About Us

 Matt and Kara have been living in Beijing since March 2008.

Matt also lived in Beijing for 3 years while he was in high school. In addition to writing on the Middle Kingdom blog Matt helps run the Aizai Cafe, a coffee shop in WangJing. Matt takes his coffee very seriously and only serves premium specialty coffee. If you’re looking to start your own cafe in Beijing he also does some coffee consulting. He also one of the youth pastors at The Beijing International Christian Fellowship, and helps lead the youth group Sonlife. Matt is an artist and musician and can beat Contra on the NES without using the Konami code. Matt’s favorite podcasts are Planet Money and This American Life. His favorite China blog is China Law Blog. Matt’s an INTJ and will rarely miss an opportunity to explain what that means. Matt got his Chinese driver’s license in the summer of 2010 and wrote a guide about the process. If you’re looking for someone to help you set up your blog, send him an email for a price quote. 

Kara is a freelance writer and editor. She is also a private teacher for an expat family in Beijing does some English tutoring on the side. Kara is an expert on culture shock, having experienced it severely herself, and loves to help people get acclimated to life in Beijing as their Transition Accomplice. She also wrote the Newcomer’s Guide to Beijing, which is the most practical resource out there for people planning on moving here. She is very geeky. She’s bit of a Trekky, enjoys the Humble Indie Bundle games, and is half way through Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time. Her life-long dream is to go to space. Kara’s favorite podcasts are Tech Stuff, Astronomy Cast, and The Nerdist. Kara also likes sparkly things and Doctor Who. Her favorite TV show growing up was Boy Meets World. 

Matt and Kara are originally from Minnesota, have been married for 6 years, and both went to school in Wisconsin. They have a soft spot in their hearts for the city of Eau Claire, WI and love to tell people about their friends The Daredevil Christopher Wright and Laarks. They have a cat named Pigeon who is not very nice.