Rambling Rush: Dodging the law in 3 languages
Sometimes being seriously talented is rather useful.
IT is funny how the sight of a roadblock makes one’s heart skip a beat.
Even if you haven’t been drinking or don’t have a stash of something illegal hidden in your boot.
Meet Ryan Bahlmann, who approached one such roadblock as cool as a cucumber can possibly hope to be in the South Coast’s stifling summer heat.
It was late on a Friday night and he was stopped at the usual spot, near the old Uvongo Bird Park, arguably the most well-known roadblock site in the country.
Ironically, Ryan and his wife Maja and little one Gracie were but a stone’s throw from the home they were staying in at the time. They could see their front gate.
But a sea of lights and cops blocked their way.
Ryan is a South Coaster but is living in Sweden, having married Maja a couple of years ago. They’ve been back visiting his rather large family.
As it turned out they were stopped. There was no being waved through. It could have been the ND registration plate on the rental car.
“May I please see your driver’s licence,” asked the female traffic officer.
“No problem,” said Ryan, scratching around for his wallet.
More scratching… uh-oh, problem.
He could not find the elusive wallet containing his licence.
“At first I thought it must be in the nappy bag but couldn’t find it there,” he said.
At this stage his heart wasn’t just skipping a beat, it was leaping about uncontrollably. Not too great an idea to get in trouble with the law with a wife and small baby to look after.
It may have been panic but he flipped.
No, not temper. Despite a hint of red hair, Ryan is a very calm guy.
Instead, he flipped languages, speaking to the officer in perfect Zulu. She was stunned to hear the language so well spoken by a young white man.
(Ryan grew up on a farm, spent much of his early years with farm staff, and English came later.)
“I didn’t say much really, just explained the situation,” he said with a cheeky glint in his eye.
The officer was won over, and in keeping with the holiday spirit, extended grace to him, and let him go, much to his relief.
And the wallet? It was sitting safely on the coffee table at his friend’s place back in Port Shepstone.
Interestingly, Ryan has picked up the Swedish language pretty quickly – he does seem to have a knack for languages – although he is sometimes told he has a Norwegian accent.
It’s probably just as well he didn’t flip to Swedish at the roadblock!
