Australia has been on our minds a lot recently and it is difficult for those of us who have never been there to understand just how different it is. Australia drives on the left, measurements are metric and even the language is different!
You can look at a picture of a kangaroo and think it is strange but I don't believe you can understand just how strange it is until you see it in its natural habitat. The kangaroo is just the most instantly recognizable symbol of how different Australia is. There are a lot of strange and wonderful critters, birds and plants on that unique and special continent.
You may not be aware that Australia has been suffering from severe drought for years.
This blogger talks about Heleioporus eyrei frogs appearing after a rain and the sounds they make.
These beautiful native birds are galahs. Calling someone a galah in Australia is a traditional way of questioning their intelligence.
The climate varies widely, the north is tropical and the south is more temperate. Seasons in the southern hemisphere are the opposite of the northern hemisphere, Christmas is mid-summer. Most of the center of Australia is desert.
I am told there are more than 400 different varieties of gum (eucalyptus) trees in Australia. 
Mist at Yellow Water billabong - Kakadu in the Northern Territory, image by Tourism NT. Click this image to go to their website which has many more beautiful pictures. Billabong is Australian for a lake.
This is Reids Coffee Palace, Ballarat, Victoria. Between approximately 1850 and the late 1860s Ballarat was at the center of the Australian Gold Rush, the style of architecture is called Federation Filigree. It is designed to let cool air flow through the building.
In case you were wondering, I am assured by Australian sellers that kangaroos do not hop down the streets everywhere.
This is where many Australian eBay Sellers have moved to and YES we can buy from them there! We wish you all the best and much happiness in your new home.
Any errors or mistakes are mine alone and corrections will be gratefully received. I hope you have enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed researching it.
Y'all come back and be sure to click VICTORIOUSLY on any interesting links in the sidebar! 
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Just for Fun The Land of Oz
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3 comments:
Aloha Henrietta
Australia is truly a wonderful place; the people, the countryside, and the animals. I never realized just how dangerous kangaroos are until I went there (they have been known to kill a human or two) and how despised the koala bear is (folks consider them vile creatures). Personally, I love koala bears but the Aussies thought I was nuts. Come to think of it, so do you:-)!
Anony Mouse
Thank you for sharing about Australia and including a link to OZtion.
I love the look of OZtion, and I looked at some of the auctions and read some community posts, and fell in love with the site and the people.
If any Aussies are reading, just want you to know, a lot of prayers and thoughts are going out to you for your success, both in fighting eBay's funding requirements and in your other auction site sales.
Oztion is limited to sellers who live in Australia or New Zealand. Residents of other countries are welcomed to register as buyers. I hope this seller policy changes, Oztion is a nice looking site and I would like to sell there if the policy allowed. I can see valid reasons for restricting but the problem of validating sellers from overseas should not be insurmountable.
For those of us who refuse to knuckle under to eBay, there are not too many choices for continued overseas listing.
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