ABSTRACT
On first entering St Joseph’s Hostel1 on a late winter morning in 2004, I immediately noted the set of pictures depicting the Stations of the Cross lining the hallway, the artificial banana tree – complete with a toy monkey hanging from the fronds – in one corner of the main living area, the unmistakable scent of curry and the sound of western 1950s songs playing on the radio. These, along with the presentation of a cup of sweet milky tea and an invitation to stay for a potluck2 curry lunch and a round of afternoon Housie,3 were hallmarks of Anglo-Indian living and hospitality that I had become familiar with during my PhD research, an ethnographic exploration of Kolkata’s Anglo-Indian community (Andrews 2005).4 However, instead of rickshaws and incense, the streets outside the doors of St Joseph’s were lined with Eucalyptus trees; this residential care facility for older Anglo-Indians is located in suburban Melbourne, making it the only Anglo-Indian rest home outside of India.
