Beijing Builds: The Story of Nian, a LEGO Chinese New Year Set
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You may recall how excited I was for the announcement of the new LEGO sets this year since China-specific sets helped prepare our children to move here. To be honest, the sets from last year also helped me concentrate on something other than the growing pandemic as information trickled in and we separated fact from fiction. There’s something magically enthralling about the process of knolling (arranging objects, in this case, LEGO pieces, into piles based on their shapes, functions, and color so it’s easier to pick them out when needed. Some days I will admit that I just dump them into a pile and enjoy sorting each piece, finding order out of chaos. Either way, building LEGO sets is like a meditation to me.
Since my kids came bounding out of school with stories of the Chinese New Year, and the monster Nian specifically, I thought they’d love building this set. And they did at first, but as you can see in our time-lapse video below, it wasn’t long before snacks and other distractions left my husband Dan and me to finish the build. If you pay close attention, you can see the time when Dan had to go rescue our kids after they’d locked themselves in our bedroom! Never a dull moment, I tell you.
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Overall, it was fun to see how the different shapes locked together in their separate small builds and then onto the main structure to make the house. I don’t like to look at the box while we build, so I can enjoy the little surprises like figuring out this certain piece is actually the hinge on the shiny red doors! I did feel a bit of monotony in certain parts of the process, and I wish the home built out so that we had even one extra wall instead of just the front stoop. This set is definitely best if you combine it with other sets for a larger Spring Festival feeling – an idea that is great for LEGO sales, bad for a family’s budget,
Nian himself made for a very fun ending to the build regardless and that was when both our kids got back in the game. His claws and tail alone make for some fun details! Another enjoyable part, once we got to playing with the set, is that the outside decor is easily movable to create your own extended story, and if you have any other sets that include fire or outdoor pieces, they can easily be added and make the playtime more fun.
I enjoyed last year’s sets more, with a dragon boat race that had all sorts of levels and a market where my kids and I played for weeks afterward but those were also more expensive sets, though. So, it might be more about what you’re willing to spend on a holiday tradition than the fault of LEGO bricks themselves.
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Image and video: Cindy Marie Jenkins
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