An American expat has revealed three things you can only understand if you live in Australia and why shopping at Kmart is so much better Down Under.
Kaymie Wuerfel moved to Sydney in early 2020 after tying the knot with her Australian beau, and has been ‘learning to live there’ during a coronavirus lockdown and bans on travel.
In a series of TikTok videos the brunette explained that those living Down Under know that no one drinks Fosters beer, all words are abbreviated and there are a group of people labelled ‘eshays’.
Kaymie Wuerfel moved to Sydney in 2020 after tying the knot with her Australian beau, and has been ‘learning to live there’ amid the coronavirus pandemic (pictured at the Opera House)
‘I guarantee if you walked into any pub in Australia no one would be drinking Foster’s,’ Kaymie said of the lager mistakenly thought to be drunk by every ‘true blue’ Australian.
Originally brewed in Melbourne, Foster’s used the slogan ‘Australian for Beer’ overseas in the 1960s, which led to it being cast as the most popular alcoholic drink consumed by people from the island nation.
However, Kaymie says this isn’t true.
‘The second thing is, everything is abbreviated. If you want to get something from the service station it’s the “servo” and if you want to do something in the afternoon it’s the “arvo,”‘ she said.
The brunette explained that those living Down Under understand that no one drinks Fosters beer, widely considered to be the national beverage of choice, all words are abbreviated and there are a group of people called ‘eshays’
Brands like Nike and Adidas are pronounced differently, as is aluminium foil, which confused her.
Finally she brought up the term ‘eshay’ and said it was used to describe a certain type of person.
According to Urban Dictionary an ‘eshay’ is another term for an Australian lad, the equivalent of a British ‘chav’.
‘Eshays are almost always from a poor background, have little or no secondary education and rely on Centrelink payments or theft to support their habits of illicit drug use, graffiti and purchasing fresh gear,’ the website reads.
Kaymie pictured in her video about Kmart in Australia and overseas
Kaymie said she was still trying to come to her own conclusions about what an eshay is, and as she hasn’t been in the country long, she’s still learning.
In a separate video she raved about how much better Kmart is in Australia than it is back home.
‘There are only 34 Kmarts left in America and they always have “everything goes” signs up because they are constantly closing down,’ she said.
‘But in Australia Kmart is bomb with nice shoes and jackets.’
If you are going to visit America she recommends stopping by Target instead because ‘it’s nicer over there’.
So what else differs between the two countries?
THINGS THAT AMERICA HAS THAT AUSTRALIA DOESN’T
Kaymie grew up in Clearwater, Florida, which is not unlike the eastern coastline of Australia, where she now finds herself.
But there are three things in America that can’t be found Down Under, and that she sorely misses about moving away.
‘Americans get free refills on drinks, we have drive-thru Starbucks everywhere and Chipotle restaurants – which serves Mexican food,’ she said in a TikTok video.
Kaymie grew up in Clearwater, Florida, which is not unlike some of the eastern coastline of Australia, where she now finds herself
She said that most people in suburban America own a washing machine and dryer, whereas she found a lot of Australian households only come with a washing machine (pictured are her plane tickets to come to Oz)
In the United States a driver pays for petrol – or ‘gas’ – before they fill up the car, but in Australia you pay after you’ve filled up a certain amount.
She said that most people in suburban America own a washing machine and dryer, whereas she found a lot of Australian households only come with a washing machine.
However this could be because she’s renting in the city, rather than living on a larger piece of land away from the CBD.
THINGS THAT AUSTRALIA HAS THAT AMERICA DOESN’T
In Australia Kaymie discovered that individuals can get a 10c refund just for recycling, there is a free healthcare system called Medicare and dual-flush toilets exist.
‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen a dual-flush toilet in the United States,’ she said, which allows the user to flush using either a small amount of water or a larger amount.
Australian cross walks also make noises to signal when you can move forward – while America’s lights don’t come with any ‘noisemaking abilities’ – and the frozen Cokes at McDonald’s are different to those you buy at a movie theatre.
In Australia Kaymie discovered that individuals can get a 10c refund just for recycling, there is a free healthcare system called Medicare and dual-flush toilets exist
‘And why do you eat your national animal? The kangaroo? We don’t go eating the bald eagle, we protect it,’ she said
‘In Australia you use PayWave, which we don’t have in America, electrical outlets have on and off switches and you have chicken salt,’ she said.
While these are all aspects of the country she appreciated, Kaymie couldn’t understand why Australian wifi is ‘so bad’, given they were the nation that invented it.
‘And why do you eat your national animal? The kangaroo? We don’t go eating the bald eagle, we protect it,’ she said.
She found pavlova tasted ‘weird’ but was a big fan of Weetbix, Anzac biscuits, sausage rolls, pizza flavoured Shapes, Caramello Koalas, Cherry Ripes, meat pies, Golden Gaytime ice cream, lamingtons, Milo, fairy bread and Vegemite.
Kaymie samples each of these national favourites on her social media channel.
While she misses American food, there were a number of Australian treats she was a big fan of