Shanghai Unfolds

More than any city I’ve lived in, Shanghai unfolds the longer you stay in it — like reading the book for a second or third time. I keep returning to old spots and seeing new layers — literally — on the ground or ten floors above the streets. I now speak the language and I’m no longer the freshman that told the taxi driver to stop because he thought he was being scammed. That was in 2017, and the car stopped on the opposing shore in this photo.

Latest

Cobblestones and Lions in Longmen

Cobblestones and Lions in Longmen

I know I take too many photos, and I know I should remove some for brevity. But it feels to me that each of these views is worth capturing, as if to store it in a jar for storage. When I no longer live in China, I want to look back on these trips, to […]
February 18, 2026
Chinese New Year shopping in Majin

Chinese New Year shopping in Majin

We’re in Majin Village (马金镇) in Zhejiang, a day before the Chinese New Year starts. Everyone’s busy doing some final shopping or getting a haircut before the festival — and the weather reaching 22 °C in February helps bring people outside. Meat, spices, offerings, flowers, yoghurt, cookies, barbeque, trinkets, posters, vegetables, soap, new shoes — […]
February 17, 2026
Dutch Signs in Xixinan

Dutch Signs in Xixinan

It’s a foggy morning in Xixinan Village 西溪南村, a village near Huangshan. I’m tired of sleepless nights with a 5-month old baby, but I equally want to take this opportunity to take some photos, so I’m outside the door at 06:30. Watertowns like this are usually crowded during the day, but deserted this early. Xinanxi […]
February 16, 2026
A Dam in Yuliang

A Dam in Yuliang

After Zaotai Village, we’re driving around the Huangshan (黄山) area, which is surrounded by dozens of historical towns, and we’re trying to pick the least touristified ones. Today we’re in Yuliang (渔梁村), a village dating back to the Sui Dynasty (1500 years ago). What was a mere settlement started to become really wealthy around 600 […]
February 14, 2026