Carrying on in the Commonwealth

We have unintentionally planned an international itinerary that takes us to three of the largest countries to emerge from the former British Empire: South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

There are some benefits to traveling within The Comonwealth. For native English speakers, its awfully convenient to be able to use your mother tongue without fear of causing offense or being grossly misunderstood. Nevertheless, travelers shouldn't underestimate the difference between speaking American and speaking English, South African, Aussie or any of the other Commonwealth English varieties. It's more than just a matter of accents. In particular, culinary terms often require translation: for example, "capsicums" and "sultantas" are disappointingly less exotic than they sound.

When we told South Africans that we would be traveling next to Australia, we often got a response that went something like this: "Why would you want to do that? It's just like here only more boring." As English as White South
Africans sometimes seem to the uninitiated (the tea drinking, the boarding schools, the flower-print furniture, etc.), they're awfully proud of their continent and the native African spirit that surrounds them. By "boring," I think they meant that we'd notice the absence of Africa's soulfulness now that we had experienced it. But it's also a kind of backhanded complement, pointing out that Australia is more modern and predictable -- like the difference between visiting Canada and India. If you live in a Western "first world" country, the later certainly seems like the more adventurous choice. This is not to say that S.A. isn't developed. A visitor fresh off the airplane could easily mistake Cape Town for a North American city and will generally be surprised at how "unAfrican" the scenery appears through the airport shuttle window. Personally, I expected something out of a National Geographic Serengeti documentary (apparently, even educational TV addles the brain).

By "just like here" the South Africans meant they have much in common with the Aussies. Many White South Africans have moved to Australia in the last twenty years: I'm led to believe that Perth is virtually a little S.A. This
makes sense because they share many of the same tastes: spending innumerable hours watching cricket (some games last five days), spreading frightening beef and vegtable jellies on their morning toast and driving on the left. Thus we are well prepared for our encounter with Australia.

Our time in S.A. has taught us (a.) the rudiments of cricket, (b.) to avoid sliced bread lest it be spread with salty yeast extracts and (c.) to be comfortable with the steering wheel being on the wrong side of the car (though the person with the keys ivariably still ends up on the passenger side in the parking lot).

(A lamppost on a bridge over the Yarra River overlooking Melbourne's Central Business District.)

(A few of our fellow Melbournians enjoying a free concert at dusk.)

(A typical Melbourne laneway.)

(A view of Flinders Station through tram lines that crisscross the city.)

(A mural on the streets of Richmond.)

(The entrance to St. Kilda's Luna Park.)

By Meredith Bragg |  February 23, 2006; 4:43 AM ET  | Category:  Australia , Tales From The Road/Skies
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