Aussie Quirks

Since arriving in Australia, I haven’t had much of a culture shock necessarily since it is an English-speaking, developed country. However, Australia does have its quirks – some commonly known to the rest of the world, others not so much!

One of my favorite things about Australia is the laid back surfer lifestyle. “Shirts and shoes required” is not a thing for most businesses here. Back home, I never questioned it because I’m always so cold… why wouldn’t you wear at least 3 layers of clothing with wool socks and a jacket? Now I understand – not everyone lives in the tundra we lovingly call Michigan.

Sitting in a coffee shop by the beach, people walk in with wet suits, swimmers, rarely wearing shoes, and carrying the occasional surfboard. It still surprises me a bit when someone walks in with wet suit half on, smelling like the ocean, and talking to the barista about the surf!

Though not the most difficult, the hardest thing for me since getting here are that there are a few Aussie-style words that completely confuse me. It leads to me giving people that “what are you talking about – oh no… my American is showing isn’t it” look.

Here are some of my favorite Aussie words and phrases that are a little different than how we say them in the US! See if you can figure them out 🙂

how you going?

swimmers

capsicum

coriander

arvo

lift

pram

 

Other words that just bring me joy but make total sense are: doggo (and anything else that is shortened and ends with -o), bloody, recon, washing, and of course, the classic: g’day mate.