Well done, Australia!

6 thoughts on “Well done, Australia!”

1. If only!

   We once asked for a ‘translator’ in Immigration here. When asked what language we wanted we said English, since we couldn’t understand the woman behind the counter – she had such a heavy mid-European accent that she was impossible to understand.

   To be fair, after some very unfriendly looks, we did get someone who spoke ‘our’ version of English. 🙂

   I will also say that having to deal with Centrelink, we’ve both been impressed by their courtesy, efficiency and their sense of humour!

2. I walk past their offices in Corrimal everyday on my daily walk, about five years ago by 9:00 AM there used to be a line that stretched out of the building for at least half a block, all mostly young people, all of them with the same coloured paper in their hands, as the years have gone past they been getting older and older ………… but they’re still the same people 🙂

3. I had doubts on the veracity, but it was too good not post.

4. It’s definitely not true – but I think a lot of people here would like it to be!

   I saw a T-shirt a few months ago. The logo was: “We are Australians, we eat meat, drink beer and speak English… If you don’t like it F*** Off”.

5. As Boadicea says, it’s sadly not true. It’s quite atrocious here in San Francisco. All signs and announcements must be made in English, Cantonese, and Spanish. A number of other documents are made available in Korean, Vietnamese, Lao, Hmong, Japanese, Russian, Ukrainian, etc. When having to deal with the city government which is, mercifully, rare I don’t bother speaking English. They can listen to my lovely German and stuff it if they don’t like it.

6. And yet go to another country and you have to speak their language.

   Did you know the driving test here in the UK can be in any language, something the gov is trying to stop by insisting it is only done in English.

   As it should be.