At the age of 16, Giertz spent a year in China as an exchange student. She stayed in Hefei, where she learned basic Mandarin. During her stay in China she also made an appearance on a Chinese sitcom called Huan Xi Long Xia Dang (Chinese: 欢喜龙虾档, the Happy Lobster Restaurant), where she played Catherine, an American girl who married a Chinese man.[1]