One way I’ve been dealing with my re-entry shock and our isolation is by experimenting with cooking Chinese food. I didn’t cook Chinese...

In my first class for my middle school students, I showed the students these two photos. I asked them which one they would choose if...

A couple weeks ago, I read “Never the Stranger” by Kate Kooyman on The Twelve blog about not just offering, but receiving hospitality. ...

There’s a metaphor in cross-cultural training that goes something like this: your home culture is a yellow culture and has yellow ways to...

There is a familiar rhythm to this time of year in the expat world: it is saying goodbye time.  Many people conclude their time overseas...

My naturally curly hair and Beijing are not on good terms.  The weather is not ideal for curls–too dry in the winter and too humid in the...

The day I enjoyed the tulips, I also saw something that made my heart heavy: a “marriage market.”  I’d heard of this phenomenon in China,...

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday.  I love the memories from when I was young and all my aunts, uncles, and cousins gathered...

On my last trip to the Great Wall, about five minutes after I arrived at the top of the wall, a kid (maybe about 12) mustered up the...

Matchmaking is alive and well in China.  Not through an official matchmaker, but through everyone’s efforts, especially those over 50....

One of my favorite memories from the time I was in the U.S. this fall was teaching several groups of people to make Chinese dumplings....

My first project after returning to China was finding a new apartment.  The landlord of my previous apartment sold it, so I couldn’t...

Every time I post about my attempts to cook Chinese food, American friends who have lived in China ask about The Green Beans.  This dish...

Spring has arrived in Beijing!  Actually, we had a day or two this past week that felt like summer was about to arrive (but most people...

Spring Festival (aka Chinese New Year) comes to an official end on Monday.  Throughout these weeks, a couple people have said something...

A year ago, encouraged by Velvet Ashes, I picked a word for 2015.  I honestly wasn’t completely sold on picking one word, so I didn’t...

Last winter, I saw snow on the ground ONCE, and it wasn’t very much snow.  Winter was cold and dry.  After surviving the previous winter,...

Foreigners in China have a phrase, “this is China,” sometimes abbreviated T.I.C.  It is usually used to describe situations that don’t go...

中秋节快乐！  zhōng qiū jié kuài lè !  Happy Mid-Autumn Festival! A few weeks ago (September 27), we celebrated Mid-Autumn Festival, one of...

Earlier this summer I shared the top 10 unexpected t-shirts I had seen to that point.  After I posted it, I kept seeing interesting...