Last Days in Tianjin

I've been turning over this post in my head for days. Would I write it? Would I be able to? Would I remember to take enough pictures or be able to put how I feel about this city into this space? I've been pretty vague about my life here. I share a lot of adventures but not a lot about my personal life and work. Part of that is because, despite writing on this blog, I am a private person. I prefer to really control the information I put on the internet as much as I can. I'm not one of those passive-aggressive Facebook status-updaters and I don't really share my struggles electronically.

But, a lot has happened to me in Tianjin. I've made friends, I've lost them. Work was a battle ground, for awhile. I worked very hard for a promotion, then got it, but it didn't make me as happy as I thought it would {see above with work being a battle ground}. Being far away from my family has been hard for many reasons {illness, death, etc.} and I've thought many, many times of just coming home. I kept hanging on, though, because some of the best people I've ever met live here. I have had some crazy fun nights  and I have grown more as a person here than I have anywhere in a long time.

And then, the decision to leave Tianjin was made for me by my company. I've moved to Guangzhou. When I first heard the news, I was OK with it for awhile, and excited for a new adventure. Then, suddenly, the idea of leaving was overwhelming. Time was slipping away and I realized that I might not see some of my favorite people for a long time, if ever again. Being an expat is not for the feint of heart, and especially not in a place like China where people come and go so frequently.

But, I also realized that I could preserve these memories and tuck them away. And that, in this age of easy travel {by train, by bus, by plane} that it really isn't goodbye. It's 再见 {zai jian}, which means, roughly "until we meet again." So, here are some pictures from my last few days and weeks in Tianjin.

Good memories!