When I was in primary school I told other people around me that I was born in England. For some reason I could identify more with the English culture than I could Australian. I was not rough, crude, played sport or swore and as my grandfather was English (born in Bristol) I had to imagine I had some kind of English lineage. I always wanted to go to England and this was to eventually happen in 2011 when I met Chris Mitchell.
Even today I still find it difficult to fit into Australian culture. I like in England how everything is so close. You can jump on a plane and be in another country for little under an hour whereas in Australia, you have to travel to the moon almost to reach another destination. I have been to England a few times now. Every time I have returned, I feel more welcome and at home in England than I do Australia. For one thing the summers here are too much and also Australia lacks the tranquil greenery that you find overseas. The thing is that it is hard to live there. I do know that if you have an English grandfather that you can obtain an ancestry visa.
Having visited Europe, conversation is different than it is here. People talk more about national affairs and what's even more interesting is that the conduct of politicians is slightly better. For instance you can sit at a dinner table in Europe and people have more intellectual debate whereas here in Australia it tends to be more putting people down or some engaging in gossip. The truth of the matter is Australia is too remote. People here are like a detached and remote European colony. Australia seems more Irish than English in some ways.
When I have been in England I like the quaint English towns and I can identify with the reservedness of the English as they go about their lives. I also tend to dumb down or alter my Australian accent to sound more English when I have been in England.
I feel I am really born in the wrong country and I ask myself on occasions; "Why did the British every come here and leave the land to the Aborigines?". I like the European streets with their cobbled stones, the buildings that have stood longer than European settlement in Australia, and the history that surrounds. When entering a historical site you feel the energy of the events encapsulate you. You can for instance see the grave of Elizabeth I in Westminster Abbey or the tomb of Lord Horatio Nelson in St Paul's Cathedral. You can even visit the historic town of Newcastle upon Tyne in the north of England where life is so different. You can drive 30 miles which to the English can be quite a long drive and be in another town. I have thought about moving to England or Europe but it is just so difficult to get a job when I don't have any skills. I have been fortunate to have traveled. I had 2 days in Madrid, Spain on my last day and was totally alone in a culture where only little English was spoken. Of course I was in Spain and I should have been more versed in the Spanish language. I people watched in Madrid and in Portugal. I felt like being a double Aspie in that not only could I not communicate with the Spanish or Portuguese but I could feel only a human connection.
In England you can pass people by on the street and they greet you with "Good afternoon, it's a lovely day isn't it" compared to Australia where you pass people by and you are lucky to even get a warm hello. There is also this 'blokey' culture where alcohol is consumed as a test of manhood or masculinity. How it is so shallow and flawed. The English can be cold as well but personally the north of England is more friendly. Even across the Tasman the New Zealanders have less of this 'blokey' crap but Australia and New Zealand are countries I like to forget when traveling abroad. I will alter my accent where I can to sound more English than Australian and cut out the 'aye' which I do very little of at any rate. I like the work of Bill Bryson an American poet who left the United States to reside in England Notes from A Small Island Have you ever wondered why so many outspoken and eccentric Australians have left Australia to live in the United Kingdom? I can list several from Rolf Harris, Germain Greer, and the list goes on.
Even today I still find it difficult to fit into Australian culture. I like in England how everything is so close. You can jump on a plane and be in another country for little under an hour whereas in Australia, you have to travel to the moon almost to reach another destination. I have been to England a few times now. Every time I have returned, I feel more welcome and at home in England than I do Australia. For one thing the summers here are too much and also Australia lacks the tranquil greenery that you find overseas. The thing is that it is hard to live there. I do know that if you have an English grandfather that you can obtain an ancestry visa.
Having visited Europe, conversation is different than it is here. People talk more about national affairs and what's even more interesting is that the conduct of politicians is slightly better. For instance you can sit at a dinner table in Europe and people have more intellectual debate whereas here in Australia it tends to be more putting people down or some engaging in gossip. The truth of the matter is Australia is too remote. People here are like a detached and remote European colony. Australia seems more Irish than English in some ways.
When I have been in England I like the quaint English towns and I can identify with the reservedness of the English as they go about their lives. I also tend to dumb down or alter my Australian accent to sound more English when I have been in England.
I feel I am really born in the wrong country and I ask myself on occasions; "Why did the British every come here and leave the land to the Aborigines?". I like the European streets with their cobbled stones, the buildings that have stood longer than European settlement in Australia, and the history that surrounds. When entering a historical site you feel the energy of the events encapsulate you. You can for instance see the grave of Elizabeth I in Westminster Abbey or the tomb of Lord Horatio Nelson in St Paul's Cathedral. You can even visit the historic town of Newcastle upon Tyne in the north of England where life is so different. You can drive 30 miles which to the English can be quite a long drive and be in another town. I have thought about moving to England or Europe but it is just so difficult to get a job when I don't have any skills. I have been fortunate to have traveled. I had 2 days in Madrid, Spain on my last day and was totally alone in a culture where only little English was spoken. Of course I was in Spain and I should have been more versed in the Spanish language. I people watched in Madrid and in Portugal. I felt like being a double Aspie in that not only could I not communicate with the Spanish or Portuguese but I could feel only a human connection.
In England you can pass people by on the street and they greet you with "Good afternoon, it's a lovely day isn't it" compared to Australia where you pass people by and you are lucky to even get a warm hello. There is also this 'blokey' culture where alcohol is consumed as a test of manhood or masculinity. How it is so shallow and flawed. The English can be cold as well but personally the north of England is more friendly. Even across the Tasman the New Zealanders have less of this 'blokey' crap but Australia and New Zealand are countries I like to forget when traveling abroad. I will alter my accent where I can to sound more English than Australian and cut out the 'aye' which I do very little of at any rate. I like the work of Bill Bryson an American poet who left the United States to reside in England Notes from A Small Island Have you ever wondered why so many outspoken and eccentric Australians have left Australia to live in the United Kingdom? I can list several from Rolf Harris, Germain Greer, and the list goes on.
