Footy Fever in Oz

On Saturday September 29, 2007 the AFL grand final is on. It is the equivalent to the Stanley Cup in Canada and the Super Bowl in America. It features a Victoria team Geelong (Cats) and a South Australia team Port Adelaide (Power).

Even though Footy is now a nationwide sport in Australia, it first originated with Victorian teams – called the VFL (1897 – 1989). In 1990 it was changed to AFL to encompass teams that had moved to other states and future teams that would be in states other than Victoria.

Many people in Melbourne have this love-hate relationship with the other states. They believe it’s their game, similar to hockey in Canada vs. the US teams. A lot of Victorian people will be supporting Geelong, unless they barrack for Port Adelaide.

It takes place in the afternoon at about 2:20pm at Melbourne’s MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground). Close to 100,000 people will be in attendance with many more thousands wanting to attend but having to settle with watching it on TV.

If you are out of luck to attend then the next best thing is a BBQ. On grand final day one of the customs is to have a BBQ to celebrate the occasion. Then sit back and watch the game with friends and family.

Although part of a cultural and sporting experience in Australia; I will not be watching as it does not interest me. If at home I may tune in to see the opening or end of the game.

I will be supporting/hoping that Geelong wins. One because they are a Victorian team, two my friend Liz barracks for them and finally like the Toronto Maple Leafs they have not won a Grand Final in a very long time. 44 years to be exact, just 4 more years than the Maple Leafs drought of 40 years without a Stanley cup. So I hope they win and make it possible to believe in a future of a Stanley cup for Toronto.

Multiculturalism in Melbourne

In my first post I had a list of pros and cons of living in Melbourne. Under cons I listed Melbourne thinks it is Multicultural when it really isn’t.

I have been thinking about this and wondering if I really should have listed that as a con. I wonder if it was my experience of living in a really multicultural city of Toronto for 28 years has made me elitist.

Toronto has been at it for 40+ years (for immigrants other than Europeans)

How long has Melbourne been at it ? I don’t know!

I shouldn’t be cynical or elitist in my view about Melbourne and it’s Multiculturalism. It is after all the country of Australia.

I am happy that there are other people from around the world living in Melbourne. I am happy (or my stomach is happy) I can get a pizza from the local pizza shop or Chinese, Thai, Indian, Spanish, Afghan, African, Greek, Italian, Moroccan or Modern Australian(inspired from cuisine around the world) from many restaurants in and around Melbourne.

On Saturday night Lauren and I wanted to have dinner out in our local neighborhood. There are 2 Indian restaurants there. The first one we tried, which has a capacity of something like 50-70 people was fully booked.

I think Australian’s also like the change it has brought to their country.

So what if it’s not what I consider a Multicultural society? At least people from all over the world are living together in the same city. There are positives in that, one of which we can all experience – Food.

Words and Slang in Oz

As I mentioned in my first posting Aussies like to shorten names. Here are some examples:

Darren – Dazzer
Sharon - Shazzer
Catherine - Cath

But they also have there own unique words and slang, I suspect a lot of which comes from England and from the Aboriginal and the mix of the 2 cultures.

Thanks – ta
Sandwich – Sanger
Afternoon – Arvo
Football – Footy (refers to Aussie rules)

Know these words and you will have no problem conversing with an Aussie:

Barrack – to support (used in a sporting sense)

I Barrack for the Maple Leafs

Dag – a funny person, nerd or goof
(generally used to describe a way of dressing down)

I look like a dag today

Fair Dinkum – true, genuine, the real deal

This is fair dinkum maple syrup from Canada

No Drama – Same as no worries

Pash – to kiss

I saw Dazzer and Shazzer pashing in the car

Rock up – to turn up or arrive

We rocked up at Bec’s house half an hour late

Ripper – Great, fantastic

It was a ripper party

Slab – a carton of 24 bottles or can of beer

We rocked up with a slab of VB and the party started

Thongs – Cheap rubber backless sandals

Grabs your thongs and lets go for a walk

Whinge – to complain

She’s such a whinger

One last thing, Aussies love to use the word Whilst. Where as Canada and US may use the word Where as or While. There is something about Whilst that is ingrained into Aussie vocabulary and language. So if you come across this word on a website and it's used frequently you can bet they are Aussie.

Cars in Oz

I have never owned a car, but since being in Oz I have fancied buying one. Anything from a Mercedes or Audi to a Toyota Corolla and Mazda 3. I think 3 things have factored into this: 1) watching Top Gear, 2) using public transit (that sometimes is unreliable) and 3) seeing cars/models that come to Oz first or don’t exist in North America.

Toyota
I remember when I first arrived in Melbourne and seeing various models of Corollas’. There was the standard 4 door sedan (that’s avail. in North America), the 4 door hatchback and the 4 door wagon. Plus the various sub-models (Ascent, Conquest, Levin). All of these sub-models are just upgrades. Then mid-year the new Corolla was rolled out, the new hatchback and sedan. They looked more sporty and exciting than the previous incarnations. Toyota markets it as the Hottest Corolla ever with European styling. I know that next year or 2009 these will appear in North America. The sedan will be the new Corolla and the hatchback will be the basis for a new Matrix which I believe is being phased out for a new model.

Honda
In Oz there is no difference between Acura and Honda, all cars are sold as Honda’s. I noticed on Acura Canada website the RSX is no longer sold. I think I know what the next incarnation will be. Here it’s called the Civic Type R. A sporty 2 door Civic car with a really pronounced back. It’s just been released here in Oz.

Also I have noticed a 4 door Civic Hatchback. But it has phased out since 2001. But I think it’s a car that would have sold in Canada.

Holden
Holden is Australian brand of cars but owned by GM. You don’t see many GM cars, only the cars that are genuine GM or well know brands – such as a Hummer, Cadillac, Saab.

Seeing these cars that are not in Canada has made me more interested in cars. But just on a technical or information level. I really don’t have an interest in buying a car. But it interests me in how things work. In terms of the cars that are released and marketed around the world. It seems they are first relapsed in Japan, Asia, Australia and Europe first. Like a beta test and then the models are released a year or two later in North America. But it seems like North America get’s the short end of the stick. There seems to be more options available here in Oz and the cars seem to more aesthetically pleasing.

About Bloody time!

I told people I would do a blog and here it is finally. It's been 8 and half months since I have been in Australia. Being here for that time period I have formulated some thoughts and ideas about being down under. A pros and cons list, so here they are:

Pros:

• Great restaurants and cafes in Melbourne.
• The lane ways - filled with restaurants and cafes, it's like finding a hidden city
• Lots of bike paths and parks - a great city for outdoor activities
• A river running through the city - great to be able to walk or bike along the river
• Federation Square - a big open area where many social/cultural/music events are held
• Free digital SD and HD TV. There are 5 channels you can get in digital format for free, just need to buy a digital box. All the major US shows are shown, along with British programming and of course Aussie programs (Spicks and Specks! - Rocks)
• Prices include taxes, so never have to wonder what the total will be with taxes
• No pennies, prices are rounded up or down - 2cents or less down, 3 cent or higher up
• Tipping not mandatory

Cons:

• Public Transit service - not the best. Trains not only service the city but outer suburbs. Not enough trains, times when trains are cancelled. During off peak times you have to wait 20-30mins for trains
• Local shops - like Fish and Chips, Chicken and Pizza places close way too early, 8pm or 10pm for the Pizza shops
• Expensive Broadband (mainly due to location and infrastructure)
• Shortening names or creating nicknames for people/places/things - sometimes it's endearing but really it's because they are lazy. The little girl called Pumpkin is a great example
• Public transit officials not very accommodating! Had to run for a bus for 800 meters thinking it would stop at the corner to pick me up.
• People drive to fast, lots of accidents and deaths from driving
• Melbourne thinks it's a multicultural city because they have lot's of African (refugees), Asian(Indian and Oriental) and European (Italian, Greek, Eastern European). But it's not really, compared to places like Toronto, New York or London. Just grab a train at the end of the work day and 80% of the people are white. There are lots of people from all over the world here, but it doesn't feel, act or look like a multicultural society.

Well after 8 months here that's my first blog entry. I will be commenting about my time here Down Under and other musings on life.

Cheers,
Navin