In Australia...

Since we've been here for a whole two months (and counting!) I thought it would be interesting to share some of the observations between life in Australia and dear old blighty. On the whole I think we're much the same - we go to work/take the kids to school/visit friends/go to the supermarket/organise playdates/get excited about movies/book reservations at a restaurant/visit the beach...but the way we do all of these things is marked with some distinct differences, because....

In Australia:

• You are greeted with the words 'How you going love?!' to which you reply 'good thanks, you?'
• You drive slowly but confidently and your sole purpose is to get from A-B. You're wary of other drivers but you DO NOT LET THEM OUT under any circumstances. Beeping of horns is a rareity.
• Cadbury's chocolate tastes a bit crumbly, probably due to it being dipped in some sort of heat/melt-resistant coating.
• Watering gardens is essential and is usually done via a reticulation system that involves a simple switch of a button. The greener the grass the better.
• Fitness is part of daily life. People run, visit the gym, visit parks with their personal trainers, speedwalk around the neighbourhood....they understand the importance of physical exercise and how it benefits body and soul.
• When your child gets a cut or graze you put a band aid on.
• Your mailbox sits outside the front gate or wall and your mail is delivered via speedy postmen on little moped's with flags attached to the back of their bike.
• There are several ways to take your coffee - flat black, flat white, tall black, tall white, plain black, plain white, frothy coffee, cappuccino, latte - the most popular of which appears to be the flat white.
• You drop the kids to school in an air conditioned car, it's too hot to walk.
• Shops are closed on Sundays (apart from newsagents, supermarkets and liquor stores it seems).
• Buses are supposedly frequent but few and far between. Everyone has a car in Perth.
• Vegemite is a childhood staple that tastes like Tippex.
• Spiders are stamped on or drowned...as most of them are venomous and the ones that aren't are too big and hairy to touch.
• Football is of the Australian rules variety. European football is known as soccer and is played mostly from March onwards when the weather cools down.
• There are take-away restaurants everywhere. Chicken Treat, Red Rooster, Hungry Jacks, McDonalds...fast food lovers are seriously spoilt for choice.
• Lollipop ladies are equipped with a whistle and two flags which they wave furiously in the middle of the road.
• There are hundreds of different bank accounts and you pay for something using cheque, savings or credit. If you opt for credit, you'll probably get charged by the bank who'll pocket the admin fee gladly.
• Flipflops are called 'thongs' and everyone wears them...even school kids.
• Beaches are long, open and jaw-droppingly gorgeous with sand that twinkles in the sun and clear turquoise waters that beckon you in.
• Children talk about snow in awe like it would be the most amazing experience ever. Quite understandable since the white stuff simply doesn't fall on this part of the earth.

Some interesting points because in England...

• The normal greeting is 'hi, how are you', to which we respond 'Ah, I'm ok thanks, but you'll never guess what happened to me yesterday...the boilers broken down...my shoulder's killing me....etc etc.
• People are speedy drivers and tooting, swearing and giving other drivers the bird is commonplace. We do however let other folk out and are happy to help out in a crisis.
• Cadburys melts in your mouth and is especially nice dipped in tea. We don't need to worry about heat-protective coating cause it's usually cloudy and miserable.
• We rarely water the garden. The rain does it all for us.
• People go to the gym but by god, we like to moan about it. In many cases we'll drop it at the last minute in preference for an essential viewing of Emmerdale/Eastenders/My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding and a pack of Tesco's custard creams.
• We use plasters
• Postmen deliver through a letterbox in your front door and don't think anything of banging on the door/window/gate at 7am if they have a parcel to deliver.
• Our coffees are usually a simple choice of latte, cappuccino, black or espresso.
• We walk the kids to school cause it's a good opportunity to get some fresh air, hell we'll even don the wet weather gear if we have too...anything beats fighting for a space at the school gates.
• ALL the shops are open on Sundays and are packed to the brim with people. We love consumption. Imagine if they were closed, we'd have to stay home and read, go for wet-weather walks and errr talk to our families.
• Buses come every 2-3 minutes in the city, every 5-10 elsewhere. If that bus driver is late you are fully entitled to complain about it.
• Marmite is where it's at. Hmmmmm yum.
• We don't often see our eight legged friends and if we do, they are swiftly cupped and disposed of out of the nearest window. Nothing to be scared of here.
• Football is talked about everywhere and has a huge following. Not a footie fan? I can't even talk to you...
• Fast food usually involves a toss up between McD's or Burger King. Nandos if we're feeling flash.
• Lollipop ladies have a lollipop stand (and sometimes an umbrella) which they stand in the middle of the road, using the other hand to wave road-crossers along.
• You pay for something on a credit card or bank card and are only charged if you don't pay it off in time.
• Flip flops emerge in the summer and we'll wear them if it's hot enough. If we've had a nice pedi we might treat ourselves to some Havaiana's, otherwise we'll go for the free pair on the front of Elle magazine.
• Beaches are mostly covered in pebbles and shells that hurt your feet. The atlantic is a dark murky blue, often with tell-tale bubbles/foam on the surface we probably don't want to touch. Brave folk swim...others simply stand and watch.
• We buy sledges in the snowy season and enjoy some speedy fun for a couple of days before the neighbourhood turns into a world of grey slush and navigating the road by car becomes a matter of life or death.

I still find myself dumbfounded by some of the differences and am slowly understanding various terms and customs. I now realise that 'fly by' points are for the mining community and that if I try to let someone out of a side road, I risk causing an accident rather than doing a simple good deed. It's an interesting journey this moving to another country lark....