THE VOICES OF OUR WORLD TEAM VISITED THE COUNTRY OF TAIWAN IN SOUTH EAST ASIA IN SEARCH OF EVEN MORE DIVERSE VOICES AND STORIES TO SHARE WITH YOU ON OUR PROGRAM, AND ALMOST EVERY TIME WE GO ABROAD, WE'RE CONFRONTED BY ALL THE JOYS AND INCONVENIENCES OF NOT KNOWING THE LOCAL LANGUAGE. WHETHER IT MEANS GETTING ON THE WRONG TRAIN, OR ORDERING THE WRONG DISH, ONE NEVER KNOWS HOW TRULY HELPLESS THEY CAN BE UNTIL THEY HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO TRAVEL TO A LAND WITH A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE. ON TODAY'S VOICES OF OUR WORLD WE SPEAK WITH TWO AMERICANS CURRENTLY LIVING IN TAIWAN, MARYKNOLL FATHER JOHN MCCAULEY AND CALIX VU-BUI OF VIETACT, ABOUT THEIR VERY DIFFERENT EXPERIENCES WITH LANGUAGE WHILE LIVING ABROAD, AND HOW SIMPLE COMMUNICATION CAN BE A GESTURE OF LOVE.

CALIX VU-BUI WON VIETACT'S 2009 INTERN AWARD AND FOR THE PAST TWO MONTHS SHE HAS BEEN LIVING WITH VIETNAMESE MIGRANT WORKERS IN THE CITY OF TAOYUAN IN CENTRAL TAIWAN, WHERE SHE USES HER COUNSELING SKILLS TO HELP YOUNG VIETNAMESE HUMAN TRAFFICKING VICTIMS. ORIGINALLY FROM SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA CALIX SOUGHT TO COMBINE HER INTEREST IN HELPING REFUGEE, IMMIGRANT AND EXPLOITED PEOPLES WITH HER PERSONAL EXPERIENCES AS THE AMERICAN-BORN DAUGHTER OF VIETNAMESE IMMIGRANTS WHO FLED VIETNAM AFTER THE WAR, HOWEVER SHE NEVER IMAGINED THAT SHE WOULD END UP HAVING TO GO TO TAIWAN TO LEARN HOW TO SPEAK VIETNAMESE!! AND AS SHE TOLD US IN OUR INTERVIEW, THE STRUGGLE TO LEARN A NEW LANGUAGE HAS NOT ONLY BEEN WORTH IT, IT HAS ALSO HELPED HER TO BOND MORE CLOSELY WITH THE PEOPLE SHE SERVES, AND EVEN HER OWN FAMILY.