To read this article in French, click here / Pour lire cet article en Français, cliquez ici
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G’day mates ! Today, I want to share with you the things that surprised me the most in when I was living in Australia. Because yes, when you move to another country you discover things that you didn’t expect ! And it’s normal, you can’t be prepared to everything… So I think it’s time for me to share my wisdom with you 😉
1. They drive on the wrong side of the road
And I insist on the word “wrong”, as they drive on the left, and we drive on the RIGHT side of the road 😀 At first (and even later!), it’s very confusing and I almost died at least 187 times !
2. They shorten every word
Because yes, in Australia, you don’t even say ‘Australia’ but ‘Straya‘ or ‘Oz’. Yes, Aussies (and not Australians, it would be too long) are lazy while speaking and they prefer spending time doing a barbie… hum sorry, a barbecue 😉 So when you arrive and your landlord tells you to meet him in the “arvo” of course you look on map to find this place to finally understand that arvo means afternoon.
If you want to learn how to speak Aussie, here’s a fun video to avoid being lost in your first days, or weeks, or even months (you’re welcome !) :
3. Rent are paid fortnigtly…
.. and prices are written per week and not per month ! Poor me who was happy to find a great accommodation for only 200 AUD !
4. Cars don’t care about you
When you cross the street, cars won’t stop, because you don’t have the priority. They will even be mad at you if you cross the street.. even on the pedestrian crossing !
5. There are 3.3 times more sheeps than humans in Australia
… Of course, you’ll have to trust me (and Wikipedia), unless you reaalllly are bored and you want to count them all ! 😉 But joke aside, it means that you have amazing sceneries with no heads to ruin your pictures, and beaches for yourself ! 😀 You don’t trust me ? Check what you can find in Western Australia !
6. You can withdraw cash at the grocery store
Very convenient when you are at the grocery store and you need cash ! … Okay maybe that explanation wasn’t very useful but who cares… I’m in charge of the writing so I decide what to write !
7. They love fries…
… And very salty ones ! They also have TimTams and Vegemite… One is delicious, and one is… well, weird ! I let you figure out which one is what 😉
8. Their summer holidays are during December
Because yes, their seasons are upside-down and their summer is during December 🙂
9. Their locks work upside-down as well !
Everything in this country is upside-down… including the locks ! At least for an European person (maybe for other people too, but I haven’t studies the locks around the world 😉 ) … And it might sound useless but I think it’s a great information to avoid leaving your door open all day… ah, ah, ah (True Story!). Hopefully, Aussies are really nice and it’s a safe country !
10. It’s not a cliche, there are heaps of kangaroos
… And they are so cute ! Even if I prefer the quokkas that you can find on Rottnest Island in WA. #TeamQuokka !
But also, something that stroke me was the fact that there are a lot of dead kangaroos along the road (hit by cars, mostly during the night as there are no fences along the routes) 😥 For the story, the first kangaroo I’ve seen in Australia (and in my entire life!) was a dead one so when we saw one, alive and free, in the next day I cried out “A kangaroo! A living one !” 😉
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And you, what surprised you in Australia ?
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G’day mates ! Aujourd’hui, j’aimerai partager avec vous les choses qui m’ont le plus surpris quand je vivais en Australie. Parce que oui, quand tu déménages dans un autre pays, tu découvres des aspects auxquels tu ne t’attendais pas ! Et c’est normal, tu ne peux pas être préparé(e) à tout… Alors je pense qu’il est temps que je partage mon savoir avec vous 😉
1. Ils conduisent du mauvais côté
Et j’insiste sur le mot “mauvais”, car on sait tous que le BON côté, c’est le nôtre, à droite 😀 Et au début (et même après), c’est très perturbant et j’ai failli mourir au moins 187 fois !
2. Ils abrègent tous les mots
Parce que oui, en Australie, vous ne dites pas ‘Australia’ mais ‘Straya‘ ou ‘Oz’. Oui, les Aussies (car on ne dit pas les Australiens, ce serait trop long) sont flemmards lorsqu’ils parlent et préfèrent passer du temps à préparer leur barbie… Et quand je dis ‘barbie’ je ne parle pas de ces poupées de notre enfance mais du barbecue qu’ils appellent ainsi 😉 Du coup, quand vous arrivez et que votre propriétaire vous demande de le rejoindre dans l’arvo, bien-sûr vous cherchez cet endroit sur la carte… pour finalement vous rendre compte qu’arvo veut dire ‘afternoon’ (après-midi).
Si vous voulez apprendre à parler Aussie, voici une vidéo sympa pour éviter que vous soyez perdu les premiers jours, semaines, ou même mois (mais de rien!) :
3. Les loyers sont à payer toutes les 2 semaines…
… et les prix sont écrits par semaine et non par mois ! Pauvre de moi qui était heureuse d’avoir trouver un logement pour à peine 200 AUD !
4. Les voitures ont toujours raison
Quand vous traverser la rue, les voitures ne vont pas s’arrêter car vous n’avez pas la priorité. Ils vont même vous en vouloir si vous traverser… même sur le passage piéton !
5. Il y a 3,3 fois plus de moutons que d’humains en Australie
… Bien-sûr, vous devrez me croire (moi et Wikipedia), à moins que vous vous ennuyiez tellement et que vous voulez tous les compter ! 😉 Mais blague à part, cela veut aussi dire que vous avez des paysages magnifiques, sans têtes devant qui gâchent vos photos, et des plages rien que pour vous ! 😀 Vous me croyez pas ? Regardez ce que vous pouvez voir en Australie Occidentale !
6. Vous pouvez retirer de l’argent dans les magasins
Ce qui est très pratique quand vous êtes au magasin et que vous avez besoin d’argent… Ok, peut-être que cette explication était inutile mais on s’en fout… C’est moi qui écrit ce blog, donc j’écris ce que je veux !
7. Leurs grandes vacances sont en Décembre
Parce que oui, leurs saisons sont à l’envers et leur été est en Décembre 🙂
8. Ils adorent les frites
… et très salées ! Ils ont aussi les TimTams et la Vegemite… L’un est délicieux, et l’autre est… disons, bizarre ! Je vous laisse découvrir lequel est lequel 😉
9. Leurs serrures sont à l’envers également !
Tout dans ce pays est à l’envers… Dont les serrures ! Du moins pour quelqu’un venant d’Europe (peut-être pour les autres également, mais je n’ai pas étudié les serrures à travers le monde 😉 ) … Et vous pouvez trouver cette information inutile mais je trouve que c’est important pour éviter de laisser votre porte ouverte toute la journée… ah, ah, ah (True Story!). Heureusement, les Australiens sont très gentils et c’est un pays très sûr !
10. Ce n’est pas un cliché, l y a pleins de kangourous partout
… Et ils sont trop mignons ! Même si je préfère les quokkas que vous pouvez voir à Rottnest Island en Australie Occidentale. #TeamQuokka !
Mais quelque chose qui m’a également marqué est le fait qu’il y a beaucoup de kangourous morts le long des routes (percutés par des voitures, notamment pendant la nuit car il n’y a pas de barrière le long de la route) 😥 Pour la petite histoire, le premier kangourou que j’ai vu en Australie (et de ma vie!) était un kangourou mort donc quand j’en ai vu un, vivant et libre, le jour suivant, je me suis exclamée “Un kangourou ! Un vivant!” 😉
Et toi, qu’est-ce-qui t’as surpris en Australie ?
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What is not to love about our country!
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I completely agree ! Straya is just amazing 🙂
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Haha amazing! So interesting, I totally didn’t know the fact about the locks being upside down 😀
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Ahaha that was really confusing at first 😉
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Hahahah i love this !! Would love to open my doors to a traveller in future. Would be a great experience. Cheers from Melbourne 😊
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Thanks for your comment !! 😀 Cheers from a Parisian in Wellington who can’t wait to come back to Oz and Melbourne 😉
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Their lingo is so Aussie – Everything shortened for less effort! Arvo. Servo. Biccy. Maccas 🐨
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Ahaha exactly !! Nice convo mate 😉
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I was surprised to find Kangaroos can be clumsy, we had one run down the road in front of us then when it turned to jump off the road it slipped and fell. Had to wait while it got back up and got off the road.
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Yes, that’s true aha !
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Everything may be backwards, but I love it!!😜
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Oh yeaah me too !! 😀
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Very fascinating post. Fun facts to know🙂
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Thank you !! 🙂
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I want to visit Australia! Would never thought that about the sheep.
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You should, Australia is an amazing country !
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As an Aussie and a West Australian to boot I found your take really interesting. I’m also a country girl so yeah you’re quite right on the sheep front! If it makes you feel any better only a handful of kangaroos are killed on our roads in comparison to how many there are in the country, in some areas it’s almost plague proportions! Sadly fences do nothing to stop them, they often destroy them in an attempt to get over or under them. Glad your enjoyed your stay here though, we are a friendly bunch!
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Thanks for that statistic, because yeah kangaroos are pretty cute ! 😀 And yes, I even more than enjoyed my stay in Australia, and especially Western Australia 😉 ❤
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Really interesting tidbits about Australia! Useful for those traveling to Australia, how long did you live there for?
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Thanks !! I have lived there for 7 months on a WHV
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Wow, so many things I never knew! Apart from driving on the left as we do that in the UK too!
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Yes, it’s the same problem when I come to London :p But glad if I helped you learn some things 😉
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Haha love the list! As an Australian these things definitely don’t surprise me but I’ve made similar observations in other countries!! Hope you enjoyed your stay!
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I didn’t enjoyed… I LOVED it !! Oz rocks 😀
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Haha very true about the lingo! We love shortening everything. Mind you I struggled in France with the liaisons and some of the slang, but us Aussies are definitely known for it! It’s funny you say that about the cars, because our laws are that pedestrians always have right of way. If a person walks across a road and a car hits them, it’s always the cars’ fault! I think Australia seems so expensive to travel to because our cost of living is higher, but we get paid a lot more so to us it seems normal, but compared to the prices I see overseas, it is really expensive.
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Yes ahaha slang is hard everywhere, but I wasn’t prepare of shortening every words :p
Ah that’s funny, we really don’t feel that way when crossing the streets 😉
Yes ! It’s expensive comparing to elsewhere but comparing to your wages, it’s not that expensive but when we travel we can’t always experience the higher salaries 😉
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Safe is a relative term – depends on where you’re at. I didn’t feel unsafe while living in Alice Springs, for example… but there is A LOT of crime there. A LOT of break ins, A LOT of crimes-of-opportunity, and it has been dubbed the stabbing capital of the world… for the sheer ratio of stabbings to population. That being said, Australia is a nice place to live overall… the initial shock to me was how expensive everything was…. especially in the middle of the country. They are also a lot less “politically correct” than a lot of other places which can sometimes be refreshing.
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It’s true… I didn’t know the crime rates and all but I felt safe while there ! But it’s true, it’s an expensive country !! But I also agree on refreshing aspect 😉
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I watched the video till the end I can’t stop laughing please tell me their joking coz honestly I might need a dictionary when I go to Australia …I don’t understand a thing LMAO
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Hahahah no, it’s a true story !! 😉 But don’t worry not all of them shorten everything, plus you get used to it, and after you even start using their words :p Are you planning to go there ?
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Oh my gosh, girl! This post was so funny! I love going to new places and getting immersed in the way they talk. When I met a few Australians in Hawaii they kept calling our ice coolers a funny name…turns out it’s an Australian brand of cooler! haha
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Thanks ! 😉 Me too, language is not the same at all according to the country, even if they’re all supposed to speak English :p
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We call them Eskies 😉
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Exactly 😉
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i used to live in australia so this post brought back a lot of great memories!! 🙂 thank you!!
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You’re welcome !! I took pleasure in writing it too, for the same reason 🙂
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Hey, very useful article!! Never been to Australia (yet) but I know a few Aussies and they just speak another language! That’s not English, haha! 🙂
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Thank you, glad you found it useful ! And yes aha it’s not the same language at all… At first I was confused with some words but now I use some of them myself 😉
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Australia has always been a wonder. I wish I could travel there some day
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Australia has always been a wonder to me. I wish I could travel there some day 🙂
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You should, it is a truly amazing country ❤
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I love your quirky way of writing! Great article, love the humor. Sad that the first Kangaroo you saw was dead 😢😞. Also loved the fact that you have it in French too! Fellow French speaker right here 🤗!!!
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Thank you 😀 Ohh that’s cool, where are you from ?
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Did you hear anyone refer to jellyfish as jellyblubbers? I’ve heard that from one person, but not sure if it’s true.
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Ah no !! That’s funny, I’ve never heard that one ! It’s true that we don’t talk about jellyfish/jellyblubbers/jellyanyway all the time, but I’m pretty sure I’ve heard jellyfish 😉
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love the fact that you say that they drive on the wrong side of the road!
couldn’t agree more!
Good advices!
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Hahaha thanks Simone ! 😉
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The drive on the ‘right’ side of the road if you’re a Pom like me! Most retail outlets in the UK have ATM’s. I’ve been there many times but have never experience any problem crossing the roads in Oz – no more or less dangerous than the UK. I have to say that’s I’ve never noticed the locks being upside down, that’s a new one for me but I’ll make a note to check the next time I go! Good blog by the way! Cheers
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Maybe because you’re used to look on the good side but comparing to France, cars never stop to let you cross ! Next time, you’ll think of me in front of your door ahah
And thanks ! 🙂
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