Three cultures,one home.
by family policy
We’re Andrew, Nicky, and our daughter — a Malaysian-born, New Zealand-raised, Cantonese-speaking family building a life in Seoul, Korea. This is the site we wish we’d had before we moved.
Why this passport exists
Three stops, one running record.
Andrew grew up in New Zealand and Malaysia and later became a New Zealand citizen, speaking Cantonese at home his whole life. Nicky has spent over a decade running an English academy in Korea. Our daughter moves between Cantonese, Korean, and English most days without thinking twice about it — something that still amazes both of us.
We started Kiwi Lemak Seoul because we kept explaining the same things to friends and family back home — how banking works here, what kindergarten is actually like, why there are so many cameras in our building — and realized it might help more people than just our group chat.
Our daughter shows up in every story we tell — but never her face, never her name. When you see “Little Explorer” on this blog, that’s her.
What we write about
Three tags, on every trip.
Real Guides to Life in Korea
Lived, not googled — banking, visas, apartments, and the daily logistics nobody warns you about.
Raising a Trilingual Kid
What actually works, day to day, raising a child across three languages and cultures.
Real Talk & Eat/Explore
The things that surprised us about Korean culture, food, and daily life, told honestly.
Boarding
Come along for the real version.
One email when we publish something worth reading. No spam, no fluff.