My long-distance fascination with Australia
February 23rd 2011 03:43
In light of somewhat recent events, I'd like to preface this post with a belated "Happy Australia Day", with special thoughts for the people of Brisbane.
Ever since I was little, I wanted to go to Australia. I was enraptured by its antipodean mystique, brought on partly by the '80s wave of Australia-philia over here in North America. We had Crocodile Dundee, which I was old enough to watch, as well as Coca Cola Kid, which I wasn't. Much later, I would become fond of movies like Picnic at Hanging Rock and Rabbit-Proof Fence. Oh, and almost anything starring Judy Davis.
Also in the '80s, Olivia Newton-John launched her Koala Blue clothing line. One fine day my mom came back from the local mall with a white sweatshirt adorned with a colouful doodle of a koala in a hat. Underneath was the rather mystifying message, "Korner of Australia Los Angeles". If I'd hung on to it, it'd be a cute piece of vintage kitsch today.
On the strength of Australia's invasion in '80s pop culture, and the coincidental assignment of a social studies project in school, I became enamoured with the idea of Australia. Ever the optimist, I procured an Australia travel guide that was so outdated, or poorly fact-checked, that it said "kangaroo" meant "I don't know"--a myth which I half-believed for years until an internet search cleared it up for me).
Yet whenever I told adults that I really, really wanted to go to Australia one day, the response was less than encouraging. "Oh, I've been there," pooh-poohed one. "It's just like Canada, but with the seasons in reverse." Um, seriously? Though I'd no first-hand experience, I knew this obviously couldn't be accurate.
On a more serious, and somewhat sinister, note, I was also warned to avoid the antipodes because Aussies 'don't like Asians'. Oh, please. It's not like Canada didn't have its own version of 'yellow peril'. But today Canada is an ethnically and culturally diverse country that manages to overcome the ghosts of its racist history. From what I've gleaned of its culture in arts and media, I think the same can be said for Australia.
It's been many years since I thought of travelling to Australia. I always have a soft spot for things and people hailing from that country, though. One example is The Wiggles, who rank among some of today's least annoying kids' entertainers*; I also appreciate the fact that most of them had a background in childhood education. My son loved them until he was in school, and we even took him to a live concert. (It was insane. We stood in front of the stage, surrounded on three sides by what can only be described as a toddler mosh pit.) Also, thanks to the Wiggles' cover of "Six Months in a Leaky Boat", my son likes Split Enz.
And last but not least--through my work, I've come to know Atlassian software development. I love this company and its tools. Atlassian, can you please open an office in my hometown? And then I can apply, get a job, and transfer to the home base. A girl can dream, right?
*Except for that blue one, Anthony. Grrr.
Ever since I was little, I wanted to go to Australia. I was enraptured by its antipodean mystique, brought on partly by the '80s wave of Australia-philia over here in North America. We had Crocodile Dundee, which I was old enough to watch, as well as Coca Cola Kid, which I wasn't. Much later, I would become fond of movies like Picnic at Hanging Rock and Rabbit-Proof Fence. Oh, and almost anything starring Judy Davis.
Also in the '80s, Olivia Newton-John launched her Koala Blue clothing line. One fine day my mom came back from the local mall with a white sweatshirt adorned with a colouful doodle of a koala in a hat. Underneath was the rather mystifying message, "Korner of Australia Los Angeles". If I'd hung on to it, it'd be a cute piece of vintage kitsch today.
I must have used a very old reference for the population statistic, because there's no way it was only 12M in the 1980s!
On the strength of Australia's invasion in '80s pop culture, and the coincidental assignment of a social studies project in school, I became enamoured with the idea of Australia. Ever the optimist, I procured an Australia travel guide that was so outdated, or poorly fact-checked, that it said "kangaroo" meant "I don't know"--a myth which I half-believed for years until an internet search cleared it up for me).
Yet whenever I told adults that I really, really wanted to go to Australia one day, the response was less than encouraging. "Oh, I've been there," pooh-poohed one. "It's just like Canada, but with the seasons in reverse." Um, seriously? Though I'd no first-hand experience, I knew this obviously couldn't be accurate.
On a more serious, and somewhat sinister, note, I was also warned to avoid the antipodes because Aussies 'don't like Asians'. Oh, please. It's not like Canada didn't have its own version of 'yellow peril'. But today Canada is an ethnically and culturally diverse country that manages to overcome the ghosts of its racist history. From what I've gleaned of its culture in arts and media, I think the same can be said for Australia.
It's been many years since I thought of travelling to Australia. I always have a soft spot for things and people hailing from that country, though. One example is The Wiggles, who rank among some of today's least annoying kids' entertainers*; I also appreciate the fact that most of them had a background in childhood education. My son loved them until he was in school, and we even took him to a live concert. (It was insane. We stood in front of the stage, surrounded on three sides by what can only be described as a toddler mosh pit.) Also, thanks to the Wiggles' cover of "Six Months in a Leaky Boat", my son likes Split Enz.
And last but not least--through my work, I've come to know Atlassian software development. I love this company and its tools. Atlassian, can you please open an office in my hometown? And then I can apply, get a job, and transfer to the home base. A girl can dream, right?
*Except for that blue one, Anthony. Grrr.
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