Mosaic of China 英语脱口秀

This is a re-release of Season 01 Episode 28: The Pain Whisperer (Lissanthea Taylor, Pain Management Practitioner).

This is a re-release of Season 01 Episode 14: The Aquarium Queen (Emily Madge, Asia Head of Conservation, Sea Life).

This is a re-release of Season 02 Episode 17: The Swedish Clown (Björn DAHLMAN, Clowns Without Borders). This is the full version, including content that was previously only available on the PREMIUM version of Mosaic of China.

Around the same time as launching Mosaic of China, I also embarked on a period of study at Shanghai Jiaotong University, starting with a course in Mandarin language followed by a Masters in Modern Chinese Studies. In today's special bonus episode, I discuss a little of what I learnt with Jason Smith and Beibei from CGTN's 'The Bridge' podcast. In our chat recorded earlier this year, we talk about Chinese philosophy, as well as some of the similarities and differences between life in China versus Singapore.A big thanks to Jason and the team at The Bridge for giving me permission to share this edited version on the feed for Mosaic of China.

In three seasons of the Mosaic of China podcast, we've already covered a large chunk of the A-Z of life in China. In today's episode, we're fast-forwarding to the end, not just because Zhou Yan's name starts with a 'Z', but because we're talking about the subject of death. In her work as a volunteer in hospices and 'Death Cafés' in Shanghai, Zhou Yan is doing more than just dispelling the superstition and stigma that surrounds the subject of death in China. She also demonstrates how to live life with more intention, and with more reverence to those around us.

To many, the image of an airline pilot conjures up thoughts of confident commanders in crisp tailored uniforms, living a life of excitement, romance and adventure. But what about the life of an airline captain in China?In today's episode with Michael Hundegger, we have a good-humoured conversation about the culture of commercial aviation in China. Yes, there's still the romance and the adventure. Of course there's also the procedures, the strict hierarchy, and the grunt-work. But more than that, there's a fascinating window into the nature of authority, discipline and education in China.

There's a field of academic study that sits at the intersection of geology and fashion, and that's gemology: the study of gemstones. Identifying, categorising and grading gemstones is a specific skillset, but valuation can be more subjective, particularly when it comes to regional variances such as with the inordinate popularity of jade in China.Christina Chao is a gemologist and jewellery designer in Shanghai, who is passionate about translating the science of gems into the art of jewels. And as she describes in today's episode, that's a skill she often puts into practice when advising nervous men looking for engagement rings for their girlfriends. Or indeed nervous podcasters who don't know the first thing about gemstones.

In the 1840s, French missionaries attempted to enter Tibet, and kept getting pushed back to an area at the Northwestern tip of modern-day 云南 [Yúnnán] Province. Today, this region preserves an astonishing and unique mix of Tibetan, Chinese, French and Catholic traditions.As part of that legacy, there are now villages that have perpetuated the art of winemaking first bequeathed to them over almost two centuries ago. And in today's episode, Bertrand Cristau explains how he first discovered this region, and how he ended up working together with the villagers to make prize-wining Himalayan wine.

Things are finally looking up for international sportswear brands in China in 2023. For the previous few years, almost all brands were suffering due to instability of the market during COVID and the rise in popularity of Chinese domestic competitors. With this as the backdrop to our conversation - recorded last year - a big thanks goes to today's guest Kim YoungAh for offsetting these heavier topics with a very lighthearted and cheerful conversation about her career in merchandising at Nike, adidas, Fila, Gap and Crocs.

In 1996, China acquired a decommissioned Soviet aircraft carrier, with the express intention of using it as the centrepiece of a theme park in the city of 天津 [Tiānjīn]. Today, the 濱海 [Bīnhǎi] Aircraft Carrier Theme Park is still operative, and the enormous ship stands as the backdrop of a pirate stunt show. Today's episode is with Frank Abel, who has been coordinating these stunts since 2012, as well as building and maintaining the modified stunt vehicles on display. A veteran stunt man, Frank has a lifetime of tall tales from the worlds of movies and theme parks, both in the U.S. and China. So it was a unique pleasure to include just a few of these in today's episode.

By now you've probably heard about Burning Man, the festival that in recent years attracts over 80,000 participants to the deserts of Nevada. But did you know that there's an equivalent event in China called Dragon Burn (龙焰)?Today's guest on the Mosaic of China podcast is Francesca Valsecchi, a professor at Tongji University in Shanghai and one of the active participants behind Dragon Burn. In our fun and wide-ranging chat, we discuss how she combines these two worlds under the principles of communality, immediacy and de-commodification.

I don't often talk about my career before podcasting. But in today's special bonus episode, I had the excuse to do just that with Francis Kremer from the China Flexpat podcast. In our chat, recorded back in April 2022, we discuss some of the aspects of podcasting that intersect with my old life as a headhunter and career coach. I hope that some of it is useful, particularly if you're interested in switching careers, or building a personal brand.A big thanks to Francis for giving me permission to share this on the feed for Mosaic of China.

We've reached the halfway point of Season 03. And following in the tradition from previous seasons, we're marking the occasion with a special bonus episode, and an extra special bonus guest. This particular guest has been a long time coming!The timing of this episode couldn't be better. Not only does it coincide with the New Year and the run-up to Spring Festival in China, it also coincides with an inflexion point in China as it pivots from Zero-COVID to a new period of openness and opportunity. What kind of emotions does this massive change generate in those of us who have spent the last three years in China? Well... it's complicated.

Yes, today's episode is all about what it's like to live in China with Tourette syndrome (妥瑞症). But what it's really about is neurodiversity. Some people still have a defensive attitude towards those of us with mental and neurological conditions, treating them as victims deserving of our fear, pity or even derision. But Dajiang's story reminds us that we should instead focus on dignity, happiness, and mutual understanding. This doesn't mean that all of us should celebrate our deficiencies, nor use them as excuses to avoid self-improvement. But at the same time, we don't need to 'see past' someone's disorders; we don't need to 'tolerate' someone's conditions. Listening to their stories and understanding their distinct points of view is not a sacrifice. It's a privilege. So a big thanks to Dajiang for being the last new guest of 2022, and ending the year on an uplifting note.

The environment is one of those topics that we all know we need to talk about, but at the same time desperately want to avoid. None of us want to be lectured on all the things we're doing wrong, and none of us need yet another reminder about how the human race is mismanaging its impact on the planet. So it's a breath of fresh air to have a conversation with someone who is not only passionate about the environment but also... fun. In today's episode, Alizée Buysschaert talks about the way she personally challenged herself to reduce 90% of the waste that she produced every day. And how this challenge led to a number of personal and professional reinventions.

There are two themes of today's show: the first is location, and the second is identity. There exist derogatory stereotypes about both. Today's conversation touches on the intersectionality of these stereotypes in China, and the way in which we can either casually dispel them or defiantly embrace them. In either case, we can have fun joking about them and stripping them of their venom.As well as being involved in cinema projects, today's guest Xie Xiao participates in many other voluntary groups in China. And he has many stories that reflect his own personal background, as well as those of the people with whom he engages in China.

Is there anything more pathetically banal than talking about sleep? We all do it, so… who cares? Until recent years, that's what many of us would have said. But these days there's a growing recognition that sleep quality lies at the root of our holistic wellbeing, and is deserving of further investigation.That's where we encounter a brand new problem. Since issues with sleep do indeed speak to a broader holistic imbalance, how do we even start to deconstruct the cocktail of behavioural, hormonal, environmental, medical and emotional factors that might be at play? And once diagnosed, how then do we avoid the modern temptation to seek quick fixes, and truly develop new habits and long-term solutions? Step in Rumbiey Muchenje to discuss the world of sleep coaching in China, and the story that took her from adolescence in Harare to ‘Sleepless in Shanghai'.

There are some people who view video gaming at best as a time-wasting distraction, and at worst as a vice. But in listening to today's episode with the game designer Simon Chapuis, even detractors will understand the passion, creativity and teamwork that it takes to usher a game from conception to market.Simon's career has taken him from France to Germany, to Spain and finally to China, where he is now a Senior Game Designer at Ubisoft in the city of Chengdu. His story not only illustrates the dynamic and international nature of the gaming industry, but also the complexity and pressure that can accompany this collaborative endeavour.

The country of Mongolia [蒙古国 - Ménggǔguó] is sandwiched between Russia and China, and there are ethnic Mongolian areas in all three countries. So when talking about Mongolian people in China, it's not always clear whether you're talking about ethnic Mongolians from the Chinese province of Inner Mongolia [内蒙古 - Nèiménggǔ], or Mongolian nationals from across the border.Today's episode is with Tsogtgerel ("Tsogi") Bumerdene, a Mongolian national living in China, who wears this mantle of identity every day. But more than that, she's an artist, designer, teacher and mother. So we cover all of these facets in our casual yet wide-ranging conversation.

Sometimes big themes can be tackled through the guise of performance art. In previous episodes of the Mosaic of China podcast, we have explored how drag performers can teach us to embrace our own weirdness, and how clowns can teach us to embrace our own fallibility. These stories may be specific to China, but they apply to us all.In today's very special episode, we explore how the world of Rope Art has made its way from Japan to China. And we discover how this art form can make us think about the themes of communication, connection and consent.

The economic developments of the last three decades in China have propelled forward an entire generation. But when we strive for opportunity and prosperity, are we prepared for the knock-on effects on the people around us? Looking back at this era, how can we understand the human stories hiding in the profit charts?Elaine Huang is making an independent feature film which explores exactly these themes. In today's episode, Elaine describes her experiences working in the film industry in China, and in so doing reveals a deeply personal family story of riches, rupture and redemption.

Some people still have the outdated image in their heads of China as a country of grim sweatshops and cheap manual labour. In fact, China is the country which boasts the largest number of robots deployed in the world. And that makes it a prime location for one of the newest category of industrial robot: the 'cobot', or collaborative robot.Today's episode is with Andrew Pether, who has spent a decade in the field of robotics engineering in China, and over eight years working at the global vanguard in the world of collaborative robots. So he is perfectly placed to observe the world of innovation and competition in this unique space in China.

They say it takes a village to raise a child. That doesn't just include parents, teachers and care-givers, in China it often also includes grandparents and domestic helpers. Indeed, the raising of kids impacts impatient childless podcasters whose everyday lives in the village also casually intersect with children, whether they like it or not. We all could use a little help, especially when it comes to knowing when to follow the best practices of our parents, and when it's time to break certain cycles. That's where today's guest Barbara Poppell steps in. And having lived exactly half her life in China, she can also speak to the global village of family and community services.

China is a country of cities, and mega-cities... and mega-mega-cities. But guess what folks, in between these cities is a whole bunch of countryside. And as we question whether our modern urban lifestyles are truly sustainable, sometimes we need to turn to those places where the answers have been waiting for us all along.Today's guest - the architect, Chen Haoru - has been searching for these answers from his base in 杭州 [Hángzhōu] for the last twenty years. And this journey has led him to establishing a model of communal living, to designing structures that define a philosophical movement, and to questioning our misplaced expectation about the permanence of architecture.

With thirty years at L'Oréal, and fifteen of those in leadership roles in mainland China, Stéphane has made a career of anticipating trends in China, and catering to the needs of the powerful and illusive 'Chinese consumer'. In this episode, we discuss the art and science of consumer insight analysis, through the prism of the beauty industry. We talk about the correlation between beauty and technology, and observe the new trends that are emerging in a post-COVID world.

I would wager that all of us have stepped foot into a gym or a fitness studio, even if it was to immediately step out again. But that's the point of today's episode with Siri Nordhejm, Co-Founder of Z&B Fitness and MYbarre Fitness. What is it about fitness establishments that gets you passed that line, and what gets you coming back? And is it the same in China as in other places?As with all episodes of Mosaic of China, we discuss not only what the guest does, but who the guest is. So tune in to today's show to find out how someone finds themselves becoming a fitness entrepreneur in their early twenties, and finds the energy to stick with it for over a decade.

When you think of an alcoholic drink that's made out of traditional Chinese ingredients, you might not immediately think of… gin. But that's exactly what came to the mind of Fergus Woodward six years ago when he helped to create Peddlers Gin, China's first and leading craft gin brand. Today's episode takes us through Fergus' story of discovery and distillation, one that has resulted in a gin that proudly showcases both the unique botanicals of China, and the unique persistence of the team behind it.

You don't need to be a fan of comic books to understand their galactic-superhero-sized impact on the Zeitgeist. But what about in China? Are there fans of comic books here? And if so, who are they and what do they look like?The search for answers to these questions has taken the podcast to the city of 成都 [Chéngdū], to find the one and only shop in China totally dedicated to American-style comic books. And if you think that sounds like a unique story, just wait until you hear more about the shop's owner Ashley Huang, a member of the 土家 [Tǔjiā] minority ethnic group.

We may not understand it yet, but at this point we've all heard about the Metaverse. Some of us can't wait to embrace it; others are already bitterly opposed to it. But it's coming, whether we like it or not. In fact, the building blocks of Big Data and Augmented Reality (AR) are already here, we're just waiting for technology companies to help converge them together.That's where today's guest Eric Liu comes in. The CTO of the China-based company DIGITWIN Technologies (and its sister company Virspatial Technologies in Singapore), Eric is helping to usher in a new world where reality will coexist alongside its digital twin. Listen to today's episode to understand how these technologies are already being applied both in China and around the world, and to ponder the moral and ethical implications behind them.

Hello, I'm Oscar. In this trailer, I introduce the new features of Season 03 of the Mosaic of China podcast, including the PREMIUM version of the show and the new corporate supporters of the show this season.

Being locked into our compounds hasn't been a fun experience for the residents of Shanghai over the last month. But we will survive this inconvenience, and we will hopefully be all the more grateful for the luxuries of living in Shanghai, once they have finally returned.Oscar could have spent this time preparing for Season 03 of Mosaic of China. But he hasn't. So the launch of next season is probably still weeks away. However, today we're including an edited version of the conversation he had with the hosts of a podcast called Footprints. A big thanks to the Footprints team at China Radio International (CRI) for giving permission to share this on the feed for Mosaic of China.

If language is one of the most important keys to unlocking a culture, then today's tenth and final compilation episode from Season 02 of the show perhaps represents the epitome of what I'm trying to achieve with Mosaic of China. It's a collection of the voices of 30 people from 30 contrasting backgrounds describing 30 favourite words or phrases in Chinese.With hearts heavy under the burden of world news at the moment, please use this as a much-needed injection of joy and entertainment. And consider it a thank you from me to all those who have been following the podcast through this second season. I'm looking forward to returning with 30 brand new episodes later in the Spring of 2022.

In today's penultimate compilation episode from Season 02, we're talking about the favourite places people like to frequent in China.Whether you're looking for recommendations of street food, high-end restaurants, bars, or coffee shops, you should find some inspiration from today's episode.

We're coming up to the Spring Festival in China, so please consider this to be your Chinese New Year gift. It's the compilation episode of the favourite WeChat stickers from the guest of Season 02.With electronic communications, it's no longer good enough to learn how to compose compelling messages; you need to be fluent in the language of images. Without including things like emojis and emoticons in our messages, they can come across as cold, blunt, and rude. And there's arguably no medium where this is more important than on WeChat, where the use of gifs is almost universal. So take a listen to how the guests of Season 02 answer the question: “What is your favourite WeChat Sticker,” and reflect on your own fluency in these new visual languages.

In today's special compilation episode from Season 02 of the show, we listen to how 30 people answered the question: "If you left China, what would you miss the most, and what would you miss the least?"There's no such thing as perfection, living life is about dealing with both the rough and the smooth. The same holds true no matter where you live, or to which cultural identity you feel most affiliated. So it always makes for interesting listening to hear how people from different backgrounds answer this particular question.

To mark the final episode of 2021, we're switching away from our usual programming to include an edited version of the discussion that Oscar had on The Honest Drink podcast. Recorded a few weeks ago, the conversation covers many aspects that we don't usually have a chance to explore in Mosaic of China, so I hope you'll enjoy listening to the different themes that emerge.A big thanks to Justin, Howie and Aric for giving permission to share this on the feed for Mosaic of China. Here's wishing everyone a great end to 2021.

Today's special compilation from Season 02 is all about where people get their news and information from about China. Around the world, news and journalism continues to get more consolidated, more digitalised, and more aggregated onto social media. And China is no exception. But there are still a lot of different sources for people to discover more about what's happening on the ground. So I hope you can find a few nuggets of inspiration in today's episode.

It's that time of year where our thoughts turn to... buying stuff we don't really need. In China, we've just had the annual Singles' Day online shopping bonanza. And the U.S. equivalent of Cyber Monday is coming up next week. So what? As someone who hates shopping, I couldn't care less about what this means, or what people choose to spend their money on. But somehow, when you ask someone the question "What's the best or worst purchase you've made?", you seem to elicit some of the best stories.

It's that time of year where our thoughts turn to... buying stuff we don't really need. In China, we've just had the annual Singles' Day online shopping bonanza. And the U.S. equivalent of Cyber Monday is coming up next week. So what? As someone who hates shopping, I couldn't care less about what this means, or what people choose to spend their money on. But somehow, when you ask someone the question "What's the best or worst purchase you've made?", you seem to elicit some of the best stories.

Do you know why Chinese politicians have lustrous black hair? Do you know why you wouldn't write '1,000,000' in China? And do you know why pandas do handstands? If the answer to any of those question is ‘no', then you should definitely listen to this week's compilation episode, where we listen to the favourite China-related facts from all 30 guests of the last season.

Do you know why Chinese politicians have lustrous black hair? Do you know why you wouldn't write '1,000,000' in China? And do you know why pandas do handstands? If the answer to any of those question is ‘no', then you should definitely listen to this week's compilation episode, where we listen to the favourite China-related facts from all 30 guests of the last season.

Do you know why Chinese politicians have lustrous black hair? Do you know why you wouldn't write '1,000,000' in China? And do you know why pandas do handstands? If the answer to any of those question is ‘no', then you should definitely listen to this week's compilation episode, where we listen to the favourite China-related facts from all 30 guests of the last season.

This week's compilation episode from Season 02 is about the things which surprise people the most about life in China. No matter whether you're a China outsider or someone who's been living here for decades, there's always something new around the corner to keep you on your toes. What is it about China that makes you feel the most surprised? It's scale? The pace of change? The way decisions are made here? Think carefully about how you would answer this question, and then see if it corresponds with any of the answers given in today's show.