I’ve never been to an unfamiliar place. It’s true. In spite of all my travels and the many changes that I ran into along the way, I always feel right at home when visiting new lands. Admittedly, I’ve never been to the heart of wild Africa. Or the jungles of South America. Really, I’ve only been to pretty advanced locations. But still, when asking me about a foreign country, people always seem surprised when I say it was easy to adapt to.
They point to the difference in religion, food, and styles of clothing. And then comes the big sentence: “But the language is different!” they respond as though this summarizes everything. And to them, it does. That little change in means of speaking makes foreign countries seem like planets in a far away galaxy. Something exciting and exotic, but entirely unfamiliar. And to go there is to enter the land of OZ, where roads are made of yellow and everything is new and (shudder) different.
So I’ve taken to explaining it like this:
- They use silverware for their food.
- They have a special love for fluffy pillows.
- They heat their houses in the winter, and use fans/air conditioning in the summer.
- They drink milk to please their mothers. Continue reading
Deceptively Blonde 