I forgot I was American. At least I didn’t feel American when I returned from China. I truly became Chinese. I’ve been back on U.S. soil for a month now and sometimes things are still really weird. Leaving China was one of the most bittersweet things I’ve ever felt. By the end of my contract … Continue reading One Month American
A magical trip to the real Avatar mountains By now you’ve probably heard about the world of Pandora which recently opened at Walt Disney World, and you’ve probably already been. But did you know that you could actually visit the real life Pandora in the mountains of China? The Heavenly Pillar and the many other … Continue reading The World of Zhangjiajie
Many people said ‘oh I’m gonna come visit you while you’re abroad’, except for my mother. I think her exact words were ‘no way you’d get me to visit you in China’. And then eight months later I get an email from my cousin saying ‘I’m planning to visit you, should I invite mom?’ I … Continue reading A [Chinese] Family Affair
Since I came to China I had been planning to visit Tokyo during cherry blossom season, mainly to check off my bucket list of seeing the cherry blossoms of japan, but also to visit an old friend. I had been planning the dates for a while, but kinda lost track of that in the midst … Continue reading Sakura Overload
My Chinese New Year adventure was one of the most amazing things i’ve ever done in my life. It was filled with new experiences, it was scary, it was exciting, it was simply amazing (well mostly). The start of our trip was incredibly rough. Unfortunately I was sick and stayed sick throughout the first week … Continue reading Chinese New Year
It’s been almost six months since I’ve moved to China and it’s been nothing short of interesting. I haven’t posted in months mostly because everything I feel the need to say, I’m not particularly proud of. Sometimes I’m ashamed of how I’ve been feeling. Every day there is something about China that shocks me, amazes … Continue reading six months
Two months ago I walked through the airport in tears wondering if I was making the right decision to leave my life behind and start something completely new. I’m turning 25 soon and as many know, I’ve already begun my ‘quarter life crisis’. I suppose that’s how I ended up in China. I’ve struggled lately … Continue reading take the road less traveled on
It’s still crazy to think that I've been in China for over a month already. Almost every day on my walk to work I forget that I'm living in a foreign country when it is so obvious that I am. I'm surrounded by a culture, language, environment, and scent that are all completely new to … Continue reading something waits beyond these palace walls
I've officially been living in China for one week! After a rough and overwhelming first few days, I'm beginning to settle in and enjoy Nanjing. I arrived in Nanjing at 5am Friday after two days of flights, delays, and security issues. After barely getting any sleep for two days I was sent to set up … Continue reading welcome to nanjing
For the last few months all I've talked about is how excited I've been to move across the world and start a brand new adventure. The day I've been counting down to has finally arrived and I'm not quite sure how to handle all the emotions I'm feeling right now. The past few days have been very … Continue reading august 3rd
Adventures by Ashley 