Top 6 Things To Know When You Move To Australia

 

1. Cover up!

The UV rays down here can do a serious amount of damage to your skin. Australia has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world and even just half an hour of direct exposure to the sun can lead to a very nasty burn. So as counterintuitive as it may seem, cover up when you are outside and wear sun cream. As any Aussie will tell you; you can still get burnt on a cloudy day.

2. To the left

We may keep to the right on escalators despite driving on the left hand side of the road, Aussies drive on the left and stick to the left.

3. Have a drink, or three! and You Probably Can’t Keep Up

Aussies do love their booze, and on a hot summer’s day there they go through it like its water. While you can certainly abstain from alcoholic beverages if you like, expect at least some light-hearted teasing if you do. If you are ever stuck for a gift idea down under, a bottle of grog will usually do the trick, and no, there is no such thing as it being ‘too early’ for an alcoholic beverage.

4. "Fair go, no worries, Straya"

Words you'll hear all the time. Meaning give it a go and don't worry about it.

No worries can be used in all contexts. Say thanks, 'no worries'.

No worries can be used instead of 'you're welcome', when you have caused discomfort to others, when you have caused discomfort to yourself, as a passing snarky remark,

5. Australian slang and nicknames

Shall we play a game of translate? Let’s break it down – “I got this eskie on sale this arvo…” = “I got this cooler for free this afternoon”. “…doesn’t matter, still good as” = “doesn’t matter, it’s still as good as new.” The Aussie penchant for the phrase “(random adjective) as”, really confused me for the first little while. I kept waiting for the rest of the sentence. Good as what? Nothing, is what I learned. That phrase doesn’t really end, it just is. And the “But”? “But” is an acceptable way of saying “however”, at the end of a sentence. Sentences ending with “but” are not unusual, but they do make my inner grammar nerd cry.

While we’re on the topic of grammar, let me talk about the nicknames. Sooo many nicknames. Fun fact – if your name is John, as soon as you set foot on Australian soil, you become “Jono”. You could also be a Rob-o, a Dan-o, a Dave-o. If you are British, you are immediately a Pom. If you are American, you are a seppo because Americans are Yankees. Yankees are Yanks. Yank rhymes with Tank. Septic Tank. Sep…Seppo. Okay?

And then there’s bickie, Chrissie, dero, footy, garbo, journo, mossie, pokie, rego, sickie, sunnies and Tassie.

6. Everything will threaten to kill you

This is not a joke. You will at some point encounter the native fauna and flora and yes they will threaten your lives in one way or another. We're talking about spiders, snakes, fish, sharks, birds, drop bears, marsupials etc. All the cuddly cute creatures that you see may not be as they seem. Do not let your guard down and if you're in the wilderness and encounter any of these, just walk away. No time to even think about killing them (nor should you...repeat, do not kill the wildlife).

Now after that good scare, still want to come to Australia? No worries, we've got you covered! (See what we did there?) Get in touch with us today and see how our personalised visa report can lead you to Australia in easy, simple steps!

 

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