"You will travel far and wide, both [for] pleasure and business." Hi, guys! I'm back from my trip to Taiwan. Although I didn't get to see the election process this time around, I had a great vacation visiting relatives and seeing sights. Here are a few highlights: 1. Climbing the mountains and seeing ancestral burial grounds 2. Talking to relatives, hearing family stories, and eating yummy food together 3. Exploring one of the most popular bookstores in Taiwan, … [Read more...]
Multilingual Households: A Dilemma
"One foot cannot stand on two boats." -Chinese proverb I grew up in a bilingual household. My parents made it a priority to teach me English first because my older sibling had difficulty when he first started kindergarten. For a while, I used my own shortcut language, and I would pick the quicker version (think: less syllables) of the languages I knew to speak with others. I often got odd looks for my efforts. I know that "One foot cannot stand on two boats," but I think language is … [Read more...]
A Twist on Traditions
"A tree has its roots, a stream its source." -Chinese proverb Everything has origins. We love family traditions because they're a source of comfort, rituals that have been passed down from one generation to the next. I'm here to offer a twist on some annual traditions: Instead of hot cocoa this year, try teh tarik (milk tea): Looking for a quick way to wrap presents? What about a take-out box? One year, I found this and other beautiful designs at Target: Get a free calendar for next … [Read more...]
Foodie Friday: Roast Duck
Roast duck: crispy skin paired with tender meat Roast duck must be my favorite dish ever. I have happy associations of the cooked birds with their bright red festive color, hanging in window displays. I also have memories of bustling dim sum carts offering plates of the succulent meat to diners. I know that some people love Peking duck, with its thin slices of meat and slivers of green onions wrapped in soft, steamed buns (or in thin crepe-like wrappers). I still prefer the down-home, … [Read more...]