Summer Me Go Home Home
I apologize for my poor English skills ahead of time… I’ve really immersed myself in Chinese this semester and my native language has definitely taken a nose dive. Don’t tell the university where I teach English! They’ll never know. Summer Me Go Home Home = Heck yeah, I’m coming home for the summer! (Is that […]
A Very Generous Video of Tianjin
I came across this video the other day and was completely surprised. Is this really the city I live in? True, I haven’t been here during the summer yet, but STILL. Shouldn’t I have seen at least one of these places already? I think this is just good marketing trying to lure unknowing foreigners into […]
Little ol’ me, featured in a Tianjin monthly…
You know you stand out from the crowd if you get interviewed for a big magazine in town when you haven’t even been here 3 months. Well, that’s what happened to me. I met one of my good Chinese friends, Jonathan, on the subway. Apparently, he knew I was a foreigner right away. (How could […]
I finally ate at KFC
If God grants me longer life, I will see to it that no peasant in my kingdom will lack the means to have a chicken in the pot every Sunday. -Henri IV There it stood. That multi-level “western” food flashiness: K. F. C. I knew I shouldn’t, but its power was too great. I was […]
A Subtle Reminder – My Birthday is April 9
That gives you a week or two to get a little somethin’ somethin’ in the mail. I posted back in October my mailing address, and many of you have sent some amazing things! For that, I am very thankful. Receiving postcards, cards, letters, and packages is the highlight of my week – keep ‘em coming! […]
My First Chinese New Year
The fireworks have stopped. All but one of my favorite noodle shops has reopened. The old man barber down the street has started to cut people’s hair again. I got a letter in the mail that was sent over two months ago. The new teaching semester at school has begun. Is the New Year celebration […]
The Beijing – Tianjin Bullet Train
Remind me to tell you this awesome train story from Italy some day! It involves 20 teenagers, 20+ American-sized luggages, a closed train bathroom, and a 6 hour train ride. Actually, don’t remind me of that. Never ever remind me of that. Feel free to remind me of the bullet train I took from Tianjin […]
Chinese Food 101: Basic Ingredients
“Never eat Chinese food in Oklahoma.” – Bryan Miller Agreed. I would add Wisconsin to that statement as well. To get the best, most authentic Chinese food, you need to know what you’re looking for. If you’re not from China and you’ve never been to China or Chinatown you might lack this ability, but not […]
And then it was Christmas…
It’s Christmas night, and there I sat… in my apartment, by myself, watching The Muppets Christmas Carol. I had worked all day (teaching about Christmas to Chinese kids), went to a grand dinner with a Chinese friend (more on that later), and had a nice long Skype conversation with my family back home (who was […]
My Job in China, Explained
Well, I can definitely answer the question “What’s your job going to be like?” better now than I was able to a few months ago. Honestly, it’s not all it was cracked up to be. Don’t get me wrong, it got me to China and I’m surviving just fine. It’s just… that it’s still a […]