[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”News” _builder_version=”4.4.0″ custom_margin=”|||” custom_padding=”3px|||||”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.4.0″ background_color=”rgba(255,255,255,0.89)” min_height=”1358px” animation_style=”fade”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.6.6″ custom_padding=”|0px||4px|false|false” hover_enabled=”0″ text_font_size=”22px” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
What did you appreciate most about living in the Philippines and Vanuatu? How were your experiences similar? Different?\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n When you live in a foreign country (as opposed to visiting as a tourist), you can see and experience places of interest at your leisure and over and over again. And both Vanuatu and the Philippines have some beautiful, fascinating, fun places to visit on day trips, weekends, or longer. A few highlights in the Philippines: hiking in Baguio, staying at Hundred Islands with two other families and many daytrips to Tagaytay overlooking Taal Volcano. In Vanuatu: day cruises on the Coongoola, snorkeling at Hideaway Island, and climbing Yasur Volcano.<\/span><\/p>\n Much more than the sightseeing and trips, I appreciated the people. Both Filipinos and ni-Vanuatu made me feel welcome in their countries. As expats, we were part of the larger expatriate community, a group of people from all over the world. Because we all were far from our relatives and old school friends, we were eager to make new contacts, and we relied on each other. It\u2019s always fun to meet new people, but when they\u2019re men, women, and children from Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, India, Korea, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, Samoa, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and every country in Europe, the pleasure is doubled and varied. In the Philippines, we also spent time with Eugene\u2019s relatives and family friends who had moved to Manila from China before WWII.<\/span><\/p>\n Living in Vanuatu, was basically the same as living in the Philippines but on a smaller scale. The biggest difference was that our daughters were no longer with us. They were in college and grad school. One was working in the Russian Far East.<\/span><\/p>\n Did you experience any violence or coup attempts when you lived in the Philippines?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n In the Philippines, we experienced the imposition of martial law by Ferdinand Marcos with its curfew and stationing of soldiers with assault rifles at banks and department stores. Even though we lived for many years under his dictatorship, though, foreigners weren\u2019t its main target. Instead, it was the poor who suffered under President Marcos. And thousands of people who opposed him were jailed or killed. <\/span><\/p>\n When traveling around the country, we did our best to avoid two armed opposition groups: the New People\u2019s Army in the countryside in the north and the Moro National Liberation Front in the south.<\/span><\/p>\n Ironically, the huge People Power Revolution that toppled Marcos was peaceful. It was the violent coup attempts that went on for five years afterwards that I saw close up. In fact, much of what Diana experienced under the December coup attempt is taken from my journal.<\/span><\/p>\n Vanuatu has had its small fights and squabbles but nothing serious while we were there. Although, like every country, it has theft, rape, drunkenness, and even the occasional murder, the country has the reputation of being an island paradise, so any lawlessness is passed off as an exceptional case and nothing to worry about.<\/span><\/p>\n You’re an accomplished Chinese brush painter. Where did you learn your craft? How does your visual art interlace with your work as a writer?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n I learned Chinese brush painting from Professor Chen Bing Sun, a skilled traditional Chinese brush painter who studied at the Shanghai School of Arts before leaving China for the Philippines. For five years, I attended his classes two mornings every week. Later, I studied batik painting with John Heap, a British expat.<\/span><\/p>\n A visual artist studies the world around her. She learns to notice details and to appreciate beauty, not only as it is in all the complication of color, light, and form but in how it changes and how it can best be captured and shared. The author brings a similar approach to her understanding of the people and setting of the story she will capture on the page.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_slider arrows_custom_color=”#000000″ dot_nav_custom_color=”#000000″ _builder_version=”4.4.0″ body_text_color=”#000000″ background_color=”#efefef”][et_pb_slide heading=”Green mangos for sale. A Filipino mother and child.” image=”http:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Filipino-web.jpg” _builder_version=”4.4.0″ header_text_color=”#000000″ sticky_transition=”on”][\/et_pb_slide][et_pb_slide heading=”Don’t eat that! Boy with goats.” image=”http:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/TTS-goats-web.jpg” _builder_version=”4.4.0″ header_text_color=”#000000″ header_font_size=”45px” sticky_transition=”on”][\/et_pb_slide][et_pb_slide heading=”When tigers come down from the mountains. Swimming to Amoy.” image=”http:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/tigers2-web.jpg” use_bg_overlay=”off” use_text_overlay=”off” _builder_version=”4.4.0″ header_text_color=”#000000″ border_color_all_image=”rgba(0,0,0,0)” sticky_transition=”on”][\/et_pb_slide][et_pb_slide heading=”Drum surf islet. Surf off Kulangsu.” image=”http:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/NickiPainting-028-web.jpg” _builder_version=”4.4.0″ header_text_color=”#000000″ sticky_transition=”on”][\/et_pb_slide][\/et_pb_slider][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.6.6″ custom_padding=”|0px||0px|false|false” hover_enabled=”0″ text_font_size=”22px” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Do you think your children see the world differently from the average American because of having grown up overseas?\u00a0 How have your views been shaped by your international experiences? <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Growing up in a developing country expands one\u2019s circle of the familiar. Someone who looks like the maid who walked you to school and combed your hair can\u2019t be disregarded. You\u2019ve heard her laugh and eaten her cooking. You\u2019ve met her friends and family. You know her life has substance.<\/span><\/p>\n Having spent most of their pre-college school days at the Manila International School, where only 20% of the student body was American and 99% of the teachers were Filipino, our daughters became accustomed to an international environment. The atmosphere at the school valued academics over sports, and the goal for many of the students, regardless of their country of origin, was to attend an American Ivy-League school. <\/span><\/p>\n In sum, I think I can safely say that my daughters have a world view that includes the whole world, and they\u2019re comfortable with people from a variety of backgrounds.<\/span><\/p>\n As for me, even before we moved abroad, I think I had the feeling that the whole world was interesting and everyone in it had value. Why? I suppose it had something to do with books. But living abroad definitely expanded my knowledge and understanding of at least a small portion of the world. Also it provided me with some enjoyable experiences and the chance to make some wonderful friendships.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What did you appreciate most about living in the Philippines and Vanuatu? How were your experiences similar? Different?\u00a0\u00a0 When you live in a foreign country (as opposed to visiting as a tourist), you can see and experience places of interest at your leisure and over and over again. And both Vanuatu and the Philippines have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-8933","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/P3Kn1e-2k5","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9194,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/reviews-when-in-vanuatu\/","url_meta":{"origin":8933,"position":0},"title":"Praise – When In Vanuatu","author":"Nodebud1721","date":"October 22, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8406,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/when-in-vanuatu-behind-the-novels\/","url_meta":{"origin":8933,"position":1},"title":"When in Vanuatu – Behind the Novel","author":"Nicki Chen","date":"September 14, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"I set the novel in two countries I once called home: the Philippines and Vanuatu, island nations that have little else in common besides their islands and the Pacific Ocean. It\u2019s the contrast between them that is at the heart of the novel. The Philippines, with a population of 108\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/airport-to-Manila-001.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/airport-to-Manila-001.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/airport-to-Manila-001.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/airport-to-Manila-001.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8402,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/when-in-vanuatu\/","url_meta":{"origin":8933,"position":2},"title":"When in Vanuatu","author":"Nicki Chen","date":"September 14, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/amazon.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8449,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/bio\/","url_meta":{"origin":8933,"position":3},"title":"Bio","author":"Nicki Chen","date":"September 17, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Casual-Authro-3.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Casual-Authro-3.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Casual-Authro-3.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Casual-Authro-3.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8969,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/bio-nicki-chen\/","url_meta":{"origin":8933,"position":4},"title":"Bio","author":"Nodebud1721","date":"October 20, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8410,"url":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/book-clubs\/","url_meta":{"origin":8933,"position":5},"title":"Book Clubs","author":"Nicki Chen","date":"September 14, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8933"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8933\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9305,"href":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8933\/revisions\/9305"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickichenwrites.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}