The Aussie sense of humour – ie laconic crossed with off-beat crossed with extreme larrikinism – sometimes manifests itself in unusual, weird and downright bizarre ways. And that means ‘Quirky’!

But … be warned! There’s a fine line between ‘Kitsch’ and ‘Quirky’ – and an even finer one between ‘Quirky’ and ‘Tasteless’!

So I’ll leave you to decide into which category these examples of Aussie Quirkiness fall!

1. Signs and Symbols

We get that not everyone else speaks either English OR Aussie English – our brand of it. So we put some of the most incomprehensible graphics in the world on our signs.

This Kanyaka historic site sign (above) in South Australia’s Flinders Ranges has a number of strange and bizarre symbols that mean – what, exactly?? When I asked my readers to identify them in the original blog post (HERE) they came up with a surprising array of responses!

Although sometimes those world class ambiguity skills aren’t used! THIS sign just says it like it is!!

But … when crystal clear meets iconoclastic Aussie attitude, you get something REALLY quirky! Like this sign at the western entrance to Queensland Outback town Isisford!

Want MORE?

• What’s the story behind the Isisford sign?
• Have a look at the quirky Aussie travel signs I’ve found!

2. Talking Strine*

We Aussies generally have no trouble understanding both the US and UK forms of English.  But our quirky interpretation of some of its finer points – a translation of ‘English’ to ‘Strine’ – means those who’ve learned either the US or the UK version find it difficult to understand us! In fact, they often think we actually ‘talk funny’.  Who knew?

But that’s a minor detail compared to what we’re actually saying. That’s FAR more incomprehensible! Here’s a short test to see how Aussie you REALLY are:

1. Your friend Davo and his girlfriend Shazza are coming to visit. What are their real names?

2. Translate ‘Put another snag on the Barbie’

3. ‘Stubby’, ‘Tinny’, ‘Pot’, ‘Slab’ and ‘Schooner’ are all different ways to order WHAT common beverage? AND for an extra point – how do you keep it cold??

4. ‘How are ya?’ asks your mate. ‘Flat out like a lizard drinking’, you reply. What do you mean?

5. You suspect your boss has a couple of ‘roos loose in the top paddock. What’s wrong with him?

Answers at the bottom of the post!

Want MORE?

Check out my guest post about Australian slang HERE!

3. What’s on the Menu?

Where else can you get a food item colloquially known as a ‘rat’s coffin’? Usually served with a dose of ‘dead horse’?? A meat pie with (thanks to our adoption of the British habit for rhyming slang) tomato sauce doesn’t sound anywhere near so interesting, does it?!

So sometimes we serve it on a bed of pea soup and call it a ‘pie floater’.

But then we go one better.

Neither the Kangaroo or Emu are physically able to move backwards, and that’s why they’re on the Australian Coat of Arms! Admirable, yes?

BUT … apparently we’re the only country in the world to kill and eat the wildlife on our national Coat of Arms. Then we feed them as good Aussie ‘tucker’ to hapless tourists!

When you consider, however, that Australia is home of the AWESOME Tim Tam, I think you’ll agree that balances out all our other food faux pas combined!!

Want MORE? Here’s 40 foods we Aussies call our own (via CNN Travel)

4. A Day at the Races

In a country full of people who love having a wager but with only ~0.029 horses per km²**, we’ve got creative AND quirky with what we race. And bet on!

And that means racing whatever is at hand. Like Cockroaches. Or Camels. And arguably the quirkiest racing creature of all – the Cane Toad!

Despite – or perhaps because of – being an introduced pest with numbers now thought to exceed 200 million, the ugly cane toad has reached cult status downunder. With its very own line of novelty gifts, a documentary about its infamous beginnings in Australia AND Cane Toad World, a celebration of its quirky appeal, its unique qualities have made it popular on the informal sports and racing circuit!

Want MORE?

• Destructo – The most famous racing Cockroach of them ALL!

• My day at Bedourie’s Camel Races!

• Kununurra – where I lost my Cane Toad Race Virginity!!

• Cane Toad World in Gordonvale, Queensland

5. Size DOES Matter!

I once read that you know you’re Australian when it seems perfectly normal to wander a landscape littered with enormous representations of everyday objects, most commonly fruit and animals.

Aussie Big Things are in a quirky class of their own!

Yes, the Kangaroo, Koala, Crocodile and even the Aussie Galah are obvious targets.

But whoever thought of the Big Malleefowl?

Big Wool Bales??

Or the Big Ned Kelly???

And if you take a look at The Little Book of BIG Aussie Icons you’ll find MY picture of the Big Prawn!

Quirky? More like BEYOND Quirky!

Want MORE?

• Aussie Big Things

• The Little Book of BIG Aussie Icons

6. Bizarre Buildings

While weird and wacky buildings exist in Aussie urban areas too, why is it that the most ornate, thoughtfully constructed AND intriguing are found in the middle of nowhere?

Maybe it’s the relative lack of building materials, or a yearning for the luxuries of another country, or just a response to the landscape! Whatever the reason behind them, I say these bizarre buildings qualify as Quirky with a capital Q!

Maybe we just need to redefine ‘civilisation’! OR … perhaps we Aussies already have?!?!

7. Aussie Loos with Views!

I’m a loud and proud contributor to the pantheon of Aussie quirkiness with my book ‘Aussie Loos with Views!’ But I wouldn’t have been able to produce such a book without the vast selection of quirky Aussie dunnies all around the country.

My personal pick for the quirkiest of quirky Aussie dunnies is Gunnedah’s amazing Lyrical Loo!

There’s a lot of Australian Scenic Public Toilets on my blog AND more than 60 in my book!

Elevating the humble Aussie Loo to the Dunny of Distinction AND getting a book about them published (thanks to the team at Explore Australia) is Australia at it’s quirkiest!!

And if you want to prove me wrong, just buy my book and tell me EXACTLY where my reasoning is flawed!!

Go on! You KNOW you want to …

Want MORE?

See ALL the Scenic Public Toilets I’ve ever featured on my blog!

So does the evidence I’ve shown you prove Australia’s Quirkiness? Or is it all just kitcsh and/or tasteless?? Whatever you think, I’m calling Q for Quirky right here!

See RedzAustralia’s other Aussie ABC posts:

• A is for Alice Springs

• B is for Bushranger

• C is for Crocodile

• D is for Dune

• E is for Emu

• F is for Fossils

• G is for Gorge

• H is for Holiday

• I is for Islands

• J is for Jabiru

• K is for Kangaroo

• L is for Lookout

• M is for Mt Kosciuszko

• N is for Nullarbor

• O is for Opal

• P is for Patriotic

* Strine = just say ‘Australian’ REALLY quickly (ie like a true blue Aussie) and you’ll find it sounds almost like ‘Strine’

** 221000 horses according to horsetalk.co.nz divided by Australia’s landmass of 7.692 million km² according to australia.gov.au (and they should know, yes??!!)

Answers to Strine Quiz:

1. Davo = David (or MATE!); Shazza = Sharon (or ‘Luv’ if you can’t remember her name)

2. Put some more Sausages (Snags) on the Barbecue (ie Barbie)

3. Beer; keep it cold by putting it in the Esky!

4. You’re really busy

5. A couple of kangaroos loose in the top paddock = a bit mad!

The post Aussie ABC: Q is for Quirky appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

The ubiquitous Kangaroo is such an integral part of the landscape downunder that its iconic silhouette universally symbolises Australia.

Yet to many of us Aussies they’re so commonplace we no longer marvel at the amazingly intricate biological system within this unique and oddly shaped animal.

AND we roll our eyes at the tourists who gleefully pose for kangaroo souvenir shots.

SO … as is also commonplace downunder, we let the unusual attributes of this wonder of nature pass us by!

How to best describe this highly complex Aussie creature? An animal with a strange, balletic grace when in full flight and at full speed, yet with an awkward, shambling walk. And yes, flight IS the right word to describe how a bounding kangaroo appears to float across the landscape, through the shimmering heat waves and off into the distance far more quickly than appears possible.

That’s why the flying kangaroo symbolises quintessential Australiana. And a study of the facts about this bizarre wild animal shows the truth IS far stranger than fabrication!

So lets stick to the facts! And some photos …

1. The kangaroo (along with another Aussie native, the emu) is featured on the Australian Coat of Arms …
2. … reportedly because neither can walk backwards!

3. AND … Australians are possibly the only nation in the world to eat both animals on its Coat of Arms! Not sure if that’s something to be proud of …

   

4. … although Kangaroo meat is very lean, with around 2% fat.

5. 

   With kangaroo numbers estimated at around 23 million (in 1996), they’re perhaps the only creature to have actually thrived since European settlement, with land clearing, cropping and pasture forming new habitats to which they have readily adapted

6. And that’s despite an estimated 20,000 annual vehicle collisions with kangaroos!

7. Hitting a kangaroo can cause LOTS of damage! As I found early one morning heading to work in the predawn mist when a kangaroo leapt out of nowhere in front of my car. Although I wasn’t travelling very fast, the impact killed the kangaroo, permanently dented the bullbar AND destroyed the radiator. Luckily I was less than 1km from home …

   

8. Car manufacturer Holden has a kangaroo crash test dummy – dubbed Robo Roo! This 59 kg composite helps study car collisions with kangaroos to improve safety features. Pity my crash was in a Subaru …
9. The largest recorded kangaroo was around 3 metres (9′ 7”) tall
10. The Red Kangaroo is the largest living marsupial at up to 2.7 metres high (9 ft); and the Eastern Grey is the heaviest with males up to 95 kg (~200 lb)
11. Kangaroos have been clocked at speeds of 40 – 70 kph (24-42 mph) …
12. … Can cover up to 12 metres (~42 ft) in one leap …
13. … AND can jump as high as 3.5 metres (10½ feet)!
14. Kangaroos belong to the Macropodidae family, and are part of Australia’s claim to having the most marsupials in the world – around 150 species.
15. An adult male kangaroo is colloquially known as a boomer, buck or Old Man;
16. An adult female is a flying doe, or flier;

17. A Joey is an immature kangaroo, usually in the pouch.

    

18. Mob is the collective noun for a group of kangaroos!
19. And most Aussies refer to them as ‘roos!
20. An adult female kangaroo is almost continually pregnant and lactating.
21. ‘An heir and a spare’ is a saying almost custom made for the kangaroo – while still feeding her joey, a second egg can be fertilized – but embryo development is placed ‘on hold’ until the current joey is almost ready to leave the pouch.

22. The next joey is born when the first leaves the pouch, but the mother continues to feed both simultaneously – with different milk for the older and younger joeys!

    

23. Skippy the Bush Kangaroo was one of Australia’s most successful TV show exports although it was banned in Sweden because it was considered the show would make children believe in the animals’ unnatural powers!

24. The clicking sound Skippy makes is based on an actual sound made by kangaroos to communicate with each other.
25. Although the grunts and groans of copulating kangaroos can sound almost human … as Pilchard and I found one day on a walk through the scrub. Pilchard bravely went into the bush to investigate the odd grunting sound we heard on the off chance someone was hurt. Wrong! We left them to it … don’t want to mess with – or interrupt – a big boomer!!
26. Especially as successful copulation can last up to 50 minutes!
27. Kangaroos are found almost everywhere except above the snow line.

28. The strangest place we ever saw them was on a beach near Western Australia’s Exmouth, where they were digging holes in the sand and resting therein.

    

29. It’s illegal to have a dead kangaroo in your possession without a permit.  NO WAY!!
30. The Big Kangaroo is off the beaten track at Border Village, on the SA/WA border!

31. Boxing with kangaroos was – and still is – a popular sport at country fairs, although there are moves afoot to have it banned.

    

32. ‘Kangaroo’ is derived from ‘gangurru’, an indigenous word from the Guugu Yimithirr language of Far North Queensland
33. A ‘kangaroo court’ describes a mock court where no consideration is given to legal principles.
34. ‘A few ‘roos loose in the top paddock’ is a colloquial Aussie term for someone who’s a little bit mad!

35. Although we once had one in our garden for awhile, the most kangaroos I’ve EVER seen in one place was in Halls Gap, Grampians, Victoria!

The post Aussie ABC – K is for Kangaroo! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

The benign, blue sky stretches away to infinity around western Queensland’s Boulia, mostly unrelieved by clouds, birds or planes. Unremarkable – at least by Outback standards – Boulia’s boundless blue backdrop is the ultimate Big Sky luring travellers to the Outback.

But it’s not the splendidly panoramic sky of daylight hours that attracts visitors to this remote capital of the Channel Country.

It’s the mysterious Min Min Light which only appears at night!

The famous lights didn’t appear as we descended south from Julia Creek and Mt Isa into Boulia after 600km on indifferent outback roads.  Hardly surprising, given it was still daylight.

So with a mixture of anticipation and scepticism, we read signs around the town proclaiming we’d entered Min Min Light country.   Would we get to see the famous lights on our first foray into the paranormal world of this phenomenon for which there is no rational explanation?

The Min Min light has been well known in Aborginal lore for generations.  But the first police report of the legendary light was lodged shortly after the Min Min hotel, 100km east of Boulia, burned down, leaving only a bottle heap and cemetery.

Panicking after seeing a glow hovering over the graveyard, a passing stockman spurred his horse for Boulia.  To his horror, the light turned and followed him most of the way back to town.

While his report was met with derision, a short time later a couple new to the area arrived in Boulia.  They requested an explanation for a mysterious light which moved away from them when they moved towards it, but followed them once they returned to the road.

Then, a few nights later, another stockman reported an eerie light originating from the Min Min graveyard, this time bounding through the air like a football.

Despite theories – phosphorescence, burning gas, ghostly apparition, alcoholic influence, even fungus!! – there’s no scientific explanation to completely explain the spooky light.  Now the Min Min light – often mistaken for a bright car headlight – has been seen by thousands of people since that first sighting nearly 100 years ago.  But  despite attempts to chase it down, it’s never been caught, outpacing runners, horses and cars.

Even if the lights HAD appeared at the excellent Boulia caravan park on the Burke river (named for the explorer) overnight, it would’ve been impossible to see them in the deep sleep we’d sunk into after a long day on the road.  So the next day, our paranormal adventure continued at the local Boulia Museum ‘Min Min Encounter’, the only place where a Min Min Lights sighting is guaranteed!

Tragically, it’s not possible to photograph any part of the 45 minute journey we followed through this professionally designed hi-tech production.  

But it successfully debunks possible explanations through actual eyewitness accounts of genuine Min Min light experiences.

Then the journey ends with a simulated night bus ride through the moonlit outback terrain, where the Min Min lights appear just before dawn!

The post Aussie Icons #6 – Min Min light, Boulia, Queensland appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

When the 200-year-old Tree of Knowledge was poisoned shortly after being included on the National Heritage List on Australia Day 2006, I was appalled.

Yet another historic Aussie landmark fallen victim to the disregard sometimes shown for our heritage. But although the tree’s demise was disappointing, I was also resigned to its fate. Because when a tree dies, it’s gone for good, right? RIGHT??

Wrong!

Where else but Australia would a replacement tree be considered a viable option?  And we’re not talking simple replanting, either – that’d be too easy. We’re talking a total tree REBUILD!

So when news broke that the now dead Tree of Knowledge would be replaced by a virtual monument incorporating a section of the original in homage, I was skeptical.

How could a virtual tree memorial be built to at the very least equal the real thing?

Because if it DIDN’T match the drama and history of the original Tree of Knowledge, what would be the point??

You’ve probably figured by now that THIS Tree of Knowledge isn’t the Garden of Eden original. Even if the nearby Roses and Things garden and tea rooms closely approximates how I’d imagined the legendary garden, downtown Barcaldine,  known as ‘Garden City of the West’,  isn’t quite the same thing!

But why make such a fuss about a TREE?

Well … I’m glad you asked!

Barcaldine is WAAAY more than the Rose Garden and killer bakery! This classic Outback Queensland town is also (arguably) the only place in Australia – if not the world! – with a combination heritage walk/pub crawl based around the 5 historic pubs in the main street!!

But I digress …

Back to the tree!

In 1891, a dispute between shearers, their union and local pastoralists polarised political opinion, culminating in an historic strike and the rise of the Labour Union movement and Australian Labor Party. Events unfolded under a Ghost Gum (Eucalyptus papuana) in the town’s centre, subsequently dubbed the ‘Tree of Knowledge’.

That made the tree a local and national iconic symbol.

So THAT meant poisoning the tree wasn’t just vandalism – but political sabotage.

How could an appropriate replacement for this priceless icon EVER be found?

Pretty much impossible, you’d think.

Or was it?

In August 2011, a couple of years after the $AUD5 Million virtual tree was officially ‘opened’ I approached it with some apprehension.

Probably the best I could hope for was that I didn’t hate it.

But, standing in the shade covering the area of the original canopy, I experienced a rare moment of speechless admiration. Incorporating the preserved trunk and some branches of the original, but with a canopy of wooden cylinders (secured with lock nuts!) to replicate leaves and the musical sound of wind in the ‘foliage’, this awesome virtual tree ROCKS*!

This stunning tribute actually betters (in my opinion, and that’s the one that counts on this blog!) the original icon it commemorates.

But perhaps that’s partly because it provides a unique photographic experience in that it’s almost impossible to take a poor shot!!

A virtual Tree doesn’t require conventional gardening methods either!  Earlier in 2015 it was ‘closed’ for maintenance – those bolts and lock nuts stopping the wooden panels from falling don’t tighten themselves!

And there’s hope for the future too, with Barcaldine’s Australian Workers Heritage Centre, now home to the ‘Young-Un’ (or Son of the Tree of Know-ledge!) cloned from the original tree’s DNA planted in early 2011 by then Prime Minister, Julia Gillard.  And if that doesn’t work out, there’s another clone in Brisbane’s Ecosciences precinct!

So, maybe another icon will be unveiled on this historic spot at a ‘Tree of Knowledge’ festival in another 200 years or so!!

Watch this space …

* Well done, Brian Hooper and m3architecture!

The post Aussie Icons #5 – Tree of Knowledge Barcaldine Queensland appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Those nostalgic for the ‘good old days’ would do well to consider the enduring legacy of Townsville’s ‘The Saint’, a 1962 student prank that continues to generate controversy.

A tragic reminder (!) of the lawlessness and anarchy characterising 1960’s society degeneration (!) from the wholesome family values of the 1950’s, the James Cook University students responsible have left North Queensland’s largest city with an unlikely icon!

And what better place to make your mark with graffiti than Castle Hill – the pink granite monolith (at 286m just short of ‘mountain’ height) that dominates Townsville’s skyline?

Castle Hill, no stranger to the plunder and pillage that characterised European settlement, was a well known firewood and timber-rustling spot before its 1888 gazettal as a recreation reserve – an early and uncharacteristic attempt to save it from complete denudation! And while reserve size continues to diminish, Castle Hill’s distinctive skyscape, 360° views, challenging climbs, scenic public toilet and historical features are enough to grant it ‘icon’ status in its own right.

But it’s the 1962 addition of ‘The Saint’ to Castle Hill’s northern face that cements its place in Townsville’s cultural landscape.

However, The Saint Castle Hill Townsville AND its spectacular backdrop have more in common than shared space.

Castle Hill is a World War 2 survivor – after the US troops stationed in Townsville who famously offered to blow it up and build a causeway to nearby Magnetic Island with the rock were knocked back. And ‘The Saint’ was reprieved after the local council reversed its 2002 decision to remove it. But only after a poll indicated 54% of the population considered it an icon!

Leaving 46% who don’t …

So the controversy continues – graffiti vs art; eyesore vs landmark; student prank vs sacred site desecration; vandalism vs Aussie larrikinism (is that a word?!) – but ‘The Saint’ is now (arguably) photographed just as much as its scenic backdrop!!

Maybe tourists are the deciding factor??

During a visit to Townsville in the 1990’s, the debate raged on talkback radio. Should ‘The Saint’ be removed? Did it defile the natural beauty of Castle Hill?? Had it transcended its dubious origin to become a local landmark???

Then a caller rang through. ‘Mate, after more than 30 years up there in all sorts of weather there’s only one question to be asked,’ the caller stated.

‘What’s that?’ the announcer asked.

‘What kind of paint did they use?’

And that, my friends, puts it all into perspective!!

In July 2011, Castle Hill still sports ‘The Saint’, and it’s still the subject of discussion, photographs and debate.

But in early 2012, its 50th anniversary MAY mean historical respectability – AND lay any controversy to rest!  We shall see …

Want MORE?

• The Saint
• Castle Hill
• Townsville, Far North Queensland

The post Aussie Icons #4 – ‘The Saint’, Castle Hill, Townsville QLD appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

According to my train buddy* G, the longest ever recorded chicken flight lasted for 13 seconds.  Ironic then, that one of Australia’s most unsung aviators drew his early inspiration from experiments with measuring chook** wingspan relative to their flight!

A world exclusive wasn’t what I expected when I visited Minlaton on South Australia’s York Peninsula. But the Red Devil, a Bristol M.1C Military Monoplane from a limited 1918 run of only 125 fast fighter planes designed to assist the Allies during World War I is believed to be the only one left of its kind. In the WORLD!

Even more amazing, however, is that Henry ‘Harry’ John Butler, a Koolywurtie*** lad born in 1889, became a prominent Australian aviation pioneer in an environment where the chooks were virtually his only aviatory (? is that a word??) influence!

Until his 20’s, that is, when a regular 400km weekend round trip to Adelaide where he learned to fly with Carl William ‘Bill’ Wittber, another Aussie aviation pioneer. How? Well, after making the first Australian powered flight, Bill built his own plane from scratch. As you do. And this was the aircraft in which Harry first experienced the joys of flight!

Young Harry flew to England at his own expense to join the Royal Flying Corps following the outbreak of World War I, and was soon regularly flying air raids to France before becoming Captain, Flight Commander then instructor and decorated war hero****.

So I reckon Captain Harry’s reported 1919 statement that the Red Devil was one of the three fastest in the world is made on pretty good authority!

Captain Butler’s triumphant – and now legendary – return to Minlaton in the Red Devil on 6th August 1919 in a 110 kmh gale wearing an inflated tyre tube in lieu of life-jacket is also believed to be the first airmail delivery over water in the Southern Hemisphere.

Harry and the Red Devil, cornerstone of his Aviation company, continued to entertain, amuse and educate Australians over the next few years – aeronautical displays, joy flights, airmail deliveries (including a mail drop to his childhood school at Koolywurtie), promotional stunts and winning the inaugural Aerial Derby.

A complete change of pace for this little aircraft, whose logbook contains entries for ‘Fighting Practice’ – but the speed (209 kph/130 mph) that made it an invaluable addition to the Allied cause, also made it the perfect plane to showcase Captain Butler’s considerable aviation expertise.

Harry wasn’t in his beloved Red Devil on 11th January 1922 when engine failure at low altitude and the ensuing crash into a field just outside Minlaton left him critically injured and unable to continue to fly professionally. An undiagnosed cerebral abscess finally caused his death on 29 July 1924.

After languishing in an Adelaide shed for a number of years, the Red Devil was sold by Mrs Butler to Mr C Miller – who, after extensive restoration, attended a number of races and exhibitions. Only one other pilot – a Mr C Kleinig – ever flew the Red Devil, which was never involved in an accident.

The fully restored Red Devil is housed on Minlaton’s main street in a protective hangar – a must-see for those, who like me, find this forgotten chapter of Australia’s aviation history fascinating.

And just up the road, if you can tear yourself away from exhibits such as the Rocking Bath and Magic Flute (fit over the nose to play) a whole room at the Minlaton National Trust Museum is dedicated to Captain Harry Butler. A small booklet – ‘The Harry Butler Story’- to which I am indebted for much of the information in this story, is available for purchase.

But the Red Devil remains a tangible link to another time and place – a place where aviation was in its infancy, a war changed the world forever, and a boy from Koolywurtie became a hero.

*train buddy – best friend fellow commuter

**chook = chicken. Is it just us Aussies who call them chooks??

***Koolywurtie – a small Yorke Peninsula farming locality near Minlaton

****Captain Harry was awarded the Airforce Cross in 1918

The post Aussie Icons #3 – The Red Devil appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Sorry, I’ll be better next year, promise!!

PS  And if you don’t know what I’m talking about, don’t panic!  It’ll be back to the Scenic Public Toilets, Favourite Places, Oz Top Spots, Off the Tourist Trail and Only in OZ moments in 2011!!

Happy New Year!! 

The post Aussie Icons #1 – Largs Pier Hotel, Largs Bay, South Australia appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.