Country Grammar

Hmmmmm
I'm goin' down down baby, yo' street in a Range Rover
Street sweeper baby, cocked ready to let it go
Shimmy shimmy cocoa what? Listen to it proud
Light it up and take a puff, pass it to me now...








So this entry isn't about one of Nelly's many hits (no pun intended). Rather, I'd like to share with you some of the interesting Aussie phrases/terms I've been hearing in the short 8 days I've been here.




Good on ya, or, good on ya, mate! Means *Good for you!* or *I'm really proud of you!*


Are you guys just takin' a piss on each other?? Means *Are you guys just joking (or screwing) around with each other?*


We just be a bunch of crazy shielas down heah! This one may not be so accurate, but there was a group of drunk 50-something women on the ferry I took to manly yesterday, and they said this about one another, hahaha


I'm feeling green, I think I might chuck. Means *I'm feeling nauseous, I think I might puke* (something the drunk ladies also said yesterday)






Some other brief things I'm learning about...


*It's not frowned upon to begin drinking at 10am, 2pm, basically any time of the day on the weekend. It's actually a good idea to start drinking early and some people will praise you!


*Some Australian's think that American's just like to explore America, and that we don't like to go anywhere else because 'we're American's'


*In restaurants, it's customary NOT to tip. However, a lot of places you go to (and everyone I've been to so far) will ask 'Is this for sit down or take away?'- if you decide to stay and eat at the restaurant, the prices will go up for your food or they'll tack on a 'sit down' fee of about $2-$4.50 depending on how expensive the restaurant is. This pissed me off at first, but then you could think of it as what you'd pay as a tip.


*Some Australian's consider their culture one of the most racist ones in the whole world, due to the amount of diverse people and different nationalities there are. 


*Depending on the neighborhood you're in in America, if you step away from your bag/purse/beach towel/etc for a few minutes, you usually wouldn't have anything to worry about. In the land down under, you ALWAYS take everything with you. Robbery is big in Australia, especially around touristy places.


*Guns are illegal


* Only 20,000,000 people live in Australia- 90% of them live on the coast.


*Dining, shopping, & movies are verrrrry expensive! I got pretty excited when I learned that the AUD was smaller than the USD- I thought that prices would stay similar to those in the states and things wouldn't cost as much. Not so! A typical meal (like Noodles and Company-ish) costs around $12 (and that's if you get water), single candy bars are anywhere between $2-3, and sweatshirts can cost anywhere between $45-$80






It's also interesting to see how Americanized Australia is (said by my native Aussie friend George). The majority of music & movies that are here come straight from the states. Many American TV shows are also shown here! There are Targets, Kmarts, McDonalds, & KFC's here too! Any clothes or grocery store you would find, besides Target & Kmart, are all from Australia. Although you find a lot of the same cosmetics as you do in the states, the groceries are all different! It's pretty neat to compare everything and learn about the Australia stuff :)




I have been having a pretty good time here so far! I do get 'boyfriend/friend/Mia' sick sometimes, but that's all part of becoming more independent! Until next time.... :)




xoxo
<33holly