Hey my parents just told me that we're moving to Melbourne, Australia from the US. How different is it?

Show all answers

snuggle_frog

1.There are no drive by shootings
2.We know of countries outside of the U.S
3.We have free health care
4.McDonalds comes in normal size portions
5.You will finally learn what an Aboriginal is
6.You will also learn that Koala's do not live in our backyards
7.There are standards, you can't drive a car with 3 wheels and no bumper
8.There is no death penalty
9.Pray that you aren't moving to Tasmania
10. If you aren't rich , you will be in the ghetto with the rest of us
11. You will need to try vegemite...or else you may not get any friends
12. English is different, we spell color colour, we spell favorite favourite
13.Football is not called soccer
14. There are no Jocks or Cheerleaders
15.Centerlink is awesome(you will come accross this at some point)
16.Depending on the suburb you are in you will be introduced to VB (domestic violence in a can), domestic violence and bogans/derro's.
17. Use urban dictionary, look up some aussie slang...you will need it!
18.Thongs are something you put on your feet
19.Our Prime Minsiter can construct sentences
20.There are no metal detectors in schools, we usually respect each other.

Bella B

Kinda the same, kinda different.

We speak English and we have a number of shows, music and cinema coming in from the US.

But you will find differences.

Most schools wear uniforms, cheerleading doesn't exist and the "jock" thing is a but different.

We also have a different sense of humour and sense of self. We're a lot more deprecating - we tend to poke fun at ourselves and not be totally egocentric. So you can be good at sport, but doing a whole "I'm the King of the World", "I'm the best of the best" kinda stuff is not going to win you any friends. Being "cool" about it and "I had a great team to make me look good" kind of attitude will win you friends.

Melbourne is pretty cultural and has plenty of shopping and cafes galore...

Good luck!

Jareth's Trousers

Okay, first, I am extremely jealous, and if you're parents are interested in adopting an adult who can make killer homemade brownies, I would like to put in my application!! :~)

Anyway, I went to Sydney and Melbourne a few years ago. I loved both. I found Melbourne to be more artsy than Sydney, a little quieter or relaxed feeling to it, good shopping, good food, great bakeries, excellent music stores...

You won't be too shell-shocked in that the language is the same except you'll have to pick up the slang. Culturally speaking, again, no real difference. Australians are more laid back than Americans. There really weren't major differences that I noticed. It's culturally and religiously diverse.

When I went it was late spring (late fall for the US), and places were getting decorated for Christmas. The weirdest thing I noticed was a man spraying the windows of his Greek Bakery (in Melbourne and had faboo pastries!) with snowflakes! It made me giggle. So, you'll have to adapt to going to the beach for Christmas (if that's what you celebrate) instead of bundling up and sliding on ice. But you just might be okay with that! :)

HAVE FUN!

ll_jenny_ll here

It Isn't really THAT different ... BUT ... i reckon for a while you will fee as if you are living on another planet..

New York is a BIG place... just for comparrison... Australian's Entire population is less than 22,000,000 ........

You'll be pleased to know that we do speak English ..though we do have many phrases and terms that you will no doubt learnt while here....

I live in Melbourne .. I love the place... and yeah there are places that aren't that pleasant .. places like that exist all over the world .. but over-all .. Melbourne is a friendly city .. .

Good luck in your move and I hope you will enjoy the place...

liz down under

Hi - I'm from Melbourne. I have spent about 3 months travelling around America so I have a reasonable idea about the similarities and differences. Melbourne is a really nice city to live in. It has over 4 million people and is known as the sporting/cultural/food/fashion capital of Australia. We drive on the opposite side of the road. The steering wheel is on the opposite side of the car. Different sports are popular here (Australian rules football/cricket/netball not baseball/basketball/gridiron). Australians are pretty friendly and laid back. Our accents are different. You shouldn't have too much of a problem fitting in or coping here. Just come with an open mind and a positive attitude and enjoy the experience. Do you know what part of Melbourne you are moving to yet? I could tell you what it is like there. What part of America are you from? That would help people explain how different it might be here (ie. small town/big city/east coast/west coast/the south). Let us know!
Now that I see you ae from Bronxville which looks like a fairly well off area with an English feel and lots of parks and gardens I can tell you that Melbourne has many similar suberbs. Tell your parents to look in areas like Toorak, Hawthorn, Kew, Malvern, Camberwell, Canterbury or Balwyn. These areas also have a lot of good schools (many of them private) and good public transport (particularly trams). As someone else said, there are no cheerleaders here, and schools don't have cafeterias although you can usually buy your lunch there from the tuck shop. You won't be able to drive until you are 18, but you can start buying alcohol then. The most expensive pay (cable) TV is around $100 per month - which will include many American channels. There is an American Expat social group in Melbourne which your parents may be interested in joining if they feel the need to hang out with other Americans. I'm sure you will find it hard leaving your old friends and adjusting to a new school but people should be very welcoming and hospitable generally so good luck with the move. If you have any more questions don't hesitate to email me.

SafÃ¿re

A lot of things have already been covered. But here are a couple of REALLY important tips.
1. We drive on the other side of the street. Learn to look right, then left, then right. Otherwise, you'll be road pizza.
2. We have trams. The "electric snails" are a fact of Melbourne's public transport system. The trams indicate where they are going to (as well as indicating a route number). If the tram shows Kew, Brunswick, anything other than "University" or "Melbourne", it's NOT going into town.
3. You can't get a driver's licence here until you're 18. If you have an American driver's licence (but are under 18), they still won't let you drive.
4. Only "private" schools have "school buses". We don't have those yellow monsters you are probably used to. Here... everyone either takes "mum's taxi" or uses public transport (see previously mentioned of trams).
5. We call our mothers MUM... not mom.
6. Cable is expensive here. And severely restricted in what's available.
7. We have four semesters/terms per year (regardless of which state or school). Our major school break is Christmas hols... from late-December until the end of January. You'll get two weeks at the end of first semester (usually ties into Easter); and another two weeks in June and September.
8. Unless you attend a private school, you'll get a day off school for a horse race! We LOVE the Melbourne Cup.
9. We only have "grade" school and "high" school - no middle school or junior high. We run from "preps" through six then years seven through twelve in high school. Kindergarten is for children too old to attend a creche, but not old enough to attend school yet.
10. We don't have cafeterias in our school, and lunch is not provided. Most people either bring their own lunch, or buy it (either at school or around at the local shops).

Apart from that, you'll probably find it very easy to adjust to life in the Land Downunder.

(:elcie;

well people are certainly going to love you coz your from the states
and will want to get to know you.
the weathers quite warmer.
the fashion and shopping is awesommme in melbourne :)

Lauren F

Australia is almost the same as America, some cultural/language differences but not so much that would make it hard for you.
I'm from Sydney so i don't know about Melbourne specifically but i know it's not too different :)

iansand9876

You will find out that you are relatively poorly educated, and will have a lot of catching up to do.
You will be relatively unsophisticated in most things, including cuisine.
You will have the crap kicked out of you if you run the "everything is better at home" line.

Corz

Melbourne is like a mini New York, HOWEVER...

1 - You WILL NOT get shot. Even if you're racist, even if you insult someone's sport team, even if you show aggression on the road - you will not get shot. This is due to the fact that: WE DO NOT CARRY .44 CALIBRE MAGNUM REVOLVERS IN OUR JACKET JUST BECAUSE WE CAN. Because the fact is, we cant. And it makes people safe (and fight with your bare hands like adults lol)

2 - You'll love the fact that Melbourne is exactly like NYC (I've been there) only about one fifth the size, and yes, food servings are smaller. DO NOT expect to walk into a maccas and order a large meal and expect the drink to weigh a kilogram and the chips to fit into the boot (trunk) of your car. We have smaller portions to try and encourage people not to get fat and addicted like most americans.

3 - This is a casual, easy-living kind of place. Not a place where you look over your shoulder, it is virtually all white - don't expect to see many black people in Melbourne. You will become well accustomed to the barbie (BBQ) and chilling in the backyard under the sun with a beer and laughing with your mates about how you embarrased yourself and so on. This is the type of place where you don't promote yourself as the best - you let other people see how good you are at something and they are impressed.

4 - School especially will be very different for you here. Senior high school and college in USA seems to be very sexual orientated - which is great if you cant drink till you're 21, but in Australia, it's 18 so you can be in year 12 (your last high school year) and can go out on weekends to clubs and wear short skirts/whatever and pick up and do the nasty and so on there, rather than in the locker room if you know what i mean. Also you will be wearing a school uniform, people generally do not carry weapons (depending on where you are, beg your parents to move to the eastern suburbs - western suburbs remind me of the bronx a little bit so trust me beg them not to move there) if your school is in the western suburbs you may have some students carrying knives but very rare.

You will love Melbourne if you just drop all 'American Seriousness' and lighten up a little, grab a drink and a snag and start following a footy team - I STRONGLY SUGGEST THE NORTH MELBOURNE KANGAROOS =D =D lol they're gonna win the premiership this year haha

T H

Well, I don't know Bronxeville, but Melbourne is awesome. It'll be much better weather than you're used to in NY, there are great beaches, and lots to do (like any big city). The suburbs here seem to be no different from the suburbs anywhere else in the US - nice houses, big shopping centers, you know the usual. The city and inner-city areas are where it's at - cool cafes and shops. Anyway, it is the most livable city in the world, so you should be alright.

Jon

Some things are very different. Some are the same. I travel all over the US all the time and live in Melbourne. You do need to have an open mind though that some things will take getting used to. My sister in law moved from San Fran to Melbourne and she had to get used to a few things like the mentality.

Melbourne is quieter than NY and is more like Seattle in its feel. You know cafe/restaurant type lifestyle.

You will be fine. Its a nice change of scenery and there is enough going to keep you amused.

Lanna

Its probably going to be pretty different. Unless you live in the city then it might be the same. Melbourne is basically all suburbia. It will just depend what areas you live in. There are some you want to stay away from Cragieburn, Sunshine..those kind of areas.
Hopefully you move to a nice area like Camperwell or something nice, near the city. Melbourne is fairly uneventful.

mzKAECEE .

sydney is better than melbourne .

ABS # RBK

great iof u got rich *** parents not if ur poor..with money u can enjoy places

Enter Your Message or Comment

User Name:
User Email:
Post a comment: