Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Victoria has been married 20 years, lived in 6 countries has 3 children and one 3-legged cat! Victoria lived in Shanghai for a number of years and just recently moved to Shenzhen with her husband’s work. They’ve sort of done and experienced it all in China and continuing to be ‘go-to’ people in whichever community they are settled. You’ll enjoy hearing a couple of Victoria’s stories and hear her insights on international education, special needs education, adoption, the power within you to make change and so much more.

If you are here, you have the power to change your circumstances for the better.

Show Notes

How she got to China

Shortly after her husband, David, popped the question (20 years ago!) he shared his dream of a 3-year-stint in Hong Kong. Those 3 years turned into 20 and an wild ride through 6 countries as an expat mama!

Memorable “This is China” moment

Being kicked out a taxi in the middle of a massive bridge at rush hour. Tune in to find out who saved the day! In the end, Victoria works hard to not blame China for what would be considered a bad day anywhere and she always loves walking away with a great story.

Greatest victory

So many! But the biggest victory is most definitely adopting their daughter, Kailin. International adoption is a world she and David wouldn’t have been exposed to otherwise.

Balancing work and life

Fluidity is key! And make sure family time is scheduled into the calendar. David has a standing meeting from 6-8PM each night… at home.

School situation

Kailin goes to Shekou International School, which is the best choice for her. Victoria stresses that each school has it’s own personality and you need to work hard to find the school that’s best for each child. There simply isn’t one size fits all in terms of education.

Episode Links

• Community Center Shanghai
• Women of Joy (Shanghai)
• Cub Scouts (Shanghai)
• Shekou International School
• Shanghai American School

Connecting with Victoria

Email her at Victoriaplek@gmail.com