A-Z of Australia

Whether you're thinking about travelling or working in Australia, there's so many places to see and things to do. I've put together a little A-Z of good things to know when you arrive in the land down under! Take a little look:

A- Avocado. Australia loves it and it is everywhere. Go for a Melbourne brunch and it's the staple of any menu. Although be warned, with a recent shortage, the city went into lockdown when avocados were as much as $6 for one. Outrageous.

B- Boxed wine. AKA goon. It's dirty, it's grim but at roughly $12 for 4 litres, it's perfect for penniless backpackers looking to for a cheap night out! 

C- Coffee. It's an art in Australia, and once you've had a few flat whites you'll suddenly have a deep hatred for anything other than barista style.

D- $5 Dominos! Yes you hear me right. What was once a glam treat at Uni back in England, is now the dirty hangover sin, with your money going 8 times further in Oz. It's dangerously fuelled my passion for the pepperoni and I bloody love it. 

E- East Coast Nature World. This little animal sanctuary in Bicheno, Tasmania, is heaven on earth for any animal lover. Or anyone for that matter. Go feed Australia's friendliest kangaroos or have a cuddle with a wombat. Honestly, it was the best $25 I spent in 2015. 

F- Farm work. If you're feeling a second year working holiday visa you're going to have to go through 88 days of farming hell. I could moan all day about mine, but it got me my second year, a tidy sum of $10,000, and gave me a different Aussie experience. My citrus knowledge is also definitely going to be beneficial for any future job for sure. 

G- Gumtree. Setting up a new life in Australia can be a little stressful. Finding work, a house and anything in between was made a lot easier with Gumtree. Watch out though, many ads can be deceiving. I applied for a flyering job, which failed to tell me I had to also dress up as a pizza slice. I narrowly swerved that one.

H- Hobart, Tasmania. Return flights from Melbourne can be mega cheap, or if you have time to kill, hop on a boat. Make sure you head to Mount Wellington (just a short drive from Hobart), the views from the top were incredible! 

I- Industry Beans. The best breakfast in Australia! It's just off Brunswick Street in Fitzroy, Melbourne and if brunch is your favourite meal of the day then you won't be disappointed. These guys really know how to poach their eggs and mash their avo.

J- June 30th. The end of the financial year and the date you can claim your tax back. If you're thinking about heading over to Australia to work then mark this date down! 

K- Koala Village, Magnetic Island. Definitely give this place a visit to see some of Austalias most exotic creatures! The volunteers here were so informative and really let you get to know each animal. Here's me being Britney c. 2001. 

L- Leaving your pals. When travelling around, everyone's always on different time frames. Someone will always be leaving and you'll become an expert at goodbyes. 

M- Mammoth journeys. Australia is pretty big. It's pretty much the same size as Europe. What may seem like a manageable day trip on a map can be so so deceiving.

N- Nimbin. Just a short drive from a Byron Bay, take a day trip to this little hippy town. Apparently there was a festival here a few decades ago and people just decided to never leave. If you can swerve all the questionable folk trying to sell you special biscuits, then it's actually quite quaint!

O- Optimism. Life can give you a shit sandwich sometimes and feelings are so much more exaggerated when you're thousands of miles from home. You can either cry and wallow in it or cry and move on. Everything will be alright in the end, and if it's not alright then it's not the end. 

P- Paw paw cream. An Australian toiletry must have. 

Q- Questionable accommodation. Unless there's someone bankrolling your travels, there'll be times when money is a little tight. Slumming it on a sofa or a dirty hostel will be your only options. I spent three months living in a hallway and that was pretty annoying at times. But you gotta take the  good with the bad. However rubbish it gets you just have to remember why you're doing it - to live in a beautiful country!   

R- Revolver. The notorious Melbourne nightclub that stays open from Thursday to Monday straight. There's been some unreal DJs there but be warned, the club clientele is definitely not the classiest. Make sure you're a few (bottles of) wines in.

S- Superanuation. If you're in a legit job rather than cash in hand, then your employer should be paying you this. It's a certain amount of dollar on top of your hourly wage and it soon adds up! Once you've left the country for good you can claim it back and receive a little leaving present. Thank you Australia. 

T- Tanning. Australia can be a little deceiving, especially Melbourne. I thought I was going to get 365 days of pure sun. Lemme tell you, that crushed my Aussie dream. In some parts of the country it can get to below 0 in the winter! Plan accordingly to where you're going in which season, otherwise you could be left a little nippy. 

U- Uluru. However long or short your time is in Australia, try and get yourself to the red centre. Sunrise and sunset here are incredible. If you book yourself on to a tour they take you to Kings Canyon too which I didn't know existed! Honestly, I've seen some views but this was something else!

V- Vegemite. Love it or hate it it's the Aussie version of marmite. If that's your thing then that's cool, I'd stay well clear though.

W- Woolworths. That's right, Woolworths is back from the dead! Although it's missing all the 90's favourites of pic n mix and trying to sneak your fave barbie doll in ya mums basket. 

X- Crossing boundaries. I met my first Australia housemates on day 1, decided to live together on day 3 and moved into our new house on day 7. Crossing friendship boundaries seem to go a lot quicker when travelling.

Y- Yo Chi. My old place of work and the best frozen yoghurt in Melbourne! Seriously it's bloody delicious, so go treat yourself. 

Z- Zoo. I'm not normally a zoo kinda girl, but despite the $46 entrance fee this place was pretty cool. Go have a look at the giraffes, they have the best views overlooking the harbour bridge and opera house.