When in Rome

Being a tourist is like being the new kid on the block, the new toy in the box, everyone wants glimpse of the shiny newcomer. I grasped my new found label as a “tourist” with both hands and fully embraced all that it implied.



I didn’t mind that people didn’t quite understand my accent when I ordered drinks or food, because my accent was what distinguished me form the crowd, what made me stand out as a foreigner, and I loved it. There is no better conversation starter than “oh, you’ve got an accent, where are you from?” Voila, free drinks quicker than you can say “bad South African accent”.


But things are a bit different now. I have been living in Australia for the past 7 months or so, and the accent that I embraced as part of my individuality seems more and more like a barrier everyday. It’s one thing having trouble communicating with my barista, but a whole different ball game when I have to speak up in a business meeting. The last thing I want to do is risk a communication gap at work as a result of my accent.


When I was a tourist, I didn’t mind repeating everything I said four times, it was part of the thrill of travelling, and it was only temporary. But now that I am settling, the repetition becomes quite tedious. Ordering a coffee in the morning becomes a pain in the ass when you have to enunciate yourself silly with no caffeine to support the task. So shamefully, I must admit that I have increasingly adopted the Aussie accent. So now, I can order a cup of coffee with ease, but at what cost? Of all the things I had to leave behind, my distinguished accent is one of the few comforts I got to bring along for the ride, and now I feel like I am slowly losing that too.

For now I find myself at a very awkward sounding phase, the bastard child of a legitimate South African and a not so legitimate Aussie accent, trust me, it’s not good.


It becomes quite confusing trying to juggle my Kama-Aussie accent at work, and keeping up with my beloved South African accent when I talk to friends and family over the phone. I can’t keep up like this, and it has to be one or the other. So, risk looking like an incoherent fool at work, or a converted Aussie wannabe to my friends and family?


One thing is for sure, I am counting down the days to my first trip back home. I am looking forward to pushing my Souf Efricen accent lekker fooll fhrottle!