Questions Americans Ask Me About Living In Australia
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- čas přidán 31. 05. 2024
- All of the answers to your most pressing questions. Do the toilets flush the opposite way? Is everyone here really hot? Do people really say no like "naur"? I'm six months into my Australian Working Holiday Visa and this is my perspective on snakes, spiders, sharks, the ocean, the food, dating and more!
Chapters:
00:22 Snakes and Spiders
01:56 Where is Perth
02:08 The West Coast
02:45 Which Way The Toilets Flush
03:09 The States
04:08 How Big Australia Is
04:36 Dating
04:55 What I Do All Day
05:24 The Ocean and Surfing
06:23 Australian Government
06:43 Australian Accents
06:53 The Food
07:10 Hot People
07:16 How to Pronounce Melbourne
Talking about Huntsman spiders I just realised I walk out to the kitchen every morning before daylight and flick the light on then get dressed and come back, it gives the Huntsman's a chance to get going away, we live in harmony when we both know the rules.
You have to give them a warning 😂
@@MarissaDownUnderThe Huntsman is our friend. Be nice to the Huntsman. They hurt nobody.
As kids we use to have them as pets. They might be scary to people not use to them or have a fear. But us natives know they are harmless. I catch them with my hands to put them outside.
@@MarissaDownUnder me and my house Huntsman live in harmony. He catches the flies, cockroaches and other pests around the house and i leave him alone. Roomies 😂
@@sharronbrennon899best roommate
The water in the toilet does not turn in either direction as it goes straight down because there is much less water than in the US toilets. But in a sink, yes, it goes the opposite way to the northern hemisphere due to the Coriolis effect.
Thank you
THAT is the VERY best answer I have ever seen to that question. BRILLIANT indeed !
Australia has six states; New South Wales (NSW), Victoria (VIC), Queensland (QLD), Western Australia (WA), South Australia (SA) and Tasmania (TAS).
It has three internal territories; Northern Territory (NT), Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and the Jervis Bay Territory (ostensibly the coastal port for the ACT). You can think of the ACT as being a bit like the District of Columbia (Washington DC) in the USA, except bigger and it has a sizeable rural/wilderness hinterland, as well as the city area of the federal capital, Canberra.
It also has external territories like Christmas and Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, which are Australian but are not part of any other state or territory - not to be confused with places like Lord Howe Island which, while well off the coast, is a part of the state of New South Wales. (The USA has similar external territories, like Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa and others.)
Excellent very thorough answer - better than my answer - though I will leave my answer as I wrote it.
@@AnnaAnnaTT No wucks. Love your stuff.
Most Australian animals are like people. Dont screw with them, and they wont kill you (mostly).
And huntsmen spiders are just mobile fly traps and you just leave them alone. They will have moved on by the next day, and they don't have webs. Basically a standard household utility.
Huntsman spiders are harmless. Huge and hairy, fast and scary, sure... but harmless. Leave them alone. They get rid of cockroaches. I'd rather have a dirty big Huntsman in my house than cockroaches!
Yeah but, if you do have an irrational fear of spiders feel free to remove them from House or obliterate them from existence.. Even though they are not deadly the do still bite and it freaking hurts, so not quite as harmless as some Aussie who don’t have a fear of spiders say.
@@Scott-Inc. Yeah, an irrational fear is just that - irrational. But if you have that type of arachnophobia then sure, remove them, preferably without killing them if you can. A bite from a Huntsman does hurt a lot, but they are not agressive, they won't bite unless they think they are being attacked, they are not going to just randomly crawl onto you and bite you just for the heck of it. If you leave them alone they will leave you alone. But best of all, they are not freeloaders, they pay their rent by getting rid of bugs in your house!
Yep we name them. We've currently got Gilderoy hanging out on the wall.
Yes, Tassie is a state, same as NSW, Vic, Qld etc. Australia has cuisines from all over the world. We have a few dishes that ppl love as comfort food/nostalgia (meat pies, sausage rolls, fairy bread etc). There are also traditional foods that Indigenous ppl have eaten for generations. Other than that, we eat a wide variety of foods: Chinese, Italian, Greek, Thai, middle eastern, Indonesian etc etc.
As an Australian, this actually hurt my brain.
Huntsman are not scary spiders. You have to get use to them because they can squeeze through very narrow spaces and even enter your car. They are handy in the house because they hunt and kill other insects.
Huntsman are ugly scary mofos.But wont kill you.They are crunchy when you flatten them
@@paulgerrard9227 on the other hand they can be caught and taken outside. And they are not ugly.
And other spiders . Esp the ones that make webs
Yes they’re harmless but still can induce a heart attack because they are REPULSIVE!😩
To put some perspective to the size of our states, Australia is roughly the same size as the contiguous United States; Western Australia is the second largest state in the world after one in Russia; Western Australia and Queensland are both bigger than Alaska; New South Wales, South Australia and the Northern Territory are all bigger than Texas. Victoria and Tasmania are the only small states and the Australian Capital Territory is very small because all it has is the national capital Canberra.
You've just taken me back 50yrs to grade 4 geography...cheers😂👍...I used to know all that in a former life😊
Australia has a land mass approximately the same size as the US.
The Northern Territory and the Australian Capitol Territory [ACT] are NOT states, they are self governing territories. Australian has only six states, plus one full size territory & one little one.
If the US can have states that are external to the "lower 48" [Alaska & Hawaii] then why would it be so hard to understand why Tasmania is a state of Australia? It's certainly a lot closer.
Western Australia is not so much a name of a state, but more of an accurate description. It is approximately one third the size of the continental US land mass. Don't even think of bragging about big Texas is.
@@KB10GL Australia has got 10 territories. Only 3 are on the mainland, NT, ACT and Jervis Bay, the others are islands or groups of islands such as Norfolk Island, Christmas Island etc.
@@miniveedub Yes, that is true, however I was focusing on all of the states & the mainland territories. I didn't want to go into the offshore territories in order to keep it simple, but again, you are correct.
@@miniveedub To the best of my knowledge Jervis Bay is regarded, for administrative purposes, as essentially a 'suburb' of the ACT. By that I mean that it's not a separate territory, even though it is geographicly separate from the ACT, so I did not note it as separate for that reason.
Our system of government is a Federated Constitutional Monarchy - same as Canada, but with our own twist. We have a hybrid of Responsible Government (Westminster system) with some aspects of federal republics like the USA (but no president). There is a bicameral parliament with the House of Representatives being the lower house and the Senate being the upper house. Each State gets 12 senators (even Tasmania, which has a population of only 570,000 - similar to Wyoming) and each state has a minimum number of House of Representatives seats based on the percentage of population (except Tasmania gets a minimum of 5 seats via the Constitution even though by population it would get less). Territories like the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory (our equivalent of DC) get less representation in the Senate and even though they are self-governing, they have more oversight from the Commonwealth.
The party or coalition of parties that holds the most seats in the House of Representatives forms government and their leader presents their credentials to the Governor General (the King's representative who in fact exercises all the powers of the Crown in a Vice Regal Capacity) to become Prime Minister. Unlike the US, the Speaker of the House of Representatives is nonpartisan and does not vote except to break a tie and is expected to operate in a Neutral manner.
As we use a form of Representative Government, all cabinet ministers must hold either a seat in the House of Representatives or the Senate - if they don't, they need to be elected ASAP. This makes the Cabinet answerable to the Parliament. Thankfully we haven't politicised our judicial and legal system - we do not elect legal officers or other officials, who are instead selected on merit and i is seen as bad form to do so. The last Coalition government (equivalent to the US Republicans) stacked the Administrative Appeals Tribunal - the quasi-judicial body that reviews government decisions for procedural fairness and legality with their ex-politician mates to such an extent that it was no longer independent, forcing the incoming Government to dissolve it and reconstitute it in a non-partisan way. So that's a good indication that we Australians don't like the sort of court-stacking shenanigans that go on in the US.
In our elections it is compulsory to register to vote once a citizen is 18 years old and to vote in elections and referendums. If you don't you will get a sternly worded letter asking why and you need to have a valid reason, otherwise you could be fined. We accept this as it improves the overall quality of our elections and there is a sense that voting is one of the responsibilities of citizenship (along with jury duty and paying your taxes, etc.) We have a form of preferential voting that means that voters need to number their choices in their preferred order from most to least preferred (in some jurisdictions you only have to number the ones you wish to express a preference for, but in others such as Federal elections you need to number all the boxes or number each group of candidates in the Senate).
Our elections are governed by independent election commissions (commonwealth or State/Territory) that are removed from political party interference. These electoral commissions also set the boundaries of the electorates to avoid gerrymandering - political parties can make submissions on their preferred boundaries but the commission makes the final decision. They run the elections and use volunteers to undertake the voting counts - the political parties are completely hands-off in the process.
The combination of compulsory voting (which ensures high turnout s over 90% of eligible voters), independent election management, boundary setting, and preferential voting tends to elect governments that reflect the majority view of the population. Preferential voting is in effect a form of instant runoff voting that means that candidates are eliminated in turn until the final two remain based on preference votes and one candidate achieves 50% +1 of the total (or reaches quota in upper house elections). This reduces the chance of radical or unpopular candidates from being elected, as you need to ultimately appeal to at least half of the electorate. While this can lead to some pretty vanilla, unadventurous governments, it provides a level of stability and mandate for governments to get on with their program, however Australian's are usually smart enough not to give a government a majority in both houses, leading to review and compromise in the Senate, which often improves the final legislation. As each state elects 12 senators (usually 6 at a time as half-senate elections are the norm, held in conjunction with full HoR elections), there can be a diversity of candidates or parties elected, with the Senate often returning members from minor parties at either end of the political spectrum (e.g. Greens on the left and One Nation on the right) as well as a variety of independents.
There are signs that the traditional control by Centre Left Labor vs Centre Right Coalition (Liberal, National, Liberal National, Country Liberal, WA National, etc.) is starting to break down with the Greens gaining a greater number of votes from younger Australians and traditional Liberal seats falling to independents (e.g. "Teals" - Liberal blue tinged with Green) that we may be entering a period where left-right politics no longer dominates and that we will be more like many European democracies (or New Zealand) where multi-polar coalitions will be needed to govern in the future.
So, as you can see, Australian government and politics is quite different to that of the US - the centre of political power is to the left of the 'mainstream' Democrats and most Australians (60-85% or so) would find today's US Republican Party positively lunar! Things like Universal Healthcare, social services and women's rights are not on the table here and any attempt to do away with them would be electoral death. Australian society is quite heavily secular and religious based candidates (especially the religious right) are not very popular anymore.
Great answer!
Wow!🇦🇺
Whilst I broadly agree with what you’ve written, a couple of points need to be addressed/clarified.
The Judiciary - the appointment of Judges is political, at times both sides (Left and Right) have ‘stacked’ the deck.
For example High Court judges, technically they are appointed by the Governor General, but that is just a rubber stamp, because it is the Prime Minister of the day that makes the pick, over the years there have been ex politicians (from both sides) appointed to a High Court position by their political mates.
Compulsory voting - not an accurate statement.
If you are enrolled to vote all you have to do is to have your name marked off the roll (be that at the polling booth or a postal vote), but what you do with your ballot paper is entirely up to you.
You can make a proper formal vote, you can leave it blank, or write anything you want to spoil the vote, also, whist everyone is supposed to register to vote at age 18, there are people who have never registered and therefore aren’t on the electoral roll, can’t be fined if you aren’t on it.
Compulsory? Technically correct, but no one is forced to make a formal vote.
Cheers,
Love your knowledge on the voting and parliamentary system. But you said most Aussies are smart enough not to give a government a majority in both houses - not sure about this one…most Aussies don’t even understand the voting system. I wish ALL Australian citizens knew as much as you do, including me.
@@thegallantsaint2034 I was meaning collectively, not individually. There’s a significant proportion of (usually educated) voters particularly when voting for the upper house who vote tactically for minor parties or independents who contribute to neither side of the political spectrum having senate control. Indeed for two decades the Australian Democrats made it their main goal to hold the balance of power and “Keep the bastards honest”. But eventually they let their party base drift too leftwards and after Meg Lees made the deal with Howard to get the GST in place, their now left leaning base deserted them for the nascent Greens. Though their more moderate base was left homeless with the Howard era Liberals too right wing for them to return to (the original Australian Democrats broke from the Liberal Party due to its rightwards drift) and mostly ended up with Labor or independents by default. Australia doesn’t have a centrist party anymore but the loose assembly of Teal independents are others like Pocock serve a similar purpose. Both the Democrats and the modern Teals have an emphasis on integrity and fairness which both sides of the divide have been willing to trash over the last two decades.
I actually saw a snake yesterday as I was walking my dogs. We walked past it on the other side of the path and it didn't move. First time I have seen one for a long time -- and I live right near the bush. I mostly encounter spiders outside in bushes or trees or between them. I occasionally get bitten by insects I haven't seen, so it is possible they include small spiders.
Australia has a longer life expectancy than the US -- we are not unsafe.
It takes more flight hours to travel from Melbourne to Darwin than Melbourne to Antarctica. A bit of quirky trivia
That is a cool fact!
Malbun feels very close to Antarctica some days.
When I fly home to Thailand, half the flight is over Australian landmass
Toilets here don't waste gallons of water like in the US. They don't spin anywhere. They flush down.
I was a bit confused when you said you were trying to work out if Tasmania is a state? It’s not really a secret, you could look it up on Google or Wikipedia. Or every sign that says the State of Tasmania, which are surprisingly plentiful.
G'day!!! The reason for the toilet flush not being visibly the Opposite to in the northern hemisphere is that in the US your toilet bowls have a lot more water in them to begin with so over there the swirl on the way down is clear whereas here it is not... Sinks with a central plug hole are another matter here it goes clockwise while in the northern hemisphere it goes anti-clockwise... Aussie food? so you haven't tried any kangaroo or emu yet? Also have a go at some Barramundi which ia done in uniquely Aussie ways at many restaurants... A Pie floater is worth a try too... Cheers!
Vegemite on toast, chiko roll, pie with sauce, mutton bird…there are heaps of Australian foods.
You can *definitely* be on the coast and in the outback at the same time. For example, pretty much the entire coastal region from Darwin in the north to Geraldton in the West - a few thousand kilometres of it - is in the outback, with only a handful of large towns in between. It used to be called the Never Never.
Ahhh interesting!
The food question, i think was to know about the regular food and food quality , if the produce is better and such
Along the coast is where you'll find most of our population. In the outback is where Australia's danger lies. As you head inland, you usually pass a massive sign on the road informing you that your entering one of the most isolated areas on earth and insist on not proceeding unless you have a long list of supplies with you. Anything happens to you out there, and you are 100% on your own. Those who underestimate this can sometimes never be found again
I find it interesting when Americans are scared of Aussie snakes when America has their own fairshare of venomous snakes😂
Not to mention bears, cougars, wolves etc etc.
This stuff about Australia being full of life threatening animals is just nonsense.
Not to mention bears and mountain lions
@@carbine5378 But don't scare Americans by raising the topic of drop bears!
@@mkilpatr03The cougars In the cities, or in the wild? 🤣
Would I do that? Much better that they discover for themselves - perhaps walking to the shops one Saturday morning?
This myth that everything in Australia is out to kill you, I find really annoying. I have no idea how it started, but its is everywhere on youtube.
It is a fact that we have around seven of the ten most venermous snakes in the world, most are not aggressive unless cornered and have no escape route. You will very rarely encounter snakes in urban areas or even when bush walking. They generally see you long before you see them and will slither off in order to avoid confrontation.
Its not uncommon to see a Huntsman clinging to a wall in your home. They are big and may look scary , however they are harmless and most people just live in harmony with them or catch them and release outside.
We live in a suburban area of Sydney called the Upper North Shore, and about 20 kilometres north from the city centre and the same west from the coast. We're at an elevation of around 200 metres, and so our winters are quite a bit cooler than many of those in other suburbs, and while summer days are much the same as those nearer the Harbour, nights are noticeably cooler.
Largish gardens and lots of trees here and there's national park bushland not far away. Nearing 80 years old and over that time I've seen very few snakes in the suburb. Even then, they've been either in the train line verges or near a creek leading into bushland. Lots of spiders, though not many of them have been deadly. There is a largish spider called a funnel web, which can give a fatal bite. I catch one or 2 a year and take them to the local public hospital - they're taken from there to some works where they're milked for their venom; in turn, that is made into the anti-venene. There have been no deaths since the anti-venene was devised. Tourists are extremely unlikely to come across one. A much smaller spider has a red strip on its back. It's bite can be dangerous but again there's an antivenene.
Don't go surfing at a deserted beach unless you really know what you're doing. It may seem romantic, but there's no help around if you need it. All the Sydney suburban beaches are patrolled in summer months and it's very safe to swim there. It would not be a good idea to go bushwalking by yourself either. There are plenty of walks in the Blue Mountains along safe pathways. Stick to those and you'll have no problems. Venturing off them can go badly wrong, ranging from simple falls to fatalities.
Good advice! I live in Avalon Beach only about 1 km inland from the coast and you can feel it getting cooler as you walk home from the beach (as soon as you get away from the ocean breeze the temperature starts to drop) It's amazing what a difference it makes. And yes after almost drowning in a rip tide just south of Byron Bay when I was younger, I would also recommend sticking with the well patrolled beaches unless you are an extremely experienced swimmer or surfer and can read the conditions really well. Even then it's still best to always go in where there are a few other people around just in case of trouble.
@@l8bloomer Always swim between the flags if there are lifeguards on the beach. And if there are none, don't go swimming.
If someone is trying to kill a spider, it helps to go into another room, stand on a chair, and cover your mouth
:/
How do Americans deal with spiders and snakes in America?
@@leroyybrown by the way they act and carry on it would seem they don't have any...
Happy that your channel appeared in my recommended! Great that you are living the dream right now. If not done already come to South Australia sometime for a relaxing vibe 😁
Thank you! I have been meaning to travel to Adelaide, I've heard the food there is amazing!
Tasmania is a State.. Some certifications and stuff are "Federal" and cover you Country wide, like say a Uni Medical or Teaching degree, but some are State based like a builders license..
We have State Police for each State/Territory and Federal Police, a State Government for every State/Territory and a Federal Government.. No Sheriffs, State Troopers etc..
We have a left wing Australian Labor Party (like the Democrats) in Federal power in every State, apart from Tasmania ATM (which is up for an election).
We basically live in democratic socialism, and the Prime Minister is not like the President with veto powers.
The PM is selected by the party he represents, and we vote on our local Federal and State representatives in each electorate. Party with the most seats (after preferences) holds power..
We vote, in pencil, on paper, stick the vote in a fold up cardboard vote box, and dont whinge about the result.
We just come back 3 or 4 years later (State and Federal) and try again.. and have a "Democracy Sausage sandwich" for charity while we wait to vote.
The beach currents to avoid here are called "rips" and will drag you out to sea.
Easy to get out of, firstly RELAX AND DONT PANIC, and slowly and calmly float/swim/dog paddle parallel to the beach to get out of it..
Usually the most calmest looking bit of water at a beach (which you assume is safe) is actually a rip.. you can see a difference in the waves.. But always swim between the flags..
Hi, liked and subscribed from Adelaide, South Australia!
We do have Sherrifs in Australia. But they work for the courts, and mostly you would only deal with them if you are being served court documents, going to jury duty, etc.
Australian Food?
1. Fish and Chips similar to the UK and we have Seafood Restaurants that always have Fish and Chips and some have 6 different fish to choose from e.g Sea Perch, Whiting ,Snapper Barramundi Hake etc etc
2.Steak you can still get the original British beef here, Hereford, Angus and Red poll these breeds were here from the start. Good tasting easy grilling and because they are a cold weather beef slightly different tasting to the Northern Breeds e.g Santa Gertruda
3.Seafood: if you like your seafood This is the place to come No matter where you are on the coast there are always fresh seafood We do not have the extreme cold weather that the US has And we have 10685 miles of coast so there is always somewhere to throw a line in
4. Fruit and Vegetables :these days fresh as fresh can be. Particularly in the cities great fresh Markets all the time
Law and Order :
1.State police NOT town elected with the result we have better trained and vetted recruits
2. Not as Many Law Enforcement authorities here So fewer turf battles
3. Fewer states fewer different state laws
4. Courts we use the British System so read up about it.
Governance:
1. British :King Head of State but no authority Prime Minister if elected he can do more than two terms We appear to have a better sort of head of Government No ex PM has been taken to court yet.
2. Upper House and Lower house Read up on it if you are coming To me they are there, they generally leave me alone so I let them be.
Hope that helps, I live here and to me the best country anywhere My Greek father thought the same and My Viet wife as well .
You don’t have to be in deep water to see a shark - the majority of attacks happen in less than shoulder deep water - however, they are very rare - you’ve got more chance of being hit by a car than bitten by a shark - so don’t fret 😊 - Love the videos - so nice to see you’ve found happiness in Oz 😊😊😊
About the size of the States - New South Wales is nowhere near as large as Western Australia or Queensland. But when there is an Anglican (Episcopal) church service at the small dot on the map called Weilmoringle, the Rector flies out from a town called Bourke to preside. And where is the service held? It's held in the tennis shed. Bourke parish used provide services at a place called Tibooburra, an old gold mining town in the far north west of the State. It's a moderately popular tourist destination. The distance by road is about 500 km, but the road is so bad it takes a full day to drive. Is it any wonder that again the Rector flew out?
Tasmania is our island state, like Hawaii is to the US, but a damn sight closer.
Does Australia have states?
Fun fact: the Australian Constitution (1901) was heavily modelled in this regard on the US Constitution in the way that the states relate to the federal government. Each Australian state has its own legislature with some powers that the federal government cannot override.
Thanks Marissa - to give your friend’s some context Americas’s population is around 330 million where ours is approximately 27 million for the same land area - but over 80 percent of Australia is ‘deemed’ unsuitable for agriculture and sustainable habitation so we mostly live in coastal cities or nearby regional zones - the First Nations people ‘Aborigines’ happily live in these remote arid zones (65000 years now) - two thirds of Australia has less than 500mm of annual rainfall - btw Tasmania where I live is the most southern of five states and two territories (NT and ACT) - you will find we’re a strong sporting nation and maybe curious comparing our AFL football style and rugby to your NFL - I’ve actually been a Pittsburg Steelers/Philadelphia Eagles fan for 30 years now - you will find typical Australian food in our pubs (US is probably Bar, Tavern or Saloon) but every cuisine is available especially in the ‘restaurant’ cities like Melbourne or any city marketplace.
Melbourne probably has the best food in Australia Magnificent Pizzas in St Kilda
Im West Australian South of Perth and i loved the way you did this video.
😁👍 🦘
Thank you! I loved that area when I visit
Tasmania is absolutely it’s own state.
Just to clarify:
The size of Australia is pretty much the same size as the US.
Western Australia is around 1/3 rd of the US. Queensland, Victoria, ACT and New South Wales take up another 1/3 rd of the US. South Australia and The Northern Territory take up the last 1/3 rd. Tasmania is an island state just like Hawaii.
Aussie food is way better in quality than the US.
Despite what most people believe water does not go down a drain in the opposite direction. While high and low pressure systems are affected by the Coriolis effect, water isn't effected.
You're funny Marissa. You make me laugh.
To see the flow of water just watch your since empty. Use a plug. Fill it pretty high and when it low you will see which way it is swirling. Good video. From Brisbane Australia 🎉🎉🎉
Please get out of the burger joints. Australia has some amazing restaurants but there's this mad rush of so called gourmet burger spots. Great restaurants serving fresh local produce and if you ever want a good burger? Head to your local independent fish and chips shop and ask for one with the lot.
I don’t think Marissa is much of a foodie. I’m pretty sure that Australia’s food is far superior to that of America, especially our coffee.
Good advice to head to the independent shop for a good burger - much better than the mush from the big companies with the buns, which fall apart.
Best burgers are the Stand alone cafes especially in the country towns
Spend a few days in a small outback village roadhouse. Look at the stars at night. Research local First Australians in a quiet polite way. The outback is our best kept secret.
Anna Creek Station is a privately owned station (ranch) that is bigger than Texas.
Ooh,Anna Creek isn't bigger than Texas but to win that argument tell anyone the Antarctic territory is a great deal bigger.That takes the sweeties every time.
Bigger than Israel, not Texas.
It's about the same size of Great Britain, but not Texas
"How Big is Australia" -> The same size there-abouts as continental USA (Excluding Alaska)
If you ARE a strong swimmer you should still swim between the flags. Even strong swimmers can get pulled out by rips. Surfers can't surf between the flags, but they have surfboards if they get caught in a rip, they can go sideways and then paddle back in.
Well in some parts of Australia everybody is hot, even if they're not "hot", unless of course if they are in Air-Con, then they're cool 🤣
Oz is the same size as mainland USA with a little bit of Alaska.
I read somewhere once that we have a claim on about half of Antarctica which would almost double our size
Australian food is every food but we love shrimps on the barbie of course
Also you should definitely visit Perth (or even consider living there). It’s kinda like living in Los Angeles in the 1930’s, has a similar climate and beach culture and also has Mission Revival architecture. It has about 2.2 million people which maybe is similar to LA population in 1930.
People forget about Tasmania. Loveley place.
Love it there!
I must say I always have a chuckle when Mericans say they are too scared to come to Australia because of snakes and spiders.
Some Australian facts:
* On average, there are only TWO deaths per year from snake bite (from a population of almost 27 million).
* In the last 40+ years there has only been ONE recorded death in Australia from spider bite.
Meanwhile in the USA:
* There were approx 640 mass shootings in the USA in 2023.
* There were 40,000+ gun related death in the USA in 2023.
* In the USA there are MORE guns than people!
And yes we do have millions of registered firearms in Australia (firearms have never been banned here), but we do have sensible rules surrounding firearm licences and what types of firearms people can possess.
Being an Aussie, guess which country I’m going to be safer in? And it ain’t Merica!!
Anyway....
Cheers,
Yes, but you can still be scared of something even if it won’t kill you
Yes of course anyone can be scared of the unknown, I agree 100%.
But the belief (false belief) of many US Americans is that “everything in Australia is trying to kill you”, I’m sure you know by now that isn’t true, it’s a false stereotype of Australia.
Yet my point about gun violence in the USA and number of mass shootings and number of firearm related deaths is 100% accurate too.
What’s your view/opinion of gun violence in the USA?
Cheers,
@@MarissaDownUnderThe thing is you are absolutely right about the dangers from swimming in Australia. 99 people died from drowning in Australia between 1 Dec 2023 and 29 Feb 2024. Compare that to 2 deaths from snakes in 2023, and one man on 20 March 2024. Apparently he was trying to remove a snake from a child care centre. He did not have a permit or was trained to do that.
I am a little scared of some snakes - enough to be wary when walking in long grass in rural areas, but not as much as I used to be.
However I wish the internet would give up on the BS about our dangerous wildlife, and talk about the dangers of swimming.
Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory (ACT) are technically territories not States. WA SA Vic NSW Tas Qld are the states. The form of government is Federal (Commonwealth), State and Local.
And both the NT and ACT were originally not self governing and now both are self governing despite the ACT voting against it. The ACT does not have three levels of government - no local government level.
The spiders you need to worry about live on the ground rather than up on the walls like a Hunstman, in particular the Sydney Funnel Web, which is the second deadliest in the world.
when a huntsman wakes you up by walking across your face, it is quite startling. I teleported from lying in bed to the light switch. the spider was standing on my pillow looking very confused.
Australia is around 85-90% the size of the USA but with the population of New York. Aussies are so easy going laid back people. I lived in the U.S what I found was people are always on the rush on edge and they avoid eye contact.
I've noticed a lot of people in the US don't seem to know that the US and Australia are about the same size if you rule out Alaska and like the US the weather is different north to south but we are closer to the equator so it is a little warmer but not that much. Also the north is warmer than the south.
But certainly there is a very much smaller area where there will be regular snow falls than in the US _ and that's excluding the Rockies. Even in Canberra, an inland city at an elevation of a bit under 600 metres, snow is rare. That said, it has snowed in Sydney on a very few occasions. One afternoon about 35 years ago, we went to a favourite cafe for a coffee around 4 pm on winter Sunday and as usual, we sat outside. It was cold and we were warmly dressed. Suddenly, everything went quiet and it snowed lightly for about 10 minutes. There is aa photograph taken in the 1890's of snow on the shore of the Harbour, more or less opposite Circular Quay.
@@doubledee9675 the Snowy mountains dose get more snow than the Swiss do.
@@ianbrook7793 Yes, but I've never known if that means that there's a greater area under snow than there is in Switzerland, or if the area covered is to a greater depth.
Australian food is a sausage sizzle sold at a hardware store.
Thank you for this info
Oz is the only country that has more American residents compared with vice versa .
Australian states are huge , of the 6 states , 4 of them are bigger than Texas and 2 of them are bigger than Alaska .
I have quite a lot of contact with Americans due to my syndicated radio show, which is heard on 11 stations on the east coast of USA. I usually describe Western Australia tonAmericans this way: Imagine a line from Chicago due south to Texas. To the left of that line would be one state, called West Australia. That usually lets Americans get a good impression of how big it is. To Europeans I try to describe Australia as larger than all of Europe, stretching from the north of Scandinavia to Libya , west to the English Channel and east into Russia That usually has them thinking pretty hard about it
Perth to Sydney takes about 48 hours if you drive non stop without driving. About 4-5 hours by plane. Perth to Shark Bay is 10 hours by car. To Carnarvon is 12 hours.
Drive non stop without driving??
@@trekkie-cat without stopping... 48 hours if you went by bus in the old days before they stopped to Melbourne. Actually Perth to Sydney is longer.
Use lemon on windowsills & doorsteps - it repels all insects/spiders...Lol, of course Tassie is its own state...we tend to forget about them, though 😅
no no just fill up your sink and undo the plug and you'll see the water spin, it does spin in the opposite way. you'll find as you get closer to the equator the spin will seem to slow down until it starts to spin in the opposite direction. huntsman spiders don't bite, you can actually pick them up and they'll just freak out and probably run down to the inside of your blouse lol they still won't bite - they're actually very friendly, just depends on how you react, they'll either approach or stay still or they'll jump on you. just don't go picking up funnel web spiders, they will bit and you'd probably get sick and have to go to hospital haha. Now tassie is a state hehe what else would it be - gosh - you tried to figure that out?? haha
Yeah you know nothing about snakes until you step on one and when that happens - try to photo the snake ASAP, pray you have a kit (wrap), just wait for the airlift. It totally screws hiking in AUS AFAIC
Spiders are mostly a non-issue except for funnel webs, but unless you go looking to mess with them it's a non-issue.
Meat pies, sausage rolls, chicken schnitzel parmigiana, hot chips with chicken salt, burgers with beets, lamingtons, pavlova, vanilla slice and damn good coffee. As for toilets, when I went to the states I thought it was blocked being full of water. Our toilets don't swirl around because there's not enough water sin them.
I gotta say when I saw a loo in the US, it made me take a step back and think and consider my options....
@@andrewh.8403 Yeah they’re no good for us gentlemen when standing. You piss into this huge pool of water near the top and it splashes drops over the top. 🤮
A big "YES" for chicken salt, which makes hot chips (fries) taste so fantastic. I am amazed that this has never been adopted in the USA.
Hot chips double cooked in beef dripping with plain salt and or Vinegar That is how my father and three uncles cooked them for forty years
Yes I have heard that US coffee is not good Over brewed and they do not even have instant
I actually got bitten by a Huntsmen spider last week. Picking up my washing and grabbed it also. Imagine it was pretty pissed off.
Is it ok? Genuine question…they are awesome cockroach hunters so they are a loss to the home
Yes, Tassie is it's own state. Only New South Wales is older.
And we have a king, and a governor-general, and a prime minister.
Perth is over $2 million people and is known as the most isolated capital city in the world. Most of the population in Western Australia is in Perth. Bunbury also has a good population 2 hours south of Perth. Interesting that the map didn't include Bunbury. Technically the outback could actually be along the coast I believe. As you go up the west coast for example its very sparsely populated, with no towns more many kilometres and in parts the roads go nowhere near the coast. I'd say those areas are the outback too. Its wild and untamed and difficult to access.
She forgot to mention the ACT and the Capital of Australia - namely Canberra
And yes - beautiful Tasmania IS a separate state.
And did you know that MORE snow falls on the Australian Alps than falls in Switzerland. Try a winter visit in Australia to Thredbo (that means June/ July) to see how pleasant snow skiing is in Australian Alps
Sounds like she only eats at fast food places in Australia owned by USA conglomerates.
Australian food is much better quality and fresher
Also try watching the AUSTRALIAN version of MasterChefAustralia to see how many different cultures and very fresh healthy food is valued and respected in Australia
Vast majority of people will never see a shark. They're not creatures that want to be seen. Certainly they're along the coast but you're very unlucky if you get bitten. A lot of people of people swim in the ocean each day. But certainly over 30 years shark sightings and attacks have certainly increased.
Australia's dangerous creatures get too much shock/horror attention which is unfortunate. I live in an area with funnelwebs, redbacks, copperheads snakes, tiger snakes, red belly black snakes etc. Around here you are more likely to be cleaned up by a boy racer testing himself and his vehicle against some of local mountain roads. There is plenty of sensible advice out there on precautions to avoid the dangers of Australia. Maybe some American folk can give Aussies advice how avoid rattle snakes, grizzly bears, coyotes, wolves and heavily armed lunatics. Are they over rated in Australia?
I think it is the same where American wildlife is over rated in Australia, definitely not as scary just as it is not as scary when you are actually living in Australia!
Tasmania is a state. Slightly bigger than Florida. Florida has 29 million, Tasmania about 600k pop.
the canning stock route is the outback
I was so happy to hear that even the non-hot people are hot, as a non-hot hot person.
with toilets the answer is no they don't due to the amount of water in them. Yet with Cyclones and Hurricanes they both turn in different directions as Hurricanes are north and cyclones are south.
Where in Perth are you staying?
Tasmania is a state, the ACT and northern territory are territories not states.
Do toilets circulate in the opposite direction? Well…although Coriolis effect is in the opposite direction in the southern hemisphere, the effect itself is minuscule in terms of water in a toilet, so the answer is no, not really, and in any case, the toilets are different in design and use far less water than a toilet in the USA.
Australian food: Brunch... plus coffee (esp. in Melbin ;); also meat pies and sausage rolls. And as a not hot Australian, thank you for your kind words :)
Huntsman spiders: My wife and I drive up the driveway, she gets out to open the front door, I grab a few items out of the car, as she goes through the front door she turns to me and looks at me as if to say what do you want? I'm like what.? So anyway she turns around, as she starts to walk off I can see the mother of all Huntsman Spiders, the size of a dinner plate sitting in the middle of her back. I go stay still, she's like why, I said do not move. I realise I have the car keys in my hand so I aim at this son of a B and throw the keys at the spider but I miss. Now the wife is like what is it ? I said it's a tiny little spider don't worry I'll get it. I realise I'm going to have to use my hands, cue the hero music, so I rush up, and
That cow ring will make you fit in with all the livestock.
Tasmania is most definitely a state of Australia. Also A.C.T.
*Huntsman spiders make good house-pets* ------------------ Mine brings the mail in & drops it in my lap --- ✌😎
Yours is well trained. Mine gives it to the Drop Bear to make the final delivery.
Western Australia is 3.5 x the size of Texas
Just a bit of advice when “going bush” … Listen and watch for movement… while you may not notice a lot of our wildlife … it is all around you. Many people (especially city residents) don’t seem to notice them. Being a little more quiet and observant you will notice much more and possibly avoid being on the receiving end of something unpleasant. It is all very beautiful though.
Flushing/sinks: swirl direction is mostly random. Sorry
Tasmania: Yes, it is it's own state.
Size: Australia is about as big as the US.
Beaches: most are not monitored for sharks, or for drowning tourists. If you don't know how to spot a rip tide, then don't swim at unpatrolled beaches.
How did you find out about Tasmania being a state? Where do you go to find things like that? And how big Australia is, etc
@@peterbreis5407 I'm Australian, We learn our states and territories in primary school. But Wikipedia would also be a start.
For size of Australia - look up the website "true size of". You can type in a country name, and then drag it's outline over other countries on a map. Lets you compare their sizes.
@@peterbreis5407 Wikipedia is your friend......
@@doubledee9675 Actually I was being sarcastic. 🤷
@@peterbreis5407 Sorry, I missed that.
You would be a great asset to Australia hope U can stay here
Thank you, I plan to stay longer!
Sure, Huntsman spiders are harmless. Tell yourself that when it has been dry for a month or two and they come inside to find water. I dragged my half-asleep carcass into the shower some years back and was about to adjust the shower head when it moved. Unless you genuinely love arachnids, THAT will not be the best morning of your life.
Theres so many things to worry about,ive stopped worrying about any of it. She's getting the Aussie attitude 😅. I see heaps of spiders.. i just ignore them.We both do our thing and everything is sweet 😁
If by Australian food, you mean white people Aussie food (like 1980s Aussie food) then it would be stuff like meat pies, fish and chips, pavlova, lamingtons, roast lamb or lamb chops and veg and mint sauce or gravy. That sort of thing.
But yeah, Aussie food today can be anything from burgers and fries to pad thai to laksa to pasta to salads to doner kebabs to... just about anything.
Things like good Mexican food will be easier to find in the States because we don't have a lot of Mexicans because were a long way from Mexico.
This whole Australia is scary with snakes and spiders, which is quite funny. I'm born and bred in Melbourne and in my mid 50's amd have only ever seen 1 snake when I was on a hiking trip in Tasmania. Even spiders are very few and far between if you live in a City.
Welcome to Queensland
How long have you been in Australia?
6 months
Great work 👍👍👍
I’m more worried about the ever increasing cost of living in Australia than the snakes and spiders.
I’ve never been down to Tasmania….,or have I
🤔🤔
As a kid my dad always taught me that Huntsman spiders are: (a) harmless for humans and (b) our friends, because they get rid of nasties like mosquitoes. So lave 'em alone to do their thing...
You need to be careful of the deadly brown and yellow snake. My mate and I were told to look at the end of it's tail and go brown, yellow, brown, yellow, brown, yellow, brown, yellow then grab the snake by the neck and very carefully put it in a wheelie bin. My mate Steve wandered off by himself and the next time I saw him he was on a ambulance stretcher he had scratches all over him and half his cloths torn off. I asked what happened to you? He said that bloody brown and yellow snake. He said I saw part of it sticking out from a bush so I went brown, yellow, brown, yellow, brown, yellow and when I got to the other end there was a tiger attached to it. Apparently it had escaped from the zoo.😂😂🤣🤣🐯
If youre somewhere like Bondi, then yes, people will be hot. Or you're in somewhere like Wagga then they won't be as hot on average.
Yes Tasmania is a state of Australia
OOoooo and its "Yeh..... Naugh'
Huntsmans are chilled spiders. I had one in my bed once but didnt know it till i got out in the morning. I must of killed it in my sleep by laying on it. 😂 Wait till you have a Huntsman give birth as youll see about a 100 of them that are just micro hunstman. Sort of cute in a way and one would be no bigger than half your finger nail.
Why on Earth are worried about Huntsman spiders - they are not dangerous and they eat cockroaches. I don’t want one to run over me, but they are not that scary once you realise they are pretty harmless.
Please let Americans know Canberra is the federal capital not Sydney. A friends meet an American who has been to Sydney and refused to believe that it wasn’t the federal capital (he wouldn’t let her show him a map) 🙄
Auckland NZ is closer to Melbourne than Perth is
Australia has Prime Minister in Federal, following the British form of government. The Governor General is a figurehead largely and is a representative of the King. But basically the government of the day has the numbers or majority of the lower house, and that is where the prime minister is chosen. The upper house is the senate. Laws can be set in the lower house and voted on. Then signed off in the upper house. If you control both houses then you can push more things through.
Mainland Australia is about the size of the USA minus the state of Texas.