Life isn't cheap for children
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Falling enrollment
The number of kindergartens in Beijing dropped from 3,000 in 2001 to 1,200 this year, and although the Beijing government agency recently announced it would open more kindergartens, Li said that will not be a permanent solution.
"People today have realized that the society is very competitive, and they have to be very good to earn a life in big cities in China. They understand the pressure, and they have to push their children to study hard before their children lose the competition with the contemporaries," said Li. "Basically they have no choice."
After lunch, Wang Yang and her husband drove out under the blazing sun, and tried to find an English class for their kid. Most of the English schools will charge them another couple thousand of yuan at least every year, but they feel it is worth the cost.
"Now in China, every kid studies English before they go to elementary school. If our kid doesn't learn it, he can't compete with others in the school," Wang said.
They were also checking other kinds of school, and want their only son to learn piano, painting, and may be Chinese calligraphy. They have great expectations for Afu's future, no matter how much it will cost.
In the Chinese language, the word "Afu" means "good fortune."
After hours of school hunting, Wang's husband got tired and thirsty. He wanted to buy a bottle of coke, but his wife refused and brought a bottle of water from her bag.
"Don't buy drinks, take this, we have to save money for our kid," she said.
