Welcome to our first weekly Shunyi Happenings round-up, where our Shunyi Correspondent Charlotte Moreau brings you all the news and events from beyond the 5th Ring. Have a Shunyi tip for Charlotte? Click here to send her the details.
There’s a lot going on this season in the Shunyi area! Check out some of the below, and stay tuned for more updates. Be sure to check the events listings for specific details.
- Well-known Shanghai painter, Lu Yongzhong, is making a permanent mark on the International School of Beijing! He is currently creating a vibrant, beautiful mural on the inside main reception area wall, and when that’s finished he’ll be back to do more. Additional info to come on what’s available for public viewing and where you can purchase his work.
- The first session of Hip Hop Dance Classes for kids ended on December 4. Check with the DanZ Center in Yosemite Villas for the start-up of the next session, or for other dance classes. Call 8041 7745 or e-mail info@danzcentre.com for more information.
- Beautiful set of Chinese zodiac glass ball ornaments available at Tai Tai in Palette Vino, Pinnacle Plaza. The set of all 12are painted from the inside, all white with red painted animals. They come packaged in a sturdy gift box and are perfect for the holidays or for a family who is moving on from China. A box of 12 is RMB 450.
- More Holiday Ornaments — a stainless steel snowman and an angel design are ready for purchase (1 for RMB 65 and 2 for RMB 120) at Chez Trois. All proceeds go to Roundabout charity distribution store.
- Joan Lueth, art teacher at ISB, has her Signs in Chinabooks available for sale at holiday bazaars this season. There are three volumes in the series, plus two other stand-alone titles. She also has a series of three Advent Meditations: Beijing, including expat writings. A portion of the proceeds from book sales goes to charity. Stay tuned for feature on her work soon!
- Learned about a CLO (Community Liaison Organization) International group that meets to better integrate the international community. Will learn more about that and keep you posted!
- Met with Fee (manager) at Smallville restaurant to learn about their newly revamped menu and restaurant upgrades, including a weekend brunch, packaged foods to go, and a new chef. More details to come.
- More places to stop by for holiday decorations:
— Tai Tai for ornaments (many sales benefit charities)
— Stella’s, featuring woodcarver Zhang, is the only Christian woodcarving factory in China. Beautiful manger scenes, Noah’s ark, ornaments and more can be found at their store on Tianbei Lu, just 2km west of the International Exposition Center (8146 1284).
— Euro Plaza has a selection of decorations in the mall next to McDonald’s - There are many free events at Dulwich Early Years Childhood Centre in River Garden; check events for listings.
- Winter Wonderland Fair at Dulwich College, Legend Garden campus, on Sunday, December 12 from 11am-4pm. Admission is free.
- Charity Auction Dinner & Show – an event for the Tieli village children attending school. There will be performances from international school children, a buffet dinner, a charity auction and much more! Held at the Yosemite Clubhouse on December 11 from 5pm-8:30pm. Tickets are RMB 68 for adults and RMB 38 for children. Call 8041 7588 for info.
- Tis the season…for birthday parties! Some themes heard of lately:
— “It’s Great to be 8!” (tie in the lucky Chinese number with games and party favors)
— “Ice, Ice Baby” (Ice Zone rental for one hour party, party room available for pizza and cake)
— “Mad Scientist” (science experiments at a local school science lab with guests wearing scientist aprons and goggles and making a big, fun mess!)
— “Minute to Win It” (based on a television game show with winning games for kids of all ages) - Met the Bollywood dancers and saw them in action at the River Garden Christmas party. Great fun to watch, even more interesting to hear about the group and how anyone can join. Stay tuned for more details!
- Scholastic Books gives back – you know those book orders kids bring home from school a few times during the year? Did you know that the school earns free books based on the total school orders? ISB’s PTA takes these free books that cannot otherwise be used in the classroom and offers them for sale at deep discounts to parents, teachers, staff and students, giving all the money to various charities. A recent holiday sale earned RMB 6,300 for charity!
- Learned about a great new item for sale at local bazaars from U-Name-It – bag tags and straps for bags of all kinds! No longer do the kids’ backpacks and gym bags need to be mixed in with all the others or lost. Choose from a variety of sayings or personalization. Visit www.u-name-it.com to see more.
Stay tuned for next week’s Shunyi Happenings!
