- That in Australia the seasons officially start on the 1st of the month, rather than according to solstices/equinoxes? So two days ago, June 1st, was the official start of Winter. It will be Spring on September 1st, etc. Still haven't re-wired our brains this way at all!
- That instead of saying two identical numbers or letters (6-6) in a row by repeating them, Australians tend to say "double six ." It doesn't seem like a big deal until you try to write down a phone number that has been quickly spoken to you. Then you realize that we don't process as quickly that way. A phone number given as "0-4-double 6-triple 1-double 0-8" results in "Huh?"
- That, in addition to generous annual leave (at least 4 weeks), Australians also earn Long Service Leave after working for the same employer for ten years? It usually amounts to 2 months off with pay! Pretty nice. Sam's teacher is leaving for 6 weeks in Italy soon as a result of accrued Long Service Leave. It's pretty surprising to me that teachers can use this leave in the middle of the school year, as it seems so disruptive to the students.
- That Australian radio has a mandate of 20% Australian content? In Canada it's 35%. So, we hear a lot of INXS, Midnight Oil, Hoodoo Gurus, Crowded House, Rick Springfield, Split Enz, The Church, Kylie Monogue and Olivia Newton-John. That said, I've heard Springsteen's "Born in the USA" more here than ever before.
- That this May has been the wettest May in Sydney in almost ten years? Blame La Nina. Monday there were water spouts spotted just off the coast (thankfully, photos below aren't mine).
- That Australians are not nearly as concerned with being PC? One example that made us laugh because we know wouldn't see this as the headline in the US, at least not in CH:
- That "Captain Underpants" recently visited us?
- That the kids have different "Winta" uniforms? (Ok, really just Mia)
** We've had several readers say that they are unable to post comments lately, while others have no issues. We are having the same problem posting reply comments. We're trying to figure out what's going on and will hopefully resolve it out soon. Anyone have any wisdom? We did add an email address to our profile so we can be contacted that way now too.
5 comments:
Don't forget about Men at Work! And the long service leave for teachers in the middle of the year is really frustrating! I just don't get it. But you know what they say here- No Leave No Life. :)
I was also going to say not to forget about Men at Work. I think I heard their song Land Down Under every single day while living in Australia!
Jen
comment posting workaround: if you can't post comments to our blog, try this:
1) Type your comment
2) select your google account in the "Comment as" dropdown
3) when you click "Post Comment" and it takes you to the google login screen, UNCHECK "stay signed in"
4)Sign in as normal.
worked for me...finally
Captain Underpants looks so cool! Think he would visit the US in the future? Hahaha.
I agree with the leave being disruptive, but on the other hand, if you have it, I guess it is to take it and it would be unfair to be forced to take it a certain time of the year...
Winta school unifrms... seriously? Did it have to be electric blue?
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