Although I have yet to perfect the Aussie accent, I've definitely started to pick up on some of the lingo down under. I've been lucky enough to travel quite a bit in my twenty two years, and I've learned that one of the hardest things to deal with overseas is the language barrier. I wasn't all too nervous coming to Australia because hey, they speak English here, don't they? I guess you could say that, but sometimes it feels like I'm surrounded by a whole different language because of the Aussie slang. Lucky for me, I've been picking it up quickly - I'm well on my way to speaking Australian!

First things first - when you're learning to speak any language, you've got to know the alphabet. In Aus, it goes something like this:

abcdefg'haych'ijklmnopqrstuvwxy&'zed'

And here's a list of some of the words I've heard quite frequently that have made their way into my everyday vocabulary - it might be hard to switch back when (if) I get back home!

Australian - American

Arvo - Afternoon

Bloke - Man

Boot - Trunk

Bottle shop - Liquor store

Brekkie - Breakfast

Capsicum - Bell pepper

Car park - Parking lot

Chemist - Pharmacy
Chips - Fries

Entre - Appetizer

Fairy floss - Cotton candy

Footy - Football/rugby

Fringe - Bangs

G'day - Hello

Heaps - A lot

Hungry Jacks - Burger King

Jelly - Jello

Joggers - Sneakers

Jumper - Sweatshirt/jacket

Keen - Like

Lead - Leash

Lemonade - Sprite

Lollies - Candy

Love heart - Heart

Mate - Friend

Maths - Math
Mum - Mom

No worries - You're welcome

Pash - Make out

Popper - Juice box
Potato gems - Tater tots

Plait - Braid

Pyjamas - Pajamas

Reckon - Think

Runners - Sneakers

Sheila - Woman
Sultana - Raisin
Sun bake - Sun bathe

Sunnies - Sunglasses

Swimmers - Swim suit

Tea - Dinner

Thongs - Flip flops

Togs - Swim suit (only used in Brissy)
Toilet - Bathroom
Uni - College