When my daughter was ten, I explained to her that her mother coordinates the transport of goods to and from China – and that it is my job to make sure we can buy Swiss chocolate here. My mother tongue is Chinese, and I had English classes in grade school. That was an absolute must back then in China. After high school, I also learned German – with the aim of attending a university in Germany. I actually lived in Bremen for ten years and improved my language skills there. Today I am back living in Shanghai and want to stay here. The first proverb every child learns in China is “只要功夫深, 铁杵磨成针”. It states that people actually achieve most of their aspirations if they work patiently and steadily towards them. I think there’s a lot of truth in that.