My comparison of US and Australia

Though I have been to Australia lots of times, this is the first time I am truly analyzing the close difference between the two countries:

#1 Accents

When I went on a journey to Australia there were many differences that I couldn't help, but notice.  Australia was way different than what I was used to.  One of the obvious things that I noticed was the “accent”.  And yes they make fun of the American accent.  Just ask my uncle: yogi bear in US is with a roll of the tongue and then in OZ it is Y (ou) gi Be”ah”.  Boy that was mortifying.  But after I got into the groove of things, I was used to the accents and didn't have to cock my head and have an expression like “what the heck are you saying?”

#2 The School Year

Well, immediately after meeting my cousins, apart from being butchered with questions, I learned about their school year.  I was all like “So are you on holidays?” And then they told me that their school year was from January to December.  I was shocked!  On top of that they barely had holiday time.  Their summer break was just 6 weeks and American is 10 weeks.  The winter break in US is 3.5 weeks and in Australia is only 2 weeks.  The number of school days in Australia is around 280 days compared to US which is around 175 days. 

Yeah, I was like “aww poor you!!!” I guess Americans are a bit lazy and like vacationing.  Also, in Australia there is not many budget cuts so having their school year cut even more is not necessary.

#3 Getting on the "Right" Side (Don't Do It If You Can't Drive!!)

After getting out of jet lag, my grandparents took us around town.  It felt super eerie having my grandpa driving on the right side because in the US that would be the passenger side.  Even like after 2 weeks I was like “Whoa!!!”  My mom adjusted to her home town and didn't even say a word on the way their cars were built.  It annoyed me a lot!!!  My sister didn't say anything either so it felt like I was the only one complaining.

Yeesh…  There were so many mortifying events.  The most mortifying however was when a friend invited me to go with her and I opened the RIGHT door and sat where the driver would usually sit.  Oh I was so embarrassed when my mom cracked up laughing and I had to glare at her since that was not humorous at all.

#4 Attitude

Finally, I am getting used to the cars and some of the stranger ways.  Today my grandpa took us all shopping. When ordering food at a restaurant, I noticed how nice the people were.  They totally helped me out when I couldn't find what I wanted.  Everyone also greeted each other with a “G’Day” or a simple “wave”.  People like me who are scared to ask people with “I don’t know questions”, aren't scared in Australia because of the way they instantly put you at ease.

Seeing their friendliness reminded me of an incident that took place at a burger joint in Portland.  My mom was ordering subs for us because we were hungry.  We didn’t know the method of ordering since it was very different to what we had seen in other places.  The lady behind the counter was really rude.  She rolled her neck like those fashion lady’s do and was like “M’am. Can I get you anything (with utter rudeness in her voice)?”  We just left the place without ordering anything because of the attitude she gave us.

#5 Expressions

My uncle is known for his wacky sayings and so are so many Australians.  Half the time, I just nod my head sympathetically and pretend to be listening.  Really though, my brain was screaming "WHAT IS HE SAYING?"  I even tried to project it  into brain, but instead he just plowed on.  There's one skill that the supreme master needs to work on.

Some of the slang words I have picked up are:
Bugger it (Leave It)
G'Day Mate (Hi)
Reckon (like the expression Harry Potter)
Chuck It (Throw it)
Arvo (afternoon)
Ta (Thank you)
Toilet (restroom)
Sheila (woman)
Slack artist (lazy)
Any name that ends with an "a" has a R rolled in. example Mayukha will be Mayukharrr

A mortifying event that happened recently.  My uncle was angry at the driver and was like "bugger", with an Aussie accent.  I thought he said "burger".  I was like "yeah, lets get some burgers!!"  He looked at me like I was a weirdo!!!  Imagine someone calling it bugger and me hearing burger!!!

#6 Cars and Mars

In Australia, I mentioned about the fact that the driver sits on the right side and drives. I must have been really dumb because a month after vacationing here, I noticed something while driving to Sydney. We were driving on the left! I was like "hey! You're on the left-hand side!" My mom looked at me with a "duh" etched on her face. I'm pretty sure that she would have said, "well where else do you think we drive! On the right where there are oncoming cars?" Thank the Gods she didn't say that because otherwise I would've answered smartly and gotten into trouble. So I just muttered "never mind" and accepted the fact that my brain was malfunctioning.

Also, Australia has something called Mars bars. It is a chocolate bar with chocolate and caramel inside. I personally don't like the bars and prefer the ice-cream ones. Why? Because they have Vanilla of course! And let me tell you, Australian Vanilla ice-cream is almost as good as my favorite ice cream flavor Cake Batter! That's pretty high standards that I'm talking about. So when you come to Australia, make sure you try their ice-cream and their other treats like:
- Lamington
- Vegemite
- Tim Tams!
- Mars Bars
- Cadbury Chocolate
- Vanilla Ice-Cream
- Burger Rings

#7 Style

When I went to Sydney, I noticed that my aunt played the radio when she was in her car. Usually, Indians would be playing Indian music so I was surprised to see her listening to the radio. My aunt told me that a lot of people play their radio in the car, including Indians. A day later, my cousin and I were in her car listening to the radio. Again. It was weird seeing all these things because in America, very few Indians even approve of the radio whereas in Australia, it seemed like everyone played it. Back in Melbourne, my uncle was listening too. Personally, I listen to the radio, but only with my dad because my mom gets really annoyed. Australians are also super cool and I like the way they roll. Another difference is that Australia also has different types of houses. All of them have scalloped roofs and they are brick built. All of them are spacious and cozy.  Looking back on it, I hope that it wasn't weird when I asked my aunt about the radio. My mouth was probably hanging open and I might have squeaked it out. Fingers crossed that didn't happen!

#8 The Parliament

When we went to Canberra to see the Parliament House, I have to say, I was very surprised. First of all, there are so many arguments that take place. In the House of Representatives, people were arguing with the Prime Minister himself! I mean, show some respect people! Also, the Speaker of the House was this old granny who thought that the people she was addressing were dogs. It was always "dismissed!" or "sit DOWN!" or "QUIET on my left!" Her voice was the most annoying voice ever and I doubt that she knows how to smile. I am so glad that I have a grandmother who smiles all the time and acts normal.

#9 Wonderful Wildlife

Australia is very unique because of the animals they have. They are especially famous for... Yeah you guessed it, kangaroos and koalas. In fact, Australians are often called "Skips" after some famous kangaroo named "Skippy." The song "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree" was written by the author's fascination for kookaburras. Kookaburras are beautiful and when you go for walks in the morning, you can sometimes hear them chirping. Another animal that is known around the world is the platypus. I love platypuses because of Phineas and Ferb. If you haven't watched the show, the story is fairly simple. There are 2 brothers who like to build stuff and always invite friends over to help. Their boy crazy sister always wants to bust them. However, thanks to some goon named Doofenshmirtz, their inventions always disappear because his world destroying inventions make them disappear. The boys' platypus Perry, is a secret spy and attempts to stop Doofenshmirtz. It is really funny and the platypus sometimes gets caught. A lot of kids watch it, including me. Australia also has some extinct animals like the Tasmanian Tiger. In 1936, it officially became extinct. Dingoes are really important to Australia and its history, since it arrived almost 4000 years ago. In the US, you probably won't see koalas or kangaroos in their natural habitat. You also won't find kookaburras just sitting in a tree.

#10 Troublesome Tomatoes

Every time that the topic of tomatoes came into play, I was always made fun of. Like when having fries, I would want tomato ketchup. I would pronounce it like "toh-mate-oes" and they would say it like "toh-m-ah-toes." When I come here for Uni, I hope that I get all the differences right. A few of the spellings don't even make sense! For example, the word "center" is spelled "centre" around the world. According to me, if you phonetically sound is out, it does not sound like "center." I do agree though that Americans put an "a" noise to words and that makes it sound nasal like. The British and Australians have an "ah" sound to it which makes it sound more proper. Then again, Britain is very posh and proper so it suits them. It's kind of funny because I would make fun of my cousins, but they'd be making fun of me behind my back so in the end, it would be a 4 against 1 sort of thing. Sometimes, it even becomes 5 against 1 because Laya would want to be part of the "winning" team. I was like "hello? What about me?" Oh well. I guess the more time I'm spending here, my accent is changing too. My mom says that my tone has changed and I even caught myself saying "bah-nah-nahs" at one point.