australia


 * [[image:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Flag_of_Australia.svg width="320" height="160" caption="Nation's Flag"]] || [[image:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/Australia_satellite_plane.jpg width="192" height="189" caption="Satellite picture of Australia "]] ||
 * [[image:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Map_of_Australia.png width="262" height="280"]] || [[image:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/Australia_(orthographic_projection).svg width="277" height="268" caption="Australia's location on the globe"]] ||

Australia


 * Population of Australia is 22, 557, 840 **


 * National Anthem is Advance Australia Fair **

Verse 1 Australians all let us rejoice, For we are young and free; We've golden soil and wealth for toil; Our home is girt by sea; Our land abounds in nature's gifts Of beauty rich and rare; In history's page, let every stage Advance Australia Fair. In joyful strains then let us sing, Advance Australia Fair.

 Verse 2

Beneath our radiant [|Southern Cross] <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We'll toil with hearts and hands; <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">To make this Commonwealth of ours <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Renowned of all the lands; <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">For those who've come across the seas <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We've boundless plains to share; <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">With courage let us all combine <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">To Advance Australia Fair. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In joyful strains then let us sing, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Advance Australia


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">The size of Australia is 7,617,930 kilometers squared. **


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">The current [|Prime Minister] of [|Australia] has been [|Julia Gillard] since June 2010. **

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 200%;">Culture


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">Interesting Words **

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Aussie (pron. Ozzie) : Australian <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Aussie salute : brushing away flies with the hand <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Bizzo : business ("mind your own bizzo") <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Blue : fight ("he was having a blue with his wife") <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Dog's balls, stands out like : obvious <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Hooroo : goodbye <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Oz : Australia! <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rack off : push off! get lost! get out of here! also "rack off hairy legs!". <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rage : party <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Rage on : to continue partying - "we raged on until 3am <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Yabber : talk (a lot) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Zack : sixpence (5 cents) - "it isn't worth a zack", "he hasn't got a zack"


 * Products **

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Australia’s three main exports are wheat, wool and minerals (iron, gold)


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 130%;">A Traditional Australian Game **

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Goomboobooddoo <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This game has been played in the aboriginal tribes for centuries. It is a wrestling game that tribes would compete. All the participants are greased up and they wrestle. The objective is to get the other player on the ground. The team that throws the most players wins.



Music

Music is an important part of life in Australia. Everyone listens to music from the most civilized to the most rural. In Australia, the common instruments are not very different from those we see in Canada. Guitar, drums, banjo and other percussion instruments fall under this category. But of all the instruments of Australia the one that is native and most unique to the country is the didgeridoo. This instrument has been played by Indigenous people for centuries. The instrument is played by vibrating the mouth around the top of the long tube. You then can express yourself with different patterns of vibrating the tube. Many “didge” players use the method called circular-breathing so they can play for a very long time. This is instrument is used in ceremony’s and when playing, the player wears traditional native wear. There are many genres of music played in Australia. A few are Rock, Folk, Jazz, and Bush rock. Bush rock the genre native to Australia is simply folk music about Australia.

A few famous musicians and bands from Australia are:

· <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-origin: initial; color: black;">[|Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu] · <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-origin: initial; color: black;">[|Waltzing Matilda] · [|Nellie Melba] · [|Joan Sutherland] · [|Slim Dusty] · [|John Williamson] · [|Paul Kelly] · [|Tommy Emmanuel] · [|Johnny O'Keefe] · [|Bee Gees] · [|AC/DC] · [|INXS] · [|Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds] · [|Kylie Minogue] · [|John Butler Trio] · [|Xavier Rudd] · [|Wolfmother] <span style="color: #0645ad; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; text-decoration: none;">

CHARTS AS OF DECEMBER 12th 2010
 * ~ **B** ||~ **TW** ||~ **LW** ||~ **TI** ||~ **HP** ||~  ||~ **Title** ||~ **Artist** ||~ **Accred.*** ||~ **Company** ||
 * < * ||< 1 ||< 7 ||< 6 ||< 1 ||<  ||< GRENADE ||< Bruno Mars ||<   ||< ATL/WAR ||
 * <  ||< 2 ||< 1 ||< 5 ||< 1 ||<   ||< THE TIME (DIRTY BIT) ||< The Black Eyed Peas ||< <P> ||< INR/UMA ||
 * <  ||< 3 ||< 2 ||< 3 ||< 2 ||< [[image:http://www.ariacharts.com.au/images/bullet_red.gif height="8"]] ||< WHO'S THAT GIRL ||< Guy Sebastian Feat. Eve ||<   ||< SME ||
 * <  ||< 4 ||< 3 ||< 8 ||< 3 ||<   ||< FIREWORK ||< Katy Perry ||< <P> ||< CAP/EMI ||
 * <  ||< 5 ||< 6 ||< 3 ||< 5 ||<   ||< YEAH X3 ||< Chris Brown ||< <G> ||< SME ||
 * <  ||< 6 ||< 5 ||< 9 ||< 2 ||<   ||< LIKE A G6 ||< Far East Movement Feat. Cataracs & Dev ||< <P> ||< INR/UMA ||
 * <  ||< 7 ||< 4 ||< 6 ||< 1 ||<   ||< WE R WHO WE R ||< Ke$ha ||< <P> ||< RCA/SME ||
 * <  ||< 8 ||< 9 ||< 12 ||< 1 ||<   ||< ONLY GIRL (IN THE WORLD) ||< Rihanna ||< <P>3 ||< DEF/UMA ||
 * <  ||< 9 ||< 8 ||< 9 ||< 1 ||<   ||< RAISE YOUR GLASS ||< P!nk ||< <P> ||< LAF/SME ||
 * <  ||< 10 ||< 12 ||< 4 ||< 10 ||<   ||< STAY THE NIGHT ||< James Blunt ||<   ||< ATL/WAR ||

The best selling Aussie born artist/band is the Bee Gee’s with an estimated record of over over 220 million.


 * Award Shows **

There are two vastly popular music awards shows native to Australia and those are the ARIA Music awards and the MTV Australia Award. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">

Education

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The education system in Australia is a lot like the education system in Canada. Students start in Pre-School then head into school from year 1 through 12. In Australia 65% attend Catholic school.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Music education is like our structure here. It is taught until Jr. High then it becomes an elective.

Sports

The favourite sports of Australia are Baseball, Cricket, Golf, Horse racing, Netball, Rugby, Soccer and Tennis.

Even in a country so warm they do in fact have a large hockey league (AIHL) and an Olympic team.

Interesting Facts


 * Stereotypes **

A few stereotypes of Australians are dirty bush people, crocodile wrestler, and uneducated farmers.

**Standards of Living**

The standards of living in Australia are at par with that of us here in Canada.


 * Differences and Similarities **

In Australia toilet flush the opposite way to that of us in Canada in the Northern Hemisphere.

It is much warming in Australia, they don’t see snow in most parts of the country. Canada has a large land mass.

It is cheaper to live in Canada by 12.45%

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Native animals are quiet different looking. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">

Animals




 * Food **

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25px;">Food in Australia is a mixture of many different cultures. The natives incorporate foods of the land, such as herbs and spices found growing wild and native animals like kangaroo. Other culture such as English and Irish have a large part in the cuisine of Australia. Australia's most famous dish is Kangaroo steak.



References: www.wikipedia.org www.google.com www.australia.com www.answers.com