In Between

Robert Grey– “Language is one of the most valuable skills you can acquire in life”

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 do it, this episode is for you. Here you will hear a new perspective on having different languages under your belt and a few methods and advices to make it possible! Robert brings a very refreshing mindset about travelling abroad and how we can maximize our experiences by learning new languages. We dive into how speaking a local language makes you sympathize better with that culture and how being fearless and curious can take you a long way in experiencing the world. We get into his perspective on the pros, cons and trade offs of living in China for about six months already. From long term visions, goals and the realization of what really matters in life, we discuss the depths of truly immersing yourself into this vast and mesmerizing world, and how living in it is the best investment you can do for yourself. Robert reminds us that there is not only one way of living life, and that our choices are ours to make.  The world is ours to explore and conquer. Dedication, hard work, and a lot of effort will take you a long way.   If you want to know which language Robert thinks was the easiest for him to learn, go ahead and listen to the episode! Please share this episode with a friend, and if you haven't done so yet, please subscribe to the podcast on ⁠Spotify⁠  [https://open.spotify.com/show/7ivcn6wpwkmrnWXijYzYyv?si=161e1d6d7fc6410e ]or Apple Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/in-between/id1820373717 ]     Follow me:  Instagram: ⁠⁠@inbetweenwithvzv⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/inbetweenwithvzv/] LinkedIn: ⁠⁠Veronika Z.V.⁠⁠ [www.linkedin.com/in/veronikazv ]   Guest Medias: Instagram: @iamrobertgrey [https://www.instagram.com/iamrobertgrey/] Linkedln: Robert Grey [https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamrobertgrey/]

Ani  – “China has given me a lot of confidence.”

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 foods habits, daily tasks and societal differences that might not be so unfamiliar to her, you will hear us discussing the actual dynamics and effort it goes into utilizing the public toilets! We chat about her journey of learning mandarim and how important it is for her to continue her studies even after she goes back to the US. Ani even mentions the specific app she used to start learning the language, not sponsored but who knows, and how much that assisted her progress. Ani talks about the bittersweet feelings of leaving China pretty and food adventures that I’m sure will stay in her mind for a very long time!  Her courageous and outgoing personality combined with an inner drive to explore the world manifested the opportunity of her coming to China. We chat intuition, growth mindset and possibilities yet to be discovered. Ani reminds us that we are in control of our own destiny and we can change our mind at any point, so why not try it out? Please share this episode with a friend, and if you haven't done so yet, please subscribe to the podcast on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/7ivcn6wpwkmrnWXijYzYyv?si=161e1d6d7fc6410e] or Apple Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/in-between/id1820373717 ]     Follow me:  Instagram: ⁠⁠@inbetweenwithvzv⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/inbetweenwithvzv/ ] LinkedIn: ⁠⁠Veronika Z.V.⁠⁠ [www.linkedin.com/in/veronikazv ] Guest media: Instagram: @faithanifox

Danny Davis - “The journey is the destination.”

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 completely new way of living. We also get into food and language, which can be some of the main challenges people encounter here. We expand not only on societal behaviors, but also on how ancient, unique and bold this country has come to be. In the short time he has been in China he managed to visit many different countries in South East Asia including Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, Madagascar and the list goes on! We dive into what his time here in China has taught him about himself as well as this diverse and beautiful world we live in. China opened up to him the doors to a complete opposite way of living and to what else could be out there. With a hunger to travel and to see more, Danny is now embarking on a completely new journey to the other side of the world, very close to my home country, we’ll see if he will be speaking Spanish by the next time meet! This was an insightful and deep conversation about our role as humans in the world and how we can find meaning in simply living in it. If you want to know where Danny is headed next, go ahead and listen to our conversation! Please share this episode with a friend, and if you haven't done so yet, please subscribe to the podcast on Spotify⁠  [https://open.spotify.com/show/7ivcn6wpwkmrnWXijYzYyv?si=161e1d6d7fc6410e ] or Apple Podcast⁠ [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/in-between/id1820373717 ]     Follow me:  Instagram: ⁠⁠@inbetweenwithvzv⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/inbetweenwithvzv/ ] LinkedIn: ⁠⁠Veronika Z.V.⁠⁠ [www.linkedin.com/in/veronikazv ]   Guest Media: Instagram: @danny_davis11 [⁠https://www.instagram.com/danny_davis11/⁠]

Yann – “Stop watching the news.”

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 opportunity to see Asian with his own eyes. So when he finally came to live in China over 10 years ago, the country felt familiar, like old friend. Shenzhen is not the first city he lived here, being Foshan the place he met his now wife! We discuss his current freelance business of engineering and consulting in the energies’ sector as well as the challenges of dealing with local governmental entities and its procedures, which on his view is way harder than adapting to the daily life! We talk cultural differences, raising an international family and how his son is practically Chinese! We also expand on the different kinds of international communities around China and how important it is to understand the language and the culture in order to better live and interact with the locals. From the stereotype China once was to the current progressive country it has become, we touch into many debatable topics worth discussing. Please share this episode with a friend, and if you haven't done so yet, please subscribe to the podcast on ⁠Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/7ivcn6wpwkmrnWXijYzYyv?si=161e1d6d7fc6410e ]⁠ or ⁠Apple Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/in-between/id1820373717 ]   Follow me:  Instagram: ⁠⁠@inbetweenwithvzv⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/inbetweenwithvzv/] LinkedIn: ⁠⁠Veronika Z.V.⁠⁠ [www.linkedin.com/in/veronikazv ]   Guest Media: Instagram: @yanngueganic [ https://www.instagram.com/yanngueganic/]

Carla Albano – “In Chinese they call it 缘分”

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 extensively about languages and her views on having a degree in Chinese language, as well as her take on the way technology is starting to influence jobs in the translation field. Carla talks about when she first came to China over 20 years ago and how much the country has changed since then, specially this area of China. She literally saw Shenzhen become Shenzhen. In this conversation you will listen to fun stories, good laughs and the real meaning of finding connection with people anywhere in the world. We dive into the struggles and the beauty of living in China, from raising kids to being away from family. Please share this episode with a friend, and if you haven't done so yet, please subscribe to the podcast on ⁠Spotify⁠ [https://open.spotify.com/show/7ivcn6wpwkmrnWXijYzYyv?si=161e1d6d7fc6410e ] or ⁠Apple Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/in-between/id1820373717 ]   Follow me:  Instagram: ⁠⁠@inbetweenwithvzv⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/inbetweenwithvzv/ ] LinkedIn: ⁠⁠Veronika Z.V.⁠⁠ Guest Media: Instagram: @carlailink [https://www.instagram.com/carlailink/]