Our Beckoned to Beijing series continues with Monica Rossetti, a Swedish mother of three British School of Beijing, Shunyi students, Cristina (age 7), Eric (5) and Carolina (2) in pre-K, who came to Beijing with her Luxembourg born husband Roberto Rossetti after he was given a contract here by BMW. Below, she tells us about the benefits of enrolling her children at that British campus, the overall joys of being in Beijing, which hospitals best suit her family’s needs, and more.
In Beijing everything is possible! But also, some things are just not easy to adjust to, such as the language barrier. Many people do not speak English very well, which can lead to a lot of misunderstandings.
My children have had the opportunity to learn Chinese here, and also to understand the culture. This will make them more prepared in the future. I also think it makes them more open minded.
At first we had our kids at the Swedish School of Beijing. However, as they grew older, we chose to send them to the BSB Shunyi, as they offer a German path, which will prepare them well for when we move to Germany. And it is a great school!
For special checkups and consulting, we normally go to the Adler Clinic, which is a German specialist clinic. For other things we use the Beijing Family Hospital, which provides very good healthcare as they do have most sorts doctors, whatever the problem. They also have their own lab, which makes it easy if tests are needed. I gave birth to my youngest baby in this hospital.
We are using Blueair purifiers. We have one machine in each room.
I would advise anyone that’s new to Beijing to ask friends or others that you know have lived here about all your worries. There are different organizations for newcomers in Beijing, just search the web. If you have kids, you can ask the school administration for help. There is usually a parent association that can help with questions. This way you do not have to invent it all new, as we all have had similar problems when moving here!
Photos: Monica Rossetti.
