were excited about the prospect of a week’s worth of quality fish, crab and oysters. “My goal was to eat seafood until I just didn’t want to eat seafood anymore!” smiles Monica. Gustav, though perhaps too young to appreciate a good plate of raw oysters, would get a chance to chase after seagulls and splash in the waves on Sydney’s beaches.
Destination: Hawaii
Two parents, four kids, plus four grandparents equals a lot of fun
The Travelers: Americans Tom and Kate Kirkwood, eight-year residents of Beijing. Tom runs Kirkwood & Sons, and Kate operates a kindergarten from their home in Shunyi. With Tom and Kate were their four children Madeline (Maddy, 9), Jack (7), Emma (3) and Charlie (8 months), as well as both sets of grandparents.
The Destination: Oahu, Hawaii.
The Plan: Originally, it was to be an adult-only retreat – the idea was to meet Tom’s parents in a sunny locale halfway between Pennsylvania and Beijing, where they could talk about the family business. The kids would stay in Beijing with Kate’s Mom and Ayi.
Lights, Camera, Action!
A visit to the China National Film Museum
The China National Film Museum, which officially opened its doors in February, touts itself as “the biggest professional film museum in the world!” And it’s true – the museum is big. To avoid getting overwhelmed, it’s a good idea to arrive with an action plan. The following is tbjkids’ advice on how best to tackle this colossal monument to Chinese celluloid.
For act one of your museum adventure, we recommend an IMAX film. The IMAX theater on the first floor has different showings each day, but on a recent weekend they were offering T-Rex: Back to the Cretaceous. Strap on the red 3-D glasses and watch your kids start reaching out to grab the images floating in front of them. You can call ahead to check what’s showing on the day of your planned visit. In addition to an IMAX theater, the first floor of the museum also houses a digital projection theater and three traditional theaters – but why settle for a conventional film?
