1. The Nanny State
2. Trends
3. Miscellaneous Nonsense
- Fire extinguishers and fire blankets are mandatory in all places where there are electrical appliances. Even when there aren’t any stoves or hot plates in sight.
- Australian sockets have a switch above them that controls the current.
- School children have to wear a cap or a hat when outdoors. And until recently it wasn’t hot or sunny.
2. Trends
- Almost half the people that I have come across here are vegetarians. Lots of them are vegans. As a result, they always serve vegetable lasagna at parties. And no, it doesn’t taste good.
- The full dress uniform of the Victorian police dress is Scottish. I have asked some Scottish people if the police dress the same way over there. I understood something. They said yes.
-
The moustache is a clear trend among young adults- so much more so than in Spain. The Dread Pirate Style moustache from the Princess Bride is especially popular
3. Miscellaneous Nonsense
- A couple of blokes who were sharing a pool with me for a couple of hours, were yelling “ tsunami” instead of “bomb” before they did a bomb-dive (cannonball) I into the water. A possible interpretation of this is that in Australia they focus more on the consequences of the act rather than the act itself but then again this naming convention is not consistent as the “juicio” in “ muelas de juicio” ( literally molars of common sense/reason) is called “wisdom” here ( muelas de juicio=wisdom teeth).
- In many workplaces-mine included- there’s a “biscuit club”. Someone will be in charge of making and bringing in the biscuits while the others munch on them, singing their praises yet not listening to a single word when then conversation turns to the recipe. Well at least in my case anyway.
4. “Applause”
Every two months in the different urban
districts there are celebrations for those foreigners who have just become
Australian citizens. They are each given a flag and a seed to plant a tree in
Australia. No idea what they do in
Spain, but that it is really
elegant. They’re celebrating that you are joining them.
Photos: The first photo is of the park next
to my house which is a playground for the nearby schools. The second photo is
taken at the Remembrance Day celebration at my workplace, in the afternoon
after a bagpipe concert- ideal working conditions.
