Beijing’s Luxury Retirement Homes | Sina “Witness”
Wang Dansui—Sina “Witness”
As of the end of 2017, there were 241 million people aged 60 and older in China, more than 17 percent of the country’s population. Longstanding Chinese cultural norms dictate that children should care for their parents when they get old, and many elderly citizens are reluctant to live in nursing homes. But increasingly mobile and prosperous Chinese families are beginning to disrupt tradition, and now affluent, well-educated seniors are signing up to live in luxury senior centers that can cost 10,000 renminbi (U.S.$1,580) per month—more than the average monthly income in Beijing—for an apartment, not including care and meals. Photographer Wang Dansui’s pictures offer a glimpse into a few high-end senior facilities in and near Beijing, which are outfitted with swimming pools and offer classes in subjects like English and computer programming.
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As of the end of 2017, there were 241 million people aged 60 and older in China, more than 17 percent of the country’s population. Longstanding Chinese cultural norms dictate that children should care for their parents when they get old, and many elderly citizens are reluctant to live in nursing homes. But increasingly mobile and prosperous Chinese families are beginning to disrupt tradition, and now affluent, well-educated seniors are signing up to live in luxury senior centers that can cost 10,000 renminbi (U.S.$1,580) per month—more than the average monthly income in Beijing—for an apartment, not including care and meals. Photographer Wang Dansui’s pictures offer a glimpse into a few high-end senior facilities in and near Beijing, which are outfitted with swimming pools and offer classes in subjects like English and computer programming.