Playing
In the Mind's Eye
Young painters explore at 3i Art Center
Michelangelo, Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso all displayed a passion and talent for art before the age of 10 – a testament to how important the formative years are for young artists. “It’s so important for kids to have a good foundation in art and imagination – it will help them their entire life,” says Ivy Yang, founder of 3i Art Center.
The art center, which has branches in Chaoyang and Haidian, offers classes designed to foster inspiration, innovation and imagination – the three i’s behind the name – in young kids, and lessons often appeal to kids’ love of unusual, fun materials.
Dancing on Ice
Figure skating for beginners
It’s Tuesday afternoon and a dozen kids are zipping around the Le Cool ice skating rink at Guomao shopping mall. One of them is 10-year-old Wang Zichen, who is practicing a one-and-and-half revolution jump-spin that she just learned a few weeks ago. Her tall, slim body moves to music in a graceful curve – arms spread like wings, feet gliding in rhythm, her purple skirt fluttering in the breeze.
Instructor Hu Xiao’ou is sternly correcting Zichen’s poses, but he can hardly conceal his pride in her. “Zichen was a shy kid when she first came here to learn skating six years ago,” says Hu with a smile, “but now she is an excellent public performer and expresses herself freely through music and movement.”
Let's Get Cookin'
Young Cooks Fire Up the Woks
Want to whet your children’s appetite? Are your young ones budding chefs? Do you want to be off kitchen duty for good? Let young cooks touch, feel, smell and discover more about the food they’re eating at the kids’ cooking classes at The Hutong, located in Jiudaowan Zhongxiang hutong near Beixinqiao subway stop.
Hocus Pocus
Easy steps to creepy costumes
Chicken
There’s nothing wrong with being a little, er, chicken, during Halloween. Smaller kids will love dressing up as this adorable clucker.
How to do it: Cut a red glove about an inch from the fingers, stuff it with tissues and stitch it to the crown of an oversized hooded top. Stuff the hood with a cushion and tack-stitch yellow feather boas all over the top (stitches can later be removed). You’ll need about five boas for a costume that will fit a 5-year-old. Put on a pair of tights and then carefully slip on the top, stuffing it with cushions or towels to fatten it up. Stuff the ends of a pair of yellow gloves with tissues and then slip the gloves onto your feet. Cluck!
Autumn Pickings
Catch the best of Xiangshan’s multi-hued beauty
photos by Jeff Warrington
When was the last time you picnicked in an emperor’s country estate? Seven hundred years ago, Jin dynasty emperors looking for a rustic getaway from Beijing settled on Fragrant Mountain, or Xiangshan, located in the northwest suburban areas of the city. They built imperial palaces and temples on the mountain, which for the next several centuries became an exclusive resort for royal families during summer and autumn.
It wasn’t until 1956 that regular Beijingers could also visit Fragrant Mountain, a spot that the Chinese rank alongside other local treasures such as the Forbidden City and the Great Wall. Besides more than 180 acres of rolling hills, characterized by an array of centuries-old pine trees and maple trees, and a peak that soars half a kilometer into the sky, Xiangshan also provides hiking paths and numerous temples, pavilions and pagodas that will appeal to families looking for a day trip.
Flip Flop
Make your own memory game
Put the analytical left side of your brain to the test while exploring right-brained creativity at the same time!
Difficulty Level:
Easy
Time:
20-30 minutes
Fuchengmen
Wander through the peaceful streets while soaking up Chinese history
Built in 1267 by order of Emperor Kublai Khan, Fuchengmen was one of the most important gates to the city of Beijing. Until the Qing dynasty (1648-1911), it was the main passageway for coal transportation, hence its other name, “Coal Gate.” Although the gate and its attached city wall were knocked down in the 1970s to facilitate construction, the area still bears the name Fuchengmen. Visitors won’t find any skyscrapers here – at least not yet. Instead, an assortment of historical and cultural relics awaits in this relaxing area, with tasty local snack stands to distract you on a sunny day.
Wantong Market
Crafting a Pattern
The fine technique of Chinese embroidery
When it comes to silk, the Chinese know their stuff. Legend has it that in 2800 BC, Leizu – wife of Emperor Huangdi – observed silkworms at work and saw that the shiny, silvery threads could be used to make clothing.
The Chinese have since developed the silk-making process into a fine art, including elaborate methods of embroidery. As early as 2000 BC, the bureaucrats of the Zhou dynasty had their clothes embroidered with symbols to show their official positions. Embroidery techniques were further developed during the Song dynasty (960-1279 AD) and perfected during the Qing dynasty (1616-1911 AD), when different styles began to arise, such as Beijing embroidery (which specializes in clothing for royalty) and the four famous regions – Sichuan, Jiangsu, Hunan and Guangdong – which are now regarded as “the Four Styles of Chinese Embroidery.”
Escape to the Summer Palace
Where China meets Beijing
Even in modern-day Beijing, it’s possible to imagine how the emperors used to live by spending a day at the Summer Palace. Once an imperial garden, the Summer Palace (Yiheyuan) now attracts thousands of visitors a day with temples, gardens, hilly ascents and an enormous lake. History buffs can easily spend a whole day exploring the administrative and residential courtyards of days gone by. However, the massive park also offers plenty of outdoor pursuits and hidden corners to keep kids and families busy.
Adults and kids alike will enjoy the Garden of Virtue and Harmony. Three stories tall, it is supposedly China’s best-preserved ancient theater. The Empress Dowager Cixi used to watch actors perform Peking opera here, but now visitors can view short performances of dance, acrobatics, and martial arts, accompanied by musicians on traditional string instruments.
Casting Off
A nautical oasis near Beijing
As far as recreational activities are concerned, Beijing is a city that serves its expats well. But when Rick Pointon upped sticks and moved to Beijing from London, he was disheartened to find there was nowhere within commutable distance from the capital where he could indulge his passion for sailing. A committed mariner since his teens, Rick knew that there was plenty of suitable coastline but was frustrated to find none of it nearby was being utilized for sailing. So rather than waste hours on trains and planes going back and forth to Qingdao, he concocted a plan to build a sailing center of his own.
