A vintage illustration of housewives happily cooking.

House training

I have not received much in the way of house training. There’s a popular image of American children that has never reflected my reality as a Cuban child. It’s the one where kids make their beds every morning, perform chores such as washing the dishes, taking out the rubbish, and mowing the lawn. Then they …

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Store interior. Melbourne shopping guide.

Melbourne shopping guide

I’ve written before about some great shopping spots in Melbourne, but there’s a difference between shopping like a tourist and shopping like someone who has just moved to a new city. Once you’ve got your souvenirs and gifts out of the way, you might be wondering where to buy shampoo, a new mobile phone, new camping …

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Young woman sitting on the road looking at a map. Culture shock.

Culture shock

Recently on an American expat group that I belong to, someone asked about the things that caused us culture shock when we arrived. The answers were humorous and some ring true for me so I thought I’d share. They’ve been edited for grammar and clarity and names have been removed to protect privacy. On shopping …

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First car accident. Toy car accident.

Our first car accident together

Couples share so many special moments together. A first date. A first kiss. The first night spent together. The first vacation together. The first car accident together. It happened over the weekend. We were in the car park of the large home improvement store Masters. A black BMW pulled in between two parking spots to …

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Airplane wing in the sky.

What’s in your carry-on?

Tomorrow is the big day! It will take me about an hour to pack today. I’ve packed so many times before that I’ve got it down to a science. My carry-on luggage is more important. I want to be as comfortable as possible on the long flight. Most airlines let you to carry on two …

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An airplane cabin. A long flight.

15 ways to entertain yourself on a long flight

Door to door, the flight from Miami to Melbourne is about 25 hours. It can get boring fast. Here are 15 ways to entertain yourself on a long flight. 1. Read. Thanks to the magic of the e-reader, you can carry a library of books with you. It’s good to have variety. You might want …

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