I'm a long way from the East Boothbay neighborhood I grew up in. I graduated from university with a couple degrees in social work and psychology but quickly became burnt out with the long hours and low pay in the social work field. Fortunately, I have a history of living abroad. The Boothbay Register may have a record of some earlier letters I wrote when living in Hungary as a high school exchange student around the year 2000.

Tianjin, China is a metropolis near Beijing, only 30 minutes by bullet train. I have been teaching English here for two years, going on three. I work about 25 classroom hours per week and spend the rest of the time homeschooling my 14-year-old son, learning Mandarin, and spending time with friends we've met from all over the world. I've met more people here from more different countries than I have ever met in my entire lifetime. We have friends from Russia, Tanzania, Ukraine, Armenia, Nigeria, Turkmenistan, Ethiopia, Cuba, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Australia, United Kingdom, Canada, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Germany, France, Ghana, Bosnia, and I'm probably forgetting a bunch more!

We also love sharing our culture with our friends and students. Today we shared pictures of our family camp at Sugarloaf, my grandmother's place out off of Pension Ridge and various scenic areas from our lovely state. Thanks to my mom, Judith Appel, Boothbay food tour guide who came to visit this past spring, we also gave the kids their first taste of Maine maple syrup! Pictures included.

Until next time, your Boothbay daughter in China.