How to Speak Australian

Seeing as I haven’t been up to much this week beyond statistics, GIS, and hanging out at the University pub, I decided this would be a good time to talk about general aspects of Australian life. Before I arrived here, I (like any freedom fries loving American) knew very little about ‘down under’ other than it is a large island populated by crocodiles, kangaroos, and drunk people who talk funny. After two months of living here, I can say that all my conceptions of Australia were entirely accurate, except I now know they also drink a lot of tea.

Australia is, indeed, a large island. Almost unimaginable large, in fact. It is the size of the continental US, but has one tenth of the population. There are huge expanses of land crossable by only a few dirt roads and dotted with a gas station every couple hundred kilometers.

Tank at a roadhouse on the Cape York Peninsula. Amy took this photo.

Early morning at the Weipa Mission site

 Crocs and kangaroos really are all over the place. Most of the kangaroos I’ve seen, however, have been roadkill. Australia is also – literally – crawling with poisonous spiders and snakes.

This spider was at our campsite.

And here's how to speak Australian. This is all you need to know to get by for a couple months:

Winge – Complain

Struth – Damn it      

Pissed – Drunk

Stonkered – Drunk

Bowgie - Shower

Tosser - Jerk

Cobber – Friend

Bewdy – Nice, man

Taking the piss – Making fun of

Beanie – Hat

Jumpah Leads – Jumper Cables

“What are you after?” – What can I get you?

“I can’t be bothered to…” – I don’t feel like…

“How ya goin’ mate?” – How are you doing?

Lollies – Candy

Tah - Thanks