Things I've noticed - am I right?

It is my belief that pommy is derived from pomegranate as follows:-

the English are a seedy bunch as is a pomegranate.

Gozmo!!!!!!!!

Can't sleep?
Try some of that red wine stuff!

OK here's a few thoughts to start with, there's nothing mind-blowing - its the often-unobvious differences that make the biggest difference to your life. As for my life with TAFE, that has just been finishing, hence the v busy reference - local Govt here I come...

Life here, Sydney that is, is different, mainly from the climate. The sunnier, warmer weather means people here take the outdoor life as read, and I love being outdoors, esp if the sea is involved. I like not having to think about what I'm going to have to put on when I go out - will it turn cloudy and rain or is the sun coming out? Its not often that this city gets four seasons in one day - which I understand to be Melbourne's speciality.

The people are different here, laid back and friendly, and that reflects in the pace of life. Even in the middle of Sydney, its nowhere near as quick as London. It took me 11 months to come down to the pace of life here, yet when I went back to Blighty in Jan, it took less than a day to come back up to speed. Its just what I'm used to.

Business, in my experience, happens much quicker in the UK.

But Sydney feels a much safer city than many others in the UK - I've no fear walking around late at night and I think many European imports might share this thought.

Food - I've already said that I don't think I've had a bad meal in Australia - From Geelong to Cape Tribulation. OK, I not gone looking for it, but even in some seedy-looking roadside joints, the food has been edible and tasty. Try that in the UK, and you might as well eat floor sweepings. The UK has become better recently, but the standard is still patchy.

Beer - This where the UK whips Aussie butt. The UK has hundreds of breweries, and the style of beer can change within 100miles. Its not all served warm, in fact it should be served at cellar temperature, which means flavours can be detected rather than being frozen out of possibility. Other European countries also beat the Aussies stuff - France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Spain...

Wine - because the UK is not a major producer, it is a major importer and hence has a huge choice - Aussie, NZ, California, Chile, Argentina, as well as other Euro stuff. Australian wine is great too, but sometimes a change in style is nice.

OK - there's a selection to start with - pick out what you will, misconstrue anything I've written to your own end, and generally tell me what you think of it all.

Cheers

Looks like you have mainly positive things to say, imapom.

I couldn't agree more with this, being from Melbourne:
Life here, Sydney that is, is different, mainly from the climate. The sunnier, warmer weather means people here take the outdoor life as read, and I love being outdoors, esp if the sea is involved. I like not having to think about what I'm going to have to put on when I go out - will it turn cloudy and rain or is the sun coming out? Its not often that this city gets four seasons in one day - which I understand to be Melbourne's speciality.

Yes, it certainly IS our specialty! Today we are in wonderment at the first serious experience of rain for months! In the middle of a serious drought. <sigh>

This might sound a silly question, but do you think living in a different culture changes you? Do you look at things differently, have your ideas changed? What do you make of politics here in Oz? (you don't have to answer that one if you'd prefer not to! :wink: )

Oh, & do you get any "whinging Pom" digs? If so, details, please!

And have you told anyone that UK beer is superior? How did they take that?

I've got some colleagues in S Vic - so I've heard all about today's weather...

Living in a different culture does change you - the difficult thing is to try not to compare. You can't help yourself sometimes, but if you live somewhere different, you live somewhere different. It's getting your head around accepting what is around you and how things work that's important. But it is good to be able to discuss the differences every now and then.

Politics in Oz - I've got a bit of a grasp on it, and have followed Howard's inevitable downfall over the last year or so as he has tied Australia to the UK and US with Iraq. The scandal with the G-G last winter was a new one for me - but scandals in politics happen everywhere. Politics here is state-driven, which I think is a shame as the outside world only sees Australia, not NSW, QLD, VIC, etc, and that each state doesn't have very large poulation to drive it.

Whinging Pom digs would be one of this country's national pastimes - get them all the time and generally give back as good as I get, or just shrug and say something like "Oh, how bloody original"

Have told anyone who will lsten abot the beer - all I speak to here presume that Brtish beer is warm and flat - not so. It has much more flavour and there is a greater variety of flavours than anything I've found here. Beez Neez (from Perth), James Squires (Sydney), Hahn, and Cascade are my faves here, but its just not the same, sob....

I expect the main difference here is due to the climate. Beer here is mainly supposed to be a thirst quencher. If your lips don't freeze to the glass, then it ain't cold enough. In places like outback WA it's served mainly in 7oz glasses (called ponies) so that it can be drunk quickly. The idea being the weather's so hot that you've got to drink it before it evaporates!

imapom said:
Living in a different culture does change you - the difficult thing is to try not to compare. You can't help yourself sometimes, but if you live somewhere different, you live somewhere different. It's getting your head around accepting what is around you and how things work that's important. But it is good to be able to discuss the differences every now and then.

Of course you compare! It's only natural. And Oz is most likely very different than you thought it would be. But, when in Rome ..... I acknowledge that it must be very difficult at times. Often Australians can be very defensive of anyone who appears to be critical. Yet we keep asking how you're liking it!

Politics in Oz - I've got a bit of a grasp on it, and have followed Howard's inevitable downfall over the last year or so as he has tied Australia to the UK and US with Iraq. The scandal with the G-G last winter was a new one for me - but scandals in politics happen everywhere. Politics here is state-driven, which I think is a shame as the outside world only sees Australia, not NSW, QLD, VIC, etc, and that each state doesn't have very large poulation to drive it.

I'd be interested to know why you think politics are state-driven .... For example, in a case like Howard's support of the US, or the G-G issue.
(A thought, though: Maybe be the country is physically so big & the population so dispersed that maybe different regions might respond differently to some issues?)

Whinging Pom digs would be one of this country's national pastimes - get them all the time and generally give back as good as I get, or just shrug and say something like "Oh, how bloody original"

Oh, I'm sure it IS a national pastime! I think it stems from the "10 Pound Poms" who came here (because of pretty dishonest Oz advertising in the UK in the 50s & 60s) & expected utopia & didn't get it! A fault on both sides, really. The British were seen as still treating Oz as a colony & believing themselves to be "superior", expecting a lot for very little personal & financial investment. For some reason all the petty Brit. complaints ( & sometimes they were ridiculous & unrealistic) received a lot of media attention (good copy, maybe?). And Australians reacted angrily & defensively. Things have changed a great deal since automatic residence in Oz has become a lot more difficult & maybe we've grown up a little, too?

imapom
When you talk about local government - you haven't been elected to council or something, have you???

Now that would be telling... :wink:









Nah, that would drive me nuts!! I lack the elephant hide and desire to hear my own voice.

As for Wilso's point on beer, I understand why its served cold and in small glasses, but there are air-con bars and red wine is OK at higher temperatures. I'm sure that if proper ale was made here and served in the right places it would get a following. Maybe its just accepting that beer can be different to the cold fizzy stuff served in most bars.