Expat in China
A Family Adventure
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $6.99
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
At age 40, Greg and Heidi Rhodes kept a rash promise to each other made 17 years earlier, when the naive, mortgage-free expats swore to return to China with their own children. Arriving back in the Middle Kingdom in 2005, they were surprised to find their former home city, Chengdu, unrecognizable. Familiar landmarks and expectations had been swept away by China's rushing tide of progress, replaced by glass skyscrapers, McDonald's restaurants, and a frenetic scramble to get ahead.
Armed with a scant few remembered phrases of Chinese, two unsuspecting offspring, and (sometimes) healthy curiosity, the Rhodes set about learning to navigate their city, and their family, on brand-new terms. Join the family as they toast China with drunken college students and battle a Buddhist monk with inflatable baseball bats. Always honest, often funny and at times poignant, Expat in China tells of a year filled with surprises, challenges, and adventures.
Customer Reviews
I may never go, but...
While I may never go to China myself, I feel like I've been. I loved this honest, inside view of how a family maneuvered through their year in China. Not all easy, not all fun, but totally rewarding. I could taste the noodles from the Muslim noodle shop, feel the cold of the damp winter, and rest in the beauty of the surrounding countryside. Greg Rhodes writing is not only informative, it is entertaining as well. I loved this book and I think you will too.
It is all true
Okay, so call me a bad wife, but it took me a while to finally get around to reading this book - and he got it all right! I really enjoyed revisiting our friends and family who made our year in China a marvelous one. Greg accurately captured the challenges, joys and adventures of our family of four, and the growth of our teenage daughter and preteen son. I laughed aloud with how Greg described the idiosyncrasies if learning to live on a foreign culture. I hope this read makes you want to take your kids overseas - it was such an amazing ride.