Observations

I should point out that, while I write this, there are a couple of men across the road from me having a couple of "brewskis" and listening to Guns 'n' Roses.
 
1. The flip flop run is everywhere
When you wear flip flops, you can't really lift your feet properly because your flip flops will fall off. So when you run with flip flops on, you try to build as much speed as you can without really lifting your knees. The onlooker will know that you're only running weird because of your shoes (just like the onlooker of an Olympic walking race knows they have to move in that hilarious way) but it doesn't stop it being funny. Because everyone wears flip flops here, you get to see the funny flip flop run all the time because people are always running for the bus.

2. Australian buses don't give a shit about their timetables
Bus timetables can be shit universally, but I've noticed it to the nth degree here. About a week ago I went to catch the bus to meet Rachael and Henry at the IMAX in town (where I finally saw Gravity in 3D, good innit?). The bus was scheduled at 8:10pm. I got there at 5 past to see the bus driving away. The next one was meant to be at 8:20, with another at 8:40. One appeared at about 8:35, and god only knows which bus that was actually meant to be. Similarly, when I tried to catch the bus from Rachael's to go back home - buses are at 5 past and 25 to the hour - a bus appeared at 25 past. In sum: who cares when the bus is? Go to the bus stop whenever you like. This is Australia - what are you doing on the bus? You should be on the beach, you dick.

3. They got rid of pennies
I love Australia for this. It was about a week until I said to Ronan "hey, have you ever gotten a penny?". We then carried out a scientific evaluation and found that, when we had a total that ended in .48, it got rounded up to .50. The lower numbers also get rounded down. If you ever shop online then they don't round it; it's only when you're dealing in cash. Ultimately it means that the smallest coins you get are worth 5 cents and that's brilliant. When I go back to the UK I'm going to spit on all the pennies I see. "A penny? THIS IS STUPID - you'd never get this in Australia, where I used to live."

4. They got rid of locks on bathroom doors
I am non-plussed about this. I should point out that there are locks in public bathrooms and hostels and the like, but if you're in a house or a flat or a hotel room, then there just doesn't ever appear to be a lock on the bathroom door. I've never been in a situation where someone has walked in on me - I guess people usually assume the bathroom's being used if the door is shut - but what's the harm in having a lock? All it does is prevent embarrassment. No lock means the potential for someone seeing you pooing. Is that what Australians are into? 

5. They don't have Netflix
What am I going to do when I run out of Sabrina episodes to watch on YouTube? 

6. They do have exotic birds in place of boring ones
Apart from pigeons and seagulls. They are here, and they are every bit as boring as they are in the UK. But Australian crows are black and white. And you get cockatoos all over the place, the big white ones with some yellow plumage. They have a really awful shrieking cry which is really grating but they do still look nice. Same with the little green parrots you see in the park, and the white ibises which are everywhere. They have weird long hooked beaks and look a bit extra-terrestrial (and Wikipedia informs me they smell pretty bad, but I haven't sniffed one yet).

7. Sometimes train doors don't open by themselves
Which means that you're standing there waiting, because you don't want to force them open, until an Australian opens them for you and you realise "oh! I had to open that door". Of course, Rachael, Henry and Ronan will all stand behind you and not say anything, and then when the Australian opens it they'll go "oh, you didn't know you had to open the door?" as if they knew the whole time but didn't want to intervene. Thanks.

8. They say dates weird sometimes
I've noticed that in adverts, people doing voiceovers will sometimes say a date like "Feb 8" literally just as you see it - feb eight. I assume that writing the date like that started to save time, and that you wouldn't actually say it. You'd say the whole thing. Apparently they just decided to save even more time here by saying the shortened version too.

9. Golden Gaytimes are big in Australia
A Golden Gaytime is a toffee ice cream that seems to be pretty popular here. Because it was Australia Day recently, there were - and are - a lot of adverts encouraging people to "have a Golden Gaytime on Australia Day"; the internet informs me that they've taken this approach a few times, represented by their 80s slogan "it's hard to have a Gaytime on your own". (Though I am inclined to disagree.)

10. Australia Day is a bit of a thorny issue culturally, and you can sense that, but it's a good excuse for an excellent fireworks display
As you can see here.