Beauty & A Pete

Car Cast #5 : Blending Cultures—Family Opinions & Future Traditions

Natasha & Peter Simeoni Season 1 Episode 5

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0:00 | 22:41

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We open up about how our families reacted to our interracial relationship, the traditions we honoured (or didn’t), and how we’re navigating raising a child fluent in both of our worlds .

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SPEAKER_01

Hi.

SPEAKER_00

Good morning.

SPEAKER_01

Good morning.

SPEAKER_00

Good morning.

SPEAKER_01

Good morning. Is that sexy enough for you? Oh no, that was too much.

SPEAKER_00

Welcome to the morning. Public holiday yesterday.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, so we had a public holiday.

SPEAKER_00

And now we're driving to work.

SPEAKER_01

Getting back into the routine. The nitty-gritties are.

SPEAKER_00

It's hard. It's hard when it's a public holiday, like one day in, especially if you didn't. There's a break in between. Like you go to work, back to the public.

SPEAKER_01

You'd rather have it on the Friday.

SPEAKER_00

Exactly. Like you don't want to just break, it ruins everything. Actually feels like it makes the week longer.

SPEAKER_01

Longer?

SPEAKER_00

Yes.

SPEAKER_01

But don't you wish you had that break though?

SPEAKER_00

I'm glad that I did, but the problem is the rest of the world doesn't stop. So South Africa had a public holiday, but the rest of the world didn't.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, especially where people you work for.

SPEAKER_00

Yes. So it's it just becomes it becomes difficult to like catch up on things. But hope you had a good time and happy Wednesday.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. Well, it's Wednesday for us.

SPEAKER_00

It's Wednesday for us, but you might hear this on a different day. Yes, but happy day for you. Happy day.

SPEAKER_01

Well guys, I'll be hopefully by the time this is up and running. I am planning of posting these two podcasts by the end of this week and having the website running. So I'm gonna put a not gonna lie link. And it's gonna be anonymous. So please don't get scared that we're gonna see who the person is. And if anything, we'd love for you guys or your stories to feature within our podcast. Because we love to hear your guys' situationships or any dilemmas that you would love for us to discuss.

SPEAKER_00

Can you imagine you tell people it's anonymous and then then somehow like you figure it out who it is? And then you call them and you're like, hey, by the way, no, like you've got a real problem with love joke.

SPEAKER_01

No, it isn't anonymous.

SPEAKER_00

How funny would it be? Like okay, it wouldn't be funny, it would actually be like probably illegal to be like I've submitted something very personal.

SPEAKER_01

No, it's a knock on a lie link. So it's I I did post it on TikTok, you know, it actually made me so irritated. So I posted a video, remember when I told you?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Then it was like, and then I'm like, guys, I'm happily married, and it's also disrespectful to my husband. Don't go into the knocking a lie link, say you're attractive. How are you? Are you single? Like, that's so rude. It's so rude. It was irritating. And thinking, I was like, oh, we're gonna get some nice juicy stories. And I see this stuff.

SPEAKER_00

People are like, I'm sliding into your DMs here.

SPEAKER_01

No, come on, guys. Come on, that's so funny. Seriously, like you're being disrespectful to my husband right here. Yeah. And honestly, guys, stop interfering to my face. Stop interfering in people's relationships. It's rude. But this happens all the time. We gotta realize. No, it does. But I'm just saying on my end, I'm telling everyone now, don't do it, please. It's not nice.

SPEAKER_00

Still won't stop it. Still won't stop it.

SPEAKER_01

Anyways.

SPEAKER_00

I was once part of the game, although I admit I didn't play it like that. I wouldn't just take a link and be like, hey, let me take this opportunity to. What do you mean? Wouldn't kick out a link and be like, oh, this is my way into discussing.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, it's like it's they're thinking it's a casual slide into the come on.

SPEAKER_00

You're gonna be like, hey, it's up, yeah.

SPEAKER_01

No, like it's so irritating. I was like so excited, I'm like, oh, these are such good stories, and I see this nonsense. No, no.

SPEAKER_00

Topic for the day.

SPEAKER_01

Babe, how does it feel to be in a relationship with a caramel girl?

SPEAKER_00

A mixed race relationship.

SPEAKER_01

I was actually gonna get there, but you just went into it so seriously.

SPEAKER_00

Okay.

SPEAKER_01

Yes.

SPEAKER_00

Well, it's awesome.

SPEAKER_01

Thanks. And Vice versa, sorry.

SPEAKER_00

I'm not just and our child is B V BEE E compliant.

SPEAKER_01

Woo! Woohoo! Woo!

SPEAKER_00

She ticks the box.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, and she's beautiful.

SPEAKER_00

She's beautiful.

SPEAKER_01

All of our kids are beautiful. Sorry, we're just talking about our mixed-race baby.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I mean, it doesn't, it doesn't impact me in any way whatsoever. It's kind of like, I don't know, I think the generation before was hectic. Was hectic. I'll be honest. My dad came from that old school of like staying Elaine's son, which in my early years had an impact on me. So when I was like a kid, obviously you're indoctrinated by what your your parents tell you. So, I mean they weren't racist, but they were definitely racially inclined to you sticking with your race. If that makes sense.

SPEAKER_01

No, I understand.

SPEAKER_00

And I'd say my dad, because I remember when I introduced you, and my dad was like, and he's he's from Austria, so he has like a thick Austrian.

SPEAKER_01

I only found out about this like literally a month ago. What? When you brought this up, I only knew about this like recently. About what? What you're gonna say now.

SPEAKER_00

No, I told you this.

SPEAKER_01

No, you didn't. You did it, baby. Alright. I was shocked when you brought it up at the table. I was like, I didn't know this. My first time hearing it.

SPEAKER_00

Okay. So I walked, I introduced Tash, brought her to my dad's house. And he was like, she's a bit on the dark side, boy. That's actually sane. I was like, wow. I literally, I was like, I I I looked at him, I was like, I don't know what you mean by that. And then I walked out. But like he had like a smile on his face. But yeah. I mean, look, we're gonna be honest here.

SPEAKER_01

No, 100%.

SPEAKER_00

I'm at a stage in my life where I'm like, I don't care. This isn't gonna impact me in any way if I'm in love with this person, then that's it's gonna be. You're not gonna dissuade me and tell me that because I'm not surprised that she's the colour of a caramello bear.

SPEAKER_01

Caramelo girl.

SPEAKER_00

I wrote a song.

SPEAKER_01

Yes, guys, he he wrote a song, it's called Caramel Girl.

SPEAKER_00

Well, it was a Suno song, so I don't know if it counts.

SPEAKER_01

What do you mean, like AI?

SPEAKER_00

So I'd love to be I'd love to sing it myself and then claim it because the beat's my own, the words are my own.

SPEAKER_01

If you guys didn't know, I have a YouTube channel and Pete did the intro of my YouTube channel. Did I? Yes, you remember that suck in the gown. That's my life. Yeah, yeah. It was a cute little animated intro. Music speed my life.

SPEAKER_00

Or music speed my background.

SPEAKER_01

Yes, Pete's been that drama boy. Oh drama is like as in school. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Drama was my thing at school. And then music.

SPEAKER_01

Yes.

SPEAKER_00

And then idols, so we won't talk about that now.

SPEAKER_01

Yes, okay, but we've never actually gotten like any comments on on being in an interracial couple, or I feel like now right now it's so normalized that it doesn't really affect us at all.

SPEAKER_00

If anything, I think South Africa, we've come out of that bubble. Yes, we've come out of that bubble successfully.

SPEAKER_01

We have marched through that bubble, and we have dating having interracial couples are so normal now that it doesn't affect no opinions are made from it anymore. Let's just say that. Actually, had not that many on my side of the family, on saying that, my family didn't have any opinions about me being with Pete.

SPEAKER_00

Let me tell you that it was uh super interesting to engage in the cultural differences. So one of the things I was thinking of is Tash has a your great-grandmother or your great great-grandmother. I can't remember because she's so great.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, so uh she's a great, great grandmother.

SPEAKER_00

Great great grandmother, yes. How hey's that? Great grandmother. She's not grandmother.

SPEAKER_01

I think she's like 99.

SPEAKER_00

Kogo Mayor. Yes, Kogo Mayor from Inanda. Shout out to you, girl. If she still had hips that were working like 100%, she would be out partying all night. She's a cool girl. She's still she's still very mobile for like 100 years old. It's crazy. Can you imagine the story she would tell?

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, of course. Imagine she sat down, she'd be like, come, Peter, have a look at it.

SPEAKER_00

And she's and even now she's very sociable. Like she's I don't know, she's just so loving. Like, I wanted to go back again as soon as we left. I was like, I want to go back to her home.

SPEAKER_01

So basically, Pete hadn't been to so I have an African mom and I have a white dad, so I'm a mixed race, and I'm not colored. I feel like everyone thinks that colours are mixed race is a huge difference. So I'm a mixed race girl, and my mom's side of the family lives it's quite a far-hour drive out from our our place that I used to live with with my mom. When I was actually started dating Pete, my mom had said, I think I was actually pregnant then. Yes, I was pregnant. I was pregnant.

SPEAKER_00

Because to pay Oh no, no, no, Tlaulu.

SPEAKER_01

No, but you didn't play in Tlaulu.

SPEAKER_00

No, I didn't, but I but remember it was a joke that I made with her. Yes. And in fact, she rubbed your stomach, she rubbed your stomach, and then she was like She gave me a little, she gave Baby G a blessing. And then she looked at me and she was like, Yes. And I was like, ah, not gonna happen.

SPEAKER_01

So if anyone doesn't know the in tlawulo, so when you're getting married to someone, I think in the Zulu culture, but correct me if I'm wrong, but usually you'd give an animal like a cow if it's marriage before if you're getting married without like a child. It's kind of like one lower if you pregnant, basically. You get you have to pay like the goats. It's like a penalty. Yes, a penalty, that's what it's called. Penalty.

SPEAKER_00

Yes, and so I didn't get a go goat, but we did get us some nice treats. We got her some nice wine.

SPEAKER_01

Yes. So the my mom's side of the family, they stayed, they all stayed together, like quite a bit of them, and then we just got some meat, and then they had some bra there, and then we left.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, we need to go back again. I'm actually, this is like amping me up to go back.

SPEAKER_01

No shame. We haven't yeah, we haven't been there in a while. Yeah, he's such a lovely, great, great grad.

SPEAKER_00

And the whole the whole family that side is just so welcoming. Like there was no sense of uh why are you bringing the seminal gun to my house? But what's he what's he doing? It was like brother, come in.

SPEAKER_01

But you are well, you are very warm and welcoming.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, but I it no one knew me. Like they could they could have looked at me and instantly been like, I don't like this guy. Take this wine man up here. Yeah, get him out of my house.

SPEAKER_01

Would you have liked to have like a a Zulu traditional marriage? Would you have wanted to experience it?

SPEAKER_00

I wouldn't have minded if you were like, babe, we're gonna do a Zulu traditional marriage, I'd be like, cool, just do it.

SPEAKER_01

So why Master and I we didn't have any traditional marriages or anything. It was just never in our just never thought of having it. So if the I think the oldest daughter doesn't do it, the youngest daughter doesn't do it, so then obviously we can't carry on with the tradition.

SPEAKER_00

So we're just gonna put this on your sister to be like she broke it.

SPEAKER_01

It's gonna be like To be like that put this on me. Brina, I'm not putting it on you. Just that we weren't, you know what? Let me say this right. We were never into the Zulu traditions, so that's why it was never it was never It wasn't mainstream.

SPEAKER_00

It wasn't like you were brought up in a house that was like, hey, we've got to live by just this difficult cultural code and rule.

SPEAKER_01

And our mom wasn't too strong on us with the traditions of it, so we just were actually just left it.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

But how would you feel if you had one? I'd be chilled, yeah. I feel like you'd vibe it. I would absolutely vibe it. Oh my gosh, guys, you see Pete dance. Oh guys.

SPEAKER_00

Come on.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

You gotta give me props for that. Like my Zulu is not strong, but my dancing uh he would have he would have scored an A plus. Uh is worthy of some level of respect.

SPEAKER_01

No, I'm I'm gonna give that respect. I'm gonna give that respect to you. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00

But uh we And you know what I give that back to is my school. Because we had to learn gumboot dancing. Did you? Yes. I I still know all my gumboot dances.

SPEAKER_01

Wow, you mean show me at all legs?

SPEAKER_00

Uh give me get some gumboots. Get some gum boots. I'll put it on a show for you.

SPEAKER_01

You don't need gum boots, just slap your eyes on your whole legs.

SPEAKER_00

No, because it doesn't, it's not as effective. You need like otherwise you I just look like I'm slapping my legs and doing weird things.

SPEAKER_01

So if I said let's go take Zulu lessons, would you go?

SPEAKER_00

I would. For real. I would love to learn Zulu fluently. I would. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01

At work, she loves to throw in Zuluettes.

SPEAKER_00

Oh yeah, that's my thing. Because I don't understand everything, but I pick I pick up bits and pieces. So the other day, colleagues were talking about something, and I honestly didn't know what the crux of the conversation was. What did I say?

SPEAKER_01

What does that mean? Yeah, that's his favorite word.

SPEAKER_00

And they both stopped and looked at me and they were like, ah, ooh, me! No! I was like, I don't know. I don't know what I just said. I'm just kidding.

SPEAKER_01

I I can speak Zurip, but my Zurip is so broken. It's not the best rule. My sister can speak it very well. But people don't think that we can understand or like hear. So when someone speaks or like says something funny, like I'll start giggling and they'll look at me and be like, why is she laughing?

SPEAKER_00

I love that. Or when you call out guys. Yes. Yes, that was my favorite. When we started dating. And we were walking around somewhere and you were in like your, I don't know, your sports again or something, guys would pass comments. And then you would just slap back into you.

SPEAKER_01

I'd be like, No, it's just it's so rude. Like it it's not gonna change. But oh, you know what? One bad thing I actually faced is like being in having an interracial, being an interracial couple and having a baby that's mixed.

SPEAKER_00

Okay.

SPEAKER_01

I was at Woodwoods and I was leaving the shops, and then the guy was like in Zulu, oh I wonder whose baby is that because she's so white compared to her. That was like the one thing that I got.

SPEAKER_00

Wait, so she was saying that our baby was so white. I mean, everyone's gonna have everyone in this world's gonna have their opinions.

SPEAKER_01

No, 100%, but that was the only like bad thing that I've actually.

SPEAKER_00

I'm sorry about bad. I'm like, yeah, okay, it's fine.

SPEAKER_01

They probably thought I was an all-ped, to be honest.

SPEAKER_00

We've all that's the one thing though, every we all got our own stories. So I stick in my lane and you live your in your your life in your lane.

SPEAKER_01

I do want to teach Zulu.

SPEAKER_00

Teach you Zulu. Very important. Very important.

SPEAKER_01

I wanted to be fluent in it.

SPEAKER_00

I had a friend at university who took Zulu and the f as a major, and I was like, Wow. I was like, why are you doing that? That's amazing. Yeah, I was like, this is weird. Like, of all the things, you choosing to major in Zulu. Oh my word, was she smart to have chosen to major in Zulu? Yeah, 100%.

SPEAKER_01

She was a white girl. Oh my gosh, she came back.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, and it's um choose enough, she's like fluence in it, and it just propelled her in her career.

SPEAKER_01

Good for her. Amazing.

SPEAKER_00

I think that was a good move. But I remember at the time, I can distinctly recall being like, why are you choosing Zulu? Like, you could be doing, I don't know, psychology, or you could be doing criminology, or you know, I don't know, insert special degree major 101. Yeah. Zulu, most underrated one. Now look at it. This girl's flying. Yeah, she is. I'm like, you nailed that one, girl. So I keep my words.

SPEAKER_01

Yes.

SPEAKER_00

Zulu as a major, well done.

SPEAKER_01

I really want to learn German though.

SPEAKER_00

Okay.

SPEAKER_01

Pete is half German.

SPEAKER_00

You're looking at me like I'm No, no, I'm thinking. I'm I'm not half German, I'm half Austrian. Sorry, I always say German, but uh Austrian, sorry. So my roots are that I'm from the south of Austria, which used to be northern Italy, and then it was annexed by Austria, and it's called Tyrol. So it's on like the border between Austria and Italy. And the people are bilingual there, they speak German. Bich, bech, bech.

SPEAKER_01

The one day I was trying to tell some tell something to beat, and I wouldn't want the kids to know it's like, let me try and say it in Germany. Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_00

It's like I'm like, I'm gonna ace this. It's like we said, I'm gonna I'm gonna try and speak it in Chinese.

SPEAKER_01

I was like, oh, let me just get it. Because we're trying to so we code sometimes even now in Zulu to each other. Yeah. If we want to get something across, like if we um but we don't want the kids to know it. Yeah. So I was like, oh that moment, let me just try to remember I'm gonna ace this, guys. It was so embarrassing. He was like, what are you saying?

SPEAKER_00

Oh my gosh, I can't believe I can't believe that I don't even like it didn't even strike me that you were trying to speak Zulu. I mean, German. No, I was trying, but that's like saying, hey, my partner's Chinese. I'm gonna try to say something in Chinese. You don't know Chinese, so I'm gonna go, how long, don't you? Like it means nothing. Like telepathically, you're gonna understand what I'm saying. I'd be like, what?

SPEAKER_01

Gosh, guys, I felt so embarrassed. What did you just say? Something I want to know.

SPEAKER_00

Say, what did you say? No, I honestly I don't know what you say. But say it. I don't know, baby. But okay, say it to me now. Don't say that. How would you say that in German?

SPEAKER_01

I d I need to see it the letter. I need to. No, I had the words in front of me, so I tried to pronounce the words. So I can't just say it right now. Oh, wait, wait, now you've got to change this.

SPEAKER_00

No.

SPEAKER_01

Did you have to do it? No, I said, I said, I said no. I said I had Google Translate.

SPEAKER_00

I didn't hear Google Translate. I thought you said that you were literally just free-winging it to be like, I'm a channel stage and I'm gonna speak German.

SPEAKER_01

I'm sure I said I used Google Translate.

SPEAKER_00

That changes everything.

SPEAKER_01

I pulled up the phone babe and I was like, yeah, I just speak.

SPEAKER_00

Okay, so then it was your it was just your enunciation of the words.

SPEAKER_01

Yes, because I didn't have to say it's right.

SPEAKER_00

Okay. So hard.

SPEAKER_01

No, I wasn't gonna just say like a bit, but yeah, that's that that's just that's just red flags all around. Imagine I'm just saying some random German words.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, uh I exactly. That's why I use the Chinese analogy because I was like, imagine I just randomly said this, and then I what? How dare you?

unknown

Again.

SPEAKER_00

Insulting my deceased great great.

SPEAKER_01

You got this whole thing right.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, keep that in. Yeah, guys.

SPEAKER_01

I'm gonna definitely learn German because I want you just to learn also as part of her roots, and I want to one-up peak, guys. I want to actually be able to speak it fluently.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, you one up. You've one upped me in so many ways.

SPEAKER_01

No, no, no. I just want to one up with the German. Okay. Yeah. That's because you already know parts of Zulu. I don't know anything, guys, in German. I don't even know what hello is. You've already one-uped me in Zulu. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Hello.

SPEAKER_01

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_00

There we go.

SPEAKER_01

And your dad says that all the time. Yes, yes. Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_00

Yes, hello.

SPEAKER_01

Hello.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, it's just like a double, like imagine a double L. H L O. H A L L O. Imagine that. L-L-O. That's not it. That's what it is. Like it sounds like hello. Hello. Hello. We can get more complex because there's various different views. Okay, what's how are you? Vegets dear.

SPEAKER_01

Huh?

SPEAKER_00

Vegets deer.

SPEAKER_01

I can't even see his mouth moving to like understand how he's saying this. Say it again.

SPEAKER_00

V.

SPEAKER_01

V. G.

SPEAKER_00

S. S. Deer.

SPEAKER_01

Dear.

SPEAKER_00

Vegets deer.

SPEAKER_01

Vegetsteer.

SPEAKER_00

Almost. Vigetsteer. This is hard. Hey, this is about you.

SPEAKER_01

We're not going back to the. So I came across this web. Not sure what you guys think. Do you think it's bad to have a situationship title? Or do you think that it's better to say casual lovers rather? People have been saying when I've read in comments that situationships is such a bad way to title it because you feel as if you're living at a stagnant level that's not nothing's gonna arise from it, like a relationship. So people are saying that you should actually label a situation ship as like a casual lover or like a warm lover, and because something could arise from it.

SPEAKER_00

I got a thing against the word lover.

SPEAKER_01

I don't know. I'm like lover, I think it's better. Situationship sounds weird.

SPEAKER_00

I gotta disagree with you there.

SPEAKER_01

Someone said situationship sounds like two dogs humping each other. Which was quite I didn't I didn't understand that while I situationship I don't like.

SPEAKER_00

Situationship to me is like there was a situation that happened, and now we find ourselves together. But we don't know how how or why it happened, but we're here and we like figuring it out. I don't know. It's one above we were with each other.

SPEAKER_01

Okay, so you think it's fine?

SPEAKER_00

We're with each other, we're in a situation ship, we're together, we're in a relationship. That's how things works. No, no, no, no, I that's I've gotta be honest. When people say he's my friend, da-da-da, lover, I'm like, no, okay.

SPEAKER_01

Oh like in weddings stuff and uh what's the speeches? They're like my lover, like that's intimates.

SPEAKER_00

That's super intimate. Lover, I don't know, I don't see lover as uh seeing it as PG 18. Yeah, I'm seeing that as like not even PG 18, like it's 18 plus. Like it means this person has sex with me, and like we call it love, and I'm going okay, that's an overshare when it's like with your family family, and you're like talking about especially I've seen people say that in relationships, like young people. Young, like my age, yes, like in relationships, being like to my best friend, this lover.

SPEAKER_01

Yes, yes, and I'm like, okay. You know you're getting down right now.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, you know, yeah, yeah, like I can't, I'm not judging you, I'm just saying I'm reading into this, going.

SPEAKER_01

We already know what you're doing, you don't need to state it.

SPEAKER_00

Yes, and then the next post you're putting up with you and your parents, like having supper together, and I'm going, Well, dad definitely read that and went, Lover. Hmm.

SPEAKER_01

That's a bit too much.

SPEAKER_00

But I mean, in her defense and his defense, they could just be like, oh no, I mean like loving you.

SPEAKER_01

Like, not physically, just I think everyone sees them in a different way.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, maybe they interpret it differently. Yes. So I say everyone's everyone's driving in their own road. So as long as that road doesn't lead to a dingy dark place with it. I don't know how to do it. Oh my god, I don't even realize all. I'm not even gonna take this further.

SPEAKER_01

To my all lovely angel babies. I actually, the funny thing, guys, you should know about it. So I call everyone baby.

SPEAKER_00

Who are you calling babies other than me?

SPEAKER_01

Oh, the kiddies saying to them, hello babies. Okay, yes. This is this is not specified to anyone, I'm just calling you guys because you've been listening to our podcast and we appreciate every single one of you. Yeah, woo, woo! We see you, we see us, and guys, so honestly, it makes us happy that you guys are listening and so so grateful. Guys, if you haven't known already, I've mentioned it. Please go give a follow on our Spotify, Apple, and also my YouTube channel. YouTube channel is called Natasha Simeone. And guys, we'll see you in the next one. Bye. Bye.