looking for another point of view

[april]

I am an Aussie who has been living in Japan for several years. Among the expat international community here (which is very tight) there has been a billion discussions on Japanese people, the culture, daily life, and so on. Mostly it is a lot of gripes starting with "Why do Japanese people always....?!?!"; as people go through culture shock and try to make sense of their new surroundings.

I am curious to hear about the other side of the coin. What do expats in Australia think of Australian people and life? What is your pet peeve about Australia? What can't you fathom? What stuff do Australian's do that seems ridiculous to you? What do you dislike about Australian people?

When I hit the 4 month mark of living in Japan I made a long list of stuff I hated about Japan, didn't understand, thought was dumb etc, (because it actually helped me improve my attitude!) so I would like to know what is on your list about Australia.

When I go back for holidays I notice a few things I don't like so much about my home country, stuff I never noticed before.

Please be brutally honest! I am extremely interested to know. i think it will be therapeutic for me when I have a 'bad-Japan' day.

[Baby75]

Originally Posted by april

I am an Aussie who has been living in Japan for several years. Among the expat international community here (which is very tight) there has been a billion discussions on Japanese people, the culture, daily life, and so on. Mostly it is a lot of gripes starting with "Why do Japanese people always....?!?!"; as people go through culture shock and try to make sense of their new surroundings.

I am curious to hear about the other side of the coin. What do expats in Australia think of Australian people and life? What is your pet peeve about Australia? What can't you fathom? What stuff do Australian's do that seems ridiculous to you? What do you dislike about Australian people?

When I hit the 4 month mark of living in Japan I made a long list of stuff I hated about Japan, didn't understand, thought was dumb etc, (because it actually helped me improve my attitude!) so I would like to know what is on your list about Australia.

When I go back for holidays I notice a few things I don't like so much about my home country, stuff I never noticed before.

Please be brutally honest! I am extremely interested to know. i think it will be therapeutic for me when I have a 'bad-Japan' day.

Hi
My husband was over in Brisbane visiting his best friend and he loved it we had planned to be over there for good but it didn't work out so we are heading over in April.
this is what he loved
the people found them really friendly and welcoming
the weather
found it very good value for money (ireland aint cheap)
bbq and the fact he could get a decent size steak
jack Daniels and coke in a can
the country very beautiful he loved the sunshine coast and Earlie beach
the out door life actually every thing he loved every thing

the only thing that bothered him
was he sun rising at 5 in the morning but in saying that he just got up and went for a swim or that .he said it was easy to get used to

he did say it got a bit annoying one night when he was asked to say top of the morning to ya were ever he went...

so i hope that helps what do you not like when you go home

[april]

That would be so annoying! And I can totally see people asking him to say that.....probably ten years ago I would have been one of those people

Okay, some things that I noticed (I am from a small country town, btw):

- The overly-friendly shop assistants who wanted to chit chat about nothing in particular even when I was just browsing. At first I thought it was a refreshing change from robotic-like Japanese shop assistants, but after the 3rd or 4th shop it just got annoying.

- the way people walked: slowly and swayed from side to side, meaning that to pass by I had to make a wide berth otherwise I'd bump into them.

- And I know this is going to make some people pissed off - but being surrounded by the Aussie accent...it just grated on my ears. I never realised how strong and nasal it was. Though when I am in Tokyo I love to hear it as it makes me feel homesick. My own accent, though still Aussie, has softened, as has most people's native country accent has in Japan.

American people told me that they really got sick and tired of Aussies having a go at them for being American. They said they never let up on it.

Oh and here is another thing I am very curious to know - do Australians always joke about foreigners trying vegemite? In Japan they have 'natto' which is fermented soya beans and many Japanese love it and eat it every day. I have been asked a thousand times "Can you eat natto?? <snicker snicker>" and I have to play along with their 'joke' to be polite, even though I hear this constantly! Is it ditto with the vegemite?

[april]

Oh yeah - this is the big thing that bothers me about Australia - all this terrorism fear-mongering crap that is on the news all the time and how the PM uses it to promote himself. It really REALLY bothers me because I honestly believe it is political propaganda.

[newtoOZ]

Well, not only do we get ragged constantly about being American, but it is always the same old stuff, McDonalds and Starbucks. If that were the worst thing we had ever foisted on the world, I'd feel pretty good about. We don't 'take the piss out of' each other the way you guys do, so that makes it doubly hard. And of course, everyone thinks they invented all this stuff and we've never ever heard it before.

And, by the way, you have more McDonalds than I have ever seen anywhere.

[Hazel]

Please will nobody jump down my throat for this. I am just anwering the question and obviously it is just MY opinion. I think that the Australian way of life is excellent: I love the way they jump on the littlest issues (eg. watching for people not putting coins in the parking meters) because taking care of small misdemeanours automatically strongly discourages greater incidences of lawlessness.
On Australians as a people (I beg you not to flame me for this): I find them to be beautiful-but-oh-so-boring. Literally. I think they are very, very good looking as a nation, but I find their conversation to be about nothing! They just um and ah and yeah and hmmmm with bits of conversation about the weather and school and that's it. I feel that they are just not very passionate about anything except for sports. I try to start a conversation and it just never "lifts off". Please tell me if ******anyone****** on this forum can relate to what I'm saying????? I'd say I can't fathom that....almost like no one gets worked up (in a positive or negative way) about any thing at all. I also can't fathom all the red tape. I feel like I have to jump through a million hoops before I can get anything done.
I don't like they way Aussie kids don't seem to value their toys that their parents buy them....also the coins their parents give them...can't understand it....$1 and $2 coins are given to 5 year olds and they just sprinkle them around and totally don't appreciate it.
What I just love about Australians is how they never show off and how a little goes a long way. BONUS : -D!!!! I'm referring to kids' birthday parties or a dressup day....oh my gosh...no one goes out of there way...so that is really a huge relief for me. Obviously there are a zillion things I *adore* about Australia. That's why I'm here! I am just answering the very valid question by April (who sounds passionate ; -)).

[april]

So Australia has got Starbucks now?? I am so out of touch! I am addicted to the sugar donuts they have in the Tokyo Starbucks. And I agree that some Aussies are very much like Canadians when it comes to the small-country syndrome.
NewtoOz - the next time some one rags on your for being America, I suggest you say something really derogatory about Australians, then pause a moment, laugh loudly, slap them on the bag and say "Only taking the piss mate!!"

Hazel - you have opened my eyes!! I constantly get frustrated at my (Japanese adults) students for not having an opinion or seeming to care about anything at all except long discussions about food and hot spring resorts. Thank you for giving me some perspective because, now that I think about it, it is true - most people I know back home only talk about the little things in life. And now I can recall that my friends back home used to ask me constantly: "Why do you care anyway?? It is nothing to get worked up about!" and my Japanese friends say similar stuff to me. So I would love to know which country I would fit in.

Regarding red tape...I didn't know that about Australia. I always complain about the Japanese red tape. To get my working visa renewed I have to...well nevermind; I won't bore you all with the details. Let's just say the process involves many steps that must be done in order and a lot of waiting around.

Keep 'em coming! Please don't hesitate to write a long list, I won't hold it against you. Being critical doesn't mean the same as insulting.

[newtoOZ]

My employer took care of most of the red tape for me. But I remember there being a lot of paperwork involved in getting a bank account, like it was some sort of great privilege or something. But maybe that's just a mixed up memory because I was jet-lagged when it all happened.

I did hear someone complain about having to get a new passport because their pages were all used up. Besides thinking, 'Must be nice', I was surprised. We can get pages added to ours.

[Hazel]

You've made me a little bit braver for not taking offense . I would like to ask a question....actually anyone who knows the answer could help me out here....I cannot seem to fathom the Australian sense of humour. Besides Dame Edna (who as far as I'm concerned is hilarious because "she" has more of a British sense of humour) I don't seem to really catch on when I'm in a group of Aussies and they laugh. To my ignorant mind, it appears that they are laughing at nothing....just for the sake of laughing. Am I blind/missing something or will I eventually click? An Aussie asked me what I considered to be was funny and I answered "The Simpsons" and she said, "nah, we don't find American humour funny. That's too slap stick". I was going huh??? I love American humour!! To me that's not slap stick. But we were having an honest conversation so I told her that sometimes the Aussie sense of humour seems very lame. She answered that that is the whole point. I asked if they are laughing at the actual lame joke, or the fact that someone dared to be lame. She didn't really give me an answer....she just said it'd take me a few years to get it. Boo hoo, I don't wanna wait a few years!! I want to understand and be NORMAL, lol. I also find Monty Python to be hilarious...Borat too. Tell me April, what do YOU find funny? And to anyone else reading this, please shine some light on this subject...anything at all...I am curious what you think and feel.

[april]

Mmmm....the Aussie humour. I agree that it is definitely lame, and people laugh at the lameness. What age group are you talking about? The stuff that my baby boomer parents and their friends laugh about when gathered socially, I think is dumb, like an incredibly lame effort at humour; which I call 'old-man humour'. The sort of humour that makes me shudder inside when I feel obligated to smile and give a half-laugh.
But Aussie humour like Kath and Kim and movies such as The Castle, I think is hilarious.

When I am with my friends we laugh at a lot of in-jokes that seem to continue for months or even years, so to anybody else listening in, Australian or not, they won't understand why we suddenly start laugh hysterically.

Have you read the Bill Bryson book "Down Under", I suggest you do. Also, a tiny book called "Xenophobe's guide to the Aussies" is quite spot-on. Despite what the title suggests, it is actually a light-hearted take on Australians. They have a series on different countries.

This is what it says about the Aussie humour:
"To live in Australia, Aussies have to have a sense of humour. It's a cheap form of entertainment and helps pass the time. Their sardonic and laconic attitude creeps into every conversation. If you display any form of weakness they will tear at it like a dog with a bone.
This irreverent and ruthless lot will aim their jokes at any country and people with any advantage or disadvantage. This is not a back-stabbing population. They will tell anti-English jokes to the English, anti-Irish jokes to the Irish and Ethiopian jokes to anorexics. .....The Aussies can laugh at themselves but of course, with their isolation they have often had little choice. But beware, they don't care for outsiders to do it."