Well we are close to a half a day behind Australia over here in London of course, but with January 26th fast approaching I’m feeling somewhat homesick. I think overall Australia Day is probably my favourite holiday on the calendar, and probably means the most to me personally. A sense of good will tends to just pervade the country and people from all walks of life. I know some people don’t like the jingoistic nationalist side of it all – certainly sometimes things can get a bit over the top. But on the other hand, I don’t see anything wrong with exhibiting a touch of pride in the nation either.
In any case, I thought I would put together a quick list of the things I miss about Australia. In no particular order, but having said that, it’s not like I’ve randomised the list either:
- Friends and family
- The weather and more specifically the sun
- Wearing T-shirts (perhaps an addendum to 2)
- Driving
- Fabian Society seminars
- My home
- The cacophony of birds in the trees
- The lack of an aristocracy in the very British sense of the word.
- Kebab rolls – it’s just not the same over here or anywhere in Europe.
- Food courts. The concept has apparently not arrived in the London CBD as yet. You need to learn to like sandwiches.
- Psuedo-Portugese chicken burger franchises.
- 375ml cans of soft drink (as opposed to 330ml)
- Drinking tap water (with fluoride). It’s mandatory filtering over here unless you like heavy metals.
- The silence on CityRail trains as compared to the constant announcements on the tube. Really!
- Playing sport of some description.
- Australian accents.
- The ABC
- Watching the cricket on lazy Summer afternoons.
- Plastic banknotes that fit in your wallet.
- The abolition of 1 and 2c pieces.
Although it somewhat seems like I am scraping the bottom of the barrel, in reality I’m probably just a bit warped. I could go on for hours. Whatever you get up to on Australia Day, I hope you have a good one.
Not a bad list, Guy. Last year, in Indonesia. my list was somewhat shorter, but included things like:
- going to the footy
- road rules
- ABC radio
- Chinese restaurants (none in Nias!)
- having a local pub (as opposed to a bloody karaoke bar!)
Now why am I online when I could be sitting in a beer garden somewhere? You avagoodone, too.
The taste of Sydney tap water and kebabs were two things for me in the US. That and good Australian beer. I wanted a Coopers so badly once I got home.
I had a good one as it turned out… in Bilbao in Northern Spain.
To add to that list, I also miss JJJ and the Big Day Out.
u can’t drink tap water in London? really? crazzzzzzy.
Guy, just for u we’re going to be eating OPORTOs for dinner
I am sure you probably can, but I really wouldn’t recommend it. You will taste the difference in a big way coming from Australia. Limestone builds up on our iron and kettle if we don’t filter the water we use.
…
Jealous!