Is English spoken in Australia?

Sydney and Melbourne are multi-cultural cities. A short visit to these two cities have made me realise how much the cities have changed in demographics. Eight years ago when I visited, I heard a lot of English spoken except in Chinatown. Today, I hear so many languages spoken than English. Practically everyone is bilingual. Every kind of food is available anywhere and everywhere. You have so many choices: Chinese, Greek, Italian, Vietnamese, Middle-Eastern, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Hungarian, Australian, Indian, ... the list goes on and on. So spoiled for choice.

There seem to be more languages spoken than English. As I'm on the bus or walking on the street, I hear Indian languages, European languages, Asian languages, ... very little English. So why does the non-English world want to learn English? Is it really a universal language spoken everywhere? Maybe.

While the non-English-speaking world is learning English, then the English-speaking world should be learning other languages. Since mastering a language takes time and a lot of effort, both worlds should learn other languages. That way we can all meet half-way when it comes to communication. After all, "the only language that everyone speaks around the world is bad English." (Bennie Mostert) What is key is communication. Remember, body language counts a lot too!

Have fun communicating! Learn a new language today!

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