Geopats Abroad : Chats with expats, immigrants, and locals

Norm's podcast, Podlovers Asia, is in English and thus gives us a view of the Asian podcasting scene and all of the many cultures that it includes, with zero linguistic effort. In this episode we start with the Asian podcasting scene and then move into his local scene in Malaysia and wrap up with his own podcasting experience and, of course, his tips for new Podcasters wanting to enter the Asian Podcasting scene. 

Norm's info:

• Twitter, https://twitter.com/NormanChella
• LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/in/normanchella/
• Quora, https://www.quora.com/profile/Norman-T-Chella 
• Pod Lovers Asia Website, podloversasia.com , now hosted on Whooshkaa,  https://www.whooshkaa.com/​
• Tempered Fables Podcast, https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tempered-fables/id1400476035

Links: 

• Waves (Vietnam) https://waves8.com/
• Renegade Radio (Malaysia) https://vulcanpost.com/688328/renegade-radio-podcast-network-malaysia/
• The Creative Curry Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-creative-curry-podcast/id1479066033
• Macha Men Podcast, https://themachamen.podbean.com/
• Asia Podcast Summit, https://asiapodcastsummit.com/

​Breaks: 

• (16:10) Bangkok Podcast, https://www.bangkokpodcast.com/
• (16:40) Writer & Geek Podcast, https://www.writerandgeek.com/
• #PodRevDay, https://www.stephfuccio.com/podrevday-podcast-review-day.html and Podcasters Accountability Groups, https://www.stephfuccio.com/podcast-events--groups.html
• #PodRevD

🤸🏽Music from
Damon Castillo (earlier episodes): https://www.damoncastillo.com/
and
Key Frame Audio (more recent eps) :https://keyframeaudio.com/

Top 3 services that have help me while living in different countries (mostly for Americans): Affiliate links so I'll get a small commission.

🔥 Traveling Mailbox: scan/forward postal service for Americans. It's saved me time, money and headaches.
https://travelingmailbox.com/geopats/?ref=3422

🔥Chase Sapphire Credit Card: annual fee, NO currency conversion fee. Used this in many countries globally.
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/19Q/MDNYO68N38

🔥 Stackry: Shop in the U.S. and have the items shipped internationally.
https://www.stackry.com/register?referral=7118738

Send us Fan Mail

In this podcast episode we chat with Brendan Davis, an American expat who has lived in China for many years. Brendan is a Film and TV Writer, Producer, Director and fellow Podcaster. His podcasts are: If I Knew You Better, Big Fish in the Middle Kingdom and How China Works. Brendan somehow has kept grounded as has been involved with some pretty spectacular creative projects globally. Okay, to be honest, he is a bit crazy, good crazy, as his website, https://www.crazyinagoodway.com admits to. The kind of crazy that you want in your life and in your earbuds. 

 In this conversation Steph and Brendan chat about how his move to China changed what he did online, how he is splitting his time now that he has decided not to work IN China but will continue to keep a home base (and an Internet connection) here, and how he cultivated his crazy in a good way online persona while being a deep, thought provoking and may I say, wonderful human being.

Original publication date: June 21, 2019

 🌍 Tools & resources for living, traveling, and working abroad: https://geopatsabroad.substack.com/p/living-abroad-resources

🛍️ Geopats Abroad Stationary Store: https://geopatsabroad-shop.fourthwall.com/en-eur?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=geopats_shop&utm_content=episode_description

🛠️ Podcast & creator tools I use: https://podcaststeph.substack.com/p/podcast-tools-i-use

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/geopatsabroad/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnfWdoMjmqpcbULZw-hVgew

Send us Fan Mail

In this podcast episode we chat with Kelly Merks, a Texas expat who has lived abroad since 2011, in Japan and in the Netherlands. Her Twitter bio tells is: “A Texan full of fernweh (NOTE: “fernweh is a German word that means “ A Farsickness or Longing for Unseen Places.). Noob knitter and clay thrower. Fairy godmother of @WeAreXpats, a project of @xpatarchive: http://wearexpats.org “

​​@WeAreXpats is how Kelly and I first met online and connected over discussions of place, social medianess and expat life. For those of you not familiar with rocur accounts, they are rotating accounts where usually 1 person in that category (in this case, an expat) tweets for a week and then the account will rotate to another person after that. Kelly started this rocur account while she was a volunteer at the Expatriate Archive Center in The Hauge where she now is their Public Relations Manager. Outside of the EAC, Kelly also is raising a tiny human with her husband and somehow finds time to write about her geographic pondering in her blog, Bullet Trains & Bike Lanes.

Original publication date: May 14, 2019

 🌍 Tools & resources for living, traveling, and working abroad: https://geopatsabroad.substack.com/p/living-abroad-resources

🛍️ Geopats Abroad Stationary Store: https://geopatsabroad-shop.fourthwall.com/en-eur?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=geopats_shop&utm_content=episode_description

🛠️ Podcast & creator tools I use: https://podcaststeph.substack.com/p/podcast-tools-i-use

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/geopatsabroad/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnfWdoMjmqpcbULZw-hVgew

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China’s internet culture reveals how powerfully money, status, and the need for connection shape what people do online. Documentary filmmaker Hao Wu explains how moving between China and the US changes his internet habits, and what China’s YY livestreaming world reveals about class, fame, connection, and the creator economy.

Original publication date: April 20, 2019

Hao Wu: https://www.haowufilm.com/

What You’ll Learn About China’s Internet and Chinese Livestreaming

• How internet use differs between China and the US
• How China’s Great Firewall shapes online behavior
• How YY livestreaming helped build China’s creator economy
• How migrant workers found community through livestreaming
• What online fame and creator burnout look like
• Why social media creates both connection and dependence

How Internet Use Differs Between China and the US

Hao moved from China to the US at age 20 in 1992, when staying connected meant sending email through Unix commands on black screens with green text.

His habits still change with geography. In China, he turns to WeChat, Toutiao, and Tencent Video. In the US, he shifts toward The New York Times, BuzzFeed, YouTube, Netflix, and Hulu.

How China’s Great Firewall Shapes Online Behavior

China’s Great Firewall explains only part of that divide. Conversations with cab drivers and childhood friends also change what he researches online.

For Hao, digital life doesn’t exist separately from everyday life. Moving countries changes the information and online spaces he needs.

How YY Livestreaming Helped Build China’s Creator Economy

Hao began filming People’s Republic of Desire in 2014, before livestreaming became mainstream in China. YY fascinated him because wealthy tuhao and poorer diaosi could occupy the same online space even though they rarely mixed that way offline.

YY connected performers, fans, patrons, agencies, and the platform through virtual gifts and revenue sharing. Big spenders gained recognition and status while streamers built careers around keeping audiences engaged.

How Chinese Livestreaming Created Community for Migrant Workers

Hao followed Yong, a migrant worker who spent his evenings watching livestreamer Big Lee. When Hao asked when he would stop, Yong said: when Big Lee stopped performing.

For devoted fans, livestreaming offered more than entertainment. It created a recurring social space built around personalities, jokes, competitions, and a performer’s success.

What It Takes to Become a Successful Livestreamer in China

Livestreaming could look like easy money, but successful hosts might improvise for one or two hours while entertaining viewers and responding in real time.

Big Lee became so drained by performing that he no longer wanted to talk after broadcasts. The connection viewers valued could leave the performer exhausted.

What Chinese Livestreaming Reveals About Class, Money, and Status

Hao doesn’t claim YY represents all of China. Instead, he describes livestreaming as an extreme reflection containing “kernels of truth.”

Money, status, aspiration, recognition, and inequality already existed offline. YY made those forces unusually visible online.

Why Social Media Creates Connection and Dependence

After two years filming People’s Republic of Desire and another year and a half editing it, Hao began questioning his own desire for likes, comments, and recognition online.

Yet social media also helped people discover, fund, and share his independent films. The same technology could create dependence while providing genuine community and support.

How Geography Shapes Online Identity Across Countries

Move Hao from the US to China and his apps, news, conversations, and questions change. The livestreamers and fans he documented show a related pattern: what people want or lack offline shapes what they seek online.

Our online identities don’t exist separately from where and how we live. They grow out of them.

 🌍 Tools & resources for living, traveling, and working abroad: https://geopatsabroad.substack.com/p/living-abroad-resources

🛍️ Geopats Abroad Stationary Store: https://geopatsabroad-shop.fourthwall.com/en-eur?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=geopats_shop&utm_content=episode_description

🛠️ Podcast & creator tools I use: https://podcaststeph.substack.com/p/podcast-tools-i-use

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/geopatsabroad/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnfWdoMjmqpcbULZw-hVgew

Send us Fan Mail

In this podcast episode we chat with long term China Expat Andy Curtain about his geographical movement from Melbourne, Australia to Shanghai, China and what effect it had on his online activities/presence. Even though he was online quite early in Australia with IRC and ICQ, he admits that most of his current online activities have been utility based, focusing on his stand up comedy promotions and community building. 

​As a fellow Content Creator (and Influencer, lol), I find it very interesting that the making of his podcast, Stuck in the Middle, helps him process his own comedic material. There is so much to say about Andy, the deep impression he has made on the stand up comedy scene in China and his own business savvy that has impacted how I think of my own creative endeavors on and offline in the short time since this interview took place. But for now I will just say thank you Andy for coming on the show and sharing your story.  

Original publication date: April 9, 2019

 🌍 Tools & resources for living, traveling, and working abroad: https://geopatsabroad.substack.com/p/living-abroad-resources

🛍️ Geopats Abroad Stationary Store: https://geopatsabroad-shop.fourthwall.com/en-eur?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=geopats_shop&utm_content=episode_description

🛠️ Podcast & creator tools I use: https://podcaststeph.substack.com/p/podcast-tools-i-use

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/geopatsabroad/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnfWdoMjmqpcbULZw-hVgew

Bianca is a Carnivore, biohacker and Nutritional therapist with a love of travel, cats, working out and playing sports, cooking at home, drinking coffee, spending time with her niece and nephews and discussing health and well being with anyone and everyone who is willing and able.

🤸🏽Music from
Damon Castillo (earlier episodes): https://www.damoncastillo.com/
and
Key Frame Audio (more recent eps) :https://keyframeaudio.com/

Top 3 services that have help me while living in different countries (mostly for Americans): Affiliate links so I'll get a small commission.

🔥 Traveling Mailbox: scan/forward postal service for Americans. It's saved me time, money and headaches.
https://travelingmailbox.com/geopats/?ref=3422

🔥Chase Sapphire Credit Card: annual fee, NO currency conversion fee. Used this in many countries globally.
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/19Q/MDNYO68N38

🔥 Stackry: Shop in the U.S. and have the items shipped internationally.
https://www.stackry.com/register?referral=7118738

In this podcasting episode we chat with Heather Jonasson, a Texan who made the long journey to Sweden many years ago, about her podcast, Life In The Land Of The Ice And Snow. In this lighthearted podcast Heather and one of her Co-Hosts (Monica or Diego) join her to chat with other expats from around the world about the quirks, challenges and advantages of living in Sweden. In this episode we talk about her podcasting set up, the benefits of interviewing guests in person and of course, the essential why in starting her podcast.  

🤸🏽Music from
Damon Castillo (earlier episodes): https://www.damoncastillo.com/
and
Key Frame Audio (more recent eps) :https://keyframeaudio.com/

Top 3 services that have help me while living in different countries (mostly for Americans): Affiliate links so I'll get a small commission.

🔥 Traveling Mailbox: scan/forward postal service for Americans. It's saved me time, money and headaches.
https://travelingmailbox.com/geopats/?ref=3422

🔥Chase Sapphire Credit Card: annual fee, NO currency conversion fee. Used this in many countries globally.
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/19Q/MDNYO68N38

🔥 Stackry: Shop in the U.S. and have the items shipped internationally.
https://www.stackry.com/register?referral=7118738

Send us Fan Mail

Mandarin Chinese can feel completely different depending on whether you’re reading it, hearing it, or trying to speak it. After 25 years with Mandarin, Tanya Crossman explains why Chinese characters, tones, grammar, listening comprehension, and real-world language use need different kinds of practice, and what learners should understand before those gaps get harder to close. Her experience across classrooms, workplaces, and daily life in China shows why fluency is about learning how those skills connect.

Tanya's website: https://www.tanyacrossman.com/

Original publication date: April 1, 2019

What You’ll Learn About Learning Mandarin Chinese, Listening Comprehension, and Fluency

•  Why Mandarin reading and listening can develop at different speeds 
•  How 10 years of Mandarin study can still leave listening gaps 
•  Why Chinese grammar depends on context and implied meaning 
•  How living and working in China builds real-world Mandarin fluency 
•  How Chinese TV can improve Mandarin listening comprehension 
•  Why emotional vocabulary matters for advanced Mandarin fluency 
•  What it means to feel ownership over a second language 

Why Mandarin Chinese Reading and Listening Develop Differently

Tanya started learning Mandarin at age eleven and studied it for about a decade before moving to China. At university in Beijing, she could read her entire textbook but struggled to answer even two out of ten listening-comprehension questions correctly.

During her first year in China, she sometimes pictured Chinese characters while trying to speak. Because characters don’t create the same bridge between writing and pronunciation as alphabet-based languages, reading and conversation can develop very differently.

Why Mandarin Chinese Grammar Depends on Context and Implied Meaning

Mandarin doesn’t rely on verb conjugations like many European languages. Its complexity instead comes through word order, vocabulary, particles, context, and implication.

Forms such as 看书, 看完书, 看了书, and 看书了 show how surrounding words change meaning even when the core verb stays recognizable. Learners can know every word and still miss what the speaker means.

How Living and Working in China Builds Real-World Mandarin Fluency

Tanya’s biggest leap toward fluency came in an open-plan office where she was the only foreign employee. She heard coworkers persuade suppliers, joke with the DHL delivery person, talk with partners, and complain to family members.

Hearing the same people shift their Mandarin across situations taught her tone, humor, and implication. She still remembers the first time she successfully used sarcasm in Chinese.

How Chinese TV Can Improve Mandarin Listening Comprehension

Tanya recommends soap operas because repeated plots and phrases give learners several chances to catch language they initially miss.

Early in China, she watched a Russian soap opera dubbed and subtitled in Chinese. The long Russian names created pauses that gave her extra time to process the Mandarin she’d just heard.

Why Emotional Vocabulary Matters for Advanced Mandarin Fluency

Classroom Mandarin often teaches practical communication before learners can express complicated feelings. Tanya developed more emotional vocabulary by helping a Chinese friend interpret and write personal messages in English.

Those conversations showed how advanced fluency requires more than vocabulary and grammar. Learners also need the language and cultural knowledge to communicate who they are.

What It Means to Feel Ownership Over Mandarin Chinese

After studying around a dozen languages, Tanya says she feels true ownership only over English and Mandarin.

A Malaysian Chinese woman who usually addressed Tanya in English eventually apologized for underestimating how deeply Chinese was part of her life. For Tanya, being recognized as a Chinese speaker mattered more than proving she could speak it.

 🌍 Tools & resources for living, traveling, and working abroad: https://geopatsabroad.substack.com/p/living-abroad-resources

🛍️ Geopats Abroad Stationary Store: https://geopatsabroad-shop.fourthwall.com/en-eur?utm_source=buzzsprout&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=geopats_shop&utm_content=episode_description

🛠️ Podcast & creator tools I use: https://podcaststeph.substack.com/p/podcast-tools-i-use

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/geopatsabroad/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnfWdoMjmqpcbULZw-hVgew

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In this podcast episode we chat with Eva Yoo (https://www.seekroad.co/) , a Korean Tech Journalist who has lived in the U.S., the UK, Ecuador, Israel and China. Last year she completed an 8 month cycling trip (https://www.seekroad.co/)  from Shanghai, China to the UK, along the ancient Silk Road.

During this trip she did many interviews with people working in startups. But Eva is so much more than the sum of these actions: she is a kind, thoughtful and curious person who makes the balancing of IRL and VRL (offline and online lives) look easy and I greatly admire her for that. 

Original publication date: March 26, 2019

Top 3 services that have help me while living in different countries: Affiliate links so I'll get a small commission.

🔥 Traveling Mailbox: scan/forward postal service for Americans. It's saved me time, money and headaches.
https://travelingmailbox.com/?ref=3422

🔥Chase Sapphire Credit Card: annual fee, NO currency conversion fee. Used this in many countries globally.
https://www.referyourchasecard.com/19Q/MDNYO68N38

🔥 Stackry: Shop in the U.S. and have the items shipped internationally.
https://www.stackry.com/register?referral=7118738

--------------------

🤸🏽Music from
Damon Castillo: https://www.damoncastillo.com/

and

Key Frame Audio , https://keyframeaudio.com/