Lots of people on sabbatical choose to wake up without an alarm clock or take long morning walks, but Lisa M. Angel, one of Rosen Divorce’s leading attorneys, decided to spend her three-month sabbatical traveling around Asia.

Angel said, “I wanted to be away from my comfort zone and challenge myself. Asia in general has always attracted me for some reason. Before I left, I read a lot of Chinese literature; I especially wanted to explore China, an emerging country in the world economic front.”

In 2004, from October to December, Angel moved to Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, and China. She visited the Great Wall in China, biked through rural Vietnam and Cambodia, and lived in a monastery in Thailand. Angel says, “I’ve been interested in meditation for while and I wanted to see how Buddhism worked in a Buddhist society firsthand,” “I really got a better sense of what it was like; I lived the life of a
Buddhist monk.”

When asked what surprised her on the trip, Angel said, “I never expected to hear Chinese-speaking people in Hong Kong speak English with a British accent or see Tibetan monks sporting hip eyewear and messenger bags with their saffron robes.” She added, “I never imagined Vietnamese women marvel the strength of my legs as they cycled away on a single gear bike loaded with bags of goods too heavy for me to lift.”

From the demolition of the southeastern tsunami, Angel knows a few places she visited on her trip are now washed away. Angel said, “Every time I turn on CNN, I call the Red Cross and make another donation. I have photos of children, I don’t know if they’re even alive,” “When I was staying in Ko-Phi-Phi in Thailand, I remember this young girl who’d swim with me every afternoon. I have her photo; I’m not sure
where she is now.”

Lisa M. Angel is a North Carolina Board Certified Family Law Specialist with Rosen Divorce who has written and spoken extensively on family law issues. Ms. Angel is a recurrent lecturer at continuing legal education programs for attorneys, including as guest lecturer at Duke University School of Law and Campbell Law School. In 2002, Governor Easley appointed Ms. Angel to serve on the Domestic Violence Commission. She also was selected to the Triangle Business Journal's 2002 "40 Under 40" list that recognizes Triangle area leaders. With offices in Raleigh and Charlotte, Rosen Divorce is the largest divorce firm in North Carolina.