I’m crazy proud of Laini because she’s preparing for Year Two of a cool program she founded. See, after we did a service project in Guatamala last year and she discovered the concept of tour guides amidst the jaw-dropping artistry of Holy Week, my 14yr old decided to found a tour group. Because she felt dissatisfied with how China and the U.S. media paint unflattering portraits of one other, Laini sought to build bridges of understanding by introducing American teenagers to “her Shanghai.” MyShanghai was a huge hit! So, are you interested to hear more? This summer, send your teen to China with us!

This is HER thing.

We’ve always believed in empowering our kid, so while we’re always here to counsel and guide, we encourage Laini to flesh out her own ideas. Slime business? Sure, lay out your plan, kid. Want to buy six gallons of clear Elmer’s glue? Certainly, go do the math to see how much you’ll need to charge for each container sold. PS how cute was her logo?

OK, back to MyShanghai.

Laini concepted the idea over Spring Break and brought five teens to Shanghai in June. They had a blast and she smartly included their quotes in her brochure for Summer 2024.

Now as we enter autumn, Laini is already thinking ahead to Summer 2024 and has just designed her brochure. To ensure a seamless, bespoke experience, she is setting a cap at 12 participants. Page 2 of her brochure contains more info – please check it out and contact her if your teen is interested! Here is the application link for the MyShanghai program!

For more on our service holidays, check out this post.

Check out this post to read about the invaluable lesson I learned this summer in Italy.

For one more relevant article, check out this one I just posted, Pilgrims don’t travel alone.

For more about our Guatemala trip, check out check out thespareroom.emilychang posts on IG between 4/26 – 5/1.