How to be an Aussie is an art form and the Aussie characteristics are quite unique. Australia is an exceptional country and so are its people. I am not saying Aussie, Aussie Aussie .. whatever, but we did certainly put on a good Olympics didn’t we?
We all know that we were not the 1st people here, and that the Aboriginal people have been here a long long time before we white fellas. However, we all share many characteristics unique to our diverse land. We are a country of mongrels.
We have lived in Australia all of our lives, so really know no difference to our lifestyle. What we have done however, is travel extensively for many years. This serves as a good basis for understanding similarities and differences.
A spot on summation of what it is like be an Aussie
Contents [hide]
- 1 A spot on summation of what it is like be an Aussie
- 1.1 On being so multicultural
- 1.2 The Aussie character
- 1.3 Is Australia expensive? Australia is expensive.
- 1.4 Why are we so easy going? So why are we so laid back?
- 1.5 Our unique Aussie sense of humour
- 1.6 Sports of course is very important in how to be an Aussie
- 1.7 How we enjoy our down time
- 1.8 Championing the under dog
- 1.9 So …
Dorothea Mackellar wrote about her love of Australia in the early 1900’s when she was in England and desperately homesick; and she was right on the mark
[easyazon_link asin=”0767903862″ locale=”US” new_window=”default” nofollow=”default” tag=”wwwcontentravel-20″]In a Sunburned Country[/easyazon_link]
I love a sunburnt country,
A land of sweeping plains,
Of ragged mountain ranges,
Of droughts and flooding rains.
I love her far horizons, I love her jewel-sea,
Her beauty and her terror – The wide brown land for me!
She captured what is Australia, a land contrasts, and it goes deeper than the geography of the country.
On being so multicultural
Australia is such a multi cultural society anyhow that it is not difficult or indeed unusual for us to have family and friends from very different cultural backgrounds. The school that I taught at had 46 different cultural backgrounds represented. We don’t know any difference, but what we do notice is other countries where the multiculturalism is not particularly present or accepted.
That is not to say that things between the various cultures in Australia are always smooth. It isn’t, but in the main it does work well. For us to go out for a meal, the big decision is which cuisine we will try whereas we have noticed in some countries there is just the one cuisine. We still do like our meat pies and vegemite. We also get to experience so many different festivals and different ways of doing things from all of the different peoples.
The Aussie character
In defining what our characters are like, we are a mongrel breed – a bit of this and a bit of that. One thing that I think that is universal is that we are pretty laid back, have a great if irreverent sense of humour and we are really very friendly and embracing of anything and anyone. As in any country we have our die hard people of ultra conservative views, but in the main we are a pretty liberal country.
Is Australia expensive? Australia is expensive.
I suppose because we travel so much that when we arrive in a place that we have been forewarned is expensive, we do not find that to be the case. The reason being is our benchmark is so high. There are however ways to avoid paying so much for things. There are so many free activities and free sights that if sensible, Australia will not break your bank. Read some of our posts to assist you get more for your money; there are hints on free things to see and do.
Why are we so easy going? So why are we so laid back?
Well the weather is really very good. A lot of sunny days and our winters are many other peoples summer days. Most people like the beach and the majority of the Australian free cialis without prescription population live around the coast of this bloody big island. The red centre is hot and dry though quite cool in the evening. If you want to meet some very dinky di Aussies, stop at a local pub and have a chat. They will talk back for sure. Shout them a beer and they will never shut up and I know that that is a generalization, but I also know that I am not far off the mark. We also realize that we are far away from many places and we are known as the land down under – maybe this makes us not care what people think so much. Also when we travel most people will say, “are you Austrian?” and then, “such a long way away”.
Our unique Aussie sense of humour
We take the piss out of everyone. No one is safe. If you are an American we call you Yanks and we have some fantastically derogative things to say about you. We refer to English people as Poms, well really whinging Poms and we have a go at them constantly particularly around the cricket season. NZealanders cop some full on bagging mostly to do with their fascination with sheep. Look it up, we seriously do go them. Everyone is a target of our humour or wit or whatever. Don’t take it personally it is just something that we do that is not in the slightest racist. Quite the opposite actually.
Sports of course is very important in how to be an Aussie
We are sports mad, full stop. It doesn’t matter what sport, Australians are into it. Australian’s also like putting a bet on anything that might have a chance at winning; check out the cane toad races in northern NSW and Queensland and you will understand my point.
How we enjoy our down time
We like to socialize with others and we do have a lot of BBQ’s because the weather is conducive to this. Australians in the main are very good with different foods and trying different cuisines. Gone are the days of the meat and 3 veg that the Poms gave to us. We like a beer and we like very good Australian wines. That is said with and without bias as we do excellent wines as do our Kiwi neighbours. We have a good work/lifestyle balance that I think is more unique to Australia.
Championing the under dog
I have heard us called cheeky and this is totally right. With the exception of our indigenous population the Aboriginals, most of us can trace our routes back to our convict family members sent to Australia for inane crimes in the main. You know what, it is a bit of street cred to be descended from a convict.
We champion the under dog pretty much always. Ned Kelly, a bushranger, on paper might not have necessarily always done the right thing, but we think that he had the right intentions, so we like our anti heroes a lot. Even when he went to his death, before he was hung he said “Such is life”.
We are pretty awful to our high achievers, unless they are sportsmen, but we tend to cut down anyone who gets too big for their boots. Tall Poppy syndrome.
So …
I think that why we work so well as a culture is because of all of these things. We are indeed a blended culture and a mongrel breed country and we love it. So I hope this has helped you to know how to be an Aussie.
I like your article despite the fact that some people say that Australia is not accepting of other cultures. I come from Slovakia and spend my twenties in England, in the end I became British as I was sick of people really looking down at me as some sort of dodgy Eastern European (which I am not, really). To my surprise when I came to Australia I was no longer treated as that “dodgy Eastern European” people seemed very friendly and acceptable of my background and interested in what my story was (not all of them of course, but majority). This was in Sydney, so I guess that’s more multicultural. Now I live in Brisbane and I think it’s slightly different in terms of accepting different cultures, but still better than poms. After all I am pretty happy here and as long as you are treating that other person the way you want to be treated, you’ve done everything you could to get the best out of people.
I know that there are still pockets of intolerants in Australia and I am ashamed of that. I really don’t get why other countries are not as accepting of anyone. I am pleased you are here.
Great article and I think you described Australians well, although a bit on the positive side, as unfortunately I don’t think we are as embracing of other cultures as this sounds which upsets me (as an Australian) regularly. Unfortunately, the current political situation and the horrible racism that seems to fuel elections in recent times make me quite ashamed to be Australia.
I do think as a whole we are reasonably tolerant of other cultures. However, I don’t think tolerance is a great thing at all. I think we should be embracing, not just ok enough with people being different. I actually think Australians need to actually think twice about using words such as “tolerance” in regards to multiculturalism as if that’s a great thing and think about what tolerance really means. That should be the minimal level that we strive for as a nation, not the ultimate.
I think that I retain an idealistic view that others think as we do – I worry also that Australians are becoming less embracing. Your points are all valid.
Hi Paula,
I am not really sure that Australians are all that tolerant. It was not the impression I got when I used to take my children to Australia on holidays. Although brought up bilingually, they don’t have Okka accents which did not always go over well. I can remember a very disparaging remark from a young man in his thirties about my small daughter’s clothing – too “chic” for him obviously, though her outfit went unnoticed in France.
There is often an assumption when Australians are travelling that everyone in the world should do things the Australian way, not that they should adapt to the country they are in at the time, while other nationalities are criticised if they don’t immediately fit in with the Australian culture.
I also think the Tall Poppy Syndrome can prevent people from going forward in life because it isn’t just applied to people who get too big for their boots but to anyone who happens to be more gifted than others or who are interested in “non-Okka” things.
Australia is definitely expensive in areas which seem incomprehensible such as food and wine where the Tall Poppy Syndrome seems to have disappeared.
Also, over the years, I have come to see that the “laid back” side can also mean a lack of efficiency. I have struggled
But that does not stop me appreciating the basic Australian “mongrel” character as you call it and being happy to go back there every three years or so on holiday. When describing Australians, I always speak of their open friendliness, which you have not mentioned, but that I think is really one of their most endearing traits. They are also very caring and will go out of their way to be helpful even when they don’t know you (which would be considered to be interfering in France).
So I’m looking forward to my next trip!
It disappoints me when I hear of anyone, particularly people from my own country being intolerant and that is not acceptable on any level. I always idealistically hope that with being so multicultural that people have become more accepting of similarities and difference – both at home and away:) I also agree that our Tall Poppy issues are problematic. It seems if you can’t kick a ball or hit it with a bit of willow, then in Australia you don’t count. Thanks for your comments.