双语深圳 | 我们这十年④ Raising global citizens in SZ 我在深圳培养国际公民
Editor’s Note
编者按
Shenzhen Daily has joined hands with the Information Office of Shenzhen Municipal People's Government to launch a series of reports titled “Decade of Transformation,” to tell the story of Shenzhen in the eyes of expats. Rafael Saavedra, a popular YouTuber who has been living and working in China for seven years, will host the series, showing you Shenzhen, a dynamic and energetic city from the perspective of 60 expats. This is the fourth story of the series.
由中共深圳市委宣传部指导，深圳市人民政府新闻办公室与英文《深圳日报》（Shenzhen Daily）联合出品的系列全媒体国际传播作品《我们这10年：湾区老外说变化（Decade of Transformation）》已在各大主流媒体和互联网平台正式上线，该系列将集中展示过去十年以来深圳在各个领域所取得的伟大成就。此次系列作品中，在中国工作和生活了七年的知名网络博主Rafael Saavedra将向大家介绍60位外籍人士，通过他们的脚步和镜头记录和观察一座行进中的中国年轻都市。敬请垂注！
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人物简介
Karla Angarita来自哥伦比亚。2007年，她来到深圳定居，并在这里生下了三个可爱的孩子。目前，她在深圳外国语学校国际部担任幼儿园教师。去年，她开始在Instagram上分享她作为外籍妈妈在深圳生活的故事，受到拉美读者的广泛关注。
Karla Angarita from Colombia has been living in Shenzhen since 2007 and has given birth to three wonderful children here in the city. Currently, she works as a kindergarten teacher at Shen Wai International School. Last year, she started sharing on Instagram her stories of living in Shenzhen as an expat mom, stories that have attracted wide attention from people especially those in South American countries.
In Shekou, if you bump into a Latin American family who start dancing at a HeyTea store while waiting for their bubble tea, that could be the Angaritas from Colombia.
如果你在蛇口的喜茶店里，碰到有人在一边等待取餐一边跳舞，那很有可能是来自哥伦比亚的Angarita一家。
A family photo of the Angarita family taken at Sea World in Shekou. Wang Haolan
Karla一家在海上世界的全家福。王皓岚摄
“Being an expat mom in Shenzhen is difficult and busy, but it’s fulfilling,” said Karla Angarita, a mother of three and kindergarten teacher at Shen Wai International School. “Shenzhen is welcoming. It's open, and you find a support system within your school community, your city community, and your neighborhood that makes it different.”
Karla Angarita是深外国际学校的一名幼儿园老师，也是三个孩子的母亲。她坦言，作为一名在深圳的外籍妈妈，她的生活既充满挑战，也充满意义。在她眼里，“深圳是一个充满人情味、开放的城市”。无论是在学校、社区还是邻里，Karla都能够获得帮助和支持，而这种温暖的力量也让一切变得不同。
A family photo of the Angarita family taken at Sea World in Shekou with the 'I Love Shekou' signage in the background. Wang Haolan
Karla一家人在海上世界“我爱蛇口“标牌前拍照。王皓岚摄
Karla Angarita has an interview with Shenzhen Daily. Wang Haolan
Karla接受记者采访。王皓岚摄
Local community a great support for expat mom
在一座温暖的城市成为母亲
Karla and her husband Ramón Angarita came to Shenzhen in March 2007. Back then their expectation was to stay for one year for a music contract with InterContinental Shenzhen. It is the “support system” that they find in the city that has prolonged their stay. Now they credit Shenzhen as their home after being here for more than 15 years.
2007年，Karla的丈夫Ramón Angarita和华侨城洲际大酒店签订了一份为期一年的乐队合同。当年3月，Karla和Ramón来到深圳，原本计划在这里生活一年的他们，一待就是15年，而让他们在此安家的原因，正是这座城市里的人给予他们的支持和帮助。
A family photo of the Angarita family. Courtesy of the interviewee
Karla一家来深早期的全家福。受访者供图
Shortly after they arrived, Karla found that she was expecting a baby. “Although back then it was really hard to find doctors who could communicate with us in English, we found very helpful people,” Karla said. “People were willing to help all the time with the appointments and translations. We just felt Shenzhen was the right place to stay throughout the pregnancy.”
到深圳不久后，Karla发现他们即将迎来一个新生命。初来乍到的他们语言不通，也找不到能用英语和他们交流的医生。“不过，我们遇到了很多热心人。他们经常帮助我们预约医院、翻译等。这让我们觉得孕期留在深圳是一个正确的选择。”Karla说道。
When the baby was born, Karla met a special someone in her hospital ward, an experience that filled her eyes with tears as she recalled. “I was sharing a room with a Chinese family who had just delivered a baby,” she said. “The mother of this lady adopted me as a child. Every time she brought food to her daughter, she would bring some for me too. We were just so blessed that we always had people around that appeared like angels wanting to help.”
当孩子出生时，Karla在医院里遇到了一个特别的人。回忆起这段故事，她依然眼泛泪光。“当时我和一位刚生完孩子的女士住同一个房间。她的妈妈认我做她的干女儿，每次她给女儿送饭的时候，她也会给我送一份。我们真的很幸运，总是能遇到热心帮助我们的人，他们就像天使一样。”Karla说道。
A family photo of the Angarita family. Courtesy of the interviewee
Karla一家的全家福。受访者供图
The warmth and support which Karla and Ramón gained during their first year in the city made them feel at home, and they decided to stay here and raise their first child David. Two years later, their daughter Valentina was born, and then their little boy Santiago in 2012.
在深圳的生活的第一年，让这对年轻的父母决定留下，在这里抚养他们的第一个孩子David。两年后，他们的女儿Valentina出生。2012年，他们迎来了第三个孩子Santiago。
Angarita's children play bubbles by Shenzhen Bay. Wang Haolan
Karla的孩子们在深圳湾海滨栈道吹泡泡玩。王皓岚摄
As years go by, the support system for Karla grows bigger and stronger as she continues to meet more people, including those from the local Latin community. “We all were like a family. we raised our kids together. To me, that made a whole world of difference,” she said.
这些年来，Karla的“朋友圈”越来越广，其中不少人和她一样来自拉美国家。对于远离故乡的Karla来说，他们就像一个大家庭一样，一起养育孩子们。“对我来说，这让整个世界都不同了。”Karla说道。
Angarita's three children pose for a photo at the Nyuwa Coastal Park near Sea World in Shekou. Wang Haolan
Karla的三个孩子在女娲滨海公园合影留念。王皓岚摄
SZ’s diverse cultures bring unique experience for children
多元文化让孩子成为国际公民
In 2021, Karla started sharing her daily life in Shenzhen on Instagram and received many questions about how she raised her children in the city.
2021年，Karla开始在Instagram上分享她在深圳的日常生活，很多人问她关于在深圳抚养孩子的问题。
As a tech hub and important city for international trading, Shenzhen has attracted talents from around the world. When it comes to education, Karla observed that the city’s international vibe is a great source for her children to experience diverse cultures — not only her home country culture, but also cultures of different communities.
作为一个科技中心和国际贸易重要城市，深圳吸引了来自世界各地的人才。在Karla眼里，这座城市的国际氛围让孩子们得以体验到世界各地的多元文化。
Karla Angarita (C) poses for a photo with her husband Ramón Angarita (L) and her elder son David Angarita (R) at Sea World in Shekou. Wang Haolan
Karla与丈夫Ramón及大儿子David在海上世界合影留念。王皓岚摄
“I'm not teaching them about a different culture. I am letting them be exposed to this culture by just having friends,” she explained. “It's not a choice I make. It's a natural thing that happens because they get to go to an international school or because of the neighbors from different countries. So I see in my kids this open mindedness that makes them global citizens and they have a hunger for the world. It makes me realize I wasn't raised that way. Everything we knew about other cultures was because we read about it or we watched a documentary. My kids get to live it.”
她解释道：“我并不需要特意教他们去了解另一种文化，只是通过交朋友，他们就能接触到不同的文化。这不是我为他们做的选择，这是他们从国际学校或者邻居身上，自然而然接触到的。在我的孩子身上，我看到了一种开放的心态，这让他们得以成为全球公民，他们对世界充满了好奇。这让我意识到，我的成长环境不是这样的。我们对其他文化的了解都是来自书本或者纪录片。但是，我的孩子们可以亲身去体验。"
Angarita's younger son Santiago takes photos with his mother's phone. Wang Haolan
Karla的小儿子Santiago用手机拍照。王皓岚摄
In this Colombian mother’s eyes, family is the center of every community. Over the past years, she observed that the city is becoming more friendly to children with more parks, kindergartens, play centers and free play opportunities for children to make friends. “If Shenzhen continues with this, we are gonna be more open to expat communities trying to settle in this city, because the family will always be what drives the choices of parents,” she said.
在这位哥伦比亚母亲的眼里，家庭是每个社区的中心。在过去的几年里，她观察到这座城市对儿童越来越友好，她看到了越来越多的公园、幼儿园和游乐中心，孩子们有更多机会可以自由自在玩耍，结交朋友。“继续创建儿童友好城市，能够让深圳成为一座对外籍人士更有吸引力的城市，因为家庭永远是父母做选择时的推动力。”Karla说道。