A hilarious take on the South African expat experience has people recognising themselves in the biltong, braais and sudden love for the national anthem.
South Africa (14 September 2026) – South Africans living overseas apparently develop a whole new level of patriotism the further they get from home, and one South African has hilariously captured exactly what that looks like.
Marcius Van has taken a look at the lives of South Africans living abroad, from braais in the snow to emotional encounters with the national anthem.
His theory is that the further away a South African gets from home, the stronger their connection to everything proudly local becomes.
Suddenly, the guy who barely touched a braai back home is standing in London wearing a gown, grilling meat in the snow and defending South African heritage like his life depends on it.
Hear “Jerusalem” playing in a shop in Manchester and suddenly everything stops. The same person who might have casually walked past it back home is now standing completely still, overcome with emotion.
Sport is no different. South Africans overseas will apparently drive for hours just to watch the Springboks in a pub with a handful of fellow South Africans. And when the anthem starts, they’re singing every verse with their hand firmly on their heart.
He jokes that the patriotism gets so intense that South Africans abroad will even defend the country against anyone willing to criticise it.
“Nobody loves South Africa like a South African who left.”
And if you’ve ever met a South African expat, you probably know exactly what he means.
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