r/AskAnAustralian

I’ve heard that Australian culture tends to be pretty relaxed and informal compared to other countries, especially when it comes to authority and social hierarchy. Is it actually common for people to avoid using titles like Mr., Mrs., or Dr. and just go straight to first names, even in professional or academic settings?

Where I’m from, using formal titles is more expected, especially when you’re talking to someone older or in a position of authority, so I’m curious how it works in Australia. Does this come across as respectful there, or could it ever be seen as too casual depending on the situation?

25M here off work for a bit and the loneliness just feels so intense. Anyone else in the same boat. It’s honestly made me realise how I don’t have any mates and yeah don’t know if I can keep going on anymore tbh.

If you see this I guess I wanna say - reach out to your mates and send them that message. You’d be surprised the difference it makes

As a 27F female I've been trying to get help for debilitating host of symptoms for over 10yrs

A mix of doctors refusing to run tests, being forced to 'wait and see if medicine helps' and being treated like I'm anxious and depressed and that I "want to be injured"

So many scans I've paid for and reports that have come back 'clear'. Thousands of dollars spent to be told I'm a hypochondriac and "doctor shopping"

After being dumped by my GP I doctor shopped until I found one that finally. Finally freaking believed me. And in the span 3 of months my diagnosis has moved from anxiety, fibro and depression to:

- Brain tumour

- Multiple Sclerosis (Optical sheath degradation and hypertension in the brain)

- Venous sinus stenosis

- Subclavian artery 100% occlusion and nerve compression in brachial plexus

I've already been rushed through 1 surgery which discovered extreme artery occlusion and nerve damage aswell scar tissue everywhere. So bad it fused to my lung. Surgeon had never seen anyone as bad as me for vTOS

The next step is a stent for the venous stenosis or reducing pressure in my head with medication that shrinks the tumour.

Oh not to mention all of this is causing slow and painful vision loss.

These past 10 years, these doctors who never took the time to tell me my reports asked for further investigation, who never bothered to cross examine or research my symptoms, have ruined my life by allowing things to progress so far that I need medical intervention.

Every woman I speak too has experienced the same level of medical gaslighting and negligence. It breaks my heart. To see so many people who are in pain who need help and doctors shrug them off as drug seeking.

A multi-generational family in my street obtained an Accessible Parking Permit in grandma's name years ago and never use it for the intended purpose (when transporting or picking up grandma). In the 5 years since they got it she has never been seen in either of their cars with the permit yet they drive every day with the permit.

The family are absolute grubs but particularly the uncle and drug dealer grandson who's cheese has completely slid off the biscuit but somehow maintains a license to drive. Plain clothes and uniformed police are at the house questioning or looking for him or the uncle several times a year.

At times when his meth use has been significant, he's enjoyed using the footpath outside our apartment block to take a dump and piss against the wall of my neighbour's apartment for weeks (he went to gaol for a while shortly after that thankfully) and has druggie mates and buyers rip up and down our residential street in the middle of the night doing burnouts.

The uncle, who just opens his passenger door after parking and sweeps his McD rubbish straight into the gutter outside their house pressured the local council to erect disability parking signs right outside their house so either the uncle or nephew always have a place to park.

No one has actually even seen the grandmother for over 2 years so I wouldn't be surprised if she may have died. Accessible permits are critical to the people who genuinely need them and having grubs like this abuse the use of them bothers me so much.

As we speak the meth head is using a noisy power tool in the house at 1am and I saw him drop a big puddle of oil straight onto the road after noisily tinkering with his shitbox car the other night. So apart from them being general oxygen thieves of people it has always irked me that they completely take the piss with the disability parking permit. It's one thing using it in our street which doesn't really inconvenience us because if they couldn't get a park before they had the signs put up, they just used to double park other people in on our street - for hours at a time!

Therefore it's almost in my favour that they have their own designated car park but I realised that these sort of people would almost certainly be pinching Accessible spaces everywhere they go in Melbourne so I reported the issue to Transport Vic Accessible Parking who just referred me on to report it to my local council which I did but they're not interested in following it up either.

I mean, can't they at least ask for evidence that she's even alive anymore?

This is really just a vent unless anyone has any further advice?

I’ve been in Sydney just over a year and genuinely curious how people here meet naturally — not just apps.

About me: Slavic / Canadian , work in fin tech, active (gym, dancing, hikes, swimming, learning surfing), love deep conversations, business/learning events, and Latin dancing.

I’ve tried quite a few things and wonder if I miss any other good ones in this stunning city:

•	Gym/classes — just my weekly routine, and everyone’s in their own zone

•	Sports ( into volleyball/tennis) — groups I found were either too beginner or quite advanced , or to young early 20s. If someone knows intermediate fun gatherings please share :)

•	Running clubs — amazing vibes for early birds, I’m an owl and not into running 

•	Business events and conferences— great convos, but more networking

•	Bars — not my scene, some good happy hour places with occasional chats, but not much approaching (maybe I’m shy too)

•	Singles events — nice people, but didn’t feel like my vibe

•	Festivals — people stick to their groups and friends circle 

•	Dating apps — still exploring, but would love something more organic

• Work - my team is small and everyone is married with kids/other commitments.

Night clubs/ bars not my scene as I’m not a big drinker and enjoy nature and outdoors. But I’d go out for socializing.

Curious to check out races and other sport events like F1 and tennis open in Melbourne. Wonder if it is more social and friendly over there ?

Are there other communities/events in Sydney where people are more open to connect with new people?

Or is everyone just meeting on apps and that’s reality now?

Would love real stories/ suggestions— especially if you met your partner in a more natural way 🙏

Thank you all 😊

It’s the animated ad featuring a whistling bendy person that has haunted our eardrums since at least June 2025. Unsurprisingly, it’s even more annoying when you hear it booming out of stadium speakers at NRL games.

I work in a supermarket and get a fair few customers asking for corn starch. The one thing they all have in common is they all swear that's corn starch and corn flour isn't the same thing. We have about 10+ varieties of corn flour, but the only item in store that actually says corn starch is the J&J baby powder.

I'm assuming they're following a recipe off the internet, but the internet also says in Australia the two names are the same thing, corn flour. Even the Better Homes & Gardens site says it. But i have never once been able to convince a customer and they leave empty handed.

For me despite being from the UK, You're The Voice by John Farnham really sticks out for me. Especially with the meaning of the song, and every time I listen to it, It always makes me feel good about myself inside, and I know that song is essentially an anthem for Australia which I think makes this song even more powerful!

Hi guys. I just wanted to ask for help on what to do as I am an international student and do not know plus lack confidence with a situation where I got scammed. Details are as follows:

1. Wanted to rent a room so I found one on Facebook marketplace

2. Went to inspect and paid the initial bond money

3. When I was 3 days away from moving in, the renter said “something came up, you can’t move in sorry”

4. I never got my bond back as she always comes up with excuses when I tell her to return my money

No lease was signed (you may call me stupid which I am but that’s how a lot of students find accom in a shared house when they don’t know any better). I went to the police and they said it’s not a crime it’s a civil case. I called VCAT and they cannot help. I feel helpless as I understand without a warrant, police can’t just go in her house and threaten her and return my money. What can I do?

Any help/guidance will be appreciated. I live in Victoria. Oh I also tried contacting commbank to reverse the payment but with no success.

According to me, as of now, this is a foolproof way to scam new students as they can get away with it even though I have all the proof of the text messages and payment screenshots/history.

Edit: I work at a steakhouse and the theme is Australia. I have to greet customers with a “G’day mate!” And say Australian phrases. If yall got any phrases I should spam, please lmk. (Don’t hold back😂)

Hello everyone,
I'm from Korea.
I heard that summer time will end tomorrow.
At 3 am tomorrow, the clock will go back to 2 am.
So what time should I go to work?

For some reason I always thought they looked like a mini version of a polar bear like the bundy bear or the Coca Cola Polar Bear but what do they look like in your region of Australia?

It feels like every time I turn on the TV, these guys are promoting their latest sale. but if they're always having a sale, then their sale prices are just their normal prices.

Looking to hear a range of perspectives.

Hi everyone,

I’m planning a 3-week solo trip to Australia (first time visit!) in June and would really appreciate feedback on my itinerary (timing, sights, flights, pacing, etc.).

✈️ Overall plan

Route: Melbourne → Red Centre (Uluru) → Cairns (Great Barrier Reef, Daintree) → Sydney

📍 Detailed itinerary

Day 0 – Arrival

• Arrive in Melbourne (\~22:00)

⸻

Days 1–3 – Melbourne 🏙️

• Melbourne city

• Great Ocean Road (day trip)

• Yarra Valley (wine region day trip) or another city day

⸻

Day 4 – Fly to Red Centre ✈️

• Melbourne → Alice Springs

• Free afternoon / buffer day in Alice Springs

⸻

Days 5–8 – Uluru / Outback (group tour) 🏜️

• 4-day tour: Uluru, Kata Tjuta, Kings Canyon

• Tour starts evening of Day 5 / ends morning of Day 8

• Extra night at Ayers Rock Resort

⸻

Day 9 – Fly to Cairns ✈️

• Ayers Rock → Cairns

⸻

Days 9–13 – Cairns / Reef / Daintree (group tour) 🌴

• 5-day tour (starts evening of Day 9 / ends afternoon of Day 13):

• Great Barrier Reef (glass boat, probably won’t snorkelling)

• Daintree Rainforest

• Cape Tribulation

• Palm Cove

⸻

Day 13 – Fly to Sydney ✈️

• Evening Flight: Cairns → Sydney

⸻

Days 14–17 – Sydney 🏙️

• Sydney city

• Blue Mountains day trip

⸻

Thanks a lot – appreciate any local or travel experts insight!

Have you ever had one of those "I've made it" moments? What was the situation? If you haven't, what do you think your "I've made it" moment would be?

Without too much humble brag, over this weekend I'm doing my bit, landscaping and tidying up following a major backyard reno where I've had a pretty high end pool installed.

Been out here for hours the last few days pottering around and juat staring at the work, I grew up in gov housing in a single parent home supported entirely by the dole, I never thought I would be able to have something like what I now have, that's been my "I've made it" moment.

In Tassie, we're lucky that the Australian Antarctic Division has their headquarters here and it's the home port of the RSV Nuyina.

So, I’ll preface this by saying I am the most boring, law abiding citizen that I know.

I got a call from NSW (I’m not based in NSW) recently from an unknown number. I get these all the time, they’re always scams, so I didn’t pick up. This most recent one went to voicemail, however. It was an automated message, suggesting a Sergeant (no name provided, no department) was trying to get in touch with me about an “active investigation”. It asked me to press 1 to be transferred through to the correct department.

I’m assuming it’s a scam - but if so, it’s fairly well done. The automated message had a believable Aussie accent. The things that stood out to me as suss (beside the number being registered to a random address in NSW) is the sheer lack of details: it didn’t know my name, it didn’t provide a department, it didn’t provide a detective.

I’ve had to be contacted before by the state police due to a crime I reported, and although it wasn’t the AFP, they sent a formatted text message. I’m assuming the AFP would do the same?

Which player do you love to hate? But deep down, you know they would be one of your favourites if they were on your team?

For me:

Virat Kohli. Always wanted to see him fail, didn't like the arrogance and the esteem he carried himself in. Would have been my favourite player if he was wearing the baggy green.

Rhys Walsh. Both as a Bronco and a Queenslander everything just seems to go his way. Too pretty, too many plays out of nothing.