Swim Between The Flags
Only swim between The Red and Yellow Flags on beaches patrolled by life guards.
Swimmers, particularly those inexperienced in local conditions can get caught out in rips and other adverse tidal conditions.
Some Australian beaches, particularly the known surfing beaches, have powerful waves and hidden currents which can catch out unsuspecting bathers.
The sea should be treated with respect as unfortunately tragedies occur every year.
Tim Tam Explosion
The Arnott's Tim Tam biscuit has a dedicated following both in Australia and overseas. The Tim Tam is a chocolate covered biscuit.
A favorite Australian party trick is 'The Tim Tam explosion'.
This involves biting diagonally opposite corners and sucking your tea, coffee or hot chocolate (brandy even!) up through the Tim Tam until it becomes too soggy to hold.
At this point, if it hasn't fallen into the drink, eat and enjoy.
Jet Around
The arrival of the low cost airlines (notably Virgin Blue and Jetstar) has made air travel more affordable than ever in Australia.
This has opened up the possibilities for seeing more of the country in a shorter time.
Popular routes include: Sydney to the Gold Coast and Sydney to Melbourne.
A Flat White Coffee
Thanks to migrants from Italy and the mediterranean, Australia has had a love affair with coffee long before many other countries discovered the joys of espresso.
There are many fine independent coffee bars in Australia so try to look for them rather than the big chains.
So although it is not difficult to get a good cup of coffee in Australia the terminology and recipes for some of the drinks may differ to other parts of the world.
A "flat white" is basically a cappuccino made with hot 'flat' milk rather than foamed.
A "short black" is just a shot of strong espresso coffee.
You will also be able to find the usual cappuccino's and late's.
If a coffee shop is popular with cyclists it is often an indication that they are serving good coffee!
What are Pokies?
"Pokie" is the Australian term for what is commonly known in other countries as fruit machines, slot machines or one arm bandits.
They can be found in bars, hotels and RSL clubs etc.
