Question 2

You're Scottish but live in Australia. Do you feel more of an affinity with one culture? Why? What do you miss most about Scotland (apart from your family)? I’ve lived in Australia for over 26 years and consider myself an Aussie (even though I don’t sound like one). It’s interesting to study some of the difference in the cultures – the Aussies have ‘laid back’ down to a fine art whereas the Scottish sense of humour – particular the Glaswegian sense of humour is in a class of its own. As to why my affinities lie with Australia – I made a decision many years ago to migrate here with my first husband who was an Aussie – it wasn’t a decision made lightly and I was fortunate enough to have a six week holiday here first before actually migrating. My decision was helped by the fact that I had two very young children, I didn’t work and wasn’t likely to and the week the second child was born was the first time in 5 months that my husband worked 5 full days. This was during the recession back in the Maggie Thatcher days when the economy couldn’t support people working 5 days. So Australia has been very good to me – I love the lifestyle and am very grateful for all the opportunities it’s provided me – which I don’t think I could have had in Scotland. And what do I miss most – I think probably Autumn and deciduous trees – all those golds, reds and browns as the leaves turn and fall off – and while I don’t miss the cold, we do live in a very tropical climate and so you don’t get those wonderful crisp fresh mornings.