Same Sky Magazine

Australians Really Do Celebrate With BBQs

People often ask me about what really makes up Australian culture, and I’m never quite sure what to tell them about. Australia Day tends to rate highly, though, and I think this year’s experience of our national holiday gives a pretty good explanation about at least some aspects of what it means to be an Aussie.

What’s Australia Day, Anyway?

Australia Day rolls round every January 26, towards the end of the summer holiday period, and usually when it’s really hot. That date was picked because that’s when the British began colonising Australia back in 1788, so Aboriginal people (and an increasing number of other Australians) think of it as “Invasion Day” instead; but for want of a better date, January 26 is still our national day.

In any case, most Australians like to celebrate Australia Day, or if nothing else enjoy the long weekend. But I’m always quite surprised by how patriotic most people get around this day, and it’s something that seems to be increasing. Mostly it’s in the form of “good” patriotism, the healthy kind, but I’m not sure if the direction it’s headed is good. But I digress.

Celebrating Australia Day With a Barbecue

Good Aussie culture means throwing a few snaggers (sausages) on the barbie, and that’s certainly how we celebrated our last Australia Day. In fact, we were invited to a street breakfast a few suburbs away from where we live, where an entire street were gathering to celebrate together. This street rotated the hosting duties and this year they fell to parents of a good friend of mine, who invited us to enjoy some good Aussie company.

They live near the beach, so a few people had a dip before they arrived at the breakfast - the invitation expressly said that sandy feet and wet towels were welcomed. That gives it a good Aussie feel to start with. Following the street traditions, the Australian flag was raised and the national anthem played, with our host making a few welcome speeches from the balcony.

Then came the awards. A girl who’d just emigrated from Britain, and her visiting sister, were given certificates to acknowledge their first Australia Day, and my German husband was given something similar. Australia is almost entirely a land of immigrants, so for me it’s very important that new immigrants are welcomed, too.

The morning culminated in a typical Aussie BBQ, but an impressively organised one, with three barbecues lined up for all to use and two marquees covered with Australian flags set up to keep the breakfasting Aussies out of the sun.

The Great Aussie Stereotype

When I was teaching overseas I often tried to answer questions about what Australians are really like, but I found it hard to figure out if the stereotype I’d got from the media and the reality were one and the same thing or not. Since I moved back here, I can see Australians with slightly fresher eyes, and some of the stereotype is definitely true - the good bits! Aussies are friendly and easygoing, especially in social situations like this. Get a bright sunny day and a beer or glass of champagne and everyone’s your best mate. And at times like these they are open and welcoming too, and everybody wanted to know how my German husband was enjoying his new life in Australia.

There’s plenty more to be said about Australia - that’ll be seen in future posts - but sharing a drink with strangers over a barbecue breakfast in perfect sunshine, and enjoying it immensely, is a pretty good sign of the best of Oz.

What do you know about the Aussie stereotype? Let me know in the comments, mate!