Top 10 Things That I Love The Most About Australia

While reminiscing how it’s already been a year since the day my husband and I migrated here, I have realised that I have been admiring this country from the very first moment. There is no limit in finding something new to fall in love with. In this blog post, I will be sharing with you the top 10 reasons why I feel lucky to call Australia my home. 

1. The Beautiful Environment

Australia is undeniably known to have some of the world’s most stunning scenery. If I were to describe it in just three words I would say breathtaking, captivating, and unique. The country has an abundance of natural wonders that would sure take your breath away, whichever state you may be in. It is full of picture perfect places to captivate anyone’s heart such as the Great Barrier Reef on the north-east coast of Australia, Northern Territory’s Uluru, and the Pinnacles of Western Australia, just to name a few. A big percentage of the vegetation is unique to Australia due to it being isolated from the rest of the world.

Beaches

A large part of the Australian population live near the beach being that the country is surrounded with three oceans. Where I live for example is only a bit over half an hour drive to the beach. I’ve been to a couple of beaches in different countries and I could honestly say that I personally think that Australia has some the world’s best beaches. To me, nothing can compare to its sun-soaked coastline and its pristine, glistening water. Whether you’re into surfing, snorkeling, swimming, or sun bathing, there would always be a beach perfect for you.

Sky

One of my most memorable first moments here in Australia was when I looked up the night sky and it just looked so wide and clear. Untill now, every time I’d look up the night sky, there would be countless of stars scattered throughout, the most I’ve ever seen. Apparently, this is because Australia is positioned to have one of the best views of the Milky Way on Earth as it is looking towards the galactic centre. We also have our very own Aurora Australis (Southern Lights) in Victoria and Tasmania.

2. The Wildlife

According to The Nature Conservancy Australia,  more than 80% of our plants and animals are unique to Australia. Some of them are well known the world over like the kangaroos, koalas, and the Tasmanian devil. But there are still a lot more that are also worth knowing such as the wallabies, wombats, and the scary Southern Cassowary. 

Australia also has a wide array of birds. If you spread some bird food in an area in your backyard in the morning, you would be visited by all kinds of colourful and pretty birds. When we used to do this, we would be having breakfast while Parrots, Kookaburra, Galahs (my favourite) etc. are flying around us.

3. A Sense of Fair Go

Fair go is a core value of the Australian community where everyone has the opportunity to improve their life. What really surprised me about Australia was how though of course there were still rich and poor, everyone has access to a decent life. There’s Medicare (AU’s healthcare system) to provide Australian residents accesses to a wide range of health services for little to no cost. If you’re unemployed, you may receive government assistance.

Like in any society, people here come from all sorts of backgrounds and starting points in life but there are options laid out to enable people to pursue their dreams. There are government funded certification programs to get you qualified in a field you choose to pursue. Do you want to further your education? No problem. HECS-HELP loan are available to Australian citizens who want to go to university. Regardless of your current social status, your future is heavily influenced by your actions.

I’ve also noticed that you don’t necessarily need to spend money on having fun. Everyone has free accesses to parks, botanical gardens, public libraries etc. In addition, Aussies don’t seem to really give much weight to one’s social standing and sees and treats everyone equally.

4. Cultural Diversity

5. A Laid-back Attitude

I’m sure you have probably heard before that Australians have a very relaxed attitude and this is reflected in many aspects of their way of life. If you have read our previous post on Aussie Slang, you’d know how much Aussies like to shorten their words. I guess it may depend on where in Australia you live but from what I have seen, we tend to dress pretty casually. It’s not even that surprising to see someone walking outdoors barefoot.

We have such a casual lifestyle that we don’t take ourselves all too seriously. In workplaces, for example, a relaxed work culture is pretty common. Where I’m from originally, people address their co-workers in a formal manner but here, people call their bosses by their first name. Bosses here also seem more approachable.

6. Fun Cities

Fun, exciting, vibrant, and full of life. That’s how people describe Australia’s main cities. Each city is unique but a common theme would be bright lights, great food scene, and major shopping precincts. Australia has world famous cities such as Sydney which is modern and sophisticated, Melbourne, a paradise for foodies and the artsy, and the best city for surfing, Gold Coast.

7. Friendly Locals

In my experience, I’d say that Aussies are, for the most part, a friendly bunch. When I go for walks in the morning, the strangers that I run into would always give me a smile or a greeting. They also have a unique sense of humour that I sometimes don’t get.

8. Considers The Needs of People With Disability

This is something that I really admire Australia for, they take care of the millions of Australians who have disability. Aside from the government guidelines that are put in place to ensure accessibility for the disabled (wheelchair ramps, disabled toilets, accessible swimming pools, etc.), there’s also this thing called the NDIS.

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is supports and services funding for Aussies who have disability. So basically, it’s a government scheme that would help the disabled to improve their quality of life by giving them access to services that would increase their skills and independence.  For example, those who benefit from this scheme may have a support worker who would help them achieve their goals like teaching them life skills (cooking, socialising, etc.) and assist them with their daily needs.

9. Tim Tams

I would dare say that this is Australia’s most loved chocolate biscuit. It’s a simple cream filled biscuit with chocolate coating but once you taste it, it’d for sure be a favourite. It comes in different variations/flavours. I’m actually eating one as I write. 

Since I’m feeling generous, I’m going to teach you the proper way of eating a Tim Tam, the Tim Tam slam. This experience would take you to a different world! So first you have to have a warm cup of coffee, hot chocolate, or milk. Then you’d bite off a corner of your Tim Tam and then bite the opposite corner on the other end of your Tim Tam. You would then basically be using the Tim Tam as a straw and sip some of your hot drink. Once you feel that it has softened, it’s ready to eat. That’s the taste of perfection.

10. Fish & Chips + Chicken Salt

This is one of the most common takeaway food that you would find throughout Australia. It’s fresh fish fillet in a light crisp batter with a side of chips (a.k.a. fries to some of you). It’s sprinkled with chicken salt and served with a lemon wedge on the side. For those of you who have not yet had chicken salt, it is an Australian condiment that is often sprinkled on anything fried. It’s a bit difficult to describe but it makes everything taste better. It’s salty and a bit chicken-y, I guess. It gives that, for lack of a better word, umami flavour.

Conclusion

That’s it, the top 10 things that I love the most about this country. This list would most probably keep on growing throughout the years because I just keep on discovering new reasons to fall in love with Australia even more. How about you? What do you love about our little piece of heaven on Earth?

Disclaimer All content and information in this post is for purposes of sharing my experiences only, does not constitute professional advice and does not establish any kind of professional-client relationship.

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