It's unbelievable to think that we've been here in Canada for four months now, the time has passed by so quickly and we have packed a monumental amount of activity into that time. Canada is a breathtakingly beautiful country, its people friendly and charming, and I think we are settling in quite happily.
Of our two children I would have put money on the Model being the the first to start picking up a new accent but in actual fact it is the Boy who is changing before our eyes. Not in the way he speaks but with what he says. Many a time I have received confused expressions from restaurant and shop staff when I've asked where I can find the 'loo'. They don't exist here, although they do have washrooms. I'm not going to change though, I just say 'loo' and add 'washroom' by way of explanation. You see, I actually believe I am feeling more British now than ever before. The Boy, on the other hand, corrects us at every opportunity with his new Canadianisms. For example, he insists we no longer keep yog-urt in the fridge, it is yo-gurt. Party food doesn't include crisps, it is chips and we would never have chips with a burger if he had his way, we'd all be eating fries. We don't put waste into a bin, he'd have us throw it into the garbage, or the trash can, even. I do know that part of this is his way of having a little fun with his old mum but gradually (and with the utmost subtlety), he is moving onto the side of Canadianism. It's going to be interesting to see how long it takes him to go, if he ever does, the whole way.
We found this clip on YouTube recently on being a Canadian. Yes, we sat on the 'couch', by the window overlooking the 'sidewalk' and had a good chuckle. She's very good.
Have a great day!!!!!
Dearest Kate
ReplyDeleteThis made me smile somewhat, great post!As a South African in the UK i had to quickly learn the Imperial system and say yog-urt as i was so used to saying yo-gurt too! I call my mum, mom and we call crisps chips too! We have a mixture of British and Americanisms in our lingo back home, oh and of course very local lingo too.A takkie back home is a trainer in the UK and a sneaker in the US :o)
great that you are all settling in after such a short time xox Hope Spring is trying to peek through too x Penny
ps. I would also stick with "loo",never a washroom!
It is good to hear you are all settling in and lovely that your boy enjoys being Canadian, although I'm happy to hear that you're still a true Brit! ;)
ReplyDeleteV xxx
Does sound like you are all enjoying your new adventure :) It is certainly a part of the world that looks great to live especially if you like the outdoor life. I wonder how long it will be before you are changing your speech too?
ReplyDeleteI definitely felt more English in the US than ever before. I tried to say tomayto and adapt but just felt silly and self conscious and I think my accent actually just got stronger!
ReplyDeleteWe attended an American school in Germany for a few years when I was younger and my Brother and I picked up the lingo and accent really quickly, its a sure fire way of fitting in. However, we both lost them just as quickly when we moved again!
ReplyDeleteSo pleased everything is going so well for you.
ReplyDeleteMy brother displayed all the characteristics of a chameleon when we moved the the UK as children and I remember wishing that I could blend in with the same ease! Has your boy started calling you 'mom' yet?
ReplyDeleteIt sounds remarkably like being in the UK what with the use of metric and imperial side by side. So glad to hear you are all settling in well and enjoying yourselves. Can't believe you have been out there for 4 months already - times flies. xx
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear you are all settled and happy.
ReplyDeleteI think that video covered a number of great topics. One she missed is a "bag of milk", milk bags often give us away (and there was no mention of hockey in the video!). I think it is wonderful that your children are adapting so well. Does your son know what Tim Horton's is yet?!
ReplyDeletereminds me of when we moved to Boston. it took me months to work out why the children I taught never threw their rubbish away when I asked them to (trash) and the boys really didn't want to put their jumpers on when we went outside, apparently that's a type of dress........
ReplyDeleteI always find a Canadian easier to understand than an American and having watched that video I know why! Oddly though I'm a Brit with American relatives who does use a fair few Americanisms, Isn't regional variation in the English language just so delightfully, wonderfully, weird :D
ReplyDeleteCan't believe you've been gone from these shores four whole months!
I found this post very amusing as it brought back floods of memories and sparked many anecdotes.
ReplyDeleteI was born in the UK but grew up in Saskatchewan, lived in Ontario, moved back to the UK (when my children were very small, and this where they both started school) and have since returned to Ontario. (Not an easy move and we still miss the UK a lot.) The elder of the two, my son, never quite lost his Canadian accent (in spite of spending 6 years in the UK up to Year 4), but it was my daughter (who never knew any other way of speaking) who lost her accent ... within about 2 months! It was shocking! My son's accent gradually faded, but periodically we can still here it both of them, especially in words like "pah-don" where they kinda swallow that hard "arrrr" sound. As for lingo, we're still pretty schizophrenic: loo has never become washroom, but is used interchangeably with toilet. There are lots of other examples too, but what I found most amusing recently was someone talking about a "junk in a trunk" sale. I imagined a steamer trunk, but it wasn't til later that I realized she's meant a "car boot sale" !
I'm sure you'll find the west coast is a lot more British than many other parts of the country ... have you been down to Victoria yet? Even though people go on about it being Little Britain with all the ex pats, my husband (a few years ago) found it a bit like the final days of the Raj ... a bit too archaic to be England as we know it today, but but definitely more "British" than lots of other places.
Thanks for your blog ... and good luck with the transition!
That's funny! Thanks so much for popping in Molly, I tried to get in touch but can't find a way of doing so other than here.
DeleteWe visited Victoria a couple of summers ago when we were here on holiday. Actually, we fell in love with the whole of the island. Vancouver too, that's why we came back!!