I just returned from a family trip to visit my grandfather’s birthplace in Putien, China. It was a super rushed trip, (what I’d call a “touch-the-wall-and-go” type of excursion) and we only spent a mere day in his village. But it was still a fun, and eye-opening, and strangely fulfilling trip. More on that later.

Right now – a couple of pictures of the house my ah gong was born in.

The funny thing is – Putien is actually pretty developed, with giant buildings, neon lit billboards and a spanking new train station to boot. But turn a corner in the middle of the road, and you enter a village with 100 year old buildings. It’s pretty exciting, if you think about it.