Education makes us more open towards people who are different to us - Mrs Saunders talks to us about her experiences living in Egypt and Botswana.
Which different countries have you lived in?
I lived in Egypt for ten years and Botswana for ten years.
What made you go to those countries?
I was teaching in both countries. I taught English in schools. It would be unusual to stay for so long in a country as a teacher of a foreign language, but I had an Egyptian boyfriend so that's partly why I stayed there so long! Then after that relationship I met an English man who was teaching in Cairo, and we got married and moved to Botswana. We were going to stay in Botswana forever and apply for citizenship - we bought a house there - but we needed to move because our employment situation changed.
What was it like adapting to a new culture?
It was more of a culture shock being in Egypt because it's an Arab culture and they spoke Arabic. Botswana is a bilingual country so they speak Tswana and English. The British had lived in Botswana for a long time so the culture wasn't as different. In Egypt there were a lot of differences in culture, such as how you had to dress and behave in public, especially as a white European female.
What do you miss about living in those countries?
I miss the weather! In Egypt I lived in Cairo and Alexandria. Alexandria is by the coast and the Mediterranean sea so there was lots of sea food and lovely weather. Cairo was surrounded by desert so it got very hot. Botswana was also landlocked so it had the Kalahari desert, but the heat there was dry heat and we lived outside of town so we didn't get the fumes and air pollution that we got in Cairo. I miss the food too - in Egypt I thought the food was fabulous. The scenery was incredible everywhere - in Egypt going down the Nile, in Botswana being out in the wild and seeing lions and all the wildlife.
Is there anything that makes you nostalgic?
It was lovely being a teacher in those countries, because you automatically had a social life with the people you worked with. I get nostalgic about that when it's raining here - I think, wouldn't it be nice to be in a cafe in Africa in the sun with friends!
What do you think about the English attitude towards people from other countries?
Certainly when I was in Egypt, I was expected to mix with the British community there - but I didn't. I was much more interested in learning about the culture and meeting people who lived in the country. But there were a lot of ex-pat English there who would not socialise with the people who lived there. I think some people in England don't know very much about other countries, and this causes them to feel differently about others coming here from other countries, or behave differently when going to other countries. I think education is so important as it helps people to feel confident in understanding other places, cultures and languages. Education makes us more open towards people who are different to us.
Which different countries have you lived in?
I lived in Egypt for ten years and Botswana for ten years.
What made you go to those countries?
I was teaching in both countries. I taught English in schools. It would be unusual to stay for so long in a country as a teacher of a foreign language, but I had an Egyptian boyfriend so that's partly why I stayed there so long! Then after that relationship I met an English man who was teaching in Cairo, and we got married and moved to Botswana. We were going to stay in Botswana forever and apply for citizenship - we bought a house there - but we needed to move because our employment situation changed.
What was it like adapting to a new culture?
It was more of a culture shock being in Egypt because it's an Arab culture and they spoke Arabic. Botswana is a bilingual country so they speak Tswana and English. The British had lived in Botswana for a long time so the culture wasn't as different. In Egypt there were a lot of differences in culture, such as how you had to dress and behave in public, especially as a white European female.
What do you miss about living in those countries?
I miss the weather! In Egypt I lived in Cairo and Alexandria. Alexandria is by the coast and the Mediterranean sea so there was lots of sea food and lovely weather. Cairo was surrounded by desert so it got very hot. Botswana was also landlocked so it had the Kalahari desert, but the heat there was dry heat and we lived outside of town so we didn't get the fumes and air pollution that we got in Cairo. I miss the food too - in Egypt I thought the food was fabulous. The scenery was incredible everywhere - in Egypt going down the Nile, in Botswana being out in the wild and seeing lions and all the wildlife.
Is there anything that makes you nostalgic?
It was lovely being a teacher in those countries, because you automatically had a social life with the people you worked with. I get nostalgic about that when it's raining here - I think, wouldn't it be nice to be in a cafe in Africa in the sun with friends!
What do you think about the English attitude towards people from other countries?
Certainly when I was in Egypt, I was expected to mix with the British community there - but I didn't. I was much more interested in learning about the culture and meeting people who lived in the country. But there were a lot of ex-pat English there who would not socialise with the people who lived there. I think some people in England don't know very much about other countries, and this causes them to feel differently about others coming here from other countries, or behave differently when going to other countries. I think education is so important as it helps people to feel confident in understanding other places, cultures and languages. Education makes us more open towards people who are different to us.