Australia Chest Thumping
International Talk Like a Pirate Day! Avast ye Beauties!
Brwaack! Polly want a cracker? … Oh, wait. That’s for Talk Like a PARROT Day. Har Har Har! Well, Australia is a land that is surrounded by the sea and is rich with stories of daring sea exploration. So in honor of the day that all good fun loving people should enjoy! I dedicate this post to the silliest international holiday of them all!
Click here to see how to celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day at Work
Pirate Personality Test: Answer the questions and Get a Pirate name! Check out mine!
My pirate name is: Captain Ethel Kidd: Even though there’s no legal rank on a pirate ship, everyone recognizes you’re the one in charge. Even though you’re not always the traditional swaggering gallant, your steadiness and planning make you a fine, reliable pirate. Arr! I like it!
Top 10 Pirate pick up lines as abridged somewhat for family viewing from TalklikeaPirate.com (that site has tons of fun Pirate stuff!)
Pirate lingo is rich and complicated, sort of like a good stew. There are several other sites that offer glossaries that are pretty good, and you can find some of them on our links page.
Top Ten Pickup lines for use on International Talk Like a Pirate Day
Date: September 18th, 2007 |
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Sydney Explorer- Save Your Money
Getting around a strange city in a way that is cheap and easy is always a god send for travellers. The Sydney Explorer is not one of those. I paid the $32 (you can get a week pass for that) and took the ride one Saturday when I felt like playing tourist. I’m a fan of bus tours to some extent. Occasionally it is nice to sit back and let someone else worry about traffic while they tell you the history and interesting facts of the area. Expecting this to be the case- I was sorely disappointed in the State Transit run Explorer.
The ticket is expensive and they don’t really tell you anything about what you are seeing- little to no information on the buildings, history, architecture, bits of interest etc. It is essentially a very expensive shuttle service. I would not recommend this service to anyone visiting me.
Date: February 28th, 2007 |
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The Australian Spirit in Elle Macpherson!
Do do dodo do doo dooo… refrains of MC Hammer’s Can’t Touch This are running through my head! Elle Macpherson, Australia’s very own “Body” and supermodel is too fast for a London mugger. Australian’s are known as a cheeky brash group- and good on em! While getting ready to attend a Move for Aids chairty ball in London November 10th, a masked thief snatched her hand bag. Not one to stay down from a fight- she snatched it back. Can’t touch this….. Ah the spirit …
Date: November 12th, 2006 |
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Australian Tourism Funnies! Watch out for the Drop Bears!
The questions below about Australia are from potential visitors. They were posted on an Australian tourism website and the answers are the actual responses by the website officials, who obviously have a sense of humour.
Q:Does it ever get windy in Australia? I have never seen it rain on TV, how do the plants grow? (UK).
A: We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around watching them die.
Q: Will I be able to see kangaroos in the street? (USA)
A: Depends how much you’ve been drinking.
Q: I want to walk from Perth to Sydney -can I follow the railroad tracks? (Sweden)
A: Sure, it’s only 3000 miles, take lots of water.
Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in Australia? (USA)
A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe. Aus-tra-lia is that big island in the middle of the Pacific which does not… oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night in Kings Cross ……Come naked.
Date: October 22nd, 2006 |
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Oz Survival Guide to Food- Chips, Crisps, Chilli and Chicken?
One thing I have always enjoyed when travelling to far and distant lands is checking out the local junk food. Even with different states in the US- there is regional variation. I do have to say- awards go to Texas for some of the most inventive corn chip flavours. ANYWAY… back to Oz.
Upon arrival here- at a pub…as one does… I took my turn to buy bar snacks- ie. Potato Chips. I came back with two bags of plain salt flavoured because I was uncertain about the popularity of the other flavours. I was immediately met with massive disapproval and scolded for my humanitarian efforts to sober us up a bit. I was very coldly informed- “Aussies like any flavour of chip EXCEPT boring old plain salt chips!” My tail between my legs… I tucked that piece of information away and watched them proceed to eat the boring old salt chips anyway. While some of you may be saying that sounds a bit harsh… you’d be right.
In an effort to spare any of the rest of you the same social embarrassment- May I suggest: The Aussies love their sweet chilli and chicken flavoured chips the best. (I know I know… it sounds gross). Chips at a pub tend to be around $3.80 and they give them to you in a bowl for sharing.
Date: October 12th, 2006 |
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How Well do you speak Aussie? A fun Quiz.
They got me on this one! I got 15 right which qualifies me as…
“You’ll be apples! Well… nearly anyway. You will communicate fairly effectively with the native population, but they will still mutter “bloody yank” when you walk out of the pub”
Well if the shoe fits….
How well do you speak Aussie? Take the Quiz
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Date: March 13th, 2007 |
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MMMM Tuurrkkeeeeyyy! See you in December!
OK Gang! Happy Thanksgiving! I will be State Side until the beginning of December. But don’t worry! I’ll be working on new and exciting things to post for when I get back to OZ!!! if there are topics you would like to see covered, please feel free to post a comment. MMMMM Tuuuurrkkeeeeyyy!
On a travel/Ex Pat related note- a few of the things from home you can not get here- the fixings for a pumpkin pie (unless you make it from scratch (just not the same …
Date: November 21st, 2006 |
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I said “Supa Centa!” Where to find storage solutions in Australia.
When I first arrived into Sydney I had a very humbling exercise in race relations while trying to find storage solutions for my bathroom. I have already written about the variety stores which can be found in almost every strip shopping center in OZ- most of what I needed could have been found there- but alas- unlike you lot- I didn’t know about them at the time.
I had moved into a fully furnished apartment but the new modern bathroom had no where to store anything- modern, shiny and stark- I was afraid my tooth brush would eventually make a swan dive into the toilet. I set out to find…storage solutions! As a standby- I figured I would go to Ikea. The Ikea I was able to locate in Sydney was down near Moore Park. So far I had been unsuccessful at our North American standby- Target- for what I needed. I figured out which bus to take and headed down towards my adventure. I asked the first bus driver who was of Asian decent- how to get to ikea- he said “ah yessss…you need the Supa Centa. You walk and you will see sign…” He told me which stop to get off- and away I walked looking for a sign that said “Super Center”
Date: October 29th, 2006 |
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Coffee in Australia- a land of extremes.
Ahhh the endless search to find a great cup off coffee and a great place to enjoy it. Funny- enough- that is my theory on travel-(and in fact the migration of people around the globe)- the search for new food… or in this case- beverage.
Australia is a land of extremes- lush tropical regions juxtaposed with desert- and the coffee is the same. The average workplace juice of life or the kind you would have at home, is total $#%$%^%. You might think I am being harsh…. But wait till you have tried it. Freeze dried coffee…how do you say…. Ick? No wonder they have to drink it with milk and two sugars! ACK! I think it is actually capable of stripping the enamel off your teeth. Seriously- you are likely to encounter the instant freeze dried coffee on the road, in work places, and at people’s homes. The Driver Reviver locations generally have this too. Known as a “cuppa”- you generally drink it with at least milk.
Date: October 18th, 2006 |
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Organized Sports and Travel Insurance
While in Oz or other places overseas- do you plan on skiing, snow boarding, water skiinig, surfing- or mega worry- play organized sports? If so…please look at the terms of your travel insurance very carefully.
I am sure you all have heard- the Aussies are MAD about their sports. If you are planning to spend anytime in Australia and are sporty at all- you will be faced with the opportunity to play organized sport of some sort- a corporate comp, a neighborhood comp or even a club team. I …
Date: October 4th, 2006 |
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