In Auckland City, my eyes reflect the globe from my brother’s room
Or maybe it’s the world map in my geography class
We’ve returned from the Swedish clothing megastores empty-handed, ravenous
She wants a Poke bowl, she says they remind her of when she lived in Los Angeles
Fitting given 17 km away, a flight is welcoming passengers on their journey to LA
I prefer to opt for KFC though - Korean Fried Chicken
Not that I ever spent time in Seoul
We’re having brunch downtown
Living that Southern Europe ‘vibe’ she sees on TikTok
We should have gone to the French café down the road then
I think I would get the Nutella crêpes
It’s authentic if Nutella originated in Italy right?
What can you find in a 7 km s t r e t c h of road
A synagogue
A mosque
A church
What else?
Memory burning bright in my mind of the vibrant beads of Africa
Home away from home
Jambo, jambo bwana
But the A in African authenticity has been replaced by the A in Ali Express
And the A in Australia, the transit country they’d have to go through to get here
My eyes are rimmed with fatigue
American sugar can’t save me now
Handprints on my cheeks I gaze out the window
Flags sway in the wind, dancing colours of Holi and Shanyuan
They move with the drone of Spanish music coming from my friend’s laptop
Mindlessly scrolling through the comments evading studying for my French assessment
This Brazilian beauty technique rids your eyes of dark circles!
Italian-Japanese fusion on Williamson Avenue!
Los Angeles influencers are loving this Pilates hot spot!
I can see the world from my bedroom
It’s weird to think that each culture used to be independent of itself
A child in the corner refusing to mix with anyone
Until all of a sudden fusion is a word pioneering the globe
It’s like the parachute circle we all used to make in kindy
Each culture holding another’s hand, forging relationships that will last for life
It’s straight from the dictionary, the state of being connected with each other
It’s interconnectedness