“Although citizens of the same country who spoke the same language, they belonged to two different worlds. These worlds were far apart and their chances of meeting slim. But an encounter that happens against such long odds is bound to produce stories.”

“Being angry is to punish oneself for others' mistakes; however, I am not the one who should be punished.”

“Two months in Shanghai, and what does she have to show for herself? She had been full of plans on the plane ride over, had studied her phrase book as if cramming for an exam, had been determined to refine her computational model with a new set of data, expecting insights and breakthroughs, plotting notes for a new article. Only the time has trickled away so quickly. She has meandered through the days chatting with James instead of gathering data. At night, she has gone out to dinners and bars. [James'] Chinese has not improved; her computational model has barely been touched. She does not know what she has been doing with herself, and now an airplane six days away is waiting for her.”

“No two languages are ever sufficiently similar to be considered as representing the same social reality. The worlds in which different societies live are distinct worlds, not merely the same world with different labels attached.”

“Setiap orang bertanggung jawab atas pilihannya sendiri. Orang yang menyalahkan orang lain atas pilihannya hanyalah pengecut yang hanya bisa lari dari tanggung jawab.”

“Mungkin aja lo pikir, anak-anak dari keluarga miskin itu menderita. Tapi siapa tahu, mereka justru lebih bahagia daripada kita karena mereka nggak terikat materi.”

“A love story is not the same as a romance novel. A romance novel is the story of two people falling in love against their will. This is a story of two people who leave each other against their will. It starts to end the minute they meet.”