Starting Kungfu at aged 14, Eric has a strong foundation for his excellent state of health. 9 years ago he developed the passion for the traditional Chinese internal Kongfu– Tai Chi and this passion was enough to make him give up his previous job as a translator and instead teach tai qi. Eric Liu was the 2003 Beijing Yang style Tai Chi 40-form Champion, 49-form Wudang Tai Chi Sword second place. In recent years, he has shifted his focus towards the 88-form Yang style Tai Chi. This form of tai chi mainly trains the practioner to relax completely and finally obtain the extreme hardness through the diligent practice. Eric practices tai chi as a way to keep good health and positive mental state.

Carol is passionate about experimenting with food.  While not busy with cooking for the 3 men in her life (hubby and 2 sons) at home; she would be in the hunt for the perfect home-made recipe. After all, Carol believes some of more authentic/traditional dishes can only be created at home.

Carol makes it her personal quest to recreated food which reconnects her with many of her childhood memories; hoping that the food she cooks today would bring precious memory to her family.

Carol has over 13 years of working experience in the corporate world; having started her career in the IT industry before moving on to the marketing and advertising world.  To survive in the corporate jungle world out there, Carol finds cooking helps her deal with stress.

Having been living in Beijing for almost 5 years; she does cook up a storm in her kitchen whenever she misses anything about Malaysia.  She hopes to be able to inspire those who attend her cooking class so that they can bring the same enjoyment to their family at home.  For all the busy mums out there; cooking should be fun, easy, fast and something which you can involve your children in spending quality time with you !

Ami has travelled to over 42 different countries and still has many more to explore.  Her Nikon camera and her journal are constant travel companions as she captures the moments of this extraordinary and adventurous life she is living. Using her creativity, her educational knowledge and her passion for writing, Ami enjoys creating and developing the skills of young writers whose lives are infiltrated with memories, adventures and life experiences. As Guy Smiley once said, “This is your life” and we only have one life to live, why not capture it?

Maryam Afnan boasts a varied background including: a stint as a radio DJ for english music; a door to door researcher; props for plays; newspaper features; working with some of the best MNCs, including ACCA and Nestle Pakistan; consulting with startups and Visiting faculty at undergraduate level for one of the best universities in Pakistan. She is also a full time mother to two.

She has an MBA degree in Marketing, from one of the top universities in Pakistan; and has both marketed and initiated trainings. Being an enthusiastic people’s person, one of her key strengths is public speaking and communications. This skill set, she has been grooming for the past 15 years, consistently setting targets and testing herself.

After spending most of 2006 in Beijing, Maryam came back in 2007 with husband and two children. A year’s self-imposed sabbatical to settle her newborn son, and her daughter followed. During this period, she furthered her knowledge of cooking. Her area of interest is the process and techniques that ensure perfect flavors.

Maryam is currently involved in VIVA, Professional Womens Network as Membership Liaison Manager; Secretary of the fledgeling Pakistani Women’s Association, Beijing; working on a book project with a group of moms and freelancing occasionally.

At the Hutong she will be introducing Pakistani cooking. Later she will also introduce a training based on her Smart Speak methodology: Public Speaking as a route to Confidence.

With all this activity, she also juggles painting and works on her Chinese.

As someone who has spent most of her time working in or with small businesses, she has a good understanding of the unique issues often facing small businesses. She’s also focused on helping less-technical people get the most out of their web presence by explaining things in a non-technical way.

Sandra has worked, eaten and explored her way around the world. She has threatened the duck population in the Dordogne and has mouth-watering plans for the fatty pigs across China.

Sandra balances her work in education and international development with experimenting in the kitchen, freelance writing, and her job as editor of www.savourasia.com, an online guide dedicated to all that is good to eat in Hanoi, Beijing, Bangkok and beyond.