Beijing

[Miljimaseyo]

We're currently contemplating a move to Beijing and wondered if any of you lovely MNers who are already / have been there could answer a few questions; is the pollution really as horrendous on a daily basis as the media likes to imply? Where's a good place for a family (which includes big dogs!) to live? I've been having a look at Shunyi - which are the nicest "compounds" there, and what's a reasonable housing budget? Any advice on schools? DC are 8 and 12, although the 12 year old is currently "not coming"

Any help with these queries or general Beijing tips would be hugely appreciated, I'm in a total quandry!!

This thread www.mumsnet.com/Talk/living_overseas/2317488-Any-Shanghai-Mumsnetters? is something you should keep an eye on - Beijing and Shanghai aren't hugely different in terms of the expat experience.

I've never lived in Beijing, but have friends there who do and I have visited several times. The pollution really is terrible, yes. Especially in the winter. My pollution tracker says the level is around 221 at the moment, which is in the 'Very Unhealthy' category. You can check out more on this website aqicn.org/city/beijing/

I haven't lived in Beijing either but have visited and had a great time. I have been in Shanghai for about six month now. My pollution tracker says Beijing is at 268 right now, which is bad. Our school closes when the AQI (air quality index) is at 300. But there are lots of days when it is less than 100.

Thanks for the replies and for the link to the Shanghai thread Corsu :-)

Having had a look online it seems as though day to day stuff would be a lot easier than where we are now, and I think it would be more fun for the kids too. We had a day or two last week where the AQI was hazardous (over 700 at one point!) and whilst it's rare for it to be so bad it makes 200ish seem a bit more bearable. But our other option is back to the UK where the nearest tracker to home was reading 19!!

Decisions decisions...

Hi, I live in Beijing and have done for quite a while now! I live in Shunyi so feel free to PM me as i can give you good info about all the compounds and school! If you have dogs, there are some compounds that don't allow them but most of the main ones (River Garden, Yosemite, Beijing Riviera, Capital Paradise, Dragon Bay etc) do allow them. Which compound you chose will depend on what school you decide on, there are British curriculum schools (BSB, Dulwich and Harrow), IB schools (WAB, ISB), Montessori and bi-lingual so a lot to choose from. Housing budget, I'd say you'd be looking at around 40,000 rmb a month to get a decent house, possibly a little less as less people are coming to Beijing than were 2 years ago (boom time) when we last negotiated a rental contract. Day to day the pollution isn't as bad as it's made out to be, we do get some bad runs we also get a lot of good days as well, rarely as good as UK or even WHO levels but i guess your expectations change after you've been here a while and anything under 200 now is a good day!! The school where my children go to have excellent air purification systems, a dome and the kids aren't allowed out when the level is above 200 (lower for EYFS) and actually this school year there hasn't been as many indoor play days as last year. We have had a over 800 days once a couple of years ago and get the very occasional 500+ days but mostly bad days are between 200 and 350/400 (can you tell my tolerance has lowered ha ha!!).
Shunyi is a bit of an 'expat bubble' in many ways but the community spirit is fantastic and there are some great compounds here and with yound children i wouldn't want to live anywhere else in Beijing.
Whereabouts are you at the moment? I'm guessing you're already in China from what you've said about the high pollution levels where you are!
AS I said feel free to PM me for more details

Thanks a million Missymoomum, that's really helpful.

DH is in Europe at the moment but we need to decide whether he'll take the UK job when he comes back at the end of the week - if he doesn't then I think it's fair to say we're coming to Beijing so will definitely PM you for some inside info We're currently in Seoul so another option is to stay here but I've kind of discounted that one on his behalf!

No problem miljimaseyo , hope you get an answer soon. That really surprises me about the air in Seoul, I never knew pollution was a problem there!

Hi I have just seen this but we also live in Beijing so happy to contribute if that helps although I think Missymoomum has it covered . PM me if you want more input. We are in Shunyi, DCs at one of the British curriculum schools which is great. I agree the community here is fab. Pollution is an issue but we all manage. Different people have different views about how they will deal with it. Some are cautious, staying inside on bad days, wearing masks etc. Others are more laid back. If your DH is negotiating contracts try and get air filters included for your house. And get more than you'd think you will need. That way if your kids have clean air at school and you have clean air at home, the few hours you may spend outside in a day is balanced with the clean air at home/school for the rest of the 24 hour period. Aside from that and the terrible traffic I love Beijing. It's very interesting on lots of levels. Good luck!

Ps I think it's our pollution that finds its way to S Korea...! Another thought, in theory you can't have big dogs in the city (inside the 5th ring road). I say in theory as I have seen them but you might want to look into this if you are bringing a dog. It may determine where you live.

How's it going miljimaseyo, any news on what you've decided to do?
flowerpowergirl makes a good point about no big dogs within the 5th ring road and there have been stories about people having their dogs taken away but out here in Shunyi, you would be fine although you do need to register them, but you should find that your compound management office should be able to help you with that or even your relocation agent.

Hi everyone!!

We are thinking of moving to Beijing for my husband's job. We have 2 children 7 year old boy and 5 month old baby girl. My husband will be working in Chaoyong Park but I want to live in suburban Shinyi.. I was thinking of Yosemite area as its not as far from husband's work place as Riviera and also close to international school.. We will be moving from Amersham, Buckinghamshire, UK... I would really appreciate any advice/ comments from fellow Brits out in Beijing... Thanks xxx