Future International Students

Life at Bond

Aussies are a welcoming, tolerant, friendly bunch.  Our culture is based on the principle of mateship, which is seen as being loyal and a good friend. 

Australians value their success at building a tolerant and inclusive society that is rich in culture.  The multicultural nature of this country means that although we come from many parts of the world, we have many common values and principles uniting us.

Australians are ranked as among the happiest people in the world, based on the Human Development Index and a number of international surveys over the last 10 years.  This is because it's easy to eat well, with cuisine from around the world available and fresh produce on offer year-round. It's easy to get around the country's cities and towns using world-class public transport. Australia is home to beautiful beaches and glorious deserts, and the weather is stunning.   

Language
Past Times
Sport
Food


LANGUAGE

Aussies (Australians) have a unique way with language.  Australians have a tendency to shorten words and use rhyming slang which may seem confusing at first.

Some common expressions include:

G’day
This is a popular greeting.  It simply means ‘Hello’.  Just respond with ‘G’day’

Barbeque, BBQ, Barbie
This is a type of outdoor cooking, usually of meat over a grill or hotplate using gas or coals. The host serves the meat with salads and bread rolls.

Fair dinkum
Means honest, the truth. 'Fair dinkum?' when used as a question means, 'is it really true?'

Bloke
A man.

For more slang definitions, See the Macquarie Dictionary Book of Slang


PAST TIMES

Australians love the sun and popular past-times include relaxing in the outdoors and sports. Australians are sports-crazy and beach culture is an important part of the Australian lifestyle.  Take the time to learn to surf while you are here.  Camping and bushwalking are popular activities as well. 

Australians also like to shop.  Big cities can satisfy most consumer appetites with everything from high-fashion boutiques to second-hand emporiums, while many smaller places tend towards speciality retail, be it home-grown produce, antiques or arts and crafts.


SPORT

Aussies love to watch and play a variety of sports.  There are a number of sports that are played on a national and international level:

Australian Rules football (AFL)
Aussie Rules holds a special place in Australian culture. It is played in all states and is the most popular football code in the nation. It is also the best attended sporting league in Australia.

Rugby League
Rugby League is the most popular winter sport in New South Wales and Queensland. 

Other sports
Rugby Union is also one of the most popular sports within Australia, with teams competing in the Super 14, alongside South Africa and New Zealand.
Australia has a national soccer competition with one team in each mainland state, plus one team in New Zealand and two regionally-based teams (both in NSW).
Australia's premier summer sport is cricket. Australians also enjoy many other sports, such as tennis, netball, soccer, golf, basketball and motorsport.
Several non-mainstream sports in Australia still attract a high standard from Australian teams due the sporting culture. For example, in hockey Australia's teams are considered among the best in the world.


Food

The BBQ is an icon of Australian food.  Australian cuisine is recognised internationally as some of the best in the world, due to the multicultural range of food available.  Italian, Chinese, Thai, Greek, Arab, Indian, Turkish, Vietnamese and Mexican foods are very popular.  Australia is known for its wines, olive oil, seafood, lamb, beef, yabbies and cheeses.