『Travis Tookey - The Seahorse of Shanghai: A Japanese Canadian's Path from Au Pair to Lululemon China』のカバーアート

Travis Tookey - The Seahorse of Shanghai: A Japanese Canadian's Path from Au Pair to Lululemon China

Travis Tookey - The Seahorse of Shanghai: A Japanese Canadian's Path from Au Pair to Lululemon China

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Travis Tookey — known here as Haima, “seahorse” in Mandarin — grew up third-generation Japanese Canadian in Vancouver, in a family whose Japanese roots ran through internment camps in northern BC as easily as through sushi dinners and Ghibli movies. At 21, he left for Shenzhen to be an au pair with a mixed French-Chinese family, a short-term plan that turned into a year, then a return trip to study Mandarin at Tsinghua, then a job leading Lululemon’s growth in Shanghai, where he volunteers at Move Crew, one of the city’s best-known running communities. This conversation moves from wartime family history to New Year’s in rural Sichuan to what it actually takes to build a sense of belonging in a foreign city, sport by sport, Sunday by Sunday.Key ThemesGrowing up bicultural in Vancouver — Japanese heritage as daily texture (language, food, media) rather than identity performance, and the shifting sense of who counted as “the Asian friend” or “the white friend” depending on the roomThree generations of a Japanese Canadian family split by WWII: one grandmother sent back to Japan just before the war, the other grandfather interned with his family in the BC interior, and how a high school history project was the first time Travis heard either story in fullA serendipitous, almost accidental decision to become an au pair in Shenzhen at 21, arriving with no Mandarin and no real planBeing folded into a host family’s Chinese New Year in rural Sichuan, the trip Travis still calls one of his favorites in ChinaChoosing to return and study Mandarin at Tsinghua over the “obvious” choice of learning Japanese, and what that says about which culture actually pulled at himComing back to China a third time for Lululemon, and the difference between visiting a place and building a career and community inside itVolunteering and running with Move Crew, a Shanghai running club recently recognized by Timeout Shanghai — community-building as a deliberate answer to the loneliness of expat lifeWhat two decades (in family history) and two years (in career) of moving between Canada and China have taught Travis about staying ready for opportunities you can’t plan forKey TakeawaysFamily history isn’t background information. Travis didn’t hear his grandparents’ full internment and wartime stories until he went looking for them in high school, and that act of asking reframed how he understood his own place between culturesThe “long-term plan” rarely survives contact with China — an au pair gig meant to last one visa cycle became a year, a return trip, and eventually a careerImmersion beats intention. Travis learned more Mandarin osmotically, listening to a host family talk, than he expected to learn by studyingChapters(00:00) Introduction to the podcast and Travis’s bicultural identity(02:29) Growing up in Vancouver’s Japanese community and bicultural identity(04:19) Family history: Japanese Canadians, WWII internment, and intergenerational contrasts(13:04) Realizations from a high school history project about family and history(17:16) How Travis’s initial interest in China was sparked by serendipity(22:20) First impressions and cultural shocks upon arriving in Shenzhen(38:59) Experiencing Chinese New Year with a local family and its significance(45:04) Transitioning back to Canada and the decision to study Mandarin in Beijing(52:28) Studying at Tsinghua University and building friendships across China(66:54) Career steps and return to China working for Lululemon(75:53) Navigating life in Shanghai: building community through running and social groups(93:23) Reflections: perseverance, openness, and staying ready for opportunitiesResources & LinksJapanese Canadian Timeline - Nikkei National Museum and Cultural CentreNational Association of Japanese CanadiansThis podcast is brought to you by C^2 Collective, a multicultural nonprofit community empowering young people across China and beyond to think curiously, connect across cultures, and create positive change | see https://csquared-collective.com/ | We host events, run a social innovation network, and publish the Curation^2 newsletter @ https://imablur.substack.com/Music by Megan TanArt by Cindy Zhang被深圳"收养"的男孩:海马与他的双城中国路Travis Tookey——在这里大家更熟悉的名字是"海马"——在温哥华长大,是第三代日裔加拿大人。他的日本血脉,一半流淌在寿司晚餐和吉卜力电影里,一半深埋在BC省北部的日裔拘留营历史中。21岁那年,他前往深圳,成为一个中法混血家庭的互惠生——原本只是一次短期计划,却延长成了一整年,随后他又回到中国,在清华大学学习中文,再后来加入露露乐蒙(Lululemon),带领其在上海的业务拓展。如今,他也是Move Crew的志愿者之一,这是上海最知名的跑步社群之一。这场对话从战时的家族往事,聊到四川农村的春节,...
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