After almost a year abroad each, mom and I have finally converged on the same city in China. Julie left for the states and I arrived in Dalian at the start of June and have been here ever since. Compared to crowded, polluted Beijing (which I still loved), Dalian is so pleasant, green and out of the way. It is a cosmopoitan shopping city maybe the size of Seattle, then 30 minutes away from there is Kai Fa Qu, a quirky little town that I love to hang out in espe...

After almost a year abroad each, mom and I have finally converged on the same city in China. Julie left for the states and I arrived in Dalian at the start of June and have been here ever since. Compared to crowded, polluted Beijing (which I still loved), Dalian is so pleasant, green and out of the way. It is a cosmopoitan shopping city maybe the size of Seattle, then 30 minutes away from there is Kai Fa Qu, a quirky little town that I love to hang out in espe...