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Triona Ryan

Mega Brunch Makes Debut in Nanjing

2020 has been a long decade. But it is indeed true that good things come to those who wait. Ladies and Gentlemen, the moment you have all been waiting for! Brunch in Nanjing, at the Ritz Carlton.  We ventured downtown...

Thou Shalt 
Not Waste: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Reclutter!

Recently, I moved house, because 2020 wasn’t stressful enough.  A trek on par with that of Hannibal and his elephants ensued. Friends and neighbours gaped aghast at the endless moving vans, three wheelers and scooters of boxes that zoomed across...

Blown Away by Cosy Thai Retreat in Jiangning

High in the mountains outside Nanjing lies a little-known jewel. Qijia Village in Jiangning District is home to Racha Thailand, a cosy resort on a miniature scale, its size in no way indicative of the stunning quality of the...

Our Summer’s Been Shanghaied, or Nanjinged!

“This time 3 years ago…” Facebook, my former social media friend, has become a taunting menace this summer. Serving up fresh pictures of cerulean blue skies, endless horizon shots from 5 in the morning ‘til midnight creeps close, Galician delights...

Innovation; Did China Teach the World How to Fail Better?

There is a common connotative warmth associated with the term innovation. In a culture that glorifies success and celebrates triumph over adversity, innovation is applauded, while the flipside of Icarian plummets is less lauded. It may seem paradoxical, a fallacy, a...

Opening a Can of Bats; Face-Masked Fusions of Fashion

“We’ll burn that bridge when we get to it” is one of my father’s favourite sayings. “Until the cows freeze over” is another. A blended idiom or cliché is called a malaphor. The combination of two hitherto unrelated concepts makes...

Hume, Hope & Happiness; A Tradition of Human Survival

Traditions tell us how to be who we are. This year, for the first time in the history of The Republic, Ireland has had to cancel its St. Patrick’s Day Parades, and even worse, the pubs have been closed...

Ideas Worth Spreading; Iconic Talks Return in 2020

Planning is underway in earnest for the idea-fest that is TEDxYouth@NIS on 21 March, 2020. The event burst onto the calendar ever so subtly back in 2016, with the very first talks from the community, by the community and...

About Me

Educator, writer, minstrel and Collector of Rare and Marvelous Moments; Triona Ryan, born in Ireland, moved to Spain for the summer back in 2003 and stayed for a decade. Now based in Nanjing, China, she spends her free time feeding her cats, picking cushions off the floor and pondering the paradoxes of the human condition. She also sings, often and everywhere.
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Latest News

Costco Nanjing Low Down; Grand Opening on 28 May

That we had heard the rumour was enough; discounted pumps are already flowing at the petrol station of soon-to-be-opened...

Where was Capital of Jiangsu in History? Nanjing just 1 of 9!

Nanjing, the capital of numerous ancient dynasties and even the nation itself previously, is also capital of Jiangsu Province....

Hi 5! Nanjing’s Newest Metro Line Opens; 8 Years in the Making

They chose to do it on a Sunday. For it has been 8 long years since a spade was...

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