Comments by "Teagirl009" (@Teagirl009) on "IWrocker"
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Good vid. Ok, this whole "barefoot is common in Australia" thing.... It's actually NOT lol. Yeah at the beach and in parks people take shoes off. And maybe if they duck into a fish and chip shop on or just accross from the beach. Kids are more likely to do this. But I can't recall seeing any adult, in any suburbs/states I've lived in, in suburban shopping centres or supermarkets with no shoes. Also it'd be kind of silly, as the roads and footpaths get roasting hot here in summer!🔥. What you will see are a LOT of thongs, especially in summer.
Tourists that comment that it's expensive here are usually staying in the big tourist areas in the city or Bondi or the Gold Coast etc. And eating out at tourist trap restaurants , shopping at convenience stores or city IGAs.
Unless you're going to a very cheap country in south east Asia for example, then yeah travelling to any Western country can add up in costs. I found this to be the case while travelling through Europe. But I chose to stay in hotels around the cities as I was travelling solo for 2/3 of the trip.
There are plenty of cheap/affordable dining out and take away food options in Australia. Do a little looking or ask us locals 🙂. Local pubs have good meal deals, lots of cheap Asian cuisine available too.
Stay in cheaper small business hotels or air b&b a little bit away from the touristy areas. You can get some good priced 4 star accomodation if you look around and book ahead.
Or hire a caravan (RV) and spend some of the time on the road.
There's also a lot of free and cheap activities to do and places to see. Public transport is pretty reasonably price. And on weekends around Sydney for example or to the blue mountains or down the south coast, It's capped at $8 AUD, $4 kids ( age 3 & under free) - unlimited travel on all trains, buses, ferry's, trams.
We're outdoorsy, you'll find people walk more here too (or ride). Not jump in the car all of the time.
Our price tag includes tax for everything. When eating out, there's no tipping, higher wages.
I remember someone did a comparison to their overall cost of living in Australia Vs the US about a year or 2 ago (after moving here) and it ended up being about 13% higher than in the US. But with their income here being almost 40% higher, they still ended up better off.
Kaitlyn from Kinda Australian just did a video comparing US and Aussie grocery shopping.
Renting here and buying a home IS pretty pricey especially in the Sydney and Melbourne areas. Other areas and other states can fair better in that regard.
Buying a new car will cost more (as we sadly no longer manufacturer here👎).
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How dare they leave the Big Pineapple out!? Lol.
Off the top of my head, I've been to the the big pineapple, the big Banana, the big pelican, the big cow, the big shell, the big Stubby, the big merino, the big macadamia nut, the big whale, the big Ned Kelly, the big submarine.
My favourite is the Big Pineapple, just on nostalgia. Went there a lot as kid. They had steam train rides and an animal farm there . And macadamia nuts and great sundaes.
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Haha I remember being shocked when I came across the pay to use the toilets/bathroom thing in European countries.
That's definitely not a thing in Australia. Our taxes go towards public rest room cleaning etc. They don't get cleaned every hour here but most do get cleaned several times a day and re stocked.
Another thing I noticed in Europe is many bathrooms in fast food places like McDonald's, you needed a code to access the bathroom.( which you get as a customer). I guess to stop non customers using them.
I visited Switzerland, Italy, France, Germany, Austria and The Netherlands.
Loved them all for different reasons. The architecture is impressive . Switzerland was probably the place I felt the most safe and relaxed.
He's right the hotel rooms in Europe are generally smaller and the bathrooms tiny compared to Australia and the US.
The walking wasn't a big shock as Australia is very outdoorsy and we walk a lot or cycle anyways.(I got blisters though in europe because I just wanted to see everything lol). We're not as car dependent for everything unless it's for longer distances, interstate or you live in a rural area. We have good public transport in and around our capital cities and people living in these areas do walk a lot too. When I lived in Sydney til recently, we would rarely ever catch public transport from one end of the city to the other etc. You'd just walk everywhere. We'd usually only catch transport to go home. Or go across the harbour or to another suburb further away or something.
Driving everytime you leave the house for every little thing is considered a bit lazy and a waste of fuel. We generally like to be outside and there's lovely parks and stuff and low pollution. Even going to the local shops or pharmacy to pick up a couple things a lot of Aussies will just grab a bag and walk or ride a bike. If you're doing a big weekly shop or something then yeah you'd drive or catch public transport.
Cash is king? Interesting. I used cash for small things here n there but I used my card a lot and that was over 10 years ago. In Australia it's the opposite. We've become a largely cashless society. Most people use tap n go/paywave.
One thing I noticed was the prices for dining out varied a LOT in famous tourist areas, then you walk a few streets back and they were reasonable again. But that's like a lot of places. Dining around the opera House for example can be pricey.
The main tip for anyone really is don't be too loud or obnoxious, respect the local customs and rules. Don't constantly interrupt tour guides with a million questions on tours.
Some places you can't take photos. In certain museums and chapels/churches etc. So always read the signs and respect those rules. And some places you can't even talk in. Like the Sistine chapel in Vatican City. No talking or photos.
And like you say try to learn a few basic words and phrases. Most places appreciate the effort, Italians always were happy to see people trying and some would praise you lol. Paris not so much lol. They can be a bit arrogant and intolerant of others trying their best to speak French. They pretend they don't understand what your saying if it's not in a perfect french accent. I remember being mocked by guy working at the train station, laughing to his co worker about how I asked which train to Rouen. They pretended not to understand and made me write it down then laighed. Wankers. Also got told "better to speak English than not so great french". So then I reverted to English and got told off someone else for speaking English 🙄
A lovely person actually came up to me in Rouen when I was a bit lost and offered me assistance in English. I told her I was a bit wary of asking for help because of the people in Paris and she said they're known for being assholes even to other French people.😂
We tend help people here. I would never be rude to someone speaking in broken English asking for help. It's costs nothing to be kind. I often got asked for directions and help from tourists in Sydney. And was always happy to help.
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We need a formal treaty with our first Nations people. It's been talked about and promised by past leaders but we need action. We need a change in PM, away from this absolute flog. We need to start manufacturing more here including cars again, we need better internet and an efficient high speed train network between states.
More money and education on mental health! But honestly I think almost every country needs to do way more there.
Oh and way more financial investment in our fire fighting resources and capabilities and proactive measures for bushfire seasons and climate action.
Seeing Ian's interest on our country has made me also re affirm we need to know more about ourselves and our history.
We need more education in our schools about our full history (including our Indigenous/First Nations people) and not just our ancient but more recent history too. Last weekend for example, was the 80th anniversary of the bombing of Darwin during WW2.(19 February 1942). They live streamed the anniversary gathering. Yet it barely gets a mention. I don't think anyone on YouTube covered it aside from news outlets.
I requested it as a video topic several times recently and in the past but my comments remained overlooked. The discord link doesn't work for me so I couldn't request there. It's just something that doesn't seem to be taught much in schools outside of the northern territory. Or it wasn't when I was in school many years ago.
Many Australians and probably almost zero Americans even know that Australia was targeted and attacked for two years. Thousands died, 1700 across subsequent attacks according to Lt. Winspear (more than what was initially reported due to supposed cover ups /burying the stories). Not just Australian soldiers died/were injured, but also US military that were here at the time. My great grandfather was stationed in Darwin during the time, didn't return home until the war was declared over.
If you ask people, most know about Pearl harbour but don't know about Darwin. Even though more bombs were dropped on Darwin and more ships were sunk in Darwin. And the attacks continued for 20 months beyond Darwin and including Sydney, Newcastle, Townsville, Exmouth etc.
There's was also some crazy stuff that happened on Darwin after the air raids too.
Indigenous Australians also played an important, and largely unrecognised role during the war, helping with surveillance, maintaining radar stations and destroying unexploded bombs etc.
An awkward truth - the bombing of Darwin is a good watch or read.
https://vimeo.com/ondemand/thebombingofdarwin
As surviving 101 yr old former Lt. Brian Winspear said last weekend...."we must always remember to never forget".
Even if people want it forgotten or buried.
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