Kaiser Kuo has written a brilliant Guide for Visiting Journalists, to avoid the awkward Bylines-At-Customs type of writing so scathingly described by Huo Lei Feng, and to avoid the shallow cliches that make us cringe. Here’s an excerpt:
Topping the list of forbidden clichés is the phrase “coming out party.” As apt as it may have […]

I’m still in Beijing, but I’m getting into an East Coast sleep pattern already. It comes from lying in bed wondering exactly what I’m going to do with myself next, and then waking up to an anxious countdown of time left in China. Four days, three days, two days.
I’m leaving for the US tomorrow. I […]

A post on the awesome OneManBandwidth blog says goodbye to many expat friends, and mentions an unexpected side effect of the inability to get and keep a legit working visa in education:
Teachers were affected about a year ago when the government stopped processing visa renewals and work permits regionally. Now, all education hires must […]

I’ve come to realise that my life is not so interesting and there are many more informative blogs about expat life in China. The only hope I have to distinguish myself is to write with correct grammar and adequate spelling.
–James Huang - Far far away from Scouseland

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There is much more of an expat community here in Beijing than there was in Yantai, but I find myself in a weird no-man’s-land between looking for the best meet-market bar with the cheapest beer, and looking for the best preschool. I suppose I’d reach this stage of life anywhere, but China brings this, like […]

Cup of Cha’s post called Goodbye Foreign Visitors describes my feelings on the new visa regulations, only more eloquently than I’d put it. This week involved saying goodbye to expat friends, Sven from Tennessee and Christina both left on Saturday.
Any foreigner living in China now will tell you that something weird is going on. Our […]

Last night, I went shopping with Diana on the little streets by Qianhai. There’s a gorgeous old street, lined with craft and clothing and tea stores, and one place selling nothing but decorative matchbox covers.  There’s also a stinky-tofu vendor down at one end of the street, so we didn’t investigate those shops.
In some places, […]

For everyone (both of you, ha!) waiting impatiently for the conclusion, I did manage to get paid on Tuesday. My school’s director really came through for me, and I got my salary at 4:30pm, which is 6 hours after I first went to the accounting office to pick up my money, but still on […]

I actually discovered TrueRoots a few weeks ago when I saw their ad on The Hindu. It’s a changing banner that goes basically like this “Mummyji thinks you’re starving / Tell her you’re eating well / Call home with TrueRoots!” I emailed it to my sister, who spent a few months in India (prior to […]

The problems we’ve been having with management at our school have gotten me thinking about past jobs and other bosses. I know people don’t usually talk about how awesome their bosses are, but I’ve been lucky enough to have some really good ones.
My most recent boss, at LCC, managed by inspiring me to be a […]