Spending holidays abroad is always interesting, especially when you intermix it with different cultures. This year, I spent Christmas in Shanghai with American, Australian, Chinese, and Swiss friends. My Australian couple friends graciously opened up their expat pad to host a lovely Christmas. Thanks to Fields China, we had a …
Recently, I moved into my own flat in Shanghai and had to go grocery shopping. No big deal. Except, I walked into Carrefour, and started to panic somewhat. I was faced with the harsh realization just how western I am. This was the first time I ever had to grocery shop …
This morning, I woke up and saw the NYT alerts on my phone. “27 Deaths in Connecticut Elementary School Includes 20 Children.” I was immediately horrified and had a heavy heart, but I was in a hurry to get to a tutoring session and didn’t get a chance to read …
I remember in one of my first French classes in college, the professor made a serious point about not trusting Google Translate when writing our essays. Back then, I remember thinking, but surely, it knows more than I do! Well, here, I have a story that should teach all language …
When living in a foreign country, there is a fine line between integrating into a culture, and forgoing one’s integrity. In Cameroon, my rule was to never to pay a bribe, no matter what. After just one month in China, my rule is definitely going to be – never lying …
I love books. In my childhood in Taiwan, I loved going to bookstores, libraries, etc. and spending hours reading books without paying for them. So far in Shanghai, I’ve been surprised at the lack of bookstores. In Taiwan, they are kind of like Starbucks – all over the place. I …
Happy Turkey Day from Shanghai! Somehow, I thought Thanksgiving is NEXT week. As it turns out, the rule is the 4th Thursday in November, and not the last Thursday. When I realize this a few days ago, I discovered I had booked my day solid full of non-America and non-turkey …
Right before I arrived to Shanghai, I asked a friend who had moved to Beijing just a month before me how things were going. She had just arrived for a few weeks at that point, and she responded, “China in unreal.” Now that I’ve been to Shanghai for a few …
One of my favorite ways to travel is to walk around aimlessly in a city, alone, without a map, without a destination. But simply being in that place in time and soaking in what the city has to offer. No stress of finding the next monument or restaurant. Just going …
Last week, I witnessed Barack Obama’s second victory from a sports bar in Shanghai. Four years ago, I did it from a black and white TV in Cameroon. Obama’s presidency means a lot to me. I didn’t become a US citizen until 2005, and thus 2008 was the first presidential …