Fry & Laurie fan here, cheers for the stroll down memory lane :)

As far as cities go, I have only lived in one (Sydney) and have spent a fair bit of time in Melbourne and Brisbane. I'm not a fan of cities but I enjoyed my stay in Brisbane as it was smaller, greener, warmer and people generally had a cheerier disposition. My favourite place there is New Farm park; a space I dubbed 'Crow Park' due to the hundreds of crows that inhabit the place.

That is pretty nifty that you were introduced to GOG through this country. It was a friend from Norway who introduced me to this site. I did meet him when he lived in Australia before he returned to his homeland.

As for open spaces, that is one thing I love about living here. We have one of the lowest population densities in the world, albeit with large tracts being 'uninhabitable'. 3.08 people per square kilometre or 7.98 per square mile. That is about 1/10th of the USA, almost 1/100th of the UK, or about 1/50th of the population density of where you are(Indonesia going by GOG).

I was expecting replies about the danger of our wildlife here. An environment is as dangerous as one's lack of knowledge about it :) Then again the colloquialisms of "She'll be right, mate!" and "No worries" do not always ring true, and "shit happens" is a part of life(and death).

Thanks MunkiSiren(<3) for posting this topic, and thank you everyone for your replies. Anything and everything is helpful. The Doors of Perception create our reality, and it is that perception I am after for this research. Some of the most feared dangers in this country are easily avoidable, and some of the most innocuous beings are the most deadly. There is a reason that Eucalyptus trees are known as window-makers!

The funny thing is...In my 18-month stay, I never met a single spider, and I lived in the suburb.

Thanks for the list! I am very partial to a Scottish accent too, and I blame Heather from Glasgow and the 3 other Scots I lived with for a few months many years ago. Having a gorgeous lass say in a thick Glaswegian accent ask me if I wanted her(I'll keep in line with Australian censorship and won't say her exact words :P) is a memory that I will carry to my grave :) I'll never forget singing The Bonnie Banks o' Loch Lomond whilst drinking on a train to Bondi Beach. I actually developed a partial Scottish accent myself from spending so much time with them!

I have read some Terry Pratchett but had no idea that there was a Fourecks continent - classic! Definitely an inspiration to read the rest of his works :)

Oh and "Aboriginal" implies ownership and "Aborigine" refers to the people, albeit very vaguely. For example, an Aboriginal woomera(spear-thrower) owned by Pemulwuy the Aborigine. Generally the indigenous peoples of this land prefer to be identified by their clan or people, which is generally defined by geographical area and blood relations.

Such a shame that you never met my favourite spider the northern tree dwelling funnel-web spider. I've never seen one in the wild, but I did come across this beautiful female Sydney funnel-web when collecting firewood. Like most creatures, they are harmless when approached the right way. If you enter their territory, respect it. If it is mating season, gives those males wide berth! The same goes for many species, especially our own :P

The only spider I have ever had issue with is the White-tailed spider. Regardless of what that wiki article speculates, I can confirm first-hand that their bite has the potential to cause a necrotic skin reaction! From what I can tell, it appears to make the site prone to a bacteria that causes the necrotising reacion. I was off my feet for 2 weeks and the wound took almost 3 months to heal! My main reason for not liking those spiders is that they prey upon Black house spiders who are friends of any home in Australia, given their propensity to keep the bugs away :)

Mostly that when I read IGN articles if it said that an IGN AU member wrote, it generally was a much worse sign than if anyone else did. No offense to Australians, but your IGN team made the rest look good by comparison some days.

The oilcan known as Fosters.

I know there are very strict gun laws and that it used to be an English penal colony and some of the best actors and actresses come from there. Beyond that I am clueless and willing to admit it.

Now that is strange... you know of Australia's importance in the third world war, which means you have a good guess of where the whole shabang will largely take place... you don't, do you?

I've already said too much...

Well, I'm working on a sizable business deal in Australia, so I may find out first-hand in a bit.

In the meantime, all I know are the usual bits... everyone is named Bruce, AC/DC kick ass but aren't actually Australian, your anti-piracy laws used to be lax so lots of bootlegs used to be made there, that kind of thing. I think Dingos eat babies down there, too.

And thank you soooo much for the dreaded "Neighbours" and "Home and Away" too!

(Not a soap fan here :-))

Bogans

I just assumed The Road Warrior was a documentary. Was that not correct?

3 things I think of concerning Australia

1. Ned fuckin' Kelly

2.Aboriginal peoples being displaced:/

3. Surprisingly good grindcore bands like Captain Cleanoff

yeah, it was a doco on how modern day Australia came about! =P

Let's see...

"Good on ya, mate!"

Lots of government social programs

No more ozone layer

Walkabout

Aussies vs. Kiwis

and "Bob's yer uncle!"