 In addition to her writing, Ida filled her retirement years with travel, talks, and political activism.She returned to China twice (1959, 1972) despite a State Department ban and remained a strong proponent for U.S.-China relations throughout her life.In 1946, she rented an apartment with Maud Russell on West 93rd Street in New York City and remained there until 1951 when she retired and moved to Philadelphia near the University of Pennsylvania where she remained for the rest of her life.