One thing I can't help but find kind of strange about my current workplace is the sheer number of Australians and New Zealanders that work there. First of all, why do so many Australians come here when practically every Brit you talk to has some dream of living in Australia? Is it simply a case of the grass always being greener?
I have also heard some interesting tales about some of these Australians. I'm going to go ahead and generalize this as an Aussie thing because I have not heard of anyone else doing these things. My boss apparently interviewed an Australian last week. Aside from a rumor going around saying he was a bit odd looking, apparently he was just looking for six-months of contractual work so he could save up and then go traveling 'again'. This fits in with some tales of strange Aussie housing conditions I have heard as well. For example, a very large number of Australians sharing an apartment with at least 2 per bedroom and perhaps a few more people staying over in the living room. I can only assume this lifestyle is adapted again to support a substantial amount of travel. I should also add that this seems to be purely a phenomenon amongst the 20-something set, I don't think you find any 40 year-olds in those living situations.
Of course, I still have difficulty differentiating between Aussie and Kiwi accents. But now I think I can pretty easily tell the difference between English and Australian. Which was always a tricky one before.
In other news... I've added a couple photo albums to picasa. One covers a few pictures I've taken in the local hood, the other about 3 different days around London. I'll work on getting the captions up tonight!
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My kiwi friend says that a lot of people from down under work in England for awhile for two reasons: one, it's the homeland (think "Roots") and two, they can make more money there, then save up enough $$ (oops, ££) to travel before going home and buying a house and settling down.
I've been in one of those Aussie flop places in London. They seem to get along quite well. Lots of wine.
In Aussie land they get a 1 year sabbatical, I think designed to get them off the island to go see the rest of the world. So, they go to a smaller island(?).
The first Aussie I met in London was very difficult to understand. I was afraid I would never be able to communicate with anyone. I ran into him again later in the summer, that's when I realized he had a lisp. Who knew?
oi oi oi!
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