Conversation and Cultural Connection
These days, I spend a lot of time thinking about Language. I think about how it doesn't work with only one person. There always has to be another person in the conversation for Language to have a function at all. A speaker and a listener.
A few months ago, I began "living remotely" by flipping my sleep cycle to be on Japan time while I consuming only Japanese/Spanish media and food. I spent hours in VR every day to trick my body into thinking I was there. During that time, the most meaningful moments were video calls with other Japanese and Spanish speakers.
Looking back, I've started realizing the shortcomings of that experiment. Eating the food, consuming the media, the VR, it's all just a one-way flow of information. There's a speaker and listener, but it's not a conversation. It makes me realize that Language isn't just about sending information to someone else. It's about the constant flow of information between people that ultimately helps connect them at a deeper level.
I think about how the video calls with Japanese/Spanish speakers felt meaningful because we were in conversation. We were connecting. I started trying to figure out how I could take that successful part of the experiment, that connectivity, to a greater extreme. Then it hits me:
What if I could figure out a way to physically exist remotely, in real-time, so I could be in true conversation with these places.
I started sharing this idea and eventually found someone willing to become my surrogate body in Mexico. We'd be connected through Zoom via an iPad strapped to her head. Through this ridiculous setup, I can see and see and speak with Mexico in real-time. People in Mexico can also see and speak to me in real-time. Through GPS location-sharing, I'm also able to see and control where I go throughout Mexico, breaking through the limits of what I was able to experience in VR.
I am now able to physically exist and interact with the culture in a way that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. I'm excited to share more updates in the future but for now, I'm feeling more connected to my mom's culture than ever before. We are speaking and listening to each other. I'm finally in conversation with Mexico.
