Observations

Being in a new place makes me a bit of a “Stranger in a Strange Land” and I get to observe things with new eyes. Even back home in New York I would notice odd turns of language or unintended meanings in things people say or in the names of products but in a new place there is simply so much material.

While the people in Australia speak English, it is not American English nor is it the English of Britain. I’ve tried to stay away from slang since it is too easy to get into the amusing things we say in slang.

The natural world in Australia is famous for having some of the most unusual flora and fauna of any continent in the world. This is because the continent of Australia separated from the rest of the world so long ago. I will say out front that we haven’t seen the main animals that Australia is famous for: koala, kangaroo, and platypus. We have seen some other interesting things though.

I think the largest changes for me have been in the way things work at home. Please understand, if I wanted things to be the same I would have stayed in the United States. Some of the differences are annoying and some are great. Some differences may be unique to our place but I wouldn’t know since I haven’t seen many apartments in Sydney.

Unrelated observations

Weight Watchers

Last revised: October 2003