Australia Archives - Page 3 of 3

When We Were Six: An Ode to My Youth

I was six, and we were the sun and the moon, radiant and bright. Riv had inky black hair, eyes like wet mud smeared across gold and an olive complexion, stars sprinkled across her flesh in the form of freckles. I stood next to her, hair closer to white than blonde, porcelain skin and eyes…

ByMia DingwallMarch 28, 2019

Current Affairs

An Open Letter to the School Students on Strike

Dear high school students of Australia, Over the last 24 hours, I’ve kept up to date with the the news following your Big School Walk Out events across the country in protest of the government’s inaction on climate change. I’ve been reading everyone’s opinions about your action, from the Prime Minister’s hypocritical outrage to the…

ByAmy FairallNovember 28, 2018

Yarns

A Psychic Told Me Exactly How My Life Would Play Out, Starting With an Abortion

I run my fingers across the blue lettering that reads ‘Clear Blue Pregnancy Test’. It's 8:53. I’ll have to wait another whole minute until the pregnancy test reveals the answer. I'm going to bring a baby into this world with a boy who sleeps on a pullout couch and smokes bongs for breakfast. The psychic’s…

ByJess WoodJuly 23, 2018

Yarns

How I Decided

It's a Sunday afternoon. I'm home in Milan rolling in bed after my Saturday night shift. I receive a message: it's my best friend Tommy, who lives in Australia. He's texting me and Ivan, who lives in Berlin. 15:36 – Asia on the 6th of January? I answer instinctively. Yes, I wish. Same, says Ivan.…

ByRiccardo ValentinoJune 27, 2018

Features

These Dickheads Probably Still Think This Is Okay (And So Do Most of Their Mates)

Another week, another group of young Australians in blackface. It’s a regular enough occurrence for the outrage to be dulled; it’s not going to go viral, a panel of white people won’t discuss it on Sunrise. There’s a certain fatigue for this sort of dickhead behaviour: fury is replaced by disbelief that these guys could…

ByGravyApril 3, 2018

Yarns

The Australian Working Holiday Visa: A Memoir

The Italian Restaurant / July 10 – July 11 When a restaurant has a banner across their storefront that reads “Best thin crust pizza in South Yarra” – Dave, you bloody well know it must be good. Unfortunately, when the chef demanded I tell the woman who received raw chicken in her meal he would not…

ByAshley OgasawaraMarch 12, 2018

Current Affairs Features

The Tasmanian Devil

The coffee is slightly too sweet, the windows hang heavy with legs of cured meat, the central streets are choked with sunburnt tourists, and I have to watch out for pickpockets on my way to work. Barcelona’s cobblestones bring back a childish imagining of European cities: there is a richness to every step, like my…

ByKate DewarFebruary 26, 2018

Features

Party Drugs: Who’s Really Paying the Ultimate Price?

Party drugs like ecstasy, ketamine and cocaine find their way into the pockets of festival, concert and couch-session attendees, making them as common as a can of warm beer in an Aussie summer. Hipsters, uni-students and full-timers all enjoy the occasional line, but most rarely think about the history of the drug further than their…

ByEmma BendallJanuary 16, 2018

Yarns

I’m Just Another Tourist in My Home Country

My stomach is churning as I walk towards the big green sign. No matter the destination, the feeling I get arriving at the immigration desk never ceases to change. When I get to the front of the line, a middle-aged Balinese man ushers me over. Before I get the chance to give him my passport,…

ByNurhikmah SainJanuary 10, 2018

Features

On Being a Third-Culture Kid

When I was 14, after spending 10 years growing up in three vastly different countries, I moved back to the place I was born: Australia. I was making this move from Germany, where racism was taboo due to its traumatic history, yet its people were still a proud nation with high nationalistic ideals. Even teenagers…

ByAmber HallJanuary 8, 2018