I love Shaoxing because there’s water and canals everywhere which fascinates me! Everyone always calls Shaoxing the “Venice of China” and I would see why it could be described in that way! The canals and waterways actually inspired me to build my own boat but I elaborate on that later on.我爱绍兴，那里到处都是水和运河，让我着迷！绍兴被誉为“中国的威尼斯”实至名归！运河和水道激发我造船的想法，我稍后会详细说明。

I was a Spanish, English and Chinese translation major in my undergrad years. After 4 years of part-time Chinese learning, I could translate written texts, but could barely utter a few Chinese sentences with the tones all mixed-up… Luckily, the chance to visit China came with a scholarship from the Confucius Institute of the University of Granada, Spain. My classmates and I enjoyed our first China-experience at Beijing University in 2014, and that encouraged me to learn Chinese in Xiamen for 10 months. Then, after a year of work in Spain, I chose to pursue a Master’s Degree in Chinese translation at Xiamen university which led to working at MTS, and here I am! 我本科主修西班牙语、英语和汉语翻译。断断续续学了4年汉语，我可以翻译书面文字，但却说不了几句汉语，声调是混乱的……幸好西班牙格拉纳达大学孔子学院提供奖学金来华游学。2014 年，我和同学来到北京大学，那是我第一次来中国，然后我到厦门学习了 10 个月汉语。接着，在西班牙工作一年后，我选择在厦门大学攻读汉语翻译硕士学位，之后我选择在精艺达工作，也就是我现在工作的地方！

I believe everyone has their own view of what Los Angeles is known for… Hollywood, Celebrities, Theme Parks, Music, Concerts, Movies, Sports, Beaches, Traffic etc. But for me it’s Family. 我相信每个人对洛杉矶都有自己的印象……好莱坞、名人堂、主题公园、音乐、音乐会、电影、体育、海滩、交通等。但对我来说，这是我的家。

Home away from home is a collection of the unique stories written by foreigners in China and compiled by Master Translations Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “MTS”), Babel Tower Translation Service Co., Ltd. and Moze (Beijing) Technology Communication Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Moze”), aiming to explore the unique stories of approximately 100 foreign friends who came to China from all over the world.《家外之家》是一本外国人在中国的独特故事集，由外国人撰写，厦门精艺达翻译服务有限公司（以下简称“精艺达”）、巴别塔（深圳）翻译有限公司、墨责（北京）科技传播有限公司（以下简称“墨责”）面向全国共同征集汇编。

I came to China by surprise and without thinking too much, after more than five years in China, coming was without a doubt a good decision, and the good memories are much more than the bad ones.我来中国完全是一个意外，也没有多想。我已经在中国呆了五年多，这无疑是一个很棒的决定，美好的回忆远远多于糟糕的回忆。

Hey Everyone! Welcome to my story. Be prepared for wonder, miracles, and unnecessary flamboyance. So, how did I get to China ehhh? Well, I came two different times for two very different reasons.嘿，大家好！欢迎聆听我的故事。这是一个精彩而又神奇的故事，我会讲的天花乱坠，请你们做好准备。我是怎么来到中国的呢？好吧，我来过中国两次，每次来的原因都不同。

Greetings to anyone who might be reading this. It’s been a while since I’ve written anything meaningful so let me start off by telling you a little bit about myself. I first came to China roughly five years ago which was 1 year after I had finished university. Uncertain of what I wanted to do with the rest of my life, one thing I was certain of was that a change was needed. I began looking into various opportunities abroad and stumbled upon the option of teaching English in China. Having travelled to most parts of the world, I thought: “What could be more different than China, right?”正在阅读这篇文章的朋友，你们好。我已经有段时间没写过特别有意思的东西了，所以让我先简单介绍一下自己。我第一次来到中国是五年前，那年是我大学毕业一年后。当时我不确定未来想做什么，但有一件事是确定的，那就是我需要改变。我开始在国外寻找各种机会，偶然间我发现可以去中国教英语。我走遍了世界上的大部分地方，心想：“还有什么地方比中国更与众不同呢？”

The first time I had a Chinese friend was at the age of 6. I had two Chinese classmates who could barely speak Italian, but at that time language wasn’t as important as it is now.我在 6 岁时交到了第一个中国朋友。那时候班上有两个几乎不会说意大利语的中国同学，不过那时候语言也没现在这么重要。

Home away from home is a collection of the unique stories written by foreigners in China and compiled by Master Translations Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “MTS”), Babel Tower Translation Service Co., Ltd. and Moze (Beijing) Technology Communication Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Moze”), aiming to explore the unique stories of approximately 100 foreign friends who came to China from all over the world. These stories give them a chance to express their feelings (curiosity and loss due to cultural shock), their experiences in overcoming differences, and various things that might have happened e.g. “interesting moment” and “embarrassing moment” in their studies, work and travel.《家外之家》是一本外国人在中国的独特故事集，由外国人撰写，厦门精艺达翻译服务有限公司（以下简称“精艺达”）、巴别塔（深圳）翻译有限公司、墨责（北京）科技传播有限公司（以下简称“墨责”）面向全国共同征集汇编，探寻记录100位外籍友人从五湖四海来到华夏大地，从新奇、茫然到文化冲撞、从克服差异到寻找内蕴，在学习、工作、旅行中发生各种“趣事”“囧事”，以及他们如何对待这些体验、获得经验和安居乐业的。

Let’s be honest, every little girl wants to grow up to be a princess. We all do! I know I sure did. As a child in Texas, I often found any excuse to don a fancy gown with a matching tiara. As an adult I have made numerous treks to Disneyland with friends and family. So, imagine my excitement in the fall of 2017 when Disney English (“DE”) selected me to teach!说实话，每个小女孩长大之后都想做公主吧！大家都这样，我也不例外。作为一个在德克萨斯州长大的小孩，我总是想方设法地穿上漂亮精致的裙子，戴上配套的王冠。长大之后，我也经常和家人朋友去迪士尼旅游。所以，当2017年我成功选上迪士尼英语的老师时，我高兴极了！