호주 여자| The One with Tanya - Third Culture Aussie in China: Episode 36 (2018)

Meet Tanya Crossman – she grew up in Sydney and Canberra, Australia, and lived in Connecticut, USA for two years of high school. She moved to China independently at age 21, where a study year turned into 11 years abroad. While in China, Tanya began mentoring Third Culture Kids (TCKs) - young people who, while not Chinese citizens, were growing up there due to parents' choices of work or study. After ten years spent supporting TCKs, Tanya wrote a book to explain their experiences and perspective to others. She currently lives in Beijing with her husband.

In this episode, we talked about homesickness, the constant search for home, acculturation, and how to build emotional support in a new country. In addition, we explored emotional resilience, why we should visit Australia, and what I would want people to know about Nigeria.

PS: Find more details about Tanya and her book here: Misunderstood: The Impact of Growing Up Overseas in the 21st Century

Fun facts about Tanya:

• Like me, she finds language fascinating and unlike me, has studied more than 11 languages.
• She studied Mandarin for many years before relocating to China.
• She is a data nerd.
• Her job entails serving as a liaison between TCKs and their parents. Tanya comeswith some expert authority on TCK life including statistics and stories from her original research.

Reflection:

We should never take people at just face value. Looking at me, you wouldn’t be able to tell that I speak Korean, or that Tanya speaks Mandarin. Our experiences are etched deeply in our stories and you would not know until they are shared.

Best, 모 /Mo!/

OCTOBER 25, 2018

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