The Year of the Volcano

2018 in China marks the Year of the Dog (cool fact: both my son and I were born during the Year of the Dog—and on the 19th day of our birth month). In our family, 2018 also marks the Year of the Volcano (and I don’t just mean our daughter’s explosive tantrums). Without meaning to,…

A Little Update on Life

That title may be a bit misleading. I mean, we’ve had a lot of major changes in the past few months—and have more to come! First of all, we moved from Chengdu to Portland at the end of March. It was a literal breath of fresh air to come to a city so green and…

The Monarchs of Mexico

I dreamed I was a butterfly, flitting around in the sky; then I awoke. Now I wonder: Am I a man who dreamt of being a butterfly, or am I a butterfly dreaming that I am a man? (Zhuangzi) As I sit here watching my little girl on our baby monitor all cocooned up in…

Moher Adventures in Ireland

If I close my eyes, I can almost feel the chilly breeze whipping my hair and smell the salty ocean breeze mixing with wind-blown grass. Memories taking me back to the day we stood on sheer cliffs and stared out at the wide-open expanse of the Atlantic Ocean. Our fourth day in Ireland was slated…

Memories of Marseille

This weekend we celebrated an anniversary of sorts—two years since our first trip to Europe together. We took a European cruise in 2013 and that cemented, not only our love of world travel, but our love of seeing the world together. We departed out of Barcelona that trip, but our first port was Marseille, France….