The Kid from The Big Apple 2 Review...

Have you watch The Kid from The Big Apple 2?

I watched the first episode. I don't read Chinese but there is English subtitle anyway.  I love the family ties projected in the movie, first episode; the relationship between Grandpa and his daughter and granddaughter. So when, the 2nd episode is released, I went to watch it.

This time round, I brought my eldest girl 12 and youngest 3 girl to watch it with me.  My eldest is very sceptical about watching a Chinese movie especially.  She will judge straight away on how terrible it will be and kept asked  why she had to tag along. Well as an autocrat mother sometimes, I insisted her to follow and; not to judge a book by its cover. And I told her she will surely love it.  She told me the only reason why she tagged along was because of the caramel popcorn sold in GSC.

We watched the movie quite late; as me and hubby were just finishing work at 8 some and then rushed to pick the kids. We entered the movie hall and; there were lots of people.  

The Kid From The Big Apple 2

The Kid from The Big Apple 2

The story line kicks off so well with so much humorous scenes by Ah Bao and his funny parents; Meng Suk and Meng Shou. The whole movie was presented very warmthly; the setting, the videography, the songs, the casts were all put together very well; and every scene really melt my heart. It made me laughed; it also made me cried.  

The most touching moment was when I saw my eldest daughter kept taking her spectacles down. I was wondering what's went wrong when I realised she was actually crying. She is a very cool child; but she couldn't stopped her tears. She must have realised something. She was raised up with the care of her GungGung; while mummy and daddy worked day and night to make a better life for her.  As for me and my hubby, we realised that we spent very little time for our love ones due to work.  This movie reminded both of us that family really matter. It does really matter.

Get yourself to watch the movie; to feel it for yourself if you can hold the tears from falling down your cheek. Get yourself to watch the movie; to find out if you really missed something in life.  Get yourself to watch the movie; to find out if you have really known the true love for your family. Get yourself to watch the movie; if you can understand the pain suffered by 淑娴 ; the character played by the most down to earth, kind and beautiful artiste Debbie Goh吴天瑜. I could feel her as I am a working mother, a wife and a daughter. It is so hard to balance on every aspect of life when you need to work hard to make a living; and a better home for your children.

This is by far the most touching and wonderful movie to bring your whole family members to watch. Learn the moral together; laugh together and cry together.  I asked my eldest daughter,"Ern, how is the movie?" She replied," I am surprised it has made me cried. Mummy you are so bad!" I asked her,"Which character you like best?" She loved the GungGung character in the movie.  From there  I knew, her own GungGung has a very special place in her heart. I then remind her,"Ern, love your GungGung more!" 

As for me; I loved what GungGung said,"A man should bear his responsibility. A man must be there for his woman". 

With the actresses Debbie Goh吴天瑜 and Sarah Tan; a surprise the cast has given to the Kuching movie goer  after  the movie ended. What a great gesture from the team. Kudos girls!

With the whole team at GSC City One on 25Th November 2017, a surprise after the movie. It is so great  to see them in Kuching. Thank you for reminding us the importance of  love and family.

This is the song that touched my heart; when I think of my own mother.

P/s: While writing this blog; I listened to this lovely song. 

Part 3: How to travel to Beijing on your budget?

Tips no. 5: Visit places with Free entrance fee/low entrance fees

On the 3rd day, we went to Beijing Zoo; RMB 19 for the entrance fee. It is a very affordable visit and you can spent about 3 hours at the zoo with your children.  Honestly, the zoo was abit rundown but, the cold weather, and the beautiful garden and lake has neutralised it. I truly enjoyed the zoo as my children loved walking and running around.  Also it was the first time we saw Giant Panda. They looked so cute, and lazy haha...

Beijing zoo station

Mother and Daughter

Beijing Zoo RMB19 with entrance to see Panda

Look at the video we compiled as published as above.

How to go to Beijing Zoo from Dongsi subway? Below is the link of how to go to Beijing Zoo through Dongsi Subway.


https://www.google.com.my/maps/dir/Dongsi,+Dongcheng,+Beijing,+China/Beijing+Zoo,+Zoo,+China/@39.9321396,116.3603546,14z/am=t/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f0532a9c0f72b1:0x7e0021a736da9838!2m2!1d116.417493!2d39.92437!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f0522e1f3bc45b:0x10eb348a2b114a81!2m2!1d116.339012!2d39.938287!3e3?hl=en

After zoo, we went to WangFuJing to experience the night scene. The weather was so so cold at night. And along the shops, we bought some souvenirs to bring back Kuching. How to get there? Below are the subway link location:

https://www.google.com.my/maps/dir/Beijing+Zoo,+Zoo,+China/Subway,+Wangfujing,+Dongcheng,+Beijing,+China/@39.9275822,116.358383,14z/am=t/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f0522e1f3bc45b:0x10eb348a2b114a81!2m2!1d116.339012!2d39.938287!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f052c979eb187f:0xa3f5ddf185adfd82!2m2!1d116.411792!2d39.915155!3e3?hl=en

Wangfujing Beijing

How do we get back to our hotel after Wangfujing?  We walked back; and it was only 15 minutes walk.  Below are the walk direction map:

https://www.google.com.my/maps/dir/Wangfujing+St,+Beijing+Shi,+China/161+Lishi+Hutong,+Dongcheng,+Beijing,+China/@39.9191342,116.4123178,17z/am=t/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f052d1d66b73b9:0xd212cf432caac4d6!2m2!1d116.411168!2d39.9162462!1m5!1m1!1s0x35f052d5225e33f1:0xc46f628678578bea!2m2!1d116.41801!2d39.922014!3e2?hl=en

During last day in Beijing, we decided to visit Beijing 798 as recommended by a friend. Beijing 798 to me is a long stretch of street filled with wall art, statues, cafes and restaurants.  Walking along the street allowed you to enjoy the beautiful arts and kept your mind peaceful.  You can also go into some of the art studios to see local produced art work and craft. I really enjoyed the street as I took so much photos. It was really a beautiful place. You can actually spent about 3 hours being in there.

Beautiful wall art

Our last steamboat dinner before heading to Beijing airport.

The Beijing way.

The restaurant is just at the opposite Lishi Hutong road.

As a conclusion, Beijing is a great place to visit and I would recommend it to you. Why? 

Their food are awesomely yummy and affordable.  The weather was very nice and cooling.  Even though we were travelling on budget, we did enjoy some nice food without hesitation as the pricing was very reasonable.

Some of our friends have ever told us about how they disliked Beijing's food. Due to the negative comments, we were prepared with very low expectations before visiting Beijing. Surprisingly when we were there, we not only enjoyed the food; we love every bit of it. Will I visit Beijing again?  Of course! We really missed the beef noodle soup; and the Beijing salad.  

It is advisable to visit Beijing mid October onwards to get away from the crazy crowd as the first week of October is Beijing long week of holiday.  And weather is cooling in October.

Another tip to those who love social media.  In Beijing we don't get to link to Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. You can download Wechat.  While I was there, I download VPN to try to go in social media. Occasionally I managed to go in FB and Instagram as I used VPN to unblock the strict social media wall.  If you Digi/Maxis subscriber, you can activate your roaming. Usually by using roaming from your own service provider, you can log in the FB, Instagram and also WhatsApp without problem.

Thank you for reading and I hope this blog is useful to those who will visit Beijing for the first time.