In the United States, we speak of regions. We have the American South, the Northeast, the Midwest, the West Coast... Derogatory terms and stereotypes spring from these, our own subdivisions of our own country. Notice that modest Christian values and landlocked isolation often lead to portrayals of those from the Midwest as simple and unprepared for a busy world; so too a stereotype of the ignorant Southerner, or a West Coast surfer... So, how could you sum up an American? Beyond the ever popular discussion of our fitness you might actually try explaining our regions, as I have to Australians and students here from Germany, Norway, and France (to name a few). Each Australian state is large enough to act as a region as we think of them in the U.S. And I live in only one region, Queensland. I understand Americans a bit better after living in Massachusetts and Florida; my understanding of Australia must therefore be weakened by the fact that I've only experienced Queensland. This is certainly one reason why I've requested extra funds for this Australian adventure!
Lack of exposure notwithstanding, what else is it that hinders my true ability to describe Australia? One vague point which I can try to clarify is that expecting discoveries is a bit of a "search for the bunyip.*" When I learned I'd actually be going to Australia, it hadn't "hit me." In fact, a common question received was "has it hit you yet?" No doubt my interrogators were referring to the impact I would surely feel when I finally realized on some deeper level that I would be living in a foreign country, for several months, half way across the world, etc, etc. I ask - why is it that we collectively think this deeper level of feeling from international experiences exists? I first pondered this at age 16, during a one week trip to London to visit my sister. After a few days in the city, the lack of life changing surprises caused me to step back and consider what I had been expecting. If there is a deeper level of feeling, which occasionally one can notice on a particularly different cultural experience (or any travel guide where the author is enthralled to find a particular work of art, etc), why is it that it seems restricted to foreign travel? We have a massive country as well. How many of us have spent extended time outside "the Northeast?" One thing I continue to notice as culture shock wears off and regularity sets in is that Australians are quite like us. Imagine you are in my shoes - another country, across the world, for several months, etc - now turn that feeling around and pretend you are an Australian experiencing the feeling about visiting the United States. No doubt the feeling is there for them too. Why is it that you and I don't have that feeling for our own country? Ponder this last paragraph. My point here is that sometimes we may go looking for truths and adventures and experiences that are not there; otherwise, we would be searching for them in our own backyards.
1935 black and white watercolor of a bunyip interpretation.
Or, if you would rather be an optimist about my second (and more verbose) paragraph, you could instead interpret us as culturally dead when in the States - awakened when enlightened by foreign travel and inspired anew to find amazing experiences never explored on return to our home country. If you prefer this latter point, then, well, exploring Australia and looking for life experiences is going to kick ass!
*Bunyips, which I still have not fully detailed, are Australian beasts of lore believed to exist on first arrival to the country which were slowly reduced to fable due to exploration and development of the country. Thus, the spawning of the phrase "why search for the bunyip," a rhetorical question "indicating that a proposed course of action is fruitless or impossible," (Wikipedia.org).
1 comment:
now your just making me paranoid about taking the GRE again...
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