When the US State Department slid into my DMs, I'll admit I was a little nervous. But it turned out they had a fascinating video proposal: meet three elite diplomats fluent in French, Arabic, and Dari and let them grill me in their languages over lunch. And these weren't just any diplomats – they all serve as US government spokespeople on foreign language TV and social media. So we met up at restaurants around NYC, where little did the staff know they had genuine polyglots in their midst! And I was really put through my paces, responding to rapid-fire questions in three different tongues. It was an eye-opening look into the world of high-level diplomacy and a fun chance to flex my language skills. Here's a taste of our linguistic adventures across the city. And make sure to check out the excellent restaurants featured in this video:

Dar Yemma (Moroccan / Algerian)
25-21 Steinway St, Queens, NY 11103

Sami's Kabab House (Afghan)
35-57 Crescent St, Astoria, NY 11106

Voilà Afrique (West African)
844 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10017

0:00 Introduction
0:39 Meeting the diplomats
1:45 Ordering tea in Arabic
4:14 Mock interview in Dari
5:39 Speaking French at an African restaurant
6:31 Diplomat's son is my biggest fan
7:05 What is diplomatic immunity?
8:14 Diplomat tests my Arabic after testing my Dari
8:38 Waiter thinks diplomat is from Afghanistan!

LEARN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE WITH MY METHOD!

✉️ Join my newsletter and discover how I pick up new languages quickly
(and learn how you can do the same):
👉🏼 https://www.streetsmartlanguages.com/...

📚 Check out my Street-Smart Language courses:
👉🏼 https://www.streetsmartlanguages.com

Subscribe to my channel:    / @xiaomanyc  
Follow me on Instagram:   / xiaomanyc  
Follow me on Facebook:   / xiaomanyc  

If you guys like the music in my videos, you can check out all the AMAZING music Epidemic Sound has at my affiliate link here: http://share.epidemicsound.com/xiaomanyc