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.