The conversation is about a game where a person, Kenny, tries to guess the languages being spoken by strangers. The strangers speak various languages, including Quebecois French, Cantonese, Haitian Creole, Macedonian, and Finnish/Swedish/Chinese (later revealed to be a mix of languages). Kenny makes educated guesses based on the sounds and rhythms of the languages, often relying on his knowledge of music from around the world. He correctly identifies several languages, including Quebecois French, Cantonese, and Haitian Creole, but struggles with others, such as Macedonian. The game is a fun and engaging way to explore the diversity of languages and cultures.
1. Matthew has a huge gap in his knowledge of identifying languages.
2. Kenny used to teach a class about modern international music from every country in the world.
3. Kenny has heard many languages and can pick them out.
4. Matthew speaks English and a little bit of French and Norwegian.
5. Matthew was blindfolded to guess the languages of strangers.
6. The first language Matthew guessed was Quebecois French.
7. The person speaking Quebecois French was born in Hong Kong and moved to Washington at a young age.
8. The person speaking Quebecois French learned English in kindergarten but continued to speak Cantonese at home.
9. Matthew guessed the second language as Cantonese.
10. The person speaking Cantonese is from Hong Kong.
11. Matthew's mom speaks Mandarin, which is a different dialect from Cantonese.
12. Matthew guessed the third language as Haitian Creole.
13. Haitian Creole is a language that originated as a dialect but is now considered a language.
14. Haitian Creole is spoken in the streets of Haiti, while French is the national language.
15. Matthew guessed the fourth language as Serbian, but it was actually Croatian.
16. The person speaking Croatian is from Croatia and has been to the Balkan countries.
17. Matthew learned some phrases in Croatian, including "mackedonski" which means "beautiful".
18. Matthew guessed the fifth language as Turkish, but it was not correct.
19. Matthew guessed the sixth language as Finnish, which is not closely related to Swedish.
20. The person speaking Finnish is from Hong Kong and has some Chinese phrases.
21. Matthew guessed the seventh language as Swahili, which is spoken in Kenya.
22. The person speaking Swahili is from Kenya.
23. Matthew learned some Swahili phrases, including "uhuru" which means "freedom".
24. Matthew guessed the eighth language as not Swahili, but the speaker was actually speaking Swahili.
25. The speaker taught Matthew other Swahili phrases, including "worry every day of your life".