Capitalism, Coffee, and Cultural: A Frenchman in America
Release Date: 10/22/2024
The Polite Foreigner: Finding the Balance After Ten-Years in Tokyo
Cultural Perspective
What if everything you thought you knew about fitting in was wrong? Step into a world where saying 'hello' requires navigating invisible social hierarchies, where a simple haircut can transform you from outcast to accepted, and working until midnight isn't dedication - it's just Tuesday. Through the eyes of Daniel Fulton, an American who spent a decade crossing the cultural divide in Japan, discover the raw truth about what happens when East meets West in real life. You'll feel the stomach-dropping moment of clearing out a train car just by sitting down, experience the profound shift that...
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Beyond Right and Wrong: What Japan, America, and Thailand Can Teach Us About How We See The World
Cultural Perspective
I'm with Professor Yusako Saito talking a Japanese academic about the fascinating, sometimes bizzar cultural contrasts between Japan, Thailand, and the United States. Saito has lived and taught across the globe, the UK, Mexico, Thailand and Japan. Saito shares his unique insights into Japanese society - from workplace dynamics and student life to social taboos and cultural values. Our conversation spans the dramatically different perceptions of safety, Japan's evolving immigration landscape, and intriguing concepts like "karoshi" (death from overwork) and "hikikomori" (extreme social...
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Culture Shock Both Ways: From Mexico's Yucatan to America's East Coast and Back Again
Cultural Perspective
Today I'm in Merida, Mexico - one of North America's safest cities - celebrating its 483rd anniversary at the renowned Hacienda Teya Santa Lucia. I'm with Javier Pech, the restaurant's Capitan, a native of the Yucatan who spent 26 years navigating Boston's ruthless restaurant scene, Javier returned to his Yucatecan roots, bringing back something more valuable than success: perspective and Javier gives us a good look at some of the deep differences between Mexican and American cultures and what we can all learn from each of them. We uncover the comfortable lies we tell ourselves about who...
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Unlearning America: What Ten Days in Bangkok Reveals About Our Cultural Assumptions
Cultural Perspective
I'm with my friend Dave Price exploring how cultural programming shapes our reality, capturing both his first impressions of Bangkok and his transformed perspective ten days later. What makes this conversation fascinating is how experiencing multiple cultures in quick succession - Colombia just months before Thailand - reveals the invisible forces shaping our behavior and assumptions. Through Dave's journey from apprehension to appreciation, we witness Thailand's unique social paradox: a society that appears reserved yet demonstrates profound thoughtfulness, completely different from...
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What America Has Lost - Thai Food Culture And A More Connected Life
Cultural Perspective
I'm with culinary expert Maurice Levitt exploring how Thai culture weaves food into the fabric of community life. While Western cultures often treat eating as a distrracting necessity, in Thailand, every meal tells a story of relationships and family bonds. Here local markets are the heartbeat of the community, vendor relationships span generations, "Have you eaten yet?" is more than just a greeting, and street food vendors are part of the extended family. From morning markets to late-night street stalls, food preparation strengthens bonds between generations and creates community. This...
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The Chameleon and the Superpower: Two Nations, Two Visions - Culture, Politics, and Racism
Cultural Perspective
A Thai cultural perspective on America. My good friend and fraternity brother, Moo, now a highly successful businessman in Bangkok cuts through the BS about the true nature of Thai people, why America is so powerful, the disaster that Trump is, and the racism he faced in America and how he became a catalyst for change. Moo's outsider analysis and perspective of the U.S. is straightforward and eyeopening.
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The Real Scoop on Burma And a Lesson in Cultural Adaptation From Asia's New Youth
Cultural Perspective
My cohost Dave and I are with a rising star in Asia's new youth, Noe Wei, a 3rd year Business student at Bangkok University. She gives us the inside story on Myanmar (Burma) her home country and an insightful discourse on cultural adaptation, white privilege, America's global influence, how to keep your culture intact while adapting to another, and how cross-cultural understanding can lead to meaningful change.
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Trust Me, Eat This! Bangkok's Leading Food Guide, Chanin Zae
Cultural Perspective
Food is culture and culture is food. Change your cultural perspective and you change your eating experience. Join me as Chanin Zae, Bangkok's food expert, takes us on a ride through Thai food culture and history. Padthai, an American favorite, was invented to get people working in the fields as quickly as possible, in Isan taking a slice of raw meat off the cow is normal, and walking about a restaurant looking what others are eating is ok in Thailand. It's time to change your food perspective.
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Unlocking the Mind: Mining the Psyche with Malcolm Hornby - Ideas
Cultural Perspective
Are you ready for some serious introspection? If you want to improve yourself and gain a genuine insight into why people behave and react the way they do, then this podcast is for you. Through an examination of the 8 archetypes of the human psyche, Malcolm Hornby helps us identify who we are and who others are. With this knowledge, we can all work together for better relationships and a better world. This is part 1 of a two-part series dealing with the masculine concept of ideas. Part 2 continues with the feminine concept of feelings in an upcoming episode.
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Where East Meets West: Real Talk About Life in China & America
Cultural Perspective
Almost everything that you think you know about China is probably wrong. You're about to hear how the average Chinese citizen sees the police as friendly and helpful, surveillance adds a level of protection and thus freedom, homelessness doesn't exist, if you have a fender bender your insurance agent will be at the scene within minutes, the government isn't authoritarian - people want to follow the rules, there's more democracy in China than you realize, and the Chinese might actually have more freedom than Americans.
info_outlineFrance vs. USA! Join Jean-Guillaume Longaret, a French lecturer in America who serves up a fresh, often humorous perspective on American life that will make you see your daily routines in a whole new light.
From the religious fervor of capitalism to the quirky rituals of graduation, from the puzzling American obsession with choice to the surprising lack of flavor in food, this podcast peels back the layers of what it truly means to be "American."
Discover why your coffee might not actually be coffee, why your neighbors never say hello, and why bigger isn't always better. Whether you're a proud American, a curious Francophile, or a citizen of the world, this witty and insightful discussion will challenge your assumptions and leave you hungry for more cultural exploration.
Tune in for a delightful blend of sharp observations, cultural insights, and a dash of French sarcasm that will make you laugh, think, and perhaps reconsider your next trip to Starbucks!