Today is our national holiday Australia Day. It marks the arrival of the First Fleet and settlement in Australia.
To celebrate I have updated my 2015 Australia Day post, celebrating my A-Z of Australian things. Although far from a complete list it is fun way to share Australia. Included in the list are:
- Animals
- Birds
- Food
- Inventions
- Items
- Places
- Treasures
A: Aboriginal Art – Paintings by indigenous Australians often using a dot design. To celebrate Australia Day Sydney lights up the Opera House at dawn each year with Aboriginal art. Today beautiful design would have been spectacular to see at dawn.
Anzac biscuits – Australian biscuits were eaten by our troops on the shores of Gallipoli hence the name. They are made from rolled oats, golden syrup, coconut and butter. There ingredients were chose due to their ability to not deteriorate over the long journey from Australia to the front.
Arnott’s Biscuits – Australia’s original biscuit brand is now more than 150 years old.
B: Beaches – Australia is known for its sandy beaches. The most famous being Sydney’s Bondi Beach. Since moving home to Newcastle I go to the beach regularly as it is a 5 minute drive or 30 minute walk from my house. Our local beaches are Bar Beach, Dixon Park and Merewether beach. Below is the few from Bar Beach carpark up towards Merewether with Dixon Park in-between.
Black Box Flight Recorder – The black box voice and data recorder was invented in Australia. Its invention has help to change airline safety as it guides investigators to the cause of crashes.
Beetroot – Your typical Aussie hamburger includes beetroot, lettuce, tomato, fried onion and barbeque sauce.
Baby Safety Capsule – Developed in 1984 to make sure babies and small children could be safely locked into a seatbelt.
C: Cockatoo – There are 21 varieties of Cockatoos in the world and all can be found in Australia. In my area the Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo is common and are often seen on the ground in groups looking for food.
Caramello Koalas – Small Australian chocolate bar. They are very yummy.
Photo Credit: Cadbury
Cherry Ripe – My favourite chocolate bar. They are now also available in double dipped chocolate which takes the experience to a new level. Cherry, coconut and dark chocolate amazing.
D: Dual Flush Toilet – A toilet with two flush buttons. The choice to flush either a half or full load of water makes a big difference to our water used daily.
Dame Edna – Australian iconic entertainer known for her comedy and ability to make fun of our way of life.
Didgeridoo – A wind instrument, invented by Aboriginals and originally found only in Northern Australia. It is thought to be the oldest musical instrument in the world.
E: Echidna – Australia’s most widely spread native animal. They and the platypus are the world’s only egg laying mammals. On many occasions while driving in the bush, we have seen them crossing the road. They are very cute to watch waddle.
Emu – Australian flightless bird. The can run very fast and have a habit of pecking you when you least expect it. My kids still remember one pecking my father when her wore a red shirt.
Esky – Portable coolers keeping food and drink cool in the Australian sun.
Electric Drill – Originally invented to drill through rock this technology was later adapted to household use.
F: Fair Dinkum – Aussie slang meaning true or fair. Used when you want someone to believe what you are telling them.
Fridge – In 1854 the first mechanical ice making machine was invented in Australia that lead to the development of the refrigerator—”fridge.”
G: Great Barrier Reef – World’s largest coral reef covering 2,300 kilometres off Queensland
Photo Credit: Google Images
G’day Mate – Australian welcome.
Google Maps – 2003-4 Australian’s Lars and Jens Rasmussen developed the platform that developed into Google Maps. Recently we saw the Google Maps cars while on the Nullabor Plains.
H: Holden cars – Holden is an Australian automaker that was based in South Australia. With limited choice for cars in the early days many families including mine had a Holden. Unfortunately, the Holden factory closed in 2017 and along with it car manufacturing in this country.
G: Goanna – Goanna’s are monitor lizards found in Australia. They are scary and can move very quickly. We once saw one up close and person in in a National Park. Bravely we waited for him to move rather than have him think we were dinner.
I: Icy Pole – Famous Australian water ice block especially good on days like today. Its 35-36 degrees on the coast and early 40’s away from the coast. So far the hottest day this year.
Photo Credit: Peters Icecream
J: Jackaroo/Jillaroo – Male and Female workers on a cattle or sheep station in Australia.
Jumbuck – Name for sheep in Waltzing Matilda.
K: Kangaroo – One of Australia’s most iconic marsupials. This restaurant allowed the kangaroos to come to the table. Personally not sure how I feel about that but I was walking past not having food delivered.
Koala – Small bear-like herbivorous marsupial that eats gum leaves. After the recent tragic fires these amazing Australian animals are endangered as so many were killed. We now have less than 100,000 koala in the country. and working hard to provide safe environments for them to live safely in the wild.
Kookaburra – Known for their laugh Kookaburras can be found everywhere. We have often had one or two visit our backyard.
L: Lamingtons – Spongy butter cake coated in chocolate sauce and rolled in coconut.
Long wearing Contact Lens – Were developed by the CSIRO as the original ones couldn’t stay in day and night for long periods.
M: Melbourne Cup – “The race that stops the nation” is the richest two-mile handicap horse race in the world. Run the first Tuesday in November, it is a public holiday in Melbourne.
Meat Pie – The meat pie is an Australian icon. Traditionally it is pastry filled with beef and gravy just big enough to fit into your hand, making it easy to eat on the go.
Macadamia – A tree nut specific to Australia with a creamy texture.
Meter Maids – In the 1960’s meter maids literally went around the Gold Coast putting coins in the newly introduced parking meters as a protest.
N: Nullabor Plains – 1200 kilometre stretch of desert runs from South Australia in the east to Western Australia. Its name means no trees, just flat mostly straight road. In fact, the Nullabor holds the record for the worlds stretch of straight bitumen 146.6 kilkometres.
New South Wales – My home state between Queensland and Victoria.
O: Opera House – Multi-purpose entertaining venue on Sydney Harbour. A white building during festivities it is changed dramatically using lights.
Outback – The Outback is the large, remote, arid space that covers a Australia. Usually covered in red soil.
P: Platypus – Unique Australian mammal that looks like a cross between a duck and beaver. There are found in rivers but are very hard to spot. This concrete platypus is found in a park in an area they are found.
Plastic Banknotes – Invented by the CSIRO, making bank notes tougher and reducing their ability to be counterfeited. We were also the first country to have all notes changed from paper to plastic.
Powerboard -Invented in 1972 allows multiple electrical devices to be powered from one electrical socket.
Q: Quokka – Australian macropod about the size of a cat found on Rottnest Island off Perth. They are so cute and love to take a selfie with you.
Quoll – Carnivorous Australian marsupial first seen by Captain Cook in 1770.
Photo Credit: Wikipeadia
Queensland– Australian state north of New south Wales.
R: Rotary Clothes Hoist – Clothes line that raises and lowers as well as swings around in the wind. Growing up in Australia many backyards had them. I am fortunate I still have one as they dry your clothes quickly and effortlessly.
Rottnest Island – 18 kilometres off Perth, it is home to Quokkas, pristine beaches and world-class surf.
S: Sydney Harbour Bridge – The world’s largest steel arch bridge and connects Sydney to the north shore. When we lived in Sydney I travelled across it everyday on my way to work and never tired of the sight.
Surf Life Savers – Australians classics that keep our beaches safe by rescuing swimmers in difficulty. Drowning in the ocean are too common in Australia particularly in unpatrolled beaches.
Surf Ski – Australian invention to assist in saving lives see above photo
Speedos – Australian men’s swimmers—sometimes colloquially referred to as “budgie smugglers.”
Splayd – Australian invention that combines the spoon fork and knife
Spray-on Skin – Invented in 1999 by Professor Fiona Wood, this technology saved many lives after the 2002 Bali bombing.
T: Tim Tams – Iconic Arnott’s biscuits that involves two layers of chocolate biscuits joined together with chocolate cream and covered in chocolate.
U: Ugg Boots –Unisex sheep skin boot with fleece on the inside.
Uluru –Also known as Ayers Rock is a large sandstone rock in the Northern Territory.
Ultrasounds – Invented in Australia through work with the Department of Health.
V: Vegemite – Sandwich spread most Australians won’t travel without and most of the rest of the world try but find it very bitter.
Victoria – Southern State of Australia on the East Coast—Capital is Melbourne.
W: Wiggles – The original Wiggles —children’s entertainers—are Australian. The group which is now over 30 years old is the most popular children’s entertainers in the world. I can remember seeing them perform in the local shopping centre as they began their journey.
Wine casks – Wine casks are an Australian invention to carry large amounts of wine in a plastic bladder with a simple pouring spout
Wi-Fi Hotspots – Wi Fi technology was invented in Australia through research at the CSIRO.
Winged Keel – First invented by Ben Lexcen for Australia II in the America’s Cup.
X: XXXX Beer – Famous brand of Queensland beer
Y: Yackandandah – Small tourist town near the New South Wales and Victorian border. It was the setting for the iconic Australian movie, Strange Bedfellows.
Z: Zeehan – Former silver and gold mining town in Tasmania
