Making the Strange Familiar and the Familiar Strange

It can often be difficult as students who typically live each day by a certain schedule or expectations to evaluate our own lives objectively. In many cases, we all take for granted the cultures and norms that make up our lives and identities. Coming to Sydney, Australia for a semester has quickly allowed me to realize how difficult it can be, but how important it is to make both the strange familiar and the familiar strange. 

Because I will be both a student and a worker during the four months I live here in Sydney, I have a unique goal. By continuing school here, I am still following much of the typical daily schedule I follow when in Knoxville. So, I have assigned myself the task of identifying observations and patterns in the familiar that might seem strange to someone from another cultural context. On the other hand, because I am the foreigner in this story, I also have the task of analyzing the differences between this culture and my own in an attempt to make the strange familiar as well.

I arrived in the land down under a mere seven days ago, and thus far, no major complaints (aside from the sunburnt legs I am currently nursing). The coffee is scrumptious, the people seem to be lovely, and the city in itself is rife with opportunities for exploration. As an outsider looking at the culture that is to be my home for four months, these are my three main observations:

1. Sydney-siders, as they are called here, dress up all the time. So, I have taken to wearing a bit nicer clothes than normal when just running casual errands or walking around. (Again, the sunburn has put a bit of a hold on this task, but I promise I’m trying.) After talking to locals, I have gathered that unlike big American cities where it is expected to be dressed and made up every day for work and other events, here in Sydney only “smart casual” is expected. This means that because they dress nice all the time, their work clothes do not differ much from street clothes. Additionally, make up is not expected to be worn all the time – even if you are wearing nice clothes. I can dig it. 
2. The culture of Sydney and much of its history is largely similar to the history of other places. For example, the native Aboriginal peoples of Australia have been heavily discriminated against and pushed to the side, similar to our Native Americans. These people then fought for their rights shortly after the Civil Rights movement in America, copying actions such as freedom rides and the organization of Black Panther groups. On another note, their public transit systems, road signs, and city paraphernalia are largely similar to that of London. The trains have the same maps and the platforms often say “mind the gap.” The city seems like a sort of melting pot of many of history’s good ideas.
3. We are loud. It is a common stereotype of the American culture, and every day we spend at the University of Sydney, I think that the humans we encounter go home and immediately report to their friends and family that it is entirely true. We are so very loud. This observation came to me today when trying to understand (it is harder to do than expected) how the familiar aspects of each day might seem strange to others. Today we had a short lunch break between our two classes, and we immediately all took the time to FaceTime or call our friends and families. While everyone around was casually reading a book or talking quietly to a friend, we flooded the common areas and loudly laughed, talked “baby” to our pets, and reported all details of the Australian culture. Similarly, though I realize many people travel alone on trains and buses, we do not hesitate to speak our minds at whatever volume we so choose while aboard public transit. I do not think that there is anything especially wrong with our loud voices and/or personalities, but I can certainly see how we may be perpetuating the “loud American” stereotype that seems so familiar to me.

As I live here in the following months, I know that I will make many more observations. The understanding that there will be both familiar and strange experiences happening all around me is exciting. This is a unique experience in that I have the time necessary to truly live like a Sydney-sider. Hopefully, the unfamiliar will become my familiar.