Road Tripping and Things I've Learned...

 

Since my last blog post I've logged over 25 hours of driving time as I road tripped from Brisbane to Cairns. I left a rainy, chilly Brisbane on Tuesday afternoon and started north, stopping in Noosa, where the rain let up just long enough for me to snap some pictures of the beach before heading on. At the end of my first day I made it to Hervey Bay, near the largest sand island in the world, Fraser Island. I had hoped to take a trip to check it out the next day, but it poured all night and well into the next morning, so I decided to move on in search of sunshine. I am still in disbelief as the size of some of the potholes on the A1 highway, which runs the entire length of Queensland. I would swerve to avoid one pothole and hit an even bigger one. It felt like the slalom course from hell!

On my second day the rain finally stopped and I took a detour to check out Agnes Water and the town of Seventeen Seventy. I saw my first Kangaroo along the road on the way in and pulled over like a total tourist to take pictures. When I reached the beach I watched these little blonde boys, probably no more than 7 or 8 years old, surfing up a storm, then grabbed dinner and took in the sun set before continuing on to Rockhampton. I decided not to spend my money on a hotel that night, so I ended up sleeping in my car. The next day I started off early towards Mackay, about a five-hour drive, where Jess had offered me a place to stay. I met up with her in a tiny town called Finch Hatton and followed her up a steep, winding road into the rainforests of Eungella National Park. I made myself giggle on the way up the mountain (approx. 1200m or 4,000ft) as I felt like I should have been watching for Viet Cong to lob grenades at me from the dense jungle. 

We made it to Jess' place, an adorable little bungalow overlooking the hills below, where I met her border collie pup, Archibald (Archie) and her beau, Todd. After some snacks and a few beers, she took me out on her Rhino into the forest. I don't know how many acres of land they have up there, but it stretched almost to the horizon. Evidently people come from all over the world to this particular area to see platypuses (platypi? hahaha). She made a delicious roast that night and I was sad to part ways the next morning, but I had a long drive to get to Cairns by that night. Jess, Todd, and Archie were fantastic hosts and cool people, so I will definitely be back to their piece of paradise again. I made it into Cairns Friday night around 7:30. I'll have more to say about Cairns in my next post.

 

Now for things I have learned since arriving in Australia:

 

Let's start with Football. Rugby/Football, better known as "Footy" is a BIG deal here. First off, there are three distinct types of footy, Rugby Union, Rugby League, and Australian Football League or AFL, which I will explain as best I can.

Rugby Union is probably the type that most non-Australians think of when they hear rugby and is also the kind played most in other countries. Rugby Union, as I understand it, is primarily played at University, but I'm pretty sure they have professional teams as well. This type of footy relies heavily on the scrum (scrummage), the part where the two teams huddle and push each other around to restart a play. They also do the thing where they lift players high up in the air to catch the ball. If I remember correctly, Rugby Union players wear sleeved t-shirts and decent length shorts.

Rugby League, on the other hand, wear skintight sleeved t-shirts and seriously short shorts. Rugby League, I'm told, is probably the most popular form here in Australia. It is played at all ages, all skill levels through football clubs. I'm still figuring out the club aspect, but basically you play in a club as opposed to the American Football (they call it Gridiron) way of playing at school or in college then getting drafted to a professional level. Rugby League doesn't use the scrum as much to restart play, instead the ball is kicked backwards for your teammate to pick up and run with. It is all about moving the ball forward and is very fast paced but easy to follow. On July 4th, the final game of the State of Origin will be played. This is the last of three games played between Queensland and New South Wales and it is probably on par with the Super Bowl with regards to the hype and fervor of the fans. It is basically an all-star game with the best players from the professional teams representing their state. Queensland has won something like seven years running, but I hear they have their work cut out for them this year. I already have my State of Origin outfit all picked out, I can't wait!

Lastly, we have AFL. These guys wear sleeveless t-shirts and play on an oval shaped field. Like Nascar, the diehard fans of this type of rugby tend to be a bit trashier, which brings me to the next important thing I've learned...Bogans. 

 

Things Australians Say:

Bogan is a derogatory term used to describe someone who is, for lack of a better term, white trash. 

Bludger- a term for someone who is lazy or lives off of government handouts.

Ute- a truck (Utility Vehicle). It seems like everyone in Australia either owns a Ute or a Hatchback.

Shout- a round of drinks (i.e. last shout, who's shout?, I'll shout, you shout)

Schooner- a small glass of beer. Perfect for me!

Fillet, not filet, FIL-IT. As in a fish FIL-IT, a Steak FIL-IT. I had an aussie laugh at me for about ten minutes when I told him we call it a chicken FIL-A.

Flat White- Like a latte only less girly. Seems to be the coffee of choice

How ya goin'?- Australian version of "what's up?" or "how are you?” I'm still not sure exactly how to reply. 

Good on ya- Means "good for you" or "well done". I get this a lot when I tell people I'm traveling alone.

Taking the piss out of someone- (i.e. "I'm just taking the piss outta ya") means having a laugh, pulling your leg, making fun of.

Abbreviations with "y" or "ie"- Brisbane becomes Brissy, Breakfast becomes Breaky, Chicken Parmesean becomes Parmie, and so on

Roundabouts, same as in the states, only here they are EVERYWHERE! Keeps traffic flowing and helps to identify stupid foreigners who don't know where they are going (me). 

"Moving Radar" I learned this one the hard way. Cops can track your speed even when they are going the opposite directions. SERIOUSLY?!?!

Last but not least... Rooting- American "root" for their home team. To Australians, rooting means having sex. Talk about a misunderstanding!