3.4K
Downloads
66
Episodes
This podcast tells the story of a year of an English teacher in China, working in an international school in Changshu, Jiangsu. It‘s also full of history and culture. We‘ll go back to the imperial days, the revolutionary days, the days of triumph and the days of humiliation. Mostly though, it‘s modern China that I‘ll focus on, as it is the most relevant to understanding China now. China is super fascinating, and it‘s also probably the most important country in the world to understand right now, so this is my contribution to that. It‘s not a chronological history; instead, it kind of matches up to the things that were occuring in my roller-coaster of a year living in Changshu. I‘ve changed the names of the people I that I met when I was in China, except Jess of course. You‘ll meet Jess later. She‘s awesome. Blog: SMKYpodcast.blogspot.com
Episodes
Sunday Mar 19, 2023
Sunday Mar 19, 2023
Having returned from the winter break, I head off into rural Jiangsu to spend the Lantern Festival in Lily's Town.
Email: SMKYpodcast@gmx.com
Twitter: @AdamSMKY
Sunday Apr 02, 2023
Sunday Apr 02, 2023
After visiting the harsh cold countryside for the Lantern Festival, I get back to the school only to be thrown into more office politics. But compared to the Chinese workers, laowai work is pretty tame. Let's explore that a little.
Email: SMKYpodcast@gmx.com
Twitter: @SMKYpodcast
Wednesday Apr 19, 2023
Wednesday Apr 19, 2023
A number of curious phrases have popped up lately in China, as a new internet-native generation join the workforce and find themselves getting knocked about by office politics and social pressures.
In this episode, a Shanghai-based worker joins me to explain these terms.
Sang culture - 丧文化
Lying flat - 躺平
Let it rot - 摆烂
Neijuan - 奶卷
Touching fish - 摸鱼
Sunday Apr 30, 2023
Sunday Apr 30, 2023
As we head back to Suzhou, we look at the story of the ancient city and make sense of all those Wus associated with the area.
We then dive into the local tourist hotspot at Shantang Street, it's poetry and nostalgia, for dinner.
Email: SMKYpodcast@gmx.com
Twitter: @SMKYpodcast
Sunday May 14, 2023
Sunday May 14, 2023
China might be a big scary communist country to people in the West, but for Neo-Maoists the country has lost its way, and sometimes it seems that communism in China is more of a nostalgic indulgence. Apart from Mao, Lei Feng is the mascot of commie merchandise.
We also take a trip into the Humble Administrator's Garden, and the Suzhou Museum, before a dramatic race for the bus.
FYI: Songs that feature in this episode – 1, Without the Communist Party, there is No New China – 2, Learn from Lei Feng's Good Example
Sunday May 28, 2023
Sunday May 28, 2023
If only the two big communist powers had gotten on, perhaps they could have stuck it to the Americans during the Cold War, but it wasn't to be. Personalities and ideologies got in the way. In this first part of an SMKY doublepod, we look at the period leading up to the split in the early 60s.
Email: SMKYpodcast@gmx.com
Twitter: @SMKYpodcast
Sunday Jun 11, 2023
Sunday Jun 11, 2023
Part 2 of 3 in a Sino-Soviet Split miniseries, and it's time for the hopes for peaceful co-existence between the Americans and the Soviets to be roundly dashed, much to the satisfaction of a certain Chairman over in Beijing.
Next time, how the Chinese capitalised on the situation for their own ends.
Music in this episode:
Dragon Castle by Makai Symphony
Cuba Baion by Kurt Drabek
Russians by Sting (guitar cover by Giuseppe Torrisi)
Email: SMKYpodcast@gmx.com
Twitter: @SMKYpodcast
Sunday Jun 25, 2023
Sunday Jun 25, 2023
In episode 1 of this three-parter, China was alarmed at Soviet attempts to live alongside the Americans; and in part 2 those attempts went into reverse as the Cold War reached its peak temperatures.
In the final part, we follow the secret mission of Henry Kissinger as he went to China to make contact after 25 years of silence, and how the new Sino-American relationship shook up the final decades of the Cold War.
Email: SMKYpodcast@gmx.com
Twitter: @SMKYpodcast
Monday Jul 10, 2023
Monday Jul 10, 2023
A change in the teacher line-up has been taking place following the surprising dismissal of teacher Tyler. The new clan heads out to a nightclub, where I get some advice about dealing with Dodi.
(dubious accent alert)
Email: SMKYPodcast@gmx.com
Twitter: @SMKYpodcast
Sunday Jul 23, 2023
Sunday Jul 23, 2023
It's Easter in Changshu, and an Easter Egg hunt at school goes hopelessly off the rails.
Also, the festival of Qingming, and the Chinese story of creation – with a giant rabbit called Pangu.
Email: SMKYPodcast@gmx.com
Twitter: @SMKYpodcast
Song: 'I am the Sea' - Epic Pirate Battle Music, supported by #TheROOMnoCopyRMusic