Cultural identity
Well, I was born in Port Elizabeth, a.k.a the windy friendly city, in South Africa. I grew up in a typical middle-class neighbourhood in a pretty normal Afrikaans-speaking family.
Towards the end of high school, my parents decided to move to New Zealand. I always saw myself staying in PE and having children that would go to the same schools I went to and didn’t think any place would ever live up to my home town. Nevertheless, the thought of moving to a different country was also very exciting and I am very glad that my parents did take that leap of faith. However, PE will always have a special place in my heart and I will never forget who I am and where I came from.
This need to retain my cultural identity while assimilating into a new country is basically the reason why I decided to start writing a blog…
I have now been in NZ for 13.5 years- 5 years short of the same amount of years I have lived in South Africa- and I think that I am reaching that mid-point where I am wondering am I a South-African Kiwi or a Kiwi who can speak Afrikaans?