So I'm doing my EURO1101 homework (for last week admittedly, but anyways) and reading about EU focus groups and people's reactions to queries about the European-ness and feelings of integration, what is Europe etc. Reading peoples comments about how good it feels to be outside of your own country, yet in Europe with other Europeans reminded me of a party I went to a couple of weeks ago.
I was embroiled within turgid discussions of maximising wealth-creation - how the HELL do I have friends like this? - when I escaped to meet new people from South America, Switzerland and Japan. I proceeded to engage in lengthy free-flowing ebullient discourse (sorry, I got started on that sentence and I HAD to finish it Stephen Fry style). Let's start again ... I had the most lovely chat with these people, exchanging travel stories, learning new words from each others languages, posing for photographs, sharing study plans and discussing future prospects. It was the most lovely conversation I had had with (dare I say it) "strangers" in a very long time. I can hold my own amongst such people, I would have felt the same if we'd been in any of their countries - as one might be keen to point out that I was the native here - and we were all equal. I rarely feel that in my little city in this corner of the world - probably why I upped sticks and left so early on in life - yet to come across citizens of the world like these, those who've ventured beyond their language/economic/political boundaries for whatever reasons, and to communicate with them, is probably one of the most interesting things about being alive.
Long may it continue ...
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Yes. YES! I agree completely. I'm taking the liberty of assuming that it was this party where you met said South Americans, Swiss and Japanese, or you have an unusually coincidental social life. Anyway, you've hit the nail on the head, because having these people around me is what keeps me sane in isolated Perth! And we're lucky because Perth is multicultural enough that there are tons of different kinds of people around. It makes me so happy that you enjoyed yourself so much :-)
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