Here is a comprehensive list of every singe blog post I’ve ever written. Happy Reading!
City Guide: Wander in the Artsy Hills of Valparaiso, Chile
A Workaway experience that turned awry unexpectedly took us to Valparaiso for three weeks, where we worked on a different Workaway project. This hilly seaside town surprised and delighted me in the best way. Our three-week stay here allowed us so much time to expand beyond the usual tourist bubble,…
Chile’s Atacama Desert: Road Trip Across the Driest Place on Earth
At the end of our whirlwind Workaway adventure, we treated ourselves to an epic trip up North in the Atacama Desert. We had decided against Patagonia since we didn’t have sufficient time to do proper hiking and had already spent ample time on the Argentina side. As fate would have…
Cruise Vacation Review: 7-Night Western Caribbean Cruise with Royal Caribbean
In my household, I’m not the only globetrotter in the family. My sister leads an equally unique life. She had met her husband while working on the Royal Caribbean cruise line. My brother-in-law still works on board as a navigation officer. They had a new baby, and we accompanied our…
2019 Year-in-Review: Be Uncomfortable
Year-in-Review post is always my favorite post to write each year. It allows me to reflect on the year, identify all of the marvelous changes, and prepare for the year ahead. Usually, I lament at how quickly time has passed. But for 2019, I marvel at the way January feels…
2019 Q4 Business Update
After the existential exploration of my writer identity in Q3, I decided to focus on writing in Q4, and worry about everything else (how to make money, career, etc.) next year. While I dove into writing, the universe presented new plans on how I should spend time in 2020. #NaNoWriMo…
A Toddler Taught Me How to Live More Intentionally
For 2020, I had set the year’s theme to “Live More Intentionally.” I wasn’t sure how I was going to achieve this other than being slightly more aware of my daily activities. Before getting a new job, I had booked a three-week trip to St. Louis to spend time with…
Tet Holiday on Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam
After our year-long whirlwind travel, we were looking for a vacation. Not travel, but a vacation, where we don’t feel pressured to check out all the sites, and hanging out all day by the beach is perfectly acceptable. Five days on Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam checked the boxes. The…
Saigon in the Time of Corona
By now, you are probably so tired of reading about Covid-19, the novel coronavirus that has led to a global pandemic. I’m impressed if you even clicked on the link to get here. If you got here by accident, feel free to close the tab. My feelings won’t be hurt….
2020 Q1 Business Update
The first quarter of 2020 felt never-ending. Amid a global pandemic and a new job, I managed very little progress with the blog. I contemplated whether to continue these updates, since this blog, much like my new day job, is more a nonprofit endeavor than a business. Out of curiosity,…
Practice Cooking Meditation to Live Slower
Like many, I’ve been cooking and baking up the storm. But for me, this has been going on well before the global pandemic began. I’ve had some time to reflect on why cooking brings me so much joy, and why you, too, should practice cooking meditation. An Incapable Cook in…
Saigon Visitor Guide: Restaurants, Cafés, and More
Ho Chi Minh City, more commonly referred to locally as Saigon, is a vibrant and energetic city. The rapid urban development leads to an ever-changing city, balancing between the new and old. My favorite thing to do in Saigon, as is in any city, is to wander aimlessly, looking into…
Rest Better on Airplane Mode
Life in Saigon has resumed to normal from COVID-19 for several weeks now, and so has the city’s infamous hustle and bustle. This lively city felt suffocating after a month of calm. The Vietnamese government successfully kept the COVID-19 pandemic under control, in what felt like a flip of a…
US Midwestern Charm: Rediscover St. Charles, Missouri
In 1998, I landed from Taichung, Taiwan, to St. Charles, Missouri, as a 12-year-old awkward girl who didn’t speak much English. I was confused at the people-less streets. I hated the need to drive everywhere that took away my freedom to walk and bike places. A city girl somehow found…
US Midwestern Charm: Rediscover St. Louis, Missouri
After spending six of my formative years in St. Charles, a St. Louis suburb, I moved into the city. For four years, I discovered the city as an undergraduate at Saint Louis University. The idea of a college town didn’t appeal to me. I wanted to go to school in…
Engage in Sustainable Tourism from Your Couch
I’ve always loved traveling to learn about a culture and gain perspective on different ways of life. Typically, I dislike tours and prefer to be away from tourist traps. Somehow, I never connected the dots between my two passions: community development and travel. That is, until I met Ameer Virani,…
