When I spent that year living in Shenzhen, one of the biggest problems I had was not making many friends. This has never been an issue for me in any other living situation – be it growing up, at summer camp, at college, or in my twenty-something life here in New York. I’m plenty likable, [...]

Who doesn’t love a good pun? Most people, it turns out.
The Chinese language, however, is structured to lend itself to a whole world of puns. Each syllable corresponds to a written character, and they are put together in different ways to make words.
For example, in English, we have a word for owl. It’s owl. It means owl. It’s [...]

The holiday office party season is upon us.  I always enjoy browsing through the articles warning what NOT to do while celebrating, namely get too drunk, seduce a coworker, mouth off in front of your boss, or the classic dance on a table with a lampshade over your head.
In China, there are different standards for [...]

The United States is lovingly known as a “melting pot” for people with different ethnic backgrounds.  The degree to which they’re actually “melted” together varies across the country, with the density of cultural mix easily one of the top reasons why New York is an infinitely intriguing place.
Without getting into exposure to foreign languages or [...]

I know, right?  How could I have written this many posts about India without talking about the Taj Mahal?  Well, Sosaucers, the time has come for my tips on visiting the Taj.

Located in Agra, most people come by way of Delhi, which, in typical Indian fashion is somewhere between a 3 and 6 hour train [...]

Editor’s note: since today is Thanksgiving, and most of you probably have food on your mind anyway, Alex shares his one fancy dining experience during his time in India.
Security guards surround the perimeter. Metal detectors and x-ray machines block the entrance, while trained dogs sit obediently at their master’s feet. Was I entering an airport? [...]

Unfortunately, the U.S. hasn’t developed its rail system to make it an economically sound option for long distance travel. I refuse to pay ninety bucks to take the Amtrak train to D.C. when the bus costs only fifteen. In addition to the inconvenience, we’re missing out on the joy of the long train ride.
Each train [...]

There is a very special place in my heart for the late night snack. There’s the classic 24-hour diner, the hot slice of New York pizza on a cool autumn night, the bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch—if I’ve had a long night out on the town, I could usually go for something between dinner [...]

I spent my year in China living in Shenzhen, the economic boomtown adjacent to Hong Kong.  It wouldn’t have been my top choice for history, culture, natural scenery or standard Mandarin accent, but it was rife with opportunities for strange little part time jobs.
One weekend, my friend Greg told me that he was going out [...]

Everyone says that to experience humanity, you’ve got to ride an Indian train.  Well, now I can say that I have — and I have lived to tell about it.

The berths are actually much more comfortable than people make them out to be, and there are even Chaiwallas that wander up and down the aisles [...]