Maybe we're obsessed with placenames, even names in general. In fairness, the Aussies give us good reason to do so. We've already written about the plain speaking clarity used in the naming of Australia's finest tourist spots. Visiting these places never even threatened to contradict that which was promised in its name. The Low Isles were indeed low, Wooded Island had plenty of trees, and though we're not surfers, we're certain that if we were then we would have experienced heanenly bliss at Surfers Paradise. You can imagine, therefore, our fright when we came across Murdering Creek Road. Presumably this was the road to Murdering Creek, though we elected to go no further than the sign on the road so we can't report on what does or doesn't go on at the creek. Who knows though, maybe the road leads to a scenic little spot, or a quiet village, populated by reclusive Aussies, who, fed up with bloody foreigners trampling over their gardens and interrupting their barbies, decided to rename their patch on the planet from, eh, Toplessville or Free Drink City to something a little less inviting.
Not just with placenames though do the Australians demonstrate interesting ways. They may talk a little slower then us loose lipped Irish, but in reality they don't need to speak at much of a pace, since they're replaced most words with a more succinct version of same. Football is footy as we all know. Sunglasses are sunnies. Your registration number on your car is your rego - even on the car hire form. Crocodiles are crocs and kangaroos are roos. Australia is Oz and Brisbane is Brissie. Tasmania is Tazzie! If you want to fit in, a rule of thumb is to either truncate your words, add an "o" somewhere, or throw a "y" sound at the end. Until you end up with something like Ruth O'Leary.
All that said and done, we took a two hour drive today out to some place that sells opals where we bought no opals, then we came back and sat on the beach. We're off to Hervey Bay tomorrow, a few hours to the north, where we're going whale watching. Whalos. Whaleys.
