References

Thank you for reading this blog. I hope that it has provided you with more information about Australia.

Below are my references:

Video

Youtube. (2006, April 22). Great Barrier Reef. Available: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HhyHswjlJ8&feature=related. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Youtube. (2007, June 5). Aboriginal Culture in Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory, Australia. Available: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB9bQH_by04. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Photos

Photos were taken from http://www.google.com/.

Internet

(2010). Port Douglas Carnivale. Available: http://carnivale.com.au/general/. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

(2010). Queen Victoria Building. Available: http://www.qvb.com.au/About-QVB. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Australia- Culture, Customs and Etiquette. Available: http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/australia.html. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Bryman, A. (2004). The Disneyization of Society. Available: http://books.google.com.sg/books?id=LoHVOCFJprgC&pg=PA66&lpg=PA66&dq=disneyization+of+society+in+australia&source=bl&ots=LCbewnuXYV&sig=hMcLUQu6CI8zJaw--bOmCM-32pw&hl=en&ei=910ATdeBHoHrrQf1-fmQDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CBwQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Crown Towers. Available: http://www.crowntowers.com.au/. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Great Barrier Reef. Available: http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/greatbarrierreef/. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Lane, J. (2010). World Championship Cockroach Racing. Available: http://www.2camels.com/world-championship-cockroach-racing.php. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Phillip Island Nature Parks. Available: http://www.penguins.org.au/home. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Tam, A. (2006). Sustainable Tourism and the Case Against Tourism. Available: http://www.scribd.com/doc/19380512/Case-Against-Tourism. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. (2000). Commodify. Available: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/commodification. Last accessed: 2009.

The Social and Cultural Impacts of Tourism. Available: http://www.gawler.sa.gov.au/webdata/resources/files/5_Gawler_Impacts_Tourism.PDF. Last accessed: 9 December 2010.

Books

(2008, October). East Coast Australia. Third Edition. Lonely Planet.

(2009, June). Central Australia- Adelaide to Darwin. Fifth Edition. Lonely Planet.

Bartlett, A. (2002). First People- The Aboriginal Peoples Of Australia. Times Media Private Limited. Singapore.

Hampshire, D., Kidd, M. (2007). Culture Wise Australia- The Essential Guide to Culture, Customs & Business Etiquette. Survival Books. London, England.

Ivory, M. (2007). Fodor’s Exploring Australia. Seventh Edition. Fodor’s Travel. America.

Conculsion

According to www.thefreedictionary.com, the definitation of commodification is "The inappropriate treatment of something as if it can be acquired or marketed like other commodities". From this definition, I feel that tourism is the cause of commodification in cultures and traditions of Australia.

For example, when tour groups bring tourists to the Aboriginal homes to watch them perform their traditional dance, that is already a form of commodifying culture. This is because the Aboriginal people plan these dances for tourists to watch, so it is staged, and some of these dances may be sacred and not for entertainment purposes, but they perform them for tourists. This is commodifying culture because tourists would not know the cultural background of these Aboriginal people by just watching the performance.

Another example is souvenirs representing traditional items/culture. Aboriginal arts and crafts are popular souvenirs among tourists, such as musical instruments- Didjeridu, boomerangs and their paintings. As these traditional items once converted to souvenirs lose their traditional value all because of money (i.e. tourist dollars). For example, the Aboriginal paintings is a representation of stories, however those people who buy these paintings might not even know the true meaning of it and just add it on to their collection of souvenirs.

Another example is the boomerang. Boomerangs are used to stun and kill animals and to fight enemies. However, modern boomerangs are souvenirs that are playthings made of plastic or metal and boomerang throwing is now an international sport. 6 years ago when I went to Perth, Australia, I brought home a boomerang as a souvenir for my dad without even knowing the significance of it. This shows that the traditional boomerang usage has been commodified due tourism resulting in the lost of culture and traditions of the Aboriginal people.

In conclusion, I feel that tourism has indeed been a culprit in commodifying the cultures and traditions in Australia.

Changes Brought About by Tourism

In every country, there is bound to be positive and negative changes due to tourism. In this post, I have listed a few changes that Australia has experienced due to the growth in tourism.

Positive Changes

Better economy

As the number of tourist arrivals increase, this will lead to a higher level of tourist dollars as visitors to the country may spend money on food, accommodations and attractions in Australia. With the better economy, it will also allow the locals to have more job opportunities.

As more tourist facilities are developed, the government would need people to run the facilities and provide services to the tourist. This is where the locals come in as they can find a variety of jobs due to the growth in tourism. They have more options to choose from, for example they can work in the hotel industry, work in restaurants, or even work at attraction sites.

As quoted from http://www.gawler.sa.gov.au/webdata/resources/files/5_Gawler_Impacts_Tourism.PDF, “In 1997/98, tourism consumption in Australia totalled $58.2 billion contributing 4.5% of Australia’s total GDP and 6% of its employment.”

Preserving of natural environment

In Australia, there are many natural attractions you can visit, for example, the Great Barrier Reef, Ayers Rock (Uluru), the Blue Mountains and rainforests. Tourist would want to visit Australia for their famous natural landmarks and due to tourism the government would ensure that these locations are properly maintained so as to attract more tourists. For example, the government can simply cut down the Daintree rainforest in Queensland to make space for more tourist facilities but they chose not to and to instead develop the rainforest as a tourist destination.

Increase awareness of indigenous people

Due to tourism, more people know about the Aboriginal people/culture in Australia. To visit the Aboriginal tribe is a motivating factor for some tourist hence it fosters community pride amongst the tribe. This is because they now know that people is genuinely interested in knowing more about the Aboriginal culture and history, therefore making them feel proud to share more about their culture. With the increase in awareness of the Aboriginal people, they are better appreciated by both the locals as well.

On May 26, 1998, many Australians observed a national Sorry Day. On this day, white Australians signed hundreds of “sorry books” and presented them to the Aboriginal leader as a sign of apology for the way the Aboriginal people were treated by the white Australians in the past.

Facilities that benefit both tourist and locals

As tourism continues to increase, the Australian government would develop more attractions that will benefit both tourist and locals alike. For example, the Sydney Opera House now benefits both tourist and locals as both groups would visit the famous landmark to catch a performance or to just pose in front of it. Another example would be Phillip Island. As it is one of Australia’s attractions, both tourist and locals can visit the island, play with the penguins and Koalas and take home a souvenir or two.

Negative Changes

Destruction of natural environment

The Great Barrier Reef is a popular attraction in Australia. As more people are interested to see the attraction, it has indirectly destroyed the environment. Corals are broken due to reef walking or by boats dropping anchors. Some boats spill oil/fuel, this in turns affects the corals and wildlife as well because the oil/fuel will prevent oxygen from reaching these creatures.

As there is a rise in the number of tourist, there is bound to be more pollution such as littering. Through this, it will spoil the natural beauty of the environment. Visitors who go diving in the water might have run-off sweat and suntan lotions and this will have a negative impact on the reef environment.

Loss/dilution of culture and traditions

As the Aboriginal people are getting more educated, they are attracted to tourism related jobs rather than their traditional jobs such as agriculture and hunting. In the long run, this will lead to a loss in culture as no body would want to continue the tradition of hunting or farming but would prefer to work in proper industries and get their food from the grocery store.

These Aboriginal people would adapt to tourist demands, for example they would have to perform their traditional dance everyday to tourist. This would interrupt their daily way of life such as hunting and gathering. Through this, it would dilute their culture.

Spot 'Disney' in Australia

Disneyization is portrayed as a globalizing force. In other words, the principles with which it is associated are gradually spreading throughout the globe. (Disneyization of Society. Bryman, 2004.) The dimensions of Disneyization include:

Theming

Top left: Exterior of Queen Victoria Building;

The other 3 pcitures: Interior of Queen Victoria Building

Clothing institutions or objects in a narrative that is largely unrelated to the institution or object to which it is applied- Queen Victoria Building in Sydney Australia is a Romanesque themed shopping complex. It was designed by George McRae and built in 1898. Initially this building was a concert hall, city library and even the Sydney City Council once used this building. No one would except to see a Romanesque themed shopping mall in Australia or any part of the world, except in Rome. And here the Queen Victoria building stands with Roman influences on both the interior and exterior. Due to this, I feel that Queen Victoria Building is an example of theming in Australia.

Hybrid Consumption

Top: Crown Towers
Bottom: Crown Entertainment Complex

The general trend whereby the forms of consumption associated with different institutional spheres becomes interlocked with each other and increasingly difficult to distinguish- Crown Towers in Melbourne Australia is an example of hybrid consumption. Crown Towers is a luxury hotel with the normal hotel facilities (i.e. rooms, spa, and eateries). However on top of being just a hotel, the building also houses the Crown Entertainment Complex. Crown Entertainment Complex has cinemas, nightclubs, bars, shopping, indoor entertainment theme park and the renowned Crown Casino. This hotel has practically everything in one. Through this, I feel that Crown Towers is truly hybrid consumption because it has many different institutional spheres (i.e. hotel, casino, shopping and theme park) which interlock with each other; therefore we are unable to distinguish if it is a hotel, a shopping complex, a theme park or a casino.

Merchandising

The promotion and sale of goods in the form of or bearing copyright images and/or logos- In Phillip Island, Melbourne Australia, it is a nature wildlife park that is a popular attraction. The souvenirs of Phillip Island can only be found and bought there. Souvenirs such as t-shirts, key chains, stuff toys with the Phillip Island logo. You can definitely get other stuff toys from different parts of Australia but they will not have the Phillip Island logo. This is because Phillip Island has license over their logo. If we see people/tourist with souvenirs with the Phillip Island logo, it means that they have been to the place. Same with Disneyland, once we see visitors carrying a Disneyland bag, we know that they have visited Disneyland before. Therefore, I feel that Phillip Island is an example of merchandising in Australia.

Performative Labour

The growing tendency of frontline service work to be viewed as a performance- With Australia seeing a rise in tourist, the country would require more people working in the frontline sector. For example, hotel front desk officer, restaurants/cafés waitress, visitor centre information counter, and tour guide. These few job scopes all require the people to put on an act. In the sense that even if they are in a bad mood, they have to still maintain the happy and cheerful outlook. They still have to be happy to serve their customers. Just like in Disneyland, the workers there are all very cheerful and friendly despite what their mood might be- therefore, it is the same here in Australia. Through this, I feel that the people/workers are staging a performance.

What is Australia Known For?

When you think of Australia, what comes to your mind? Do you think of wildlife, famous people or attractions? When I think of Australia, I think of all of the three.

Wildlife

Left to right: Kangaroo, Kookaburra, Koala

Kangaroo
The kangaroo is Australia's national symbol and the logo of the country's national airline carrier, Quantas.

Koala
They are found along the eastern coast of Australia from near Adelaide to the southern part of the Cape York Peninsula, where there is sufficient rainfall to support suitable forest. The Koala eats the leaves of the eucalyptus tree.

Kookaburra
This kingfisher is nicknamed as the 'laughing jackass' because of its unmistakable call, which sounds a lot like human laughter.

Famous People

Crocodile Dundee

When people think of Crocodile Dundee, they would link it to Australia. A fictional hero of an Australian comedy film which was filmed in Australia was number one worldwide in 1986.

Steve Irwin
In the television series, The Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin came face to face with dangerous animals on a regular basis. However he died from a fatal piercing by a stingray. Whenever I hear the name 'Steve Irwin', I would think of all the animals he had encountered and I would also think of Australia.

Kylie Ann Minogue
A Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and occasional actress, Minogue is one of the few Australians who have made it big in Hollywood.

Attractions

Blue Mountains National Park
A vast national park in Katoomba, New South Wales is famous for the 'Three Sisters' peaks with the Jamison Valley and Mount Solitary behind them, surrounded by the Blue Gum Forest. It is said that the 'Three Sisters' rock formation are actually really three sisters turned to stone.
The story goes like this. Three Gundungurra sisters loved brothers from the neighbouring Dharruk people, but the ancestral law did not allow them to marry these men. The brothers attacked the Gundungurra people to forcefully claim the women. To protect the three sisters, the men took them to the top of a cliff and turned them into stone planning to return after the battle to change them back. however he was killed and no one knew how to turn the stones back into living women.

Great Barrier Reef

The video above tells us abit more about the Great Barrier Reef and all the speices found there. The world's largest coral reef system which can be seen from space is found right here in Australia! With over 3000 individual reefs, the Great Barrier Reef was designated a World Heritage Site in 1981.

Uluru (Ayers Rock)

A major tourist attraction and a World Heritage Site, the Ayers Rock is a large sandstone rock formation in central Australia which is sacred to the Aboriginal people of the area.

Sydney Harbour Bridge
The world's biggest steel arch bridge, the Sydney Harbour Bridge has become an iconic image of both Sydney and Australia linking traffic between the central business district (CBD) and the North Shore.

Sydney Opera House
One of the most striking and famous buildings and a major tourism attraction, the Sydney Opera House is host to many performance. In the movie 'Finding Nemo', Nemo's father, Merly, swims pass the Sydney Opera House. This just shows how prominent this attraction is.

Bondi Beach

Bondi Beach is one of the world's most famous beaches located along Sydney. The word "Bondi" is an Aboriginal word which means water breaking over rocks. On 6 February 1938, known as 'Black Sunday', the beach was packed with 35000 people when huge waves swamped the beach, dragging hundreds out to sea. The famous Bondi lifesavers pulled 250 people from the water and amazingly only 5 lives were lost.

These are just some of the few attractions or icons I feel that Australia is well known for. There are definitely other well-known attractions of Australia, but I just pointed out these few as I think they are the more well-known attractions/icons.

Leisure Activities

In Australia, there are a variety of leisure activities available for everyone, such as festivals, events and sports. Below, I have listed some leisure activities which are popular among locals.

Festivals

Adelaide Festival of Arts
One of the world's greatest celebration of the arts, the festival is held in Adelaide, South Australia, during March in even-numbered years. It showcases opera, theatre, dance, classical and contemporary music, cabaret and 'new media'.

Canberra Floriade
An annual flower festival with scents, sounds and sights of the Canberra spring, held between mid-September to mid-October. Performances, activities, workshops and exhibitions are conducted during the annual festival.


Melbourne International Film Festival



The largest film festival in the southern hemisphere, the Melbourne International Film Festival is a 19-day festival held from the end of July to mid-August. This annual festival attracts more than 150000 visitors and is a showcase for outstanding films from around the world.

Reef & Rainforest Carnivale

A family Carnivale which includes gourmet food and wine tastings, art exhibitions, sporting events, masquerade parties and entertainment. This 10-day Carnivale held in Port Douglas in Northern Queensland during May.
Visit http://carnivale.com.au/ for more information about the annual Reef & Rainforest Carnivale.

Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras
Despite the name of the festival, it is not just for gays, everyone is welcome! Held in February and early March, the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is one of the world's premier carnivals with a wide variety of activities, an evening parade and an all-night party!

Events

Surf Carnivals & Iron Man Contests
Most beach resorts will host a surf carnival in summer, of which individuals and teams compete in board-paddling, swimming, and surfboat races. There are also team lifesaving competitions and the ironman/ironwoman competitions, (the highlight of the event) which is a combination of swimming and surf ski riding. This is very popular amongst the locals.

Cockroach World Championship
On the 26 of January every year, which is also Australia Day, at the Story Bridge Hotel in Brisbane, Queensland, the Cockroach World Championship is something to look forward to. Australians would participate in cockroach races which includes the flat and steeplechase race. Families would also wear t-shirts that says 'I am very appROACHable', 'Papa Roach' or 'Dwarf Roach'. When you've reached the venue, you can either buy a cockroach or bring your own!

The Nude Olympics
During February at Maslin Beach near Adelaide is the venue for the Nude Olympics. They even have a Best Bum competition!

Australians' Favourite Pastime

• Swimming


• Cricket


• Rugby football (which is the main football game in Canberra, New South Wales and Queensland)
  
• Motor sports (such as Formula One, motorcross, and touring car racing)


• Surfing, which is a way of life rather than a sport or leisure activity for the Australians


• Gambling (for some people it is an occupation and not just a pastime)


• Visiting museums & art galleries
  
• Going to the cinemas (over 10 million Aussies go to the cinema each year according to 'Culture Wise Australia' by David Hampshire and Martin Kidd)


• Theatres


• Music and Dance- such as ballet and opera
  
• Visiting animal and marine parks

Education in Australia

In this post, I will be talking more about the education system is Australia for both the Aboriginals and the locals.

Aboriginal Communities

Past
Traditionally, Aboriginal education was conducted outdoors where parents and older relatives taught children to hunt, fish, gather, make clothes, build houses and trade. However when the Europeans arrived in Australia, Aboriginal children had to attend European-style schools where teachers gave lessons in English and held classes indoors. As children no longer learnt from their elders, the traditional knowledge was lost.

Present
Recently, many Aboriginal communities have set up schools that teach both traditional knowledge and modern subjects. The children will go on field trips and camping trips to learn about their language and culture.

The Australians (with the exception of the Aboriginals)

Australia’s education system is considered to be one of the best in the world and is based on the British system. The country has around 10000 primary and secondary schools, about half of which are private; many are Catholic Church schools. The private schools are partially funded by the government but charge school fees which can be rather high. They include both day and boarding schools, many of which are single-sex, especially at secondary level.

Most public schools are mixed day schools with the exception of a few secondary schools that accept boarders. Education at public schools is free, although parents must pay for books, uniforms, outings, and other school necessities. Most of the students wear school uniforms.

Most believe that private schools are more superior to public schools despite there being little differences between the best public and private schools.

Languages in Australia

In Australia, English is the main language. However their pronunciation may differ from the normal British English as the use of slang, also known as strine, is commonly used amongst the locals. The usage of strine is also part of the Australian culture as it makes them who they are.

With a rich past with a large wave of immigrations from countries such as Europe, Asia and North America, the Australians are heavily influenced with the way they speak. They use British and American words and spelling interchangeably, such as pants/trousers, lift/elevator, alcohol/liquor and labor/labour. Australia is also influenced from Irish English though not as many as might be expected, such as the usage of non-standard plural of ‘you’- ‘youse’ (pronounced as yews), the expression ‘good on you’, ‘good onya’ which means thank you and also another influence is the use of the word ‘me’ to replace ‘my’, for example ‘Where’s me shirt?’.

Pronunciation

Australian English is distinguished by its vowel pronunciation, the most obvious are the ‘I’ sound for ‘A’ and the ‘Ah’ sound for ‘R’. They stretch their vowels while consonants are shortened, making their language difficult to distinguish. For example, you may hear ‘Waddayareckon?’ which actually is ‘What do you reckon?’, ‘Emmachisit?’ (How much is it?), and ‘Didjavagoodweegend?’ (Did you have a good weekend?).

Those living in remote parts of the country and Outback areas are more likely to use strine. The middle-class city dwellers, many of whom are of British ancestry, have a less pronounced accent and city speech tends to be faster than country speech.

Strine

Australian English is not only known for its pronunciation but also by its colourful slang- usually called ‘strine’. Many people associate Strine with Ockers. Ockers are working-class male Australians, who are rough and ill-mannered and are usually found in pubs in the Outback, who speak in a mangled Australian accent with a lot of slang. Australian English also includes around 500 words adopted from the Aboriginal languages. In Australia, many words have a different meaning than in other English-speaking countries, such as crook (ill), game (brave), shout (round of drinks) and tube (can of beer).

Any word that has more than two syllables is shortened by adding a vowel ‘o’ to the end, for example ‘garbo’ for dustman, ‘reffo’ for refugee and ‘rego’ for car registration. Australians also add the suffix ‘ie’ or ‘y’ to shorten words, for example, ‘Aussie’ for Australian, ‘barbie’ for barbecue, and ‘footy’ for football.

Aboriginal Language

In the past, the Aboriginal people had no written language and they recorded their languages in songs and stories. Nowadays, people have begun to write books in the Aboriginal languages thanks to the missionaries and anthropologists who wrote down the traditional languages using their own alphabets. How to speak, read and write the Aboriginal languages are also taught in special schools.

To the Aboriginals, English is a second language and in the Northern Territory, the children are taught in both their own language and in English. In most Aboriginal languages, the word ‘you’ varies depending on the speaker’s relationship to the listener.

For example:

Alyawarr- language of central Australia


I hope that this post gave you insights to the Australian language, be it English, Strine, or the Aboriginal language.

Indigenous Groups- The Aboriginals

In this blog post, I will be talking about the Aboriginal people found in Australia.

There are over 400 Aboriginal tribes found in Australia and they have a flag which is different from the Australian national flag. The black colour in the Aboriginal flag represents the people, the red stands for the land and the yellow circle represents the sun, which gives life.

Aboriginal flag

Festivals & Ceremonies

Aboriginal Dance Festival

Nowadays, many celebrations last for several days and involve the whole community. People would build shelters for shade, paint their bodies and make necklaces and headdresses while discussing stories. The Aboriginal people would perform songs and dances concerning their land and home to visitors or tourist.

Traditions

Families would arrange most marriages and some children were even promised in marriage before they were even born. Girls usually get married in their early teenage years while in some Aboriginal groups, their husbands may be many years older.

In certain Aboriginal communities, a woman called her mother’s sisters “mother” and they called her “daughter”. In this way, everyone had several “parents”. Also in some groups, certain people are not suppose to have contact with each other. For example, adult brothers and sisters have to face different directions when they talk to each other.

Clothes

In hot dry regions and in summer, Aboriginal people wore no clothing or only short fringes, made of fiber, string, feathers or the tails of small animals, over their private parts. In cooler places and in winter, the people would wear cloaks made from possum or kangaroo skin. Men and women wore necklaces and pendants made of shells, teeth or bones and on special occasions, some Aboriginal groups would make headdresses out of emu feathers or other materials.

Survival

Insects, such as ants, grubs, caterpillars and moths, were an important source of food for many of the Aboriginal people. Aboriginal people living along the coast ate long white worms cut from mangrove tress, while in the remote parts of Australia, some groups still eat insects.

To obtain food, Aboriginal men hunted large animals like kangaroos and emus; they also catch sea cows, turtles and seals in the sea. Women caught smaller animals like lizards, snakes, and possums. The aboriginal people would dig up roots and gather fruit, seeds and eggs for food.

The aboriginal people use fire to keep them warm, keep insects away, to cook and dry food, harden and sharpen tools. They would make fire by the traditional method of rubbing together pieces of wood or hard rocks to produce heat and sparks.

Tools

Whatever tools the Aboriginal people use, they made it by themselves. They make tools such as knives, spears, axes, and shields. Aboriginal people also make containers, which includes water bags, baskets and large bowls.

They use spears for hunting and fishing. Some spears were simple poles without spearheads whereas others had detachable heads. Harpoons, which are spears with ropes attached) were used for killing sea animals. Fishing spears had two or three sharp points and the Aboriginal people also used spears to hunt kangaroos, emus and other animals.

Boomerangs

In the past, Aboriginal men hunted with many different kinds of throwing sticks. For example the boomerang, this is a crooked wooden stick that is curved on one side and flat on the other. When thrown, many boomerangs would return to the thrower. The Aboriginal hunters would use boomerangs to stun and kill animals and to fight enemies.

Art

Painting

Aboriginal people painted designs on rocks, barks, sacred objects and the ground. They also painted their bodies. Traditional designs made up of lines, dots, circles and swirls that represented different things to different groups. Each art painting often told stories.

Bark Art

In southern Australia, people used charcoal to make patterns on bark shelters. Some also scratched designs into bark that had been blackened by fire. Other bark paintings were used to cover graves.

Music & Dance

The main instrument of Aboriginal music is the human voice but people use other musical instruments as mentioned below.

• Clap stick (two sticks rhythmically clapped together) - example boomerangs
  
• Rasp- saw-toothed stick that produces musical sounds when rubbed across another stick
  
• Drum- made from a long hollow piece of wood with snakeskin stretched across one end
  
• Didjeridu:

Man playing the Didjeridu

A trumpet or horn which was originally played in northwestern parts of Australia. It is 40 to 60 inches long made from a piece of bamboo or tree trunk hollowed out by termites or fire. The didjeridu player blows into the mouth piece, vibrating the lips and tapping the instrument rhythmically with one hand.

Young Aboriginal children performing a dance

Aboriginal songs describe and tell the locations of land formations and water sources. In the past, the Aboriginal people danced to tell stories and as part of rituals. Dancers often imitate the movement of animals such as kangaroos and emus. Dances might also tell about ancient legends or about more recent events such as World War II.

To end off, I have found a video showing us the gist of the Aboriginal culture. The background music of the video is made by Didjeridu.

Cultures & Traditions of Australia

The Locals' Attitude

Australians are modest and down-to-earth people who value those who are sincere, modest and humble. They especially like someone with a sense of humour and dislikes those who are pretentious. They do not draw attention to their academic achievements and hence do not like people who are boastful. Australians try not to give the impression that they think they are better than others hence downplaying their own success making them seem less achievement-oriented.

Australia- multi-cultural society with strong friendships built

Having a relatively small population, Australians feel that it is important to get along well with everyone therefore they look forward to creating a good relationship with others. My Singaporean friend who migrated to Australia said, “The people in Australia are really friendly”. This just further enforces the point that Australians are keen in building a good rapport with whoever who comes by.

Conversation Taboos

The Australians are very sensitive with regards to the country’s past history and their multi-cultural society. Therefore when speaking to a local, do avoid topics such as:

• Racism
• Treatment of Aborigines
• The country’s convict past
• Immigration
• Refugees
• Religion

Meals

Left: traditional breakfast; Right: pie

Australians' eating habits reflect their British heritage. They eat three meals a day, breakfast (also known as 'brekkie'), lunch and dinner.

Breakfast is usually eaten at home although it is becoming more common to see the locals eating breakfat in cafes. A traditional brekkie may include fresh or tinned fruit, fruit juice, cereal or porridge, eggs, bacon and sausages with tea or coffee.Toast may be spread with marmalade, Nutella, or Vegemite, a concentrated yeast extract. In some rural areas, men may include steak and chops in their breakfast as well! Nowadays, Australians eat a light 'Continental' breakfast consisting of croissants or toast with coffee or tea.

Lunch is usually eaten between noon and 2pm and it is usually a light midday meal. Most locals would eat sandwiches or rolls, meat pies, hamburgers or fried chicken and it is usually accompanied with chips and smothered in tomato sauce.

Many Australians have an afternoon snack (tea) which consist of a cup of coffee or tea with a biscuit. On a more formal occasion, afternoon tea may compromise of sandwiches, cakes, or pikelets (small pancakes) which are normally spread with butter and jam.

Dinner is the main meal of the day for the Australians, usually consisting of two courses and dessert in a restaurant. A typical main course is meat or fish with potatoes and vegetables accompanied by beer or wine. Dinner is usually eaten between 7 and 8pm, but in rural areas, dinner may be served as early as 6pm.

In an informal dining setting, most people would eat their food at home on a tray in front of the television and children may eat in their rooms instead of sitting down together as a family.

Australians love barbecue, commonly known as 'barbie' to the locals. When invited to a barbie, you might be asked to 'bring a plate' but it doesn't mean that the host does not have sufficient crockery, it just means that you should bring a plate of food. Also there are barbecue acronyms such as BYO which stands for 'bring your own' or BYOG ('bring your own grog) which means that you are expected to bring drinks such as beer, wine or soft drinks. There is also another acronym BYOGM which represents 'bring your own grog and meat'. At a barbecue, you always serve yourself and you should not stack your plate with plenty of food at one go.

Table Manners

1) It is impolite to use salt and pepper before tasting food as it implies that the host doesn't know how to season correctly.

2) When eating with your hands, an individual bowl would be served with a slice of lemon to each guest and you are expected to dip your fingers in the bowl during and after your meal and dry them on your serviette.

3) Some households say grace before a meal although it is rare nowadays. But if grace is said, you should bow your head until it is finished.

4) Coughing and blowing your nose loudly is considered rude at the table. Burping is also deemed as rude. If you cannot hold in a loud noise, say 'pardon' quietly and pretend as though nothing happened.

5) It is polite to wait until everyone is served before starting to eat.

Aboriginal Culture

Lastly, not forgetting the Aboriginal culture that makes Australia who she is today. In my next post, I will be talking more about the Aboriginal culture, dances, arts, way of life and their past. Do tune in for the next post!

Australia

G'day mate! The country I chose for my Tourism, Culture and Society- Individual Assignment 2 is Australia.

Australia is also known as Oceania and it's capital is Canberra in New South Wales. It's summer is between December to February and it's winter is from June to August.

Australia is a multi-cultural country.



The country is also a multi-religious country with many different religious beliefs.

In this blog, I will be taking you through the culture & traditions of Australia, their indigenous people, what the country is famous for, and many more components. To find out more about Australia, do read this blog!