Australia Day Archives - Australia by Red Nomad OZ https://www.redzaustralia.com/category/australia-day/ go-see-do guide for adventurous travellers Wed, 05 May 2021 10:29:50 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://www.redzaustralia.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/cropped-Site-Icon-1-1-32x32.jpg Australia Day Archives - Australia by Red Nomad OZ https://www.redzaustralia.com/category/australia-day/ 32 32 P is for Patriotic: 26 Reasons to ROCK Australia Day! https://www.redzaustralia.com/2014/01/p-is-for-patriotic-26-reasons-why-australia-rocks/ https://www.redzaustralia.com/2014/01/p-is-for-patriotic-26-reasons-why-australia-rocks/#comments Sun, 26 Jan 2014 06:53:00 +0000 http://www.redzaustralia.com/wp/?p=7 NEW from RedzAustralia!

As this FAAAABULOUS January 26 gets under way, the ozone layer prepares itself for a high carbon emission onslaught and the planet’s remaining trees breathe a sigh of relief. It’s Australia Day and almost compulsory to have a barbecue and PROVE your Aussie pride.  Do this by putting Aussie flags on every conceivable product from toothpicks to tablecloths; serviettes to[...]

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Outback near Blinman, Flinders Ranges, South Australia
Outback near Blinman, Flinders Ranges, South Australia

As this FAAAABULOUS January 26 gets under way, the ozone layer prepares itself for a high carbon emission onslaught and the planet’s remaining trees breathe a sigh of relief.

Aussie Flag at Anzac Hill, Alice Springs, Northern Territory
Aussie Flag at Anzac Hill, Alice Springs

It’s Australia Day and almost compulsory to have a barbecue and PROVE your Aussie pride.  Do this by putting Aussie flags on every conceivable product from toothpicks to tablecloths; serviettes to stubby holders; picnic plates to paper cups.

For Aussies like me, there’s a LOT of things that make Australia so Australian.  So I’ve chosen 26 of those special Aussie things that top MY Australia Day Patriotic Aussie Pride list!

Australia Day!

Congratulations to anyone who’s ever been on the Australian of the Year and/or Australia Day Honours list, and a BIG welcome to our newest citizens!

The BIG Miner - Map Kernow, or Son of Cornwall - Kapunda, South Australia
The BIG Miner – Map Kernow, or Son of Cornwall – Kapunda, South Australia

BIG Things!

Love ’em or LOATHE ’em, for us Aussies it’s quite normal to wander a landscape littered with BIG fruit, animals and other random objects!

Country Towns! 

Around 90% of Australia’s population live in urban areas. So I’m calling Country Towns the next BIG Thing in Aussie tourism.

Where else can you see the quirks, the oddities, the beauty and the colours of Australia?

Eucalypts in River Bed
Eucalypts in River Bed

Dry!

Australia is the driest continent on earth, and South Australia its driest state.

Eucalyptus!

Most of the 700 species in this genus are from Australia.  It’s also the only genus in the world with species across ALL habitats.  That makes Eucalyptusa mini-masterclass in adaptation.

Even though down here we call them Gum Trees!

Floral Emblem!

Golden Wattle (Acacia pycnantha) is the famed Green and Gold that represents Australia. Although each Australian State and Territory has a unique floral emblem, not many Australians can name them all! Can you? Test your knowledge HERE!

Golden Wattle (Acacia pycnantha), Australia's Floral Emblem - Green and Gold!
Golden Wattle (Acacia pycnantha), Australia’s Floral Emblem – Green and Gold!

Gold!

Australia is home of the Welcome Stranger.  At over 71 kg it’s the world’s biggest alluvial gold nugget and was found at Moliagul near Bendigo in the Victorian Goldfields. It’s tempting to see if Son of the Welcome Stranger is lurking nearby, right?!

Victorian Alps near Mt Hotham
Victorian Alps near Mt Hotham

High Country!

At 2228 metres, Mt Kosciuszko, highest mountain in OZ, isn’t that high by, say, Everest standards. But the OZ High Country around the New South Wales Snowy Mountains and Victoria’s Alps makes a HUGE change from the Coastal fringe and Outback that usually characterises OZ!

Indigenous Rock Art, Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary, South Australia
Indigenous Rock Art, Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary, South Australia

Indigenous Culture!

Australian colonial history started just over 200 years ago. Australian Indigenous history goes back for over 50,000 years. This means Australian Aborigines have occupied the same area continuously for longer than any other culture in the world!!

Jump Up!

In a land so (mostly) flat, sometimes the only feature for hundreds of kilometres is a small hill called a Jump Up. My favourite is Swanvale Jump-Up near Stonehenge … the Aussie version.

Kookaburra
Kookaburra

Kookaburra!

Nothing says ‘Australian Bush’ like the sound of the Kookaburra– largest Kingfisher species in the WORLD!

If you’re unsure why they were once called Laughing Jackass, click HERE for a Kookaburra Sound Clip!

Lingo!

Understanding Australian Slang Dictionary is the REAL citizenship test, as Google translate is a FAIL for true Aussie lingo.

See how you go with this Australia Day ‘conversation’:

‘G’day mate, ayagorn?’
‘Stone the crows, she’s a hot one, mate! Chuck another coupla snags on the barbie and pass the dead horse, whaddayareckon, eh mate?’
‘No worries, tinnies in the esky mate, go for your life!’
‘Orright mate, cheers’
Translation below …*

Rolling on the Murray River at Mannum, South OZ, Australia Day 2013
Rolling on the Murray River at Mannum, South OZ, Australia Day 2013

Murray River! 

Australia’s longest river system, the Murray-Darling, stretches from it’s headwaters near Mt Kosciuszko to the sea at South Australia’s Goolwa.

National Parks!

Of Australia’s 516 National Parks, my most visited is the Grampians National Park in Victoria.

What’s yours?

Outback!

The huge and otherwise undefined ‘middle’ section of Australia.   There’s WAY more than the ‘nothing much’ of popular opinion out there. Don’t believe me? Have a look at my Outback adventures!

Outback near Bedourie, Queensland
Outback near Bedourie, Queensland

Poets!

The ultimate accolade to Australia’s poets is Scenic Public Toilet #8 at Gunnedah, NSW.  It’s also home of Dorothea MacKellar author of My Country – a personal favourite.

Waltzing Matilda Centre, Winton, Queensland
Waltzing Matilda Centre, Winton, Queensland

Another is Clancy of the Overflow by the extraordinarily prolific A. B. Paterson. He also wrote Waltzing Matilda – one of the 10 most recorded songs in the world.  The song is the subject of the only museum in the world (the Waltzing Matilda Centre in Winton, QLD) dedicated to a song!

Quirky!

You don’t have to look very hard to find something strange and bizarre downunder. Like a singing, piano-playing dingo. Or a sign telling you exactly what the locals think of the government. Or a gilded church steeple in the middle of nowhere. Or the world’s first ride-on lawnmower. Or a Cane Toad Race! Or the World Moon-Rock Throwing Championships! Haven’t heard of these things before? They’re ALL on my blog!!

RED!

Well, what did you expect for ‘R’?? In my opinion, Australia’s REDDEST place is Karijini National Park, although you can find RED pretty much anywhere in Australia – both the colour AND the blogger! Me!!

Dales Gorge, Karijini National Park, Western Australia
Dales Gorge, Karijini National Park, Western Australia

Surf!

Yep, that’s what we’re known for! And a whole lot of other Coast-related ‘S’ words as well … like Swimming! Sun!! Sand!!! Sunsets!!!!

View over Hobart from Mt Wellington, Tasmania
View over Hobart from Mt Wellington, Tasmania

Tasmania!

Often forgotten as part of Australia, the ‘Apple Isle’ is the second-largest island in the Australia group. I’ve only been to Tasmania once, an oversight I hope to rectify soon!

Uluru!

Australia’s RED heart. Do I really need to give you a photo or link??

Vegemite!

Vegemite is an acquired taste. Who knows how much longer this Aussie icon will survive with the competition from Aussie legend Dick Smith’s OZEMITE? But whatever happens, the Vegemite TV commercial from the 1950’s is a classic!!

Whales! Stretches of Australia’s extensive coastline are perfect for whale-watching in the right season. The Southern Right Whale nursery in the Great Australian Bight is a good place to start, but there’s opportunities all around OZ.

Whale calf at play, Head of Bight, South Australia
Whale calf at play, Head of Bight, South Australia

Xanthorrhoea!

Grass Trees at Victoria Valley, Grampians
Grass Trees at Victoria Valley, Grampians

A Xanthorrhoea by any other name is Australia’s most well known wildflower – the Grass Tree, able to withstand bushfires and live for hundreds of years!

Young and Free!

From the first stanza of Advance Australia Fair, the Australian National Anthem – ‘Australians all let us rejoice/for we are young and free’. Nicely ironic, considering the longevity of the Aboriginal race (see above).  But … I’d like to think I was young and free – however old I become!

Zoo!

Yeah … this is the lazy person’s Z-word. So sue me. Australia’s Zoos are pretty good though – Adelaide’s Monarto Zoo, Dubbo’s Great Western Plains Zoo and Sydney’s Taronga Park Zoo. But my all time favourite Zoo-like place is the Alice Springs Desert Park!

That’s just some of what makes Australia so Australian, and ME patriotic. But what have I missed?? What’s YOUR favourite Australiana??

Want MORE?

*Lingo Translation:

‘Hi, how are you going?’

‘Gosh it’s hot! Can you put a couple of sausages on the barbecue and pass the sauce? What do you think?’

‘OK, help yourself to a can (of beer) in the portable cold bin.

‘All right, thanks!’

Mt Sturgeon from Dunkeld Arboretum Lake, Grampians, Victoria
Mt Sturgeon from Dunkeld Arboretum Lake, Grampians, Victoria

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My FavouRED OZ Things #3*!! https://www.redzaustralia.com/2012/01/my-favoured-oz-things-3/ https://www.redzaustralia.com/2012/01/my-favoured-oz-things-3/#comments Thu, 26 Jan 2012 07:01:00 +0000 http://www.redzaustralia.com/wp/?p=155 NEW from RedzAustralia!

It’s amazing how easy – and fun – it is to compose doggerel a new stanza for my favourite RED Aussie things! AND what better way to celebrate this fabulous Australia Day with some new RED OZ stuff!! I’m a loud and proud Aussie – so of course I’m going to show off all the OZ good bits to inspire you[...]

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It’s amazing how easy – and fun – it is to compose doggerel a new stanza for my favourite RED Aussie things!

AND what better way to celebrate this fabulous Australia Day with some new RED OZ stuff!!

I’m a loud and proud Aussie – so of course I’m going to show off all the OZ good bits to inspire you to travel downunder to, and/or explore Australia!! My recent post ‘H is for Holiday’ showcased some amazing Aussie holiday spots Pilchard and I have visited over the last ~21 years. But I’m sure there are amazing spots in YOUR country too. So my REAL message is – don’t put off finding the world’s wondrous and fantastic places – wherever they are! Get out and explore – then show the rest of the world what you’ve found! Wherever you are, cheap holidays are within everyone’s grasp – work out what you want to do and make it happen!!

But in the meantime, whether you’re an armchair traveller, or just looking for some downunder entertainment and escapism, sit back and enjoy the Australia Day edition of My FavouRED OZ Things! For the full as-Red-Nomad-OZ-intended experience, sing the words to the tune of ‘My Favourite Things’* I can’t guarantee it’ll sound better (it doesn’t when I sing!!), but YOU’LL feel great! And that’s what counts!!

Happy Australia Day!!

Autumn trees, Uralla, New South Wales
Autumn trees, Uralla, New South Wales
RED leaves in Autumn;
Sturts Desert Pea, South Australia
Sturts Desert Pea, South Australia
Eucalypt Flowers
Eucalypt Flowers

RED Aussie wildflowers.

Island Lagoon, South Australian Outback
Island Lagoon, South Australian Outback

RED Outback landscapes that go on for hours;

Old Building, Bedourie, Queensland Outback
Old Building, Bedourie, Queensland Outback

RED rusting old buildings;

Red-tailed Black Cockatoo, Holloways Beach, Cairns**
Red-tailed Black Cockatoo, Holloways Beach, Cairns**

RED-tailed black cockatoo;

Campfire, Swanvale Jump-Up, Outback Queensland**
Campfire, Swanvale Jump-Up, Outback Queensland**

RED HOT gidgee coals for our camp-oven stew!

Aussie Coat of Arms - Kangaroo ...
Aussie Coat of Arms – Kangaroo …

Footprints in RED sand; and

... and Emu tracks!!
… and Emu tracks!!
Red Rocks, Grampians, Victoria
Red Rocks, Grampians, Victoria

Giant RED rock stacks.

The Plane in the Paddock - Longreach QLD**
The Plane in the Paddock – Longreach QLD**

RED OZ kangaroos; and

Race Track at 2011 Camel Races, Bedourie, Outback Queensland
Race Track at 2011 Camel Races, Bedourie, Outback Queensland

Long RED camel race-tracks!

(insert picture of yourself here!)

REDNomad OZ readers; and
Sunset at Woomera, Outback South Australia**
Sunset at Woomera, Outback South Australia**
RED skies at night

These FavouREDOZ Things fill my heart with delight!

Danger

When in DANGER;

Stinging-tree-sign

When the tree stings;

Back Road, Cobar, New South Wales
Back Road, Cobar, New South Wales

When the roads are bad …

I’m so lucky to have all my FavouREDOZ Things,

And all those good times I’ve had!

Want MORE?

* Apologies, as always, to Rodgers & Hammerstein for shamelessly exploiting paying homage to their ‘My Favourite Things’ from ‘The Sound of Music’

** Photos by Pilchard

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