Me

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To give a little background, I am a third culture kid who started this blog in order to supplement my terrible memory. I am currently living in Alanya, Turkey and will finally be in one place for a year.

For those of you not in the know, a third culture kid is someone who is of one nationality but lives and grows up in one or more countries that does/do not issue their passport. I am half Hong Konger (there's no better way to say it) and half American. I was born in Hong Kong. I spoke my first words in Taiwan, learned to ride a bike in New Delhi, had my first kiss in Chennai, and graduated high school in Manila. I have also lived in Calcutta, Beijing, and the U.S.

Here is a terrific description from this book Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds:

“A third culture kid is a person who has spent a significant part of his or her developmental years outside their parents’ culture. The third culture kid builds relationships to all the cultures, while not having full ownership in any. Although elements from each culture are assimilated into the third culture kid’s life experience, the sense of belonging is in relationship to others of the same background, other TCKs.”

Here is a link to my post on Top Ten TCK Quirks.

I am a state department brat and moving is all I have ever known. I graduated from university last year and followed my boyfriend to Hong Kong since he got a job to pay for his dissertation research. Traveling with the state department versus fending for yourself is a VERY different experience. While much more difficult and frustrating, it is all the more rewarding when you get things right.

Since moving abroad on my own, I've encountered quite a few people who are debbie downers about moving on a whim. The purpose of this blog is to show those people wrong. Yes, moving is difficult. Yes, moving abroad can be frustrating and a lesson in the value of patience and persistence. But, it is definitely doable (without breaking the bank).

I currently work from home as an independent English curriculum developer (basically, I create grammar and reading and writing lessons) and I'm hoping to branch out into travel writing and photography. I apologize for my constantly shifting grammar. I mix U.S. and British English since I was taught U.S. English growing up and I taught British English in Hong Kong.

I hope you enjoy yourself as much this dog!

This is a link to the education center I work for: StoryJungle 

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