“Where are you from?” This seemingly straightforward question often puts me in a ponder. I’m born in Taiwan, but if I answer as such, the response is usually “But you don’t have a Taiwanese accent”. Well, that’s because I grew up in Beijing. And that’s why I like Beijing’s stir-fried dough bits, write simplified Chinese, and know Beijing’s subway system better than Taipei’s. Yet one time when I was in Taiwan, I spent 10 mins trying to explain to the cashier at 7-11 that I need printing service, because I asked for “da yin”, the mainland’s phrase for printing, instead of “lie yin”, the Taiwanese phrase. Thankfully my mom showed up to help with the translation.
To say I’m Beijingese doesn’t feel right either. I grew up in Beijing’s expat community, going to international schools. My classmates are all foreigners. Our lunch boxes included Korean kimchi, Japanese rice balls, Taiwanese minced pork and Italian pasta. In high school, I joined a student journalist club at the local newspaper, where I met locals who took me to finally try Beijing street food Rolling Donkey and Braised Offal.

When I was in Germany a few years ago, the guide at the English tour asked where everyone came from. I said the US. Partly because I didn’t feel like explaining why I didn’t join the Chinese tour group, and partly because I realized that, in a few more years, the U.S. will be the place I’ve lived the longest.

Yet, after over a decade of studying and working in the US, I sometimes still feel like I don’t quite fit in. Every year during the holiday seasons, my neighbors all put up holiday decorations, leaving my house oddly bare and out of place. During football season, I hear cheers from next door every now and then. Meanwhile, I cannot even name three football teams.

So from now on, if anyone asks me where I’m from, I will have to sing the Chinese folk song "Don’t ask me where I’m from, my home is far away…"

“你是哪里人？”这个简单的问题，经常非常困扰我。台湾籍的我，如果回答台湾人，经常伴随的是“你没有台湾口音啊”。是的，那是因为我两岁就去了北京。我爱吃炒面疙瘩，写简体字，北京的地铁比台北捷运熟。有一次回台湾需要打印文件。我到楼下的7-11说“可以帮我打印文件吗？”对方楞了一下，说“打印？你是说……影印吗？”我们鸡同鸭讲一会之后，我妈才来拯救这个尴尬的场面，“她要列印啦”。

说我是北京人，也不太对。虽然我在北京长大，但成长环境国际化。我从小在国际学校读书，同学都是外国人。大家午餐的便当有韩国泡菜，日式饭团，台湾卤肉饭，意大利面……我高中时参加北京青年报的学生记者社，结识了一些北京人，才有人带我去吃驴打滚和卤煮。

前两年去德国，英文向导问大家从哪里来。我说美国。一是不想解释为什么不去排中文向导。二是想想再过几年，我住过最长时间的就是美国了。在美十几年，我的英语算地道，跟美国人来往也多。但有时候还是觉得自己格格不入。每年年底，邻居们纷纷把房子装上圣诞节的装饰，只有我的房子空空如也。橄榄球季时，时不时会听到隔壁传来的欢呼声，而我认识的球队只有两支。

所以以后再有人问我是哪里人，我只能唱“不要问我从哪里来，我的故乡在远方”……