How similar is Australia to the UK?

VERY!

I have lived for 18 months in Manchester, UK and I found a lot of similarities to Australia in the past four months. Here are some examples:

-          Of course the language is similar.

-          Both drive on the left side of the road.

-          Australia belongs to the British Commonwealth.

-          The Parliament structure is similar to the British one and some of the procedures and the furniture in their two houses are in accordance with the British measurements.

-          Australia used the British distance system (inches, feet, yards, miles) before they changed to the metric system.

-          The Queen is on some of the coins.

-          There are a lot of cities named after British cities (like York, Chelsea, Broughton, Newcastle etc.).

-          Even some landscapes are named after British icons like the London Bridge on the Great Ocean Road.

-          Some streets are named after members of the Royal British Family (e.g. King William Street, Queen Victoria Avenue etc.).

-          Fish and Chips are a common dish here.

-          You can buy Baked Beans in a wide variety in the supermarket.

-          Marmite in the UK, Vegemite in Australia.

-          Australians are very friendly and excuse themselves for things that they are not accounted for.

-          There is a Top Gear Australia :-) (I love the original Top Gear from the UK).

-          Australians are crazy about the weather forecast like I experienced most Brits.

-          Tea is provided in most hotels and motels as an essential.

-          Cricket is the national sport.

-          Some TV News channels show not only Australian sport results but also the British results especially in Football / Soccer.

-          The British flag is part of the Australian flag.

-          Asking “How are you?” directly after “Hello”.

There are surely quite a few more similarities which is not surprising really in regards to the history of Australia being mainly founded by Great Britain. But there are of course many differences which make Australia unique in its own way. And I am about to discover another part of it. My next stop: Perth!

Yours Australia-to-UK-comparing Stefanie