Tiny tidbits of Australiana

There isn't much happening on the "Move Down Under" front at the moment... still waiting to send my application later in the spring.

In the meantime, though, I've been busying myself with Aussie-inspired entertainment. First, I picked up a Dorling Kindersley book, Australia (Eyewitness Travel Guides). This is an interesting alternative to more popular travel guides such as Lonely Planet because of the colour photos and maps. Reading this book makes me all dreamy about the prospect of traveling throughout Australia (well, that plus Bill Bryson's In a Sunburned Country -- another great account of traveling across Australia).

Then I picked up a DVD called Kangaroo Jack. It's a silly comedy about a couple of New York guys who get sent by a mobster to the Australian Outback. It's not a classic depiction of Australia except that it provides you with the stereotypes most Americans might have of the land down under. But it was somewhat fun to watch. When Heather heard the outback blokes talking in that peculiar way they do, she understood what I was saying about not understanding Aussies. They do speak English differently.

Just the other night, I watched the movie Ned Kelly with Heath Ledger and Orlando Bloom. I first became aware of Ned Kelly in Bill Bryson's book. Kelly was a bushranger - an outlaw akin to the outlaws of the old west in American history. Anyway, the movie tried to show the point-of-view of the Kelly clan as they battled the law enforcement authorities in the late 19th century. So, maybe Ned Kelly was a hero, or maybe he was just a thug that deserved his fate (execution). It all depends on your perspective of things, I guess. But apparently Ned Kelly remains a folk hero in Australia.