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Documenting life in Shanghai

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  • Jeju Island
    Travel journals

    Travel Journal | Jeju Island

    July 17, 2025 / No Comments

    At the end of May, I made another trip to Jeju Island in South Korea. I’ve always wanted to see this place after a friend told me I should go. I organised our company retreat for a few days of team-building and relaxation. Another bonus was that it’s relatively cheap to fly there from Shanghai. This trip would be a great break to take before my kids return to Shanghai for their summer break. Let me take you on a trip around Jeju Island through my lens and my sketches. Day 1 Arrived in warm sunny weather. Immediately, we got a van to take us to the eastern side of…

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    A Summer of Transitions

    November 27, 2024 / No Comments

    The past two months have been a whirlwind of significant life events, including graduation and university preparations. The journey involved challenges but also moments of gratitude, connection, and reflection, documented through sketches and memories shared on Instagram.

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    Travel Journal | Osaka 2024

    May 21, 2024 /

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  • Documenting Life,  Travel journals,  Travels

    Travel Journal | Holland

    October 10, 2022 / No Comments

    The final leg of our Europe 2019 adventure was Holland or the Netherlands. Yes, it is indeed 2019 because for so many reasons, this journal took longer to finish. Unlike the other 2 journals of this trip, I actually didn’t get any pages done while on the trip. I had ran out of paste/glue by the time we were almost halfway through our Finland trip. And we did try to find stationery stores but either ran out of time or just couldn’t find any. Lesson learned: Bring more the next time we actually can travel out of China again (yes, it’s been 3 years… and counting… since pandemic hit). For…

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    Creating Art During Quarantine

    January 18, 2022 / No Comments

    Almost 6 weeks spent in quarantine has come and gone. And I can say, “I survived!” Here’s a sort of breakdown of the days: Day 1 – arriving in Taipei, Taiwan Day 2 counts as first of the 14-day quarantine in Taipei Day 16-17 – time spent getting COVID tests to be able to return to Shanghai plus errands and meeting with family and friends Day 18 – arriving in Shanghai, China and first day of quarantine Day 32 – left quarantine hotel to quarantine at home Day 40 – finished quarantine and back at work For the first part of my quarantine in Taipei, Taiwan, all went smoothly. The…

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  • travel album
    Documenting Life,  Travel journals,  Travels

    Travel Album | Wuyuan + Sanya

    August 10, 2020 / 2 Comments

    [This post is a bit long as I’ve decided to combine a travelogue and sharing with you the mini travel album I made to document the trip.] It’s summer… and the itch to travel has kicked in. My dearest friend, Kristina and I  have been brainstorming about where to go and because of the ever-changing regulations due to the new cases that happened in Beijing back in June, it was not easy to make real plans. With so many things I have been dealing with, personally and professionally,  I decided, I really needed a break, so I finally gave Kristina a definitive “yes” to travel. We came up with a plan…

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  • Finland TN
    Documenting Life,  Travel journals,  Travels

    Travel Journal | Finland

    January 29, 2020 / 1 Comment

    Part 2 of our Europe 2019 adventure was to Finland. After Russia, we took the train from St. Petersburg to Helsinki. The train was not full and we saw the wintry white landscape as we cross Russia into Finland. In a way we were excited to see what is in store for us in Finland where we have only a few days. Helsinki was full of snow when we arrived and we were fortunate that the AirBnB was not far from the train station although we took a taxi there. It was not difficult to wander around and find grocery nearby. The full day we had was spent with my…

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    Travel Journal | Russia

    November 14, 2019 / 1 Comment

    A long time coming, sharing here the travel journal I made for our trip to Russia. Actually this is part one of a series of 3 journals from our big trip to Europe last January-February of 2019. A big trip that took us to a lot of places in the dead of winter! Our first stop was Moscow. We flew in from Shanghai and arrived same day with heavy snow marking our arrival. We spent a couple days in the city and took in the important touristy sights, of course (!) like the Kremlin, the History Museum, St. Basil’s Cathedral, and more. Really cold and kids were pretty hyped to…

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    Travel Journal | Nagoya, Japan

    August 8, 2019 / No Comments

    Our recent company trip to Nagoya, Japan, last June was a good quick escape for everyone. Before the trip, I have been dealing with deadlines and juggling kids’ activities and finals hence I was not even sure what I wanted to do in terms of documenting our trip. I had planned on bringing along a TN insert which I have been doing a lot on trips. At the last minute, I changed my mind and ended up bringing a watercolour sketchbook my friend Jessie has given to me late last year. This sketchbook along with my other sketchbook dedicated for #the100dayproject (2019) went into my backpack. This is the very…

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  • Currents,  December Daily,  Documenting Life,  Project Life,  Scrapbook,  Shanghai living,  Travel journals

    Happy Little Moments | The Exhibit

    July 25, 2019 / 2 Comments

    As I’m writing this post (albeit a late one), I am still feeling like it’s all surreal, to be having a solo exhibit… #documentinglife has become something of a mission after I discovered digital scrapbooking when I just had kids. It became a way for me to capture those every day little moments in Shanghai as a family that is fleeting yet too precious not to eternalize. Eventually, it grew into a hobby that drives me to find inspiration even from the simplest things in everyday life, and also an effective medium for me to soak in the unique aspects of a new place visited. In a blink of an…

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Started a little late with @cathynicholsart #mayfodderschool5 lessons for a number of reasons, but I finally got going with creating neutrals to move away from my usual brighter palette. Once I started, it was hard to stop!

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Shanghai Sketching Groups

Blogposts

  • Feb 25, 2026 Embarking on the #100daysofmailcollage
  • Nov 13, 2025 Sketching Rome: Two Sketchbooks, Ten Days, Countless Moments
  • Aug 21, 2025 A Whirlwind of a Summer
  • Aug 09, 2025 I’m Teaching at Fodder School 5 — and You’re Invited!
  • Jul 17, 2025 Travel Journal | Jeju Island
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