Callum and Zhao Qiuyi get married in 2024. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

A vlogger from the United Kingdom has become an online favorite in Nantong by speaking the local dialect so fluently that residents say he sounds like a native.

Callum, known on social media as "Laowai Xiaoka", or "Foreigner Xiaoka", has lived in Nantong for six years. At a local market on Oct 9, he asked a vendor in the Nantong dialect how much a pile of vegetables cost. The vendor was stunned for a moment, then laughed, "You're a foreigner, but you speak the dialect better than my child."

Callum came to China in 2018 and moved to Nantong in 2020 to teach English at a kindergarten. Love was his main motivation for learning the dialect. He met Zhao Qiuyi, a Nantong native, through friends. Zhao said he did not become impatient when he could not understand her friends' conversations; instead, he actively learned and tried to fit in. Kindergarten colleagues, security guards and cleaners also became his daily language partners.

Callum cooks with his mother-in-law. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

Since February, Callum has posted more than 100 short videos about learning the Nantong dialect on Douyin and WeChat channels, attracting about 20,000 followers. One clip of him telling his mother-in-law in dialect that he was heading home drew 600,000 views. Another, in which he tasted river snails and exclaimed that they were unbelievably delicious, received 845,000 views and 13,000 likes. His first livestream in February drew more than 400,000 viewers.

In April, Callum put on Nantong's red jersey and joined fans at the Nantong Sports Convention and Exhibition Center for a Jiangsu Football City League match against Xuzhou. He sang the team song with tens of thousands of supporters. "The opening ceremony was amazing," he said. "Even the Premier League isn't this entertaining."

Callum holds a piece of paper that says "I love Nantong". [Photo/Nantong Daily]

He and Zhao married in 2024. The couple are expecting their first child in late November. Callum also shares Nantong snacks with relatives in Britain and plans more videos to promote local tourism. "I feel from the bottom of my heart that Nantong is my home," he said. "I am a Nantong local."