HE NOW CALLS AUSTRALIA HOME!

Yesterday my youngest male cousin arrived from Malta. Although he wishes to be known as the favourite youngest male cousin ( FYMC) , I will simply refer to him as " the cousin".

We are all looking forward to introducing the cousin to our lovely country and dispelling some of the ideas about Australia, which visitors often arrive with. Eg within minutes of getting in the car he asked the FED ( favourite eldest daughter) how soon till he would see a kangaroo. Quick as a flash she replied... " ooh we have to be careful, they're everywhere". We still don't know if he

believed her or not, but just in case we might string that one out a bit. Maybe I can tell him how yesterday, on my way to the city, a kangaroo hopped right in front of our car ( true) , while being chased by a spear wielding aboriginal ( definitely not true). God, this is going to be fun!

My family came to Australia in 1975 when I was only 9 years old. So, despite claiming Maltese heritage I am actually also very much Australian. The only thing we REALLY were when we got to this country was "weird". Nobody could understand our accents or our ways. We in turn couldn't understand Aussie colloquialisms. A well told story is where my mother was told to " bring a plate" to a BBQ. My kindhearted mother never having heard that phrase before, took not one plate but five - one for each one of us. She also took five forks and five knives. "Bring a plate" in Australia means " bring a plate of food for sharing". Poor Mum was mortified!

Later in life when I married an Australian who grew up in the country, my knowledge of Aussie lingo (language)  expanded. My favourite phrase of all time is " useless as tits on a bull" which the husband aims at anyone from footballers to politicians to the kids . It is just so apt and if you haven't worked it out means you are totally and utterly useless! Another favourite came from his brother in law who till this day describes big, strong people as being " built like a brick shithouse". It's a very colourful language indeed and one I'm still working on understanding fully!

Australia in the 70's was a fabulous place to grow up in. Initially we lived in the northwest in a small town called Port Hedland. One of my favourite memories in primary school was watching a young tribal aboriginal boy show and talk about an emu egg his grandfather had painted on the weekend. I was totally fascinated! I also remember my parents being given some Aboriginal spears, which were then hung up in our house. For some reason as I grew up I always felt safe knowing those spears were  close by!

On December 8, 1975 our town was hit by a cyclone. That is unfortunately a risk of living in that location. As winds and rain lashed our town, we took refuge, as instructed, under a table. I thought it was fun but my parents I found out later were beyond anxious. My mother called on God and every saint possible to 
save us and they obviously obliged. In the morning we were greeted by fallen fences, flattened houses and no school!!! We ran around a town that looked like a war zone but felt like movie stars because of the attention the town got on TV.

Yes it was an exciting country to grow up in. I never felt unwelcome and never  felt unwanted. There was one time growing up in Perth were someone told me to " go home refugee". I just remember feeling pity that this kid had no idea what a refugee was, and I just carried on. I put vegemite on my toast and ate my mother's Maltese cooking. I was obsessed with Australian musicians and cricketers but also sang the Maltese songs and rhymes I remembered, now long gone. I made friends with Australians, Italians, Irish ,Greeks and many, many more. I was proud to be a wog.This was multiculturalism at it's best!

As I grew older I travelled to many parts of Australia. It's hard to pick a favourite spot as all areas are so different. From freezing cold Melbourne in winter to the Gold Coast in summer, every place holds special memories.

I hope as the cousin travels around the country he gets to feel some of the magic I felt growing up, and gets to create his own Aussie memories in a very special country. But beware those kangaroos and weapon wielding natives!!!

Till next time...xxx