Home » The Class of 2008 - AMES Footscray

Reflections on living In Australia: Lemlen

BY Lemlen Gebremedhin

 MELBOURNE - I am one of the 20,000 Ethiopians now living in Australia,  along with hundreds of thousands of other people from Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe and so on that now make up the multi-cultural mix of this country.

I came to Melbourne in 2006 and I found the people to be very friendly. I was surprised by those I met in the street while shopping, who would say” hello” and smile. That was very welcoming.

The city is famous for its multicultural community and food. When I saw the people of Melbourne for the first time I was very amazed, because I found people from every part of the world. When I want to know about Asia or see Asians I don't have to go to Asia, because I can get it all in Australia. This makes the country unique and special. I really like that. I am pleased to live with all of these different people.

On the other hand, when I look at workplaces I have found there are some people who are racist and hard to work with, who think that they know everything and that  you don't. But sometimes it depends upon your self esteem and strength. 

In their social life, I have found most Australian people don't mix with people who came from other countries. They have a boundary, which is not good.

I think that it is good to learn from other countries' mistakes or failures -- for the sake of a better future for this country, to be able to bring up a healthy generation, to be a good example for the world and to be able to make history.

We all came from other parts of the world. We are all different in race, background, culture, language, colour and character,  yet we all have the same blood.  While we do have differences, we also have similarities. We now live in one country, we live for one country, we work hard, we should study hard for ourselves and for the country that brings us together as one.