US Midwestern Charm: Rediscover St. Louis, Missouri
June 18, 2020
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 an urban setting, and enjoy non-campus-based student life. While I…
Read More
US Midwestern Charm: Rediscover St. Charles, Missouri
June 7, 2020
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 herself in a small suburban town. In the six years…
Read More
Rest Better on Airplane Mode
May 26, 2020
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 switch. Just as suddenly as the city went quiet, it…
Read More
Saigon Visitor Guide: Restaurants, Cafés, and More
May 21, 2020
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 alleyways. Saigon has no shortage of hidden gems. I love…
Read More
Practice Cooking Meditation to Live Slower
April 23, 2020
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 College In college, I was a terrible cook. I often…
Read More
2020 Q1 Business Update
April 11, 2020
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, I went back to the first update I published a…
Read More
Saigon in the Time of Corona
March 30, 2020
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. Like most of the writing on this blog, this post…
Read More
Tet Holiday on Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam
March 29, 2020
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 Night Before Tet Holiday We flew out the night before…
Read More
A Toddler Taught Me How to Live More Intentionally
March 8, 2020
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 my nephew. I was looking forward to some quality family…
Read More
The Luxury of Doing What You Love
January 22, 2020
On a Monday morning, as I sat in the Grab car that is weaving through Saigon’s nutty morning traffic going a new job I love, a thought came to me, “Doing What You Love is a Luxury.” I was immediately filled with gratitude as I bask in this very luxury that I couldn’t afford just a few years ago. The…
Read More