Last year, I wrote a post called 24 Weird Things About South Africa. It exploded, with the original post going viral, and then subsequent reposts of it on other pages also going viral. There were, of course, several people who got really defensive and said the post, me, and everything I’ve ever done in my life are all complete and total rubbish (as if I didn’t already KNOW that!). But the vast majority of South Africans love to laugh at […]
Expat Life
15 Things South Africans Want Foreigners To Know About Their Country
I’ve lived in South Africa for long enough to know that tourists have some pretty hilarious misconceptions when it comes to this country. While South Africa is certainly unique, there are a few things South Africans want foreigners to know about their country: 1) We don’t live in safari tents or grass huts. And we even have luxuries like toilets and electricity (at least when Eskom has their crap together). 2) You’re not allowed to make fun of rugby, or […]
Stranger Danger
We all know that strangers are bad news. I’m not here to refute that. But in my experience, it’s not like they’re any worse than everybody else. I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention to the news lately, but humanity in general is a giant dumpster fire. Everybody is a hot garbage pile, and being a stranger doesn’t really add to or detract from that in my books. So that being said, I interact with strangers all the time. On […]
31 Things That Happen When You Move To South Africa
I woke up the other day and realised we moved to South Africa just over two years ago. Two. Years. In dog years, I’ve been in South Africa longer than the Spice Girls were a band. It’s been all kinds of crazy and all kinds of wonderful (but mostly all kinds of crazy). In what other place in the world could wild elephants, shark-filled oceans, Julius Malema, massive braais, and neverending jols exist? Some of those are great, while others are […]
Thing I Love About South Africa Part 6- The Social Life
A while ago I quite stupidly promised that before I could complain about South Africa again, I had to post 10 blog entries devoted to things I love about this country. Related: I’m a giant nincomboob. Anyway, here’s post 6. Canada, as everyone knows, is awesome. We invented all the best stuff in the world, like the internet, steak, clothes, and Beyonce. OK, like, maybe we didn’t INVENT all that stuff, but we HAVE it in Canada. And, to America’s […]
8 Colossal Benefits of Expat Life
Last week I posted about 8 Ways Expat Life Sucks Worse Than Puppy Cancer, and I meant every word. But I also said I wouldn’t trade my expat experience for the world, and I meant that, too. So for the sake of balance, I thought I’d post about the benefits of expat life, cause there are many. 1) You’ll Get To See The World This one’s super obvious, but it still needs to be said. If you want to travel, but […]
8 Ways Expat Life Sucks Worse Than Puppy Cancer
Exactly one year ago today, we were waiting in the Vancouver airport for our flight to South Africa. Everything we owned was already stuffed into a container and floating across the ocean to meet us at a later date. We were exhausted, excited, and nervous. We had said all our goodbyes to friends and family and were about to embark on our new journey. Expat struggles were something we didn’t even think about. Fast forward one year later, and we pretty […]
30 Ways You Know You’re Almost A Local In South Africa
I moved to South Africa from Canada in September 2016. When I first got here, everything was strange, confusing, and wonderful. Now that I’ve been here almost a year, well, nothing has changed. But I think I’ve been adapting. One of my favourite bloggers, Joburg Expat, compiled of list of signs that indicate you’re no longer new to South Africa here. It’s a great post, and I thought I’d add some more ways you can tell you’re ALMOST a local: […]
I’ve Put a Lot of Disgusting Things in My Mouth…
The Background Whenever somebody starts a sentence with “I bet you won’t eat…” I don’t even hear the rest. The cacophonous ringing of cash registers in my ears drowns out whatever comes next. I’ve hate-fornicated my mouth hole with a jug of vinegar, an entire mug of hot sauce, a dried out crab shell my friend Fariyal found on the beach (related-Fariyal is a giant jerk), and the list goes on and on. You know those giant banana slugs they […]
Canada vs South Africa (In a Handy 11-Point list)
I’m sorry if the title brought you here in hopes I’d be talking about who would win in a fist fight between Canada and South Africa. That would be ridiculous because there couldn’t be any possible way of knowing (but for the record, it would totally be Canada. We’re able to harness the power of poutine). When I say Canada vs South Africa, what I MEAN to say is I’m going to look at the differences I’ve noticed between the two […]