444 Episodes Later… This Is Why Learning Mandarin Still Feels Hard
Learning Mandarin isn’t just about vocabulary or grammar.Sometimes it’s about confidence, fear, and not feeling “good enough”.In episode 444 of the Mandarin Monkey Podcast, we talk honestly about:– Wh...
4 Feb 41min
Why “Ask” Is Wrong in Mandarin | Mandarin & English Podcast | Mailbag Episode
This is a mailbag episode of the Mandarin Monkey Podcast.We answer listener questions about a deceptively common Mandarin mistake:why you can’t use “ask” the way you do in English.Ula explains why 問 i...
30 Jan 49min
Would You Risk Your Life for Fame? | Mandarin & English Podcast
This episode is a fully bilingual English–Mandarin conversation. Tom speaks in English. Ula responds entirely in Mandarin.We talk about:Extreme risk and a climber scaling Taipei 101Whether dangerous s...
28 Jan 42min
Why Mandarin Sounds Easy… Until a Real Person Speaks
Why does Mandarin feel easy when you’re listening…but impossible the moment a real person speaks?In this mailbag episode, we answer real listener questions about learning Mandarin in the real world.Te...
23 Jan 45min
We Disappeared, Here’s Why | Mandarin & English Podcast | Ep 440
We’re back. We both got hit with a nasty illness for a few weeks and lost our voices, so this one is low-energy and coughy. We talk about why we disappeared, why this Christmas felt “off”, a New Year’...
16 Jan 57min
Christmas Special Mailbag | Real Chinese Greetings, Flying Fears & Festive Facts
It’s our Christmas Special Mailbag.We answer listener questions about real Chinese greetings, why “Ni Hao Ma” sounds unnatural, fear of flying explained by a pilot, and how to type pinyin with tone ma...
19 Dec 20251h 10min
Why Your Chinese Sounds “Weird” and the UK Citizenship Test Quiz | Ep 438
Ula explains why some dictionary and app translations feel unnatural, and shares a new Mandarin dictionary app recommendation. Then we mess around with a sound-guessing game, chat about school plays, ...
17 Dec 202548min
Why 'How Are You' Fails in Chinese | Bilingual Mandarin Podcast
Why doesn’t “How are you?” really exist in Chinese?In this episode, we talk about how Chinese people show care without asking about feelings. Food, warmth, sleep, and daily life matter more than emoti...
12 Dec 20251h 1min
