What Everyone Should Know About Australia

No, It Won't All Kill You

First: will everything in Australia kill you?

No. For goodness' sake, no.

Yes, there are things with the capacity to kill you (like everywhere) and yes, we have a large selection.

Spiders, snakes, and sharks get all the attention, yet you're more likely to die from a falling coconut than a shark attack, and the people killed by spiders is infinitesimal next to the other unfortunate ways to go.

It's no different to how Americans and Canadians warn tourists at national parks: whatever you do, don't get close to a bear. We say the same about kangaroos.

Are there plenty of things in the States that could kill you? Yes. Do you stay away from them? Also yes.

Can kangaroos box? Sometimes. Certain males engage in what looks like boxing, usually during mating or a dispute over territory. A stereotype, sure, but it's not so different from why many bar fights start.

So, things here are unlikely to kill you, especially if you're smart and don't provoke them!

The Food Is Worth The Trip

If you like coffee, all the more reason to come! Despite not being able to grow the stuff, we have some of the best coffee and café culture. I don't drink coffee, so I can't attest to it, but I hear it endlessly, and we have styles you're unlikely to find elsewhere: long blacks and flat whites among them.

We also have unique baked goods.

Cheesymite scrolls, if you're brave, but also walnut and apple, cheese and bacon, or cinnamon. We love our scrolls! A scroll is a spiral-shaped bread like brioche with a filling swirled through.

We're also partial to vanilla slices: set vanilla custard between two layers of pastry, topped with icing and sometimes desiccated coconut. A little like a cheesecake, but purely vanilla.

We take them so seriously there's a national annual competition.

More Than Red Dust

Australia isn't just a flat red dustbowl. We have everything.

We have some of the longest coastline in the world, unsurprising, given we're one of the biggest continents on the planet. (Yes, I consider Australia a continent. Don't argue.)

Skiing in the mountains (yes, it snows here) and a stunning alpine region. Rainforests, rivers, tropical north Queensland where the mangoes grow, wetlands, river deltas, swamps, and deserts of every kind.

Almost any natural region you can name exists somewhere on this big island of ours.

The Kindness Of The Bush

Rural areas gets a bad rap for being backward.

It's true the more isolated a community, the less worldly it can be, simply for lack of exposure. But what remote and rural places lack, they make up for in spades of generosity and kindness.

A perfect example: a few years ago, on a road trip, we pulled onto a side road to grab some food from the back of the car. In the short while we spent reorganizing, about six cars passed. Each slowed down, cut the engine, wound down the window, leaned out, and asked some variation of, "You all right out here?"

That's what you do. You look out for people, even complete strangers, because there aren't many of you.

Another example: if you ever do a road trip (which I'd recommend, there's so much driving, but it's wonderful) you'll find every driver passing lifts two fingers off the wheel to say hello.

You do the same. Always.

The cuisine may leave something to be desired if you're after international flavors, but what those places lack in variety they make up for in fair prices, great service, and sheer generosity. Some of the most generous plates I've had have been in a rural pub: you order lunch, and it covers you for the next three.

Ask, and they'll happily box up the rest to take home.

If you ever come, that's my recommendation: get out to the remote and rural parts.

Sydney and Melbourne are well known for good reason, and there's plenty to do in both (my beloved Melbourne) but so many of the most amazing places are well out of the way.

Raid The Supermarkets And Markets

You'll be blown away by the sheer variety in our supermarkets. You can find basic ingredients for nearly any cuisine you'd want to cook. After almost two years in the Balkans, walking back into an Australian supermarket was stark. Incredible. If you want to try something you never would've, that's the place.

While you're shopping, seek out relishes and chutneys: another Australian love, especially at farmers' markets. Think of them as a savory jam, served with meat, bread, salad, or roast vegetables.

Go straight to the stall run by an older lady with her preserves. You won't be disappointed. If she sells lemon butter, get it. It's fantastic, and I never see it in the supermarkets.

The thing I miss most, though, are apricot delights: dried apricot pressed into little rectangles and dusted with sugar. It doesn't sound appetising when I describe it, but I look forward to it every time I come home.

Books, Skies, And Open Space

We have a great arts and culture scene, particularly in Melbourne. If you like books, skip everywhere else and come straight there. It's a UNESCO City Of Literature and home to the Wheeler Centre (named for the founders of Lonely Planet, who helped finance it) which runs events on writing and books all year round.

The city libraries are fantastic; the State Library of Victoria is one of the finest in the world, stunning, a great place to study, and the Wi-Fi is excellent too. There are wonderful bookstores as well.

We also have some of the clearest skies you'll ever see.

Once you're out of the city, the visibility is extraordinary. I've been to sixteen countries, which seems insane to, and nowhere else has skies as blue and clear.

If you know somewhere that does, tell me. I'd love to visit.

And there's space. National parks, state forests, conservation areas, public parks, walking trails. If you love nature, walking, or hiking, it's a fantastic place to come.

The Thing That Matters Most

This has become a ramble, so I'll end with the thing that matters most.

Our Indigenous peoples are the oldest continuous living culture in the world, over 60,000 years, with a connection to Country. (If you're unfamiliar, Country is the word used for the land of a particular mob.)

If you come, I'd recommend joining a walk. Many traditional owners run guided tours, particularly in the Northern Territory. You're not only supporting land management but also living cultures and Indigenous art. Our national and state galleries hold extraordinary collections, and seeing them is always a gift.

We get a lot wrong as a country. There's much I'd love to change, and I know I'm not alone in that.

But I'm incredibly proud of it too: our open skies, our stunning nature, animals found nowhere else on earth, the space, the beaches, everything in abundance everywhere. Our peoples' creativity. Our Indigenous cultures and their heritage, art, and storytelling. Our food, and our melting pot of a culture.

There's a lot to be proud of, and despite everything, I'm grateful to have been born and raised here.

I hope you'll sense what a special place this is if you ever visit. If you do, let me know, I might be able to show you around. Especially if you're a person who loves food, or books, or, even better, both.