On my travels I’m always asked a lot of questions about life Down Under. These range anywhere from amusing to somewhat misinformed ideas about Australia. It’s probably an experience repeated across the world for all nationalities. But as I’ve been away the last two months and been asked many of these again I thought it might be worth sharing them.
Don’t you kill and eat your kangaroos?
Yes to both. Larger kangaroos are plentiful across the country and aboriginal people have always hunted them for meat and their hides. Kangaroos are still shot for their hides, their meat and to protect grazing land. Kangaroo meat is available for sale in supermarkets and particularly in the Northern Territory – try it, you might just like it!
Pic: AP.
Can you see kangaroos and koalas in the street?
If you live in a rural area yes you will most likely see them – you’ll also have to avoid hitting them on country roads. In the city they are obviously more rare although I have occasionally seen them in a park about 10 kilometres from my house in inner city Brisbane. But if I drive about 15-20 kilometres out of the city there is a region where I invariably see a lot. Once you get out of more inhabited areas you will also see things like emus walking by the roadside, crocodiles in the river (eek) in northern parts of the country and lots of other native wildlife. Koala sightings are rarer as the population is smaller and the best place to see them is in wildlife parks and zoos or national parks.
It’s hot down there right?
Well yes and no, it depends largely where you are and what time of year it is. The coastal regions are largely more temperate than the centre but again it depends if you are north or south in the country. Winters can get surprisingly cool. We don’t have snow storms and bleak weather (there are some in the mountain) and winter is largely our dry season. Do check out the seasons and temperatures before you go.
Is Australia all desert apart from the coast?
Largely the interior of Australia is arid and dry, however it’s not necessarily classified just as desert. Most people do live near the coast because it is more temperate and fertile but that doesn’t mean you should fear heading inland. The desert regions of the country are particularly beautiful and well worth seeing – if you’re uncomfortable travelling through these regions alone then join a tour.
Pic: Jo Lane.
How long does it take to get there?
This again depends on who is asking you and where they live. Most assume it’s a long long way – but good places are worth getting to right? From Asia it can be 8-10 hours. From Europe up to 24 and from the USA it depends where you are leaving from.
I heard you have some sort of problem with wild animals?
Some animals have caused a lot of problems in Australia that perhaps foreigners don’t appreciate – I recently met some people that fell over laughing when they heard we had a rabbit proof fence used as a pest exclusion zone. After this reaction I didn’t bother explaining about the dog fence.
Rabbits and dingos are amongst the worst threats to farming and fences used as pest exclusions have been established across the country to keep them out of other regions – these are several thousand kilometres in length. It may well be laughable to others but the farmers out there don’t find it amusing to have their fields or animals destroyed. The people mending and checking the fences also work in searing conditions in summer and freezing temperatures in winter.
Feral camels and cats are also problematic.
Is the Great Barrier Reef dying?
There have been some environmental effects on the reef of late such as coral bleaching due to rising sea temperatures, pollution, the prevalence of crown-of-thorns starfish and some shipping accidents that also damaged the reef but it is still very much intact. If you’re at all concerned, go and visit it now!
Pic: AP.
Did you have to fight for your independence from the British?
Before federation Australia consisted of six separate British colonies that were already self-governing. The biggest opposition to the idea of forming a whole nation was from within the colonies themselves not from Britain. But once the majority of people in the colonies were Australian born (the late 1880s) this idea gathered steam and eventually secured the birth of the Commonwealth of Australia. So there were no physical battles for independence maybe because it was a different era and all parties had learned from what happened in places like the USA (I’m not a historian and this is a simplified view obviously).
How expensive is Australia?
Unfortunately this is not going to be a welcome answer to a lot of people coming to Australia at present – given the high Australian dollar and the struggling economies in Europe and the USA. Prices have risen dramatically in the last decade particularly in Sydney and Melbourne that rate in the world’s top 10 of most expensive cities according to a recent report by the Economist Intelligence Unit. Brisbane and Perth are also in the top 15.
Aren’t Australians loyal subjects of the Queen?
Well we don’t really look at it that way. Certainly not in the way the question is often intended. Australia is part of the Commonwealth and the Queen is the head of state in a figurative capacity only. We are self governing.
Can I drive from Brisbane to Cairns and then Alice Springs over about three days? (from a European friend)
You can drive anywhere you like in Australia but it will probably take a long time. And the route mentioned above will take a lot more than three days. Sydney to Melbourne is about 900 kilometres (10 hours), Sydney to Brisbane is 900km (11-12 hours), Melbourne to Brisbane 1700 kilometres (20-21 hours) and Brisbane to Cairns 1700km (20-21 hours).
Is your capital Sydney or Melbourne? (increasingly less frequent question fortunately)
No it’s Canberra. Probably one of the world’s least known capitals.
