In Between

Meet Jaeda, her beautiful smile and high energy caught my attention since the first time we met! She is a first generation Canadian, being half Persian half Filipino! With a background in literature and languages combined with her adventurous personality, the idea of having a teaching job abroad expanded in her mind, even though she never wanted to have a career as a teacher. Her first internation...

What’s up guys! Moving to a new country can be exciting, but it can also feel overwhelming. In this episode, we'll talk about practical ways to settle in faster by focusing on three key areas: building friendships, finding foods you enjoy, and creating a sense of familiarity in your new environment. Because wanting or not, building a life in a new place does not happen over night, it does not...

Meet Anabela, the third Serbian I know after Stevan and Novak Djockovic! Haha She captivated me right away with her positive energy and beautiful smile. Coming from a small town in Serbia, China has definitely been quite the adventure for Anabela. Her first idea of China was when her older sister came to China to work as an Au Pair a few years ago, which gave her the opportunity to come visit the...

What’s up guys! Have you ever found yourself in a position of meeting nice people, creating new friendships, perhaps even becoming best friends, just to find out that either you will move away or they will. You feel like you wasted all that time building a strong connection and now it is the end. It is sad, it hurts, it sucks! Getting used to saying goodbye isn't about making it stop hurting,...

Meet Rich, a funny and free spirit guy with one of the most unique and interesting backgrounds I’ve heard. Being born in Guam, a small island that belongs to the United States, his formative years were spent in different places and learning that the world is free for anyone courageous enough to see it. His first international travel was Germany with a German friend he made in school and that opene...

What's up guys! If you are someone who has been dwelling into learning a second language, or maybe even a third, forth and fifth, who knows! This episode is for you. Learning a language is a process like any other, like learning any type of new skill. It might seem daring and challenging in the beginning but the more we practice and dedicate ourselves to it, the more we realize that it is most...

Meet Maria, with an energetic and loving spirit; her chat with me brightened up my day! It was her love for dancing that brought her to China for the first time, but it was her ability to persevere through challenges and trust in herself that kept her here! From dance teacher to English teacher, in the words of Maria “life happens!” Even though she struggled deeply with Mandarin from the start, sh...

What’s up guys! I cannot believe this is episode 50 of the podcast! I guess I’ve been doing it for quite some time now! Well anyways, today’s solo episode is all about being comfortable not knowing what will happen, not having a complete plan or simply being okay with the idea that life will happen as it is supposed to happen.  “Life is often less like solving a math problem and more like listenin...

Meet Acylina, a lovely Brazilian woman with whom I had the pleasure of sitting down and get to know in a deep level. She came to China by destiny and our meeting was a blow of fresh air, insightful, inspirational and blissful. She came with the mindset of growing and learning from this ancient county. With a focus in integrative medicine, Acylina became a driver for positivity and wellness, assist...

What’s up guys! Today’s solo episode is all about most common mistakes expats make when relocating overseas and how to avoid them, helping you settle in faster, build a better life abroad, and get the most out of your international experience. We cannot expect life to feel like a permanent vacation, at some point reality kicks in! We need to stop comparing everything to how it is done at home, thi...

Solo -   “Living On The Opposite Side Of The World.” What’s up guys! Today’s solo episode is all about what what happens when you leave everything familiar behind and move to the other side of the world! You will hear me talking about my personal experiences and thoughts on how it feels to take that leap of faith of moving to the unknown and all that comes along with that decision! You will hear a...

Meet Stevan, the second Serbian I know other than Novak Djokovic (tennis player), although I never met Djockovic in person haha! He is one of the many friends I’ve made through volleyball. Because of life circumstances, Stevan ended up in China, a place he at first had no interest in coming to, but that now proves to be the place for him to live and stay. From tattoo artist, graffiti artist to gam...

Meet Robert, an energetic and charismatic polyglot who chose a kind of lifestyle unfathomable to many of us! His passion for languages started at the age of 18 because of the influence of a friend, and from that moment on, his life took a turn. Unlike many people I have interviewed, China came up to him in a very unusual way! If you really want to learn a new language but believe it is too hard to...

Meet Ani, an exciting and lovely girl with whom I had the pleasure to sit down and get to known more about. She come to China in a very unique way, only on the basis of trust and gut feeling! Although, having been exposed to a lot of Asian cultures since a young age, the idea of coming to China was not so foreign to her. We dive into the experience of living with a Chinese hosting family, from foo...

Meet Danny, a kind and full of energy young man who was looking for a big adventure in life, and China was the perfect opportunity for him to start exploring the world! Coming from a quiet and small town in the state of Maine, Danny knew he wanted to experience more and open his horizons to the new and unknown. We chat about first impressions of the country and how he navigated getting used to a c...

Meet Yann, the second Yann I interview and in his words, “the best one!”. If having the same name was not a good coincidence already, they share a childhood background as well! What a small world! Yann has a very distinct and interesting background! Asia sparkled on his interest since a young age, but it wasn’t until later on that he travelled internationally quite a lot for work, that he had the...

Meet Carla, a “bella” fun Italian who I had the pleasure of meeting. She studied languages in the University of Naples, with focus on Chinese language. After a short trip to China back in 2002 she already knew she wanted to come back eventually, which happened in 2005. And without planning it, life had it set up for her to stay in China for good. We share our love for languages and chat extensivel...

What’s up guys! Today’s solo episode is all about what we think it is “normal”and are proven wrong once we are in China! I share with you a few scenarios that really called my attention in the daily life here and how my perception is very different from the locals.  “I thought cash was king…”  “I thought people always respected personal space…” “I thought drinking cold water was normal…” “I though...

Meet Elen, a beautiful and strong minded young lady who I met by mutual friends. With a background in English and Chinese languages, she had the opportunity of coming to China for the first time on an exchange program during University time and knew she wanted to go back. We chat about her first time visiting China and the journey that has brought her to Shenzhen. We also get into those first days...

Meet the Bartons, a young, courageous and lovely couple who I had the pleasure to sit down and have a real talk of what is to move a family of 6 to China! Having arrived recently to the country, they are still on the learning curve of how the country’s systems work and how to pass from survival mode to comfortably living in this unique place. It all started because of Ryan’s ability to speak Manda...

Meet Jenn, a sweet and courageous Canadian who decided the world would be her home! She comes from a relatively small lake town a couple hours from Toronto, which is also the place where Shanaia Twain was dicovered?! China was not the first place in Asia she adventured to, she also lived in Korean and Istanbul, so she was quite familiar with the Asian culture in some aspects. Although China was di...

Meet Yann, he called my attention right when we first met because of the fact he speaks Portuguese fluently but is not from Brazil! He is half Brazilian half French, having grown up in French Guiana. He has a very interestingly diverse background, which allow him to be comfortable enough to go solo though the world at a very young. Because of his adventurous personality, he didn’t think twice on a...

Meet Sophie, my yoga teacher here in China! She moved all the way from France with her husband and two kids to adventure in Asia. It was not the first time they moved to a different country, but China specifically was never a place they thought of moving to. Like many other people, the pandemic pushed Sophie to explore a new career path, from Engineering to Yoga. Currently, she has her own private...

Meet Sefrah, a lovely high energy young woman with whom I have a lot in common actually! She double majored in Global Studies and East Asian Languages, Literature and Cultures, which opened her options to come to this side of the world and create a life here. She shares her experience with getting a job in China during the pandemic time, which was not easy, but it was meant to be and totally worth...

What’s up guys! Are you used to having a “coffee to go” any time you want? Would you be open to try duck blood? How long you spend sitting on the toilet? From weird eating habits, clothing styles, public transportation and local rules on chewing gums, there is a lot to expand on how countries go about life. Even something as mundane as turning on the lights in your apartment can become a challenge...