Amani Zhang

Animation has come a long way from the first full feature animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Modern animated films are now incredibly realistic, creative and thought-provoking. The British Council is presenting a series of British Animation Awards nominees and award-winners five categories that film buffs, art lovers and animation dabblers should not miss! The best of the British Animation Awards Vol 7 (www.britishanimationawards.com) will be displayed as part of the Aniwow!2008 Animation Festival in Beijing (www.aniwow.org). Screenings include over 20 short and student films, animated commercial, TV graphics, sound and music, plus the unique artworks created especially for the British Animation Awards. Check out a few films below.

Date: Friday, Oct 24

Time: 8.30am-12.30pm

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Couples in Beijing who are hoping to get hitched on August 8, considered the luckiest day of the year by many Chinese people, can now go to local affair bureaus in their district to book the day for their marriage registration, according to an article on CRI Online.  

The reservation period is June 20- August 5, during which all the marriage registration bureaus in Beijing have a special service for booking to dengji (register) for marriage certificates on August 8, 2008. Brides and grooms-to-be can go to the bureaus during this time and submit photocopies of requested documents and photos, then return on August 8 and sign the marriage certificates. This way, the procedure only takes 1-2 minutes for each couple to get their marriage certificates. The local affair bureaus are expecting to process 50-100 pairs of newly weds per hour on August 8. 

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A Chinese survey conducted earlier this year shows that 295,000 kids in Beijing are overweight, according to www.china.org.cn. This worries experts at the Capital Institute of Pediatrics who ran the survey because of the diseases that obesity causes, such as diabetes and high blood pressure. 

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At a visit to Chaoyang Park this past Saturday, a sign at the gate said that due to “Children's Day,” kids under 14 years old could get in for free. Jealous of the xiaopengyou (little friends) that got to enjoy a whole day of free rides at the playground, I couldn't help remembering the Children's Day of my youth.

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When I see twins in the street—I usually do a double-take, no pun intended. But how about seeing a thousand pairs of them! At the Fourth Mojiang International Twins Festival held during May 1-3, over a thousand pairs of twins from China and overseas gathered in Mojiang County, southwest China’s Yunnan Province to celebrate this special festival for twins.

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Forget about all the reasons you and your family visit Chaoyang Park — the laidback environment, convenient facilities for people of all ages and the annual music events. Chaoyang Park’s coolest attraction, the CoolBaby Pet Leisure Center, is for dogs.

This is a haven for dogs and their people – its large and open fields make a perfect playground for dogs of all breeds to run around and interact with each other. Exercise outdoors with your dog by playing fetch or Frisbee. The center provides all kinds of training equipment to help dogs develop and improve their jumping, climbing and balancing abilities. A clean and safe dog pool has shallow depths for the timid dogs to get their feet wet and deeper waters so the natural swimmers can show off their skills.

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Since I registered on facebook a few months ago, I’ve frantically uploaded a myriad of photos of my cat, expecting my friends to leave loving comments on them every day, confirming to me that my cat is the most beautiful kitty in the whole world. This little hope of mine was thoroughly destroyed when, after all this time, only one person wrote a dishearteningly small line on one of the 200 plus pictures.

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It’s the season for skiing! If the dry weather inside Beijing isn’t satisfying you and your kids’ desire for snow, hit the slopes with tbjkids at Nanshan Ski Resort --- the largest in the area and only 62km from Beijing! One of the area’s top ski resorts, Nanshan has ten well-groomed trails for skiers of all levels and a snowboard park (Nanshan Mellow Park) with a halfpipe, four kickers and six rails – all served by a quadruple chairlift, a double chairlift and nine T-bars. You’ll also discover a 1,318-meter-long toboggan run and even a snow football pitch!

No need to worry about the effort required for organizing the trip for your family, just hop on the bus and join other Beijing families for a fabulous day out on Sunday, January 20th! At only RMB 400/person, the ticket includes shuttle bus to and from the ski village, breakfast and lunch, equipment and outerwear rental, fully day lift pass an locker, all day access to tbjkids’ snacks, free beginners ski or snowboard lessons (advanced signup required), tbjkids hat and scarf, and a goodie bag full of surprises! Call tbjkids at 5820 7700 ext. 853 or email marketing@tbjkids.com for details and tickets. A few spots are still available, so what are you waiting for? Sign up now for an exciting day of fun in the snow!

For more information about Nanshan Ski Village, see www.nanshanski.com.

Pregnancy is a precious time in a woman’s life. It’s also a unique opportunity to explore your mind, spirit and body, and the growth of a new life.

Prenatal yoga is specially designed for the pregnant ladies. It helps with circulation of body and concentration of mind, reduces tension and backpain, and soothes the mood. Robyn Wexler, a full-time yoga teacher at Yoga Yard introduces here a few movements that can be easily practiced at home:

Baddha Konasana (Cobbler’s Pose or Bound Angle Pose):
Appropriate for 1, 2 & 3 trimester

Pose:
Bend knees outward and bring soles of feet together. Bring feet in close to pelvic floor. You can rest your knees on blocks here if you find it more comfortable. Inhale and lengthen your spine. Exhale and relax shoulders and thigh.

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Dolphins are a lot of children’s favorite animal—they are agile, intelligent, friendly and playful, and they have the cutest faces that always seem to be smiling. In aquariums, a dolphin performance is always one of the most popular shows with the audience, especially the young kids.

But your children may ask: If dolphins are aquatic mammals that do not produce any eggs (as they’re taught in school), where do baby dolphins come from?

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