This is a translation of an originally Dutch article published in 2015. It was no more than three […]
Blog (English)
Since June 2021 we have primarily published articles in English. Older Dutch articles can be read here.
This is a translation of two Dutch articles originally published in 2014. During the two years I lived […]
What my interpreters taught me about Chinese youth
A tale of cultural differences, eating habits and sandboxes. Because of COVID-19 travel restrictions in China it’s been […]
When my Chinese in-laws came to visit
This article was originally published in Dutch in 2020. It has been 10 years since I arrived in […]
The tide has turned – Silicon Valley is copying China
Original images by Mohamed Hassan and Arek Socha. To better understand the crackdown on Chinese tech companies from […]
Looking for reasons behind China’s tech crackdown (part 3)
Original images by Ricarda Mölck, OpenClipart-Vectors and Clker-Free-Vector-Images This article was originally published in Dutch in 2017. On […]
The heavy duty of Chinese grandparents
Image by 16061941 There are many ways to learn Chinese. You can self-study on various platforms and apps. […]
4 Reasons to choose private online Chinese lessons
Original images by Marleen Kuiper and Arek Socha. To better understand the crackdown on Chinese tech companies from a […]
Looking for reasons behind China’s tech crackdown (part 2)
Original images by Voice of America, Marleen Kuiper, and Arek Socha. To better understand the crackdown on Chinese […]
Looking for reasons behind China’s tech crackdown (part 1)
In July 2021 Didi clashed with various regulators of the Chinese government. This wasn’t the first time, although […]
Timeline: Didi’s many clashes with China’s regulators
The original Dutch version of this article was published in 2018. Besides some small changes the original goal […]
Five misconceptions about China’s Social Credit System
This original Dutch version of this article was published in 2018. It has been about ten years since […]
Married to a Chinese: experiences of a ‘laogong’
Over the years of living, working and travelling in China I have built up a large collection of […]
Chinglish
(yes, you read that correctly) ”Truthful words are unpleasant, pleasant words are not truthful.” (“信言不美，美言不信”) – Dao De […]
On being a Panda Slayer and a Dragon Hugger
This article is an adaptation of a paper written by Jessica Sun (Sun Hui) for the pre-master Asian […]
Is Cantonese a language?
In the first part of this series of two articles on Chinese historical propaganda songs we looked at […]
Propaganda Songs – Part 2: after opening up
Music is one of the fundamental art forms. When we listen to music, we are not merely listening […]
Propaganda Songs – Part 1: Before opening up
In the first part of this two-part article that aims to ‘dehype’ some of the PR around New […]
New Retail dehyped: PR versus reality
As part of my work as a study tour leader I do a lot of location scouting. China’s […]
New Retail dehyped: When gimmicks are not enough
Westerners living in China have many reasons for deciding to migrate back to their home countries, whether it […]
I cooked 500 different Chinese dishes in 800 days
For several years the media have been fascinated with China’s social credit system. Every couple of months the […]
Blending Fact and Fiction – How Mainstream Media Misinform Us About the Social Credit System
I have just spent two years in China, working in an environment where the online world seemed to […]
How China Leapfrogged the West on Internet Innovation
On the 6th of May I took the stage in the Sheraton Brussels Airport to give the attendees […]