With the Australia Day Long Weekend coming up, we wanted to stop & take a moment to appreciate this beautiful country and all of its residents. We’re releasing this blog today, 23/01/20, not on the 26th of January, because everyone should be able to give thanks for what we have at any time on any day!
So here goes, a list of our favourite ‘things’ about Australia…
1. That We Stick Together!
The current bush fire crisis is nothing short of catastrophic, its devastation has been horrific and it’s not over. But the response from the Australian public has been overwhelming & heart-warming – millions of people fund-raising & donating to help the victims (humans & animals alike) and thousands of volunteers working tirelessly.
Yes, we would have all preferred for this to not have happened – but today we want to acknowledge the amazing display of teamwork amongst everyday Australians.
Image via Loz Williams
2. That no matter what anybody says… We have THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BEACHES IN THE WORLD!
3. We love the diversity of this place – snow, desserts, beaches, bush, mountains & rainforests.
Here are a few of our favourites;
- James Price Point - Image by Salty Wings.
- Lucky Bay.
- Valley of the Giants - Image by Explore Eyre.
- Uluru.
- The Blow Hole in the Nullarbor Plain
- Cairns.
- The Daintree Forest.
- The Otways.
- The Great Ocean Rd - Image by Australia.
- Mt Hotham.
- The Snowy Mountains.
- Kakadu National Park.
- Cradle Mountain - Image by Australia.
- Mount Warning.
- Turquoise Bay.
- Snapper Rocks.
- Purling Brook Falls.
4. Our Coffee.
Yep, we’ve done some travelling and we’re sorry (Italy) but we 30000000% have the best coffee & baristas in the world!
Image @araiicoffee x Margaret River Roasting
5. The Western Australian Wild Flower Season.
We’re sure that it’s beautiful on the East Coast too, but as we are based in WA, we can’t help but favour our flowers!
“The wildflowers of Western Australia are one of the most spectacular flower displays in the world. Between July and October, many parts of the state become blankets of colour with everything from tiny crimson myrtles, dainty smokebush, fiery mountain bells and over 150 varieties of orchids coming into bloom.” June to December, written by West Australian Explorer.
Image by Wild Flower Country.
6. Our Waves.
For those of you that didn’t know, Australia is home to 3 out of the 11 stops on the World Surfing League World Championship Tour.
Snapper Rocks Queensland - Image via Surfline.
Bells Beach Victoria - Image via Rad Season.
Margaret River Main Break Western Australia - Image via SouthWest Saltwater.
7. That these ridiculously cute animals are native… (we know it’s cliché but we’re not going to blog about loving Red Back Spiders are we).
Image via Animals Australia.
Image via National Geographic.
8. That each year we get to watch 1200 humpback whales migrate 5000km along eastern (& western) coastline.
The Humpback whale migration starts from Antarctica to the sub-tropical coastal waters of western and eastern Australia and Fiji to give birth and mate during winter and spring.
Image via Salty Wings.
9. That young Australian’s are starting organisations like ICEA.
ICEA's Overarching purpose is to achieve reconciliation through mutual respect for all Australians.
“According to Reconciliation Australia, the majority of young Australians (81%) have a strong desire to advance reconciliation, but less than half know how to go about it.
We believe that to facilitate truly genuine reconciliation and mutual respect, it is important to work with both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal youth together. For this reason, our programs don’t solely focus on one or the other group, but instead, bring Western Australian youth together.” Click here for more on ICEA.
And last, but not least...
10. Our ability to include beer into every situation!
“Every six-pack of beer contributes to climate change. Brewers hope algae is the solution.
In an Australian first, a 400-litre bag of algae has been installed at a Sydney brewery to reduce carbon emissions and produce food, pharmaceuticals and even bio-plastic.”
