by Heather Diamond | Feb 7, 2020 | Blog, Daily Life, Intercultural, Politics, Travel
I’m a bit late with this greeting, but Gung Hei Fat Choy! This is a Golden Rat year, and although it has started out with bad politics and a public health crisis, I’m holding out hope. Rats are often considered sly and dangerous, but in the Chinese zodiac, the rat is...
by Heather Diamond | Dec 3, 2019 | Intercultural, Politics, Relationships, Travel
Returning home from international traveling, I often wish for an airlock between coming and going. I envision a decompression chamber that looks something like the double sets of doors on fancy hotels. There would be a comfy sofa for the in-between, no transit rush,...
by Heather Diamond | Aug 13, 2019 | Intercultural, Politics, Travel
Headed into a 10th week of protests, Hong Kong is a mess right now. What started as peaceful demonstrations has escalated into confrontations between mostly young protesters and police in full riot gear who are shooting tear gas, rubber bullets, and beanbags (the last...
by Heather Diamond | Jul 6, 2019 | Belief, Blog, Intercultural, Writing
When “Waterbabies” was accepted for publication by Memoir Magazine last year, I was elated. It was my first “yes” from a literary magazine. The editor asked only for a slight reorganization to emphasize my focus on healing, to not end on the word “blood.” I made the...
by Heather Diamond | Jun 13, 2019 | Blog, Daily Life, Intercultural, Politics, Travel
The question we have been asked most by American and European friends since we moved to Hong Kong in 2018 is whether we’ve seen changes since Hong Kong officially became part of China. I used to shrug and say not really. Some small ripples under the surface, some...
by Heather Diamond | Jan 7, 2019 | Blog, Family, Intercultural, Relationships, Tradition
I attended my third Lau family wedding a couple of weeks ago and once again I was startled by how different Hong Kong weddings are from typical American weddings. I realize many people have unconventional weddings and not everyone who gets married has one at all. I’ve...
