This melange of turmeric root, shallots, lemongrass, galangal, garlic, and chili would soon become the spice paste in our fish amok. The burnt-orange turmeric root is responsible for giving the amok its distinct creamy amber hue. But it also leaves…
Shanghai and the art of letting go
The first time it happens, you rarely notice it. First it’s your favorite Hong Kong Milk Tea kiosk replaced by metal shutters. Then, it’s a laptop repair kiosk torn apart overnight, used USB cables dangling amongst newly-drying racks of giant…
Shanghai-Tested: My first ‘Chinese’ haircut
The hairstylist put down the bleach and took out a jar of brown dye. That’s when I realized something had gone awry. As part of my recent deep-dive into embracing China local life, I took the plunge and did something I had never done before…
The most beautiful things about Florence
I feel like the word breathtaking is overrated. We use it so much that when something truly takes our breath away – and I mean with that sharp intake of breath and an utter loss for words, I completely lack the vocabulary to…
We told the consul general he should play more beach volleyball
What did we get ourselves into..
Breaking the rules when you live abroad
There are times when it feels the life in China is nothing but an exercise in skirting rules and regulations. Everything is legal here, until you ask someone whether something is illegal – so in most cases, it’s better not…
What we understand and misunderstand about coming back home
It’s not easy to come home. First, there’s the sixteen hours of the flight back, which is in itself a special kind of torture. There’s the reverse culture shock, this inability to comprehend what it’s like to be among people…
Boiled Brains and other things that no longer frighten me
The hot pot tasted of spoilt milk and grey, maze-like brain bits bobbled among the mushrooms and the red dates of the soup. Our waitress had told us that there would be no meat in the broth we were ordering, but obviously something had…
The beautifully-curated life
Things I’ve thought about this past week: D and I celebrated our second anniversary. To be honest, I’ve spent the past month dreading the day – and for absolutely no good reason. There’s something about being with a person whom…
Snow falling on Shanghai
I haven’t seen snow since I landed in China in July of 2014. It just hit me that I haven’t seen even an inch of snow on the ground in almost three years (D tells me that we saw snow…
I went to Florence to see Renaissance art, but all I got was this lousy pneumonia
I haven’t liked my writing much recently. I feel that I have so much to write about, so much that I have observed around me, so much that I want to put into words. But when I start putting these ideas on…
Changing China: The rise and fall of 'foreigner' streets in Shanghai
Yongkang used to be a constant block party, the kind of place where you end up after free-flow brunch and stay until 10pm, at which point you would be ushered inside and the party would go on until 2am. Needless to say, it was absolutely not the best representation of foreigners in China.