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Xena is an Italian content creator who grew up bilingual between Italian and French, with Senegalese roots and the sound of Wolof in her childhood home. In this episode of Connected By Language, she shares how a multicultural upbringing shaped her relationship with languages, why she once pushed away the language of her heritage to fit in, and how she now finds connection in places where words fail entirely, from dance trainings in China to dinner tables in South Korea.

The conversation follows her journeys across Asia, including the mistake so many Europeans make of assuming English will carry them everywhere, and the small cultural moments that no textbook can teach. Xena explains what she's really searching for in her random food adventures and unplanned encounters, why a stranger asking to take her photo turned into a lasting friendship, and why she believes anyone still figuring out where they belong is luckier than they think.

About the guest: https://www.instagram.com/xiexiexena?igsh=b2Y2ZDM4YnhzOXFz

What is Tandem - Language exchange?

Tandem is a global language exchange app on a mission to connect the world through languages. Members build confidence and improve their language skills through real life conversations with native speakers in 1:1 chats or live audio rooms.

🔗 Connect With Us: https://linktr.ee/Tandem_App

0:00 Intro

0:23 Italy, Senegal, and the Languages in Between

19:06 Falling in Love With Asia One Random Experience at a Time

26:59 When Two Cultures Meet and Neither Has the Words for It

44:53 What All These Worlds Gave Her That One World Never Could

🌟 What topics/language should we explore on the next episode of the new tandem podcast? Let us know in the comments!

Thanks for watching Connected By Language: Polyglot Interviews, the new Tandem Language Exchange Podcast.