China through My Eyes and My Heart

Two years after I chose early retirement from IBM, I became fascinated by the prospect of teaching English in China. My dream of combining a career with travel became a reality when, in March 2005, after months of red tape, my husband at the time and I moved to Dalian, Liaoning province. We only spoke English and French but quickly adapted to life on campus and became confident to explore the country on our own in the summer. Students helped us cope with daily situations, and as the days went by, we became very close to one young woman, Yang Ning, with whom we experienced China's culture and traditions. Although everywhere we went, we were watched and considered foreigners, in retrospect, we were well taken care of. China through my eyes and my heart is devoted to the many people of the Republic of China who made our stay a lifetime experience meant to be shared.