在中国和欧洲生活十年，这位美国人学到了什么
Max Chernov 2024年9月26日
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIjjp1uPVSg
美国有移民，我们不是很好的人，美国人
真的很受庇护，有时他们会对你大喊大叫，你知道，说英语，融入社会，认识一下 Alden，一位在美国生活了 8 年的美国女演员，现在在法国生活了两年，她告诉我美国文化与中国和欧洲文化有何不同，美国人对在中国生活感到震惊，作为美国人，在巴黎生活的最大优势是什么，我是 Max chernov，是外籍人士生活的内幕人士，所以 B 中国和美国之间的差异是什么，你认为中国和美国最大的不同是生活方式或文化，我认为最大的不同之一，但它正在改变，中国人和他们的家人非常亲密，所以家庭很大，所以他们会住在同一所房子里，祖父母父母孩子，他们在附近工作，孩子们在附近上学，而美国人，至少是我这一代，当你上大学时，你会远离家乡，然后你建立自己的事业，你搬到其他地方，我们不断地搬家，所以当我们有了孩子，我们没有祖父母在附近照顾我们照顾孩子，所以没有那种忠诚，我们爱我们的家人，但我觉得这与中国人不一样，中国人首先是名声，然后是公司，然后是邻居。而美国人已经放弃了原生家庭，去公司，然后就像我们的邻居和朋友一样，这使得抚养孩子变得困难，这就是为什么在美国很难找到托儿服务，我们没有父母或亲戚来照顾，父母双方都在工作，在美国，如果父母双方都不工作，几乎不可能负担得起房子和生活方式，这意味着孩子与家人在一起的时间越来越少，你知道他们在欧洲的家人，在这里家政服务也不常见，是的，我在这里没有任何家政服务，是的，我很想念它，所以你会说中国更像是中国与欧洲在工作和商业方面的喧嚣文化，嗯，是的，我想说中国更像走自己的路，走自己的路，一边走一边创造它，就像过去的狂野西部，无论需要什么，总有人会弄清楚，谁先来，谁就先来。而欧洲更像是我们一直这样做，我们会一直这样做，这是传统，你知道，这就是让它变得超级棒的原因，因为它已经做了几百年，也许美国介于两者之间，我不知道我喜欢忙碌，但我喜欢如何让这个工作，因为这对我来说意味着如果你足够快，足够聪明，或者认识足够多的人，你仍然可以完成它，而有时在这里感觉有守门人，我的家人不是葡萄酒行业，对我来说，现在进入葡萄酒行业几乎是不可能的，特别是在演艺界，你知道，如果你没有上过学，或者你不认识某些导演，某个作品，或者什么，有一个门，你会更难进入，是的，你知道吗，就像我这次在欧洲注意到的那样，作为一个永远的外国人，新加坡，所以我就像一个白种人，长得像新加坡人，在亚洲，是的，在亚洲，不仅是新加坡，而且在泰国，我会自动被认为是我是外国人，所以他们永远不会问我是不是外国人，所以我肯定不是泰国人，我肯定有泰国人，比如长得像白人的泰国人，但这很少见，所以他们开始用英语跟我说话，我认为我是外国人是好事也是坏事，所以这就像呃，这已经是预设好的，我们的关系，比如去星巴克，关系是预设好的，这里就不同了，因为我看起来和欧洲人一样，就像法国人一样，所以他们开始用法语跟我说话，这就是我处于不同的位置，你看，是的，我完全是这样的，我们实际上已经谈过很多次了，这就是为什么我认为我们在中国的转变与这次转变非常不同，就像你说的，当我们去中国时，我们显然不是中国人，我喜欢把它比作当你遛狗的时候，你的狗看到了另一只狗，就像哦，天哪，知道他们想互相交谈，比如比较笔记之类的，所以每当我在中国走来走去，我都会看到另一个人看起来像我，我会说，哦，嘿，你找到培根了吗，我该怎么做，告诉我哪里有最好的干洗店，因为我们可以聊天，嗯，在这里，因为我看起来应该明白我在做什么，或者应该说法语，它可能不那么受欢迎，它可能像为什么，为什么你不能弄清楚，你知道我在这里感觉更笨，这很糟糕，但他们比以前友好多了，所以情况并没有那么糟糕，但我认为在中国有一个即时社区，因为它就像很明显你需要帮助，我走到哪里，我能做些什么来帮助你，而在这里就像自己弄清楚，呃，也许这就是为什么我的孩子们的日子更难过，你认为你作为美国人改变了吗，还是你对美国的看法改变了？在国外待了 10 年之后，今年在国外，我对美国的看法肯定发生了变化，嗯，我一直认为自己对事情很开放，但我不明白，嗯，人们从另一个国家来到美国会经历的困难，你知道，努力学习语言，努力找工作，努力让他们的孩子融入文化，结交朋友，做不同的事情，吃不同的食物，有时你只想要过上正常的日子，而作为一个母亲，这很难做到，所以我会被人注视，因为美国有移民，我们不是很好的人，美国人真的很受保护，有时他们会对你大喊大叫，你知道，说英语，同化，我无法想象工作有多难，努力让你的孩子舒服，让你的家庭活下去，所以我心里肯定对那些试图做出与我相反举动的人有一种柔软的感觉，而且整个事实听起来很愚蠢，但当我刚搬到中国的时候，我觉得有些东西很简陋，甚至落后，我觉得这么说很糟糕，但这就是我的想法，美国人上厕所时在地板上挖个洞，看起来像什么，你知道这太落后了，太老派了，现在我看着它，我觉得我们坐在什么东西上，是的，这很方便，我同意，就像你的大脑如此坚持一件事是正确的，另一件事是错误的，然后你开始想，不，等等，实际上我们的
更恶心，你知道这是因为进屋要脱鞋吗，就像法国以不捡狗屎而闻名，对吧，你会带着它走进你的家，但实际上在中国，你脱掉鞋子，就是这样的事情，我试着想想为什么这些东西会演变成这些文化，比如这座建筑，它比我的国家还要古老，你知道，是的，我知道这是美国人，我们不知道这里发生的历史，你可以走过在市中心你可以看到弹孔 美国人不明白在家门口打仗意味着什么
知道吗 所以这些就是我必须理解的事情 就像 哦，这有更深层次的含义，如果他们在这里做的事情似乎与我们在美国做的事情不同，那可能是有原因的 是的，他们花了很长时间来开发它 他们这样做可能是有原因的 所以请保持开放的心态 现在让我说 美国人在开发新技术和尝试新事物方面非常出色，你知道 想出各种创造性和奇妙的想法 所以我认为可以说美国人更有能力并且更愿意尝试新事物 而也许在这里它变得更加根深蒂固 而且我们一直都是这样做的 我们不会以不同的方式去做 但两者都有好处 是的 你去过中国 哪种生活方式与你产生共鸣？
8 年了，是的，你最初来自美国，对吧，你的生活方式和生活方式更接近你，更适合你，这很有趣，因为我在德克萨斯州、俄克拉荷马州、加利福尼亚州和科罗拉多州长大，非常美国中部，到高中时，我已经感到不舒服，觉得我和那里的任何人都合不来，所以我去了加利福尼亚的寄宿学校，寻找一些东西，显然我开始学习日语，一有机会我就已经开始在香港和中国工作了，所以我总觉得那个地方有一些东西对我来说很有意义，但就像住在法国，我感觉很不适应，我知道有很多好吃的东西，但我不知道怎么煮，我不知道怎么找东西，我还没有学会语言，我在这里呆了两年，我真的只能说请和谢谢，你知道的，我学中文很快，所以我想知道我不知道过去的生活或什么的，是的，但我确实很想念美国食物，我很想念美国人的开放，就像我们一样美国人显然有非常愤怒和暴力的人，但我们也有非常开放、善良和热情的人，是的，法国人告诉我，哦，我知道你是美国人，因为你走在街上时脸上带着微笑，这是美国人的特质，他们说，是的，你们总是那么向前看，所以我不知道，我不确定哪一个对我来说最好，不，脸上的微笑绝对不是法国人特质，我认为他们为此感到自豪，是的，我也这么认为，你需要有点脾气暴躁，就像真正的法国人一样，实际上我们已经讨论过很多关于美国人的虚伪，微笑是一种防御机制，就像我们只是不要生我的气，你知道我只是你
在中国和欧洲生活十年，这位美国人学到了什么
Max Chernov 2024年9月26日
Meet Alden, an American actress who lived in China for 8 years and has now been in France for 2. She shares how American culture differs from Chinese and European ones, what shocks Americans about living in China, and the biggest advantages of being in Paris as an American. Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIjjp1uPVSg
America has immigrants that come in and we're not the nicest people Americans
are really sheltered and sometimes they'll yell at you you know speak English assimilate meet Alden an American actress who lived in China for8 years and has now been in France for two she told me how American culture differs from Chinese and European ones what shocks Americans about living in China and the biggest advantages of being in
Paris as an American I'm Max chernov your Insider to expat life so B what's Differences between China and the US the biggest difference you think in Chinese like lifestyle or culture and American one of the biggest differences I felt but it is changing is the Chinese were very close to their families so big families and so they would have you know they'd all live in the same house you know grandparents parents kids and they worked nearby and the kids went to school nearby whereas Americans at least my generation when you go to college you go far away from home and then you kind of build up your career and you move someplace else we're constantly moving so that when we have kids we don't have the grandparents nearby to take care of the kids so there's not that loyalty we love our families but it's not the same as I feel Chinese do where fames first M then company and then your neighbors you know whereas Americans we've kind of dropped our original family we've gone to company and then it's like our neighbors and our friends it makes bringing up kids difficult and that's why you know Child Care is really hard to find in America we don't have the parents or relatives to take care and both parents are working it's nearly impossible to afford a house and a lifestyle in America without both parents working and that means kids are having less and less time with you know their family in Europe is also domestic help is not common here yeah that's true I don't have any house help here yeah I miss it so you would say China is more like a China vs. Europe hustle culture in terms of work and business um yeah I would say China is more make your own way make your own path create it as you go the old Wild West you know whatever is needed someone's going to figure it out whoever's first is going to you know um whereas Europe is more like this is how we've done it we'll always do it this way this is the tradition you know and that's what makes it super cuz it's been done for hundreds of years maybe America's somewhere in between that I don't know I like the hustle though I like the how can I make this work because that means to me that if you're quick enough smart enough or know
enough people you you can still get it done whereas sometimes here it feels like there are Gatekeepers my family is not in wine for me to get into wine now is nearly impossible and especially in the acting Community you know if you didn't go to school for it or if you don't know the certain directors a certain production or whatever there's a gate it's going to be harder for you to get in yeah yeah you know what also like I noticed on this time in in Europe in Being a forever foreigner Singapore so I'm a like a white Caucasian looking dude right in Asia Singaporean yeah in Asia like not only Singapore but in let's say go to Thailand I'll be automatically perceived as a foreigner so they will never even like question that I'm I'm a foreigner so I'm I'm not Thai for sure I'm sure there are Thai like white looking Thai but it's like so rare So automatically they start speaking to me in English I perceived as a foreign is a good and a bad thing so it's like uh it's already like preset our relationships let's say go to Starbucks relationships are preset
right here is different cuz I kind I look the same as as Europeans as is French so they start speaking to me in French and that's I'm in different position say you see yeah I totally do we we've talked about this quite a lot actually that's why I think our transition in China um was so different than this transition like you said when we went to China we're obviously not Chinese and I like to liken it to when you're walking your dog and your dog sees another dog it's like oh my gosh know they want to talk to each other like compare notes and whatever else so anytime I was walking around in China and I saw another person who looked like me I'd be like oh hey have you found
bacon like how do I do this tell me where the you know the best dry cleaner is because we could talk and um here because I look like I should understand what I'm doing or should speak French it can be a little less welcoming it can be like why don't why can't you figure this out you know I feel Dumber here which terrible but again they've been a lot friendlier than it used to be and so it hasn't been so bad but I think there was an instant community in China because it was like like obviously you need help
everywhere I went like what can I do to help you whereas here was like figure it out yourself and uh maybe that's why my kids had a harder time do you think you changed as an American or your perspective to America changed through The view on the US after 10 years abroad this year abroad both for sure um I always considered myself pretty open to
things but I didn't understand um the difficulty people coming to America from
a different country would be going through you know trying to learn the language trying to get a job trying to have their kids get along in the culture
meet friends do things that are different eat different foods sometimes you just want a day that's like normal and that's hard to provide as a mom you know so I'm going to get te eyed because America has immigrants that come in and we're not the nicest people Americans are really sheltered and sometimes they'll yell at you you know speak English assimilate I can't imagine how hard it must be to work a job job trying to get your kids comfortable and keep your family going so I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for people trying to make the opposite move that I did and then also just the whole fact of like this is going to sound so stupid but when I first moved to China there were some things that I felt were rudimentary or less than or even backwards I think that's a terrible thing to say but that's was how I thought a hole in the floor to go to the restroom in for Americans looks like what is this you know this is so backwards this is so old school and now I look at it I'm like we sit on something yeah it's convenient I agree it's like your your brain is so set on one thing as being the right thing and one thing being the wrong thing and then you start thinking no wait actually ours
is grosser you know are this taking off your shoes for coming into the house yeah like France is famous for not picking up dog poop right yeah and you're going to walk into your house with it but actually it's in China where
you take off your shoes it's those kind of things where I'm like just try to think why these things have evolved these cultures like this building right there is older than my country you know yeah I know it's Americans we have no idea of the history that's happening here you can walk past down downtown you can see bullet holes Americans don't understand what it means to have a war on your front doorstep you
know so those are the kind kind of things that I just had to wrap my head around being like oo there's so much more depth and if they're doing something here that seems different to what we're doing in America there's probably a reason yeah they had a long
time to develop this there's probably a reason why they do it that way so keep your minds open now let me say Americans are amazing at developing new technology and trying new things and you know coming up with all sorts of creative and fantastic ideas so I think there is a a good part to say that Americans are more capable and willing to try something new whereas maybe here it gets a little more ingrained and that we've we've always done it this way we're not going to do it a different way but there's good things in both yeah you've been in China What life approach resonates with you?
for 8 years yes and you originally from the US right what way of life and like
the approach to life is more close like to you more suitable to you it's funny cuz I grew up in Texas and Oklahoma and California and Colorado and so very Middle America by the time I was in high school I already felt uncomfortable didn't feel like I got along with anyone there so I went to boarding school in California searching for something obviously I started studying Japanese and the soonest opportunity I could go I was already working with Hong Kong and China so I always felt like there was something of
that part of the world that made sense to me but like living here in France I feel very um a fish out of water I know there's so much great food but I don't know how to cook it I don't know how to find things I have not yet learned the language I've been here two years I can really only say please and thank you and you know un bagett see play but I learn Chinese really fast so I wonder I don't know past lives or something yeah but I
do miss American food I miss the openness that Americans have like we
have all kinds of people in America obviously we have very angry and violent people but we also have really open and kind and welcoming people yeah and people here in France tell me oh I knew you were an American because you walked down the street with a smile on your face that's an American thing they say yeah you guys are always so like forward so I don't know I'm not sure which one's best for me no this smile on the face is
definitely not a French thing and I think they're proud of it yeah I think so too you need to be a little bit grumpy like to be Pro like real FR and actually we've had a lot of discussions American fakeness about this is the smile a defense mechanism is it like we're just don't get mad at me you know I'm just you know maybe it's a a frightened thing that we do but when I work when I was in China anytime there was an accident or
something an emergency or something like that I definitely noticed that uh my
colleagues my friends the Americans sometimes the Brits would run towards the emergency trying to help out whereas other people were running away from it and I thought that's very strange we're very proactive I guess so I'm proud of
my culture in some ways but yeah some people say oh Americans like smile is
like a fake smile so they don't mean it when they say it's this the finny article I read about like how decision made in Silicon Valley in the startup industry so it's even was the the dictionary for like what if the investor
tell you oh it's great it's amazing like great job it doesn't mean that it's
great job it means you not failed yet right so it means yeah like you're doing
okay and maybe they will consider your project yeah and it's like there are a lot of like cultural I think especially
if you compare France to to the US it's like kind of different uh for sure I've
noticed that and also we have a saying kind of an understanding in America
where New York and LA are very different yeah a person in New York if you ask
them to go do something they'll say no don't feel like it person say oh that sounds awesome yeah and then they won't
show up yeah it's just two different ways of the same answer and it's like how do you like to receive that news and
I actually tend to be a person like I would rather you say yeah I'll be there and then not show up yeah but a lot of
my friends are like well then you just lied to me and I'm like well but to me it was like a softening like okay so I
think in a way I am very American and that I just expect you not to show up that's okay with me but I can understand
how that very um disconcerting it doesn't make sense my husband is an American who works in France and he's
had some issues in the work culture because if he's going to give a review to someone they sit down and he will
tell you you know at least two good things that you're doing you're showing up on time every day at work we really appreciate that you know you're very
communicative we understanding where where you're coming from so the French person is now like oh my God I'm getting
a promotion this is great you know and then he's like but we also need you know your time reports to be better and you
need to work on this or whatever and so it's like they didn't even hear those last two because they were so happy with
hearing something good so that miscommunication can happen too and my kids go to the American School here in
French school vs. American school
Paris at first I was like oh I'd rather them you know get in the culture go to the Parisian school first they didn't
speak French so that wasn't going to happen but secondly they said you know the teachers here are really harsh and I
said what does that mean and say they post the grades outside the door of every kid so you
know what your friend made on the test they will actually tell you you're being stupid you should have known this answer
my kids would not do well with that kind of feedback they just have never had that in their lives yeah were more
gentle in that way yeah so yeah we've definitely noticed some very different
cultural acceptances especially in business but also in like China and Japan I feel like it's very very
different too where the Chinese never would raise their hand for a problem you know if somebody said this is what we
want to do this is what our concept is how do we do it they almost always say yes they're going to find a way to do it
if they can't do it they're going to find a niece or a nephew who can they're going to find the parts whatever but nobody ever says hey um I think there
might be a problem here because that's like really frowned upon and the American is always like hand up always
going to talk through the meetings always has an idea or something to change or whatever else so I don't know which one's better there is a like some
Communication problems
studies about how the like the normal talk going in between like let's say two
Americans MH or like American and Canadian let's say they help people talk
so one person is talking like from here from here and then the person never stops so the second person start talking
at the end of the first person is like finishing so it's always overlapping
right but if you say Korean or Japanese you would never interrupt here you will
wait but then if you let say is like one Japanese in the room or like two Americans in the room Japanese will
never have a chance to speak exactly that's exactly right yeah that's so funny it's exactly right and I actually
heard that like if you are you know speaking in a group of people and then you ask the crowd does anybody have a
question sometimes cultures won't even they don't want to raise their hand they don't want to make you look bad so they'll wait for you to call on them
which is never going to Happ Americans never going to call on somebody who doesn't have her hand up you know so
strange we I'm glad though that these things are being talked about because it's so important if somebody goes quiet
in a conversation with me I get uncomfortable yeah I'm like oh what's wrong did I did you not understand me
are you not happy what's but really I need to shut up let them process and let
them say something there actually like another study that they read is the tolerance for to
silence um so Americans have very short like to so if someone is not responding
for one second it start feeling very uncomfortable uh I think the the longest
one if I'm not mistaken it's I think it's Koreans so the the pause normal
pause is like six six seconds so between the answer and and the question the
answer yeah it's basically six and it's normal so because they need to process and it even would be like perceived rude
if they start talking right away because they never they never thought properly about
that's funny yeah I would definitely be uncomfortable if somebody went quiet for 6 seconds looking around me like did I
miss something but it's like this way of like Californian way it's like Asian way
basically you never say in the face of someone like oh I will I I don't want to go there right yeah you you never say it
right never say that you always agree being like that's really great I yeah I'll totally be there yeah and then that
go what was your first impressions when you you arrived like two years ago we arrived right after the pandemic and we
First impressions of France
had been we had had our vaccinations but we had never had Co we got it on the way here on the airplane luy so
lucky so but we found that the medical system here was so much easier easier
than in America in okay because in America I mean first off your insurance is so expensive and then trying to find
you know a doctor that'll take you in and then you know trying to get the vaccination and whatever else the shots
or whatever you need and here it's kind of like at that point they were testing for Co outside intense like you didn't
even have to make an appointment you just kind of walked in or whatever the pharmacies were giving the shots you don't have to go to your doctor first
and whatever else so we found that first of all like super easy and super nice and fast I remember thinking oh the
parisians are not known for being nice or friendly but everyone here has been incredibly friendly yeah and very quick
to speak English actually I wish they were more not willing so that I could
learn my French better but I remember coming when I was 16 and thinking oh
they're so grumpy they don't like any of us they're so snobby but that's not the feeling I have all anym mm yeah that's
what I heard they they changing then they they're willing to speak more English now M and they're kind of more
open to maybe it's the the Olympic Games uh something to do with it or maybe just a like Global Trend I don't know like I
said right when we got here two years ago they were already very welcoming and
you know maybe the older older generation might be a little more stickler about manners and etiquette and
that sort of thing and actually I'm quite happy of the things they don't you don't see parisians eating on the Metro
you know there's no people walking around with coffee and whatever they're civilized they sit down and have their
coffee because you need to enjoy the moment that's right what a French thing it's a slower enjoy what's happening right now
instead of rush back to the office and you know hurry hurry and whatever else so I think maybe it's a bit of both
we're appreciating their lifestyle more and
they are more accepting of our mistakes yeah and the younger generation my
generation and younger for sure or more maybe they're traveling more maybe that that's happening too I don't know and in
Going back to the US
the yes you're from as San Francisco that way no actually we are from from Texas you said but if you go back where
would you go so my kids grew up in Los Angeles um one was born in Long Beach
one was born in Torrance so they have spent two years in the United States in Los Angeles area um grandparents in
Oklahoma and New Mexico but then they've spent the rest of their lives 12 years
outside of America yeah so anytime they go back to America that means it's either Christmas and they're getting
presents or their friends are out of school so they think of America as presence and no school so now going back
this is going to be tough because they're going to have to go to school and study and you know there's no
grandparents around and so I'm I'm a little they seem to be all excited and happy about it oh McDonald's and
whatever whatever but I think it'll be a hard transition last time we went back
it was during the election the 2016 election which was Donald Trump and Hillary Clint
yeah and the News was on all the time and because we understand English it was constant about gun violence and you know
the anger that was happening I think there was a school shooting right when we arrived I was driving at the time
here I don't have a car but in America I have a car driving and I have the news on and I didn't realize that my two
Littles in the back were hearing all of this and I'm just listening to the news NPR whatever it was and one night
they're going to bed and my older started crying he said Mom I'm afraid someone's going to come in and shoot me
I was like okay we can't listen to the news anymore that's yeah that's not going to happen but wow I was just going
to say they're more International than they are American now when somebody says where are you from they kind of have a hesitation like I don't know how is it
Life abroad for teenagers
for your kids because they're teenagers was it easy for them to start their like new life in France um let's see I think
my kids have had a harder time adjusting to Paris than they did in China but I
think that's because they're teenagers and I think the fashion has been difficult because they're teenage boys
you know they're used to sweatpants and baseball hats and that's not Paris Paris
we dress up Paris our clothes fit you know they shouldn't be dirty or holes or whatever else and so that's been tough
and then sports in America is so important especially when you're in high school your teams you if you're playing
baseball you're probably playing four or five times a week MH here it's once a week maybe I think those things made it
difficult for them to find their tribe find their own friends but once they did they can use the Metro by themselves my
14-year-old was on the metro into town and back at 10 p.m. and I'm not worried
about him he knows how to get around he you know has his metro card they meet
and have five guys hamburgers which is American but still um and I think that
really fantastic actually that they're so independent here they don't have to drive which scares me to death about
moving back to America yeah I don't feel like the gun violence is here so I've
been feel very confident that they're safer here I don't know if the drug problem is bad here or not but we don't
see it so that part's good too in a lot of ways I just feel safer for them here
I'm a little concerned going back if we're going to fit in culturally now yeah so do you feel safe here in Paris
Safety in France
you you feel pretty safe yeah yeah I do the only thing I've been frustrated by
is the pickpockets but even that you know that's everywhere that's China That's La that's everywhere I definitely
feel safer here one because we're not driving so we're in a Metro that's or
the train we ride bikes but the schools are very safe locked down out in the
countryside and like I said my kids are teenagers but the other funny thing is drinking is not like um not a taboo here
right right which would make you think that kids would drink more mhm but an actuality because it's like no big deal
they're not excited to go out and try it or sneak it or anything so it really hasn't been an issue yet I mean granted
they're 15 of 14 but that part of it kind of makes me feel safe too pickpockets I've seen on the Metros but
I can I can figure out who they are now you know they wear these big bags in front of them their hands are in their
um jackets they're not in their sleeves yeah and once you know what to look for
you're fine plus it's light out till 10 p.m. oh yeah not in the winter but in
Time in France
the summer it's really bright out all the time so uh for us it's confusing cuz you kind of lose track of time right
like you go out with friends and then oh it's 10 p.m. already I got to go home I got to go to bed Singapore is
always the same it's like 7:30 a.m. it's uh cuz you're close to the sunset and
sunrise same like 7 7:30 a.m. 7:30 p.m. it's it's 40 km from the equator right
yeah Los Angeles is that I mean it's always nice there you know same same
here when we first moved here we were in a rental apartment and we had just eaten
dinner we were watching TV or something and um the neighbor from downstairs came
up and was knocking on the door and was all angry and I was like couldn't s first this French and I was like okay
okay he's like you're too loud you're too loud and I looked I'm like it's 10:30 but it was still light out so yeah
we had to learn that the hard way yeah walking the streets of Paris is like I visually enjoyed so much I know it's oh
Buildings in France
my God it's so beautiful that's why people are in style here because you look you're trying to match the
buildings yeah yeah just the carvings above the window sills or just you know the the
signs from the Metro or done in a font that's gorgeous or the Iron Works around
the sidewalks it's just every detail is really fantastic and here's the funny
thing living here for 2 years I start getting a little bored of it now that's
going to come off awful but the buildings start looking a little bit alike M so gorgeous that they're all
like you take it for granted and then you go to like Brussels
or Prague or Budapest and it's historical too it's fantastically historical as well but just this a
little bit of difference in the architecture and you're like it's amazing you know like the bridges are
different the the railways are different and you just think that tiny little difference really does the just the
graffiti in Brussels alone I'm like this would never happen in Paris but I love that it does so yeah yeah and uh when
you realize how old is the city and the buildings we actually stayed in in Fountain Blue it's um close to Paris
that's like a little town for almost half a year and we lived in the like a
normal French building being like 100 year old and for France is like brand
new basically it's a new building and then think about China our apartment
when we got into it was 8 years old and the real estate agent said this is an older apartment eight and here this one
I think is 200 it's crazy or what uh we walked past
the um oldest restaurant the other day in paci I just thought to myself how did they stay open this whole entire time
it's insane but have you noticed there's no old cars yeah barely ever see an old
car much more new cars uh like this on this trip like last time it was more old
old ones yeah in America we you know we have this fascination with old cars and you know they have conventions and
whatever to show off their old Lincoln Continentals or whatever and here I never see him yeah and a lot of EVS now
yes yeah even buses it's incredible in Singapore we have like still diesel
buses like loud and noisy and yeah the recycling here is really good I think
they're doing a better job as far as protecting their environment but also they live densely you know and in
America we live in houses spread far apart we each have to drive drive drive everywhere we don't have a good Metro
System per City we don't have even railway lines that can get you from LA to New York it's cumbersome and to get
that kind of funding to upgrade all that for America is tough to get the votes through so oh yeah yeah what kind of
Being an actress in China and France
roles do you play kind of characters here in France I have done a lot of
theater this time so Oscar wild and um Neil Simon so in English which is great
so because of my gray hair I know normally play the older character right
now I'm I'm playing Lady brachnell and The Importance of Being Earnest which is a really funny play and so I'm an older
lady which I like but in China I was always portrayed as the evil American
you know yeah because the Americans were always brought in to to be overcome
right even if it was love interest then the other was going to take over that right so as my age group I was either
the CEO that was cheating or needed to be overthrown or what else the scientist
or the doctor that was like creating something evil or and I love being the villain but
sometimes I'm like just because I'm an American doesn't mean I'm a terrible person but my kids would always get hired for like dairy products or
environmentally friendly something or American Products you know so it was like kind of the crossover for that or
or technology that sort of thing um I don't want to be the villain anymore the reputation of France and
The best place for creative people
Paris is like a paradise for all the creative professions for sure is it the
case there are so many theaters here I don't think I could ever see them I mean hundreds of theaters hundreds of shows
that are going on constantly between Cabaret and music and live theater and I
mean circus and shinan and whatever there's so much going on on any given
night it's amazing and then let's see films are being shot here I
Emily and Paris TV's being shot here we have to me remember because brexit the
English speakers the English can't really come over here to work and vice versa so that has caused some issues so
there's a lot of um work to be done in London and England but I don't my Visa
won't allow me so I can't go there but also they can't come here so a lot of times I get hired for voiceover for a
lot of the English and then I mean art how many museums I go to a museum once a
week that's been my goal I go on a tour once a week so that means I'm hitting either a monument or a m Museum every
week that means I've seen 60 70 museums I still haven't seen them all I couldn't
there's no way possible it's just spectacular they really support and create and promote the Arts here so if
you're an artist or an actor you will get a salary if if you're at least in
school or you know doing I think it's one job a month or something like that so they really are allowing people to
not go hungry for their art and I think that's why it's the capital to me at
least of culture and music and theater and everything yeah yeah yeah there is
enough demand here yeah and the government itself says it's important and we should fund it and they do and
that's incredible can you make more money in China in this industry or in Paris I definitely worked more in China
yeah but I had more time to create a network and like I said build those reputations that were so important and
I've had to um set up my own business Auto entrepreneur so that I can pay my
taxes and so that been a bit of bureaucracy the European bureaucracy that can always be difficult and just as
I'm figuring it all out yeah so hopefully it'll get better in China it's like in in terms of
let's say how set set up the company is easier more straightforward or you don't need to have company in China you're
supposed to have a company supposed to have yeah you're supposed to pay your taxes yeah yes it's difficult to do um
because really there aren't many visas for entertainment uh so instead you're doing consulting or you're doing you
know um admin or that sort of thing marketing so yeah that makes it I think
that's the reason why the agents don't work with you specifically because it's probably not in their is it called hook what is it
called when they you know whatever they are paying their taxes for whatever that track of businesses it may not align
with yours so that's you get a lot of Hong bows red packets that's why I'm a little
bit afraid or a little bit nervous about going back to China at this point I don't know how foreigners are being
received now I think it's changed a lot after Co um and I think the relations
between America and China kind of soured when Trump was in I have heard there's been a lot of changes but I hope that
our countries get along again I you know the people always get along I think that's the one most important thing I've
learned living in other countries is just because the president is a certain way doesn't mean all the people are that
way and that's for every country I've been to not all the people of a country think the same way of course they don't
so it'll get back to it at some point I think Chinese and Americans are actually very similar in a lot of ways is it yeah
Similarities between Chinese and Americans
I do oh yeah what's the similarities you think they want the best for their families they're willing to work really
hard to make the step up for their family and the next step up and if there's a will there's a way I mean
Americans and Chinese will work their butts off and they will find a way to make it work there's they're not going to say no whereas I feel like in Europe
it's better to say no you know that's not in my uh title or
my job description and I don't want to get in trouble for it so I'm just going to say no so that's a way I think that
we can figure each other out yeah do you have any like important principle in
Life principles
life let's say in your that help you through your career something like really important my kids right now are
trying to decide what they want to do with their lives anytime somebody says you have to make money you have to make money I think oh don't give away your happiness for someone else to make money I don't get that so also I don't want to make a bunch of junk that just clutters up stuff I want to make
people happy I want to find a way that human beings our Spirits our hearts our
minds are enjoying the brief amount of time we have on this planet I want them
to interact with each other I hate that we're doing this all the time I want this to come back so to me acting and
telling sto stories and entertaining is bridging that I don't make a lot of money doing it but I love it and my job
the job part because we all have a job part that's not the fun part right my job part is writing my resume sending
out auditions you know self-taping learning scripts that sort of thing but
the brief amount of time that I get to do the entertaining of someone or telling a story that somebody's like oh
my God that's my life that's important so I hope my kids continue on in
something where they have to create or give spiritually and I'm not a religious
person I just mean this as in like lift somebody else up especially when you're feeling down cuz that's the best way to
get yourself back you know so I know we all we need lawyers we need Bankers I
get it I'm not saying that nobody should do that I'm just saying what you graduate college at what 22 23 and then you retire at 65 it's 40 Years of your life you better enjoy it you better do something that you're making the world a better place because it's not that much time yeah yeah what's the meaning of The meaning of life life for you oh God I'm still trying to figure that out just cuz I have gray hair doesn't mean that I know what the meaning of life is I'm starting to think you know I'm starting to think the saying on the airplane is the most important when you hit turbulence make sure your own mask is on first MH so that you can take care of others because if you're not taking care of yourself none of us is going to survive as a mom as a a woman I find myself always trying to take care of everybody else did you eat did you you know get your paper done did I need to drive you here did the dog get the walk I forget sometimes to take care of my own health my own happiness and then I get run down and I get resentful and angry and I can't get out of bed or depressed or whatever and now I can't take care of any of these people so more and more I'm starting to think that the key to life is to put your mask on first
yeah [Music]
