g'day, partner! & other adjustments

Before Ben and I got married, I had this fun idea that we should call each other "partners" instead of "husband" and "wife." I'm not a huge fan of those words for a few reasons, and besides - I like being random and throwing people off their game. Ben wasn't a fan of this idea, and so I've been dutifully calling him my husband. Until now.

Because guess what Australians call their spouses?

Partners!!

I win.

Here are some other culture adjustments we've been making in Melbourne so far:

- They don't do take-out boxes here. Apparently they used to, but stopped doing it out of fear of being sued over leftover food poisoning. Which is strange, because Americans are often portrayed as the most lawsuit-happy people. Fortunately the portions here are a bit smaller than the US standard, but still. It's tempting to sneak in our own Tupperware from now on.

- Things can close really early. Many coffee shops, restaurants, stores... by 4pm they're turning off their fluorescent signs. Kind of a bummer. But on the bright side, if I get a temp job in one of those places, I probably won't ever have to work past midnight again! *ahemspaceneedle*

- The downtown area is referred to as the CBD - Central Business District. If you say "downtown," you will be looked at quizzically. Or laughed at.

- They have Starbucks here, but many of the stores have gone out of business. The coffee at local cafes is exquisite, and Melbournians take great pride in their knowledge of and taste in *actual* good coffee - not the syrupy caloric mountains we're addicted to in the States.

- Cell phone plans are much more reasonable. In the US, you buy a phone, then make an expensive monthly payment for the plan, plus data on top of that. In Australia, a decent monthly payment is around $50, with most of it going towards the minutes/texts/data, but a portion of it is actually a payment plan for the phone itself. At the end of your contract, you have an unlocked phone that you can pretty much take anywhere. I'll be able to get a contract once we have an actual address.

- People are very friendly here. Not in a fake "hi! let me pretend to help you for three minutes and then hope I never see you again!" but a genuine "let me answer all your questions and give you my full attention, also here's my card and please call me if you have ANY questions in the next month." Seriously. I'm sure there are exceptions, but in this past week of house-hunting and setting up logistical things, I've felt very well taken care of. Also, people tend to be honest and direct - not in a snarky and passive-aggressive way, but in a helpful manner. Which I appreciate, because if I'm doing something wrong, I'd rather know about it upfront to prevent making the same mistakes again.

- Everything gets abbreviated. For example, if someone says "would you like to grab some brekky before heading to the uni?" it does NOT mean having an epic breakdancing session before mounting a giant unicorn. It refers to having breakfast before heading to the university. Super confusing, I know. Also, "arvo" is short for "afternoon." Which makes me wonder how Australians actually pronounce "afternoon."

- Not everything gets abbreviated. Apparently it's not proper to call your partner a "party." 

CK