Army Kids Enjoy Summer Holiday
By Kate Blood
11 Aug 2008
Beijing was full of surprises: crunchy Cicada bugs on sticks, squat toilets in brand-spanking new buildings, pineapple-flavored beer... Yet the biggest surprise was the charming children of Beijing, who were obviously adored by their parents: boys and girls alike.
Asking parents for permission to take photographs of their children, even without speaking the language, was easy. A simple "ok?" as I pointed to the camera always elicited an enthusiastic and proud "yes!"
Today's People's Republic of China is home to a socially diverse population and the children I observed came from both well-to-do and lower-income families. Children at Olympics events wore fine costumes. Children in the dilapidated Hutong neighborhoods played in dirty mud puddles. Almost everyone, in every setting, seemed to be happy and healthy.
Young boys were particularly well fed. Boys also, on occasion, wore bottomless bib-like tops in bright red. A local woman informed me that this makes it easier for the baby boys to relieve themselves without removing clothing. Since some young girls have their heads shaved, for the visitor, these open-bottomed outfits also make it easier to tell the sexes apart.
Another fascinating aspect of current Beijing children's fashion was the popularity of army-themed clothing. Camouflage-style fabric (splashes of green, black and brown) was not uncommon.
In a large, downtown department store, an entire section of the kid's area was devoted to tongue-in-cheek military clothing. This gear was supposedly light-hearted and humorous, but for a visitor who lived through the Cold War-era, it was also a wee bit disconcerting.
More than a few times, the children I saw who wore military clothing were not just wearing the latest fashion. One boy was driving the local fire vehicle (a motorcycle tricked out with fire extinguishers). For that boy, the Olympic period appeared to be no holiday.
The following photographs were taken during my visit to Beijing, China in August of 2008. Additional shots of the children of Beijing can be seen at these links:
http://www.jpgmag.com/stories/6421
http://www.jpgmag.com/stories/6458
