It hit me that we had South African (first-language) English, American English, British English, and South African (2nd language) English all at the table, and it made me think of the differences I've picked up between the versions spoken in the USA and RSA. I may add to this list as time goes on:
- Yeah-no. (Also Afrikaans ja-nee, and hybrid ja-no). It's an interjection used to acknowledge something before making your comment. An example I heard on the radio: "And then there's the news from the weekend. What about Amy Winehouse passing away?" "Yeah-no, that was a tragedy."
- "Pleasure." When I was here last with the kids from ISD, they were amused that the response to "Thank you" wasn't "You're welcome," or any of the other nonsense we say, but "Pleasure." I've heard some interesting variations, my favorite being one from Wendy's mother, when thanked for pet/house-sitting: "It's only a pleasure." How civilized.
- "Must." Here, you don't "have to" or "need to" or even "should do". You "must." You must take a shower before Anna starts laundry if you want consistent hot water. You must try new foods. You must get petrol when you can. You must get DVDs for quiet nights at home. You must learn how to use that word.
- Learned on a previous visit: "Blah blah fishpaste." A slightly more jarring version of "yada yada yada."
- Robots. Not traffic lights, not red lights. Robots.
- For the complete list of South-Africanisms, Wendy provided this link: http://www.joburg.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=169&limitstart=1&limit=1
Then there are the cultural differences:
- Tea. Gotta love it. And we agree that the best tea in the world is that made by someone else. I should buy one of their electric tea kettles to take back.
- Tipping in parking lots. This still throws me a little. There are parking lot attendants who make sure that your car is safe, and who help you in and out of spaces. They get a few rand for their help.
- Avocados. Such a versatile fruit, or vegetable, or something. A while back I stopped for lunch in a pizza place and got a "New Orleans" pizza: bacon, tomato, avocado, and garlic. I'm not sure how that combination says "New Orleans!" to me, but it was damned good. Avocado and butter sandwiches. Avocado and anything sandwiches. Avocados, period.
- Stick shifts. Bless their hearts, but those people at the rental car place think that I'll be returning my car with transmission intact. I can grind gears in most major keys, and a few minor ones.
- Full service gas stations. When's the last time an American saw one of those??
- Driving on the other side of the road. I'm used to it now. Hope I can adjust back, or there's going to be trouble.
How'd I miss this when it was new? Thanks for sharing your experiences -- so insightful.
ReplyDeleteNow that I'm living in Egypt, another tea drinking country, I'd have to agree that anybody else's tea is the best. You've probably found out by now, as you've long-since returned home, that we do have those electric kettles in the US. We first used one in South Africa too, and thought it would be a brilliant solution for my (now late) mother-in-law, who was always burning kettles dry on the stove. Amazingly, she tried putting the electric kettle on the stove too and melted it. No fire, though. Sigh.
My Indonesian daughter introduced me to avocado drinks when I was there -- somewhat like a shake, drizzled with chocolate syrup. In the US, she was amazed that we thought of them as a savory, rather than sweet, food item. Yes, it was good that way, although I prefer guacamole.
There's always plenty to talk about when visiting friends abroad, isn't there?
I must get going on my day. Thanks for the smiles!
Mary Ann