Australia is a geographically large country.
How big? This big, with Europe easily fitting in. I think there would be room for Ukraine and other countries but we won't add Russia.
I've told this story before but when Ray's parents visited from England in the 1980s, as their plane entered the north west coast of Australia, Ray's mother got up to refresh her makeup. Five or more hours the plane reached Melbourne on the south eastern coast.
I am surprised a little by the large size of Spain. Are you surprised about any of the countries? Your own?
I would use this in a separate post if it was a readable size. I believe it shows Australia's tribal Aboriginal regions. It does give you an idea of the complexity of tribal life.
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It is indeed a big one. And even the white inhabitants have cultures of their own in different parts of it.
ReplyDeleteEC, quite true about white culture.
DeleteThankfully Australia doesn't have the huge number of people that populate all those countries. You would have to stand for ages at the bar to get served.
ReplyDeleteWaiting at a bar would be a bad thing JayCee. I wonder how any people would be in Australia if the populations of all those countries were added up. And no, I'm not going to
DeleteThe most beautiful map is the last one. To think that that the aboriginal people populated the entire island continent and didn't harm it in fifty thousand years. Why didn't Europeans learn from them? They didn't stand a chance.
ReplyDeleteYp, actually the indigenous people did alter the natural environment so in that sense harmed it. However compared to the European settlers their numbers and physical impact were low and had long ago settled into a kind of equilibrium, especially in comparison to our own environmental death spiral.
DeleteEg the vast pastures "discovered" were probably the result of long term fire practices in effect curating the landscape in favour of kangaroos as game.
YP, they did manage the environment to their benefit. They just didn't screw it up as white people have.
DeleteThanks Anon. You are well informed.
Delete"Altering" isn't harming and besides this was on a very small scale. Furthermore, if such "altering" ceased, the land recovered.
DeleteI would guess Australia is just about 3/4 the size of the United States.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you guys calls your https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/County_(United_States)
peppylady,
DeleteAustralia and the USA were very similar, until Alaska was added as an American state. Then the difference became very obvious.
thecontemplativecat here. I never realized just how huge Australia is! That is impressive. The indigenous people Aborigine have survived invasion. Their intrinsic understanding of their environment is amazing. I read a book called "Mutant Message Down Under". worthwhile read. I am thinking of you, Andrew. I am praying for you.
ReplyDeleteThank you CC. Survive is a rather loaded word. So many didn't and so many suffered and still are to this day with social problems.
DeleteI imagine it would be quite different if it had all the people of those countries crammed into it!
ReplyDeleteBob, the mind boggles and of course the country has a very fragile environment along with people not being able to live in deserts.
DeleteAustralia is also a continent. It's big. Years ago a Texas friend said she was to be in Boston overnight, maybe she could run down to NJ for a cup of tea with me. She assumed that all the Eastern states were tiny, therefore only an or so apart! I explained it's nine hours one way, at best, driving, maybe another day!
ReplyDeleteBoud, that's about the time it takes to drive to Sydney from here. Even I have a vague idea how far away NJ is from Boston. So no, not for a cup of tea.
DeleteIt's a big country for sure and people see it and say "oh we could move there" but they don't know how much of it is unhabitable and owned by the indigenous people who won't allow development.
ReplyDeleteRiver, and that's why the vast majority of us live near coastlines,
DeleteMy grandmother thought my aunt and my mother had fallen out as they didn't meet for coffee. Aunt lives in FNQ and mother lived in Melbourne!
ReplyDeleteHehe, Merlot. Not really easy to drop in for a cuppa.
DeleteMy grandmother thought the same when wondering why my mother didn't visit her grownup children every day. Grandma lived her whole life in Germany where villages are so close together. Mum lived in Adelaide, while I lived in Brisbane, my sister in Port Pirie and my brother in Fremantle.
DeleteSo, my home state of Ohio is about the size of Tasmania. Considerably more people, though. About 11 million more.
ReplyDeleteKirk, I don't know much about Ohio's topography but Tasmania is mostly forest, and we want to keep it that way. No room for 11 million. Even 1 million would have a profound effect.
DeleteIt certainly is a big country, and the interesting thing about big countries is the vast changes in climate, geography, and culture as you travel through. There's something for everyone, isn't there?
ReplyDeleteDebby, there is no better example than your own country.
DeleteDid they just randomly toss in Ohio? I never thought of Finland or Sweden as that large. Looks like Spain and France are about the same size.
ReplyDeleteStrayer, maybe they filled in the smaller spaces with whatever would fit. I've watched a YouTube train video about Sweden and I did learn how large it is.
DeleteWow! Well done! I'm constantly amused by shocked USians when they visit Canada being told Canada is bigger in mass than the USA, Ditto all the stunned Irish who come here thinking Newfoundland is smaller in size. The island of Ireland is about 84,000 sq km (33,000 sq mi) while the island Newfoundland is 109,000 sq km (42,000 sq mi).Aug 29 and that's not including the humungous Labrador which is part of our province. Size is a strange thing.
ReplyDeleteXO
WWW
WWW, mainly because of your location, I did have a look at your province and I was surprised myself at its size.
DeleteYes, my parents, who emigrated from Ireland to Montreal, would often say to our Irish visitors that Ireland would fit into Quebec 22 times.
DeleteWow Jackie. Quebec is larger in size than I've noticed.
DeletePity most of the land is not in good use by the modern society.
ReplyDeleteRoentare, no its not useful for farming of any kind aside from sheep stations in some marginal areas.
DeleteI've seen these before or similar, it's all very interesting and amazing really and to think we've travelled up, down and across Australia we could have visited many countries..
ReplyDeleteMargaret, I am quite envious of UK people who can be in great European cities so easily. It would be quite a tick off to have visited all them shown on the map.
DeleteMany people think Australia is a very sunny country bounded by endless sandy beaches and populated by poisonous snakes and spiders, with a big desert in the middle, with kangaroos bounding everywhere and bright parrots decorating every tree, when the koalas make room for them. They don't think about, or perhaps don't know, about the snowy mountains. It's too huge to comprehend, really.
ReplyDeleteJB, I suppose compared to Africa and South America, there is nothing too remarkable about Australia but even so, it is unique.
DeleteOur first German Au Pair back in 2004 explained to us her shock at how big our country is..having done the same thing as Ray's Mum when flying over the Western Coast Line.
ReplyDeleteMy Mum's best friend came to Australia from England..and she thought coming to Victoria to live was amazing and that she could pack a picnic and go for a day trip to Ayers Rock. Always a story to tell years later.
I work in Outback NSW as a casual RN and the training we have re Indigenous Culture is much more extensive than it is here in Victoria.
My Nanna was a Wiradjuri woman from West Wyalong.. and Nanna didn't really embrace her heritage until later in life when she felt free enough to finally do so. As you may recall. Nanna was taken fro. Her Mum in 1918 and placed in an orphanage in NSW along with her little sister. So talking about heritage was drummed out of her.
Back to the map you shared.. I didn't realise the complexity of tribal regions, and the acknowledgement of each member of community until I undertook extensive cultural training in Griffith last year.
We still have alot of work to do in this space re appropriate provision of healthcare.
It is enlightening and emotionally draining for me. However, I feel I'm providing personalised care to every person every time I engage with my patient and their family in the outback ER.
Oh.. I'm going on! Sorry lovely. I woke up about an hour ago. Thank the Gummy Mary I have this weekend off. 12hr night shifts Ugh!
Mothers day off.. it's also International Nurses day AND my Nicholas will be 25 years old on Sunday! I can't believe my kids are all adults above 21 now!
Definitely one of the stolen then Cazzie. I expect your outback training is quite invaluable but I guess it could be argued that the need in Melbourne isn't huge and it's not worth the expenditure. I don't know. Just thinking. What this about your children having left secondary school? How did that happen?
DeleteI'd forgotten that Spain is bigger than Germany, but it is. (I had to look it up!) Funny how Ohio fits so neatly over Tasmania. I'd much rather be in Tasmania.
ReplyDeleteSteve, it's probably warmer in Tasmania than Ohio too.
DeleteIt is an interesting way for judging sizes of countries. No Canada included - wonder why. ;-) Very little of our country is inhabited when you look at the large size of it.
ReplyDeletePat, Canada is just too damn big.
DeleteI'm sure you could talk all of Hawaii in there somewhere, and we were an independent nation at one time. Aloha Pacific neighbor! Interesting post
ReplyDeleteCloudia, yes, I am sure it could be squeezed in there somewhere.
DeleteIn the United States, we understand, visitors from Europe are often baffled by the vastness of the county. Even people who live in the United States don't really understand until they have traveled across the country.
ReplyDeleteTP, from what I have observed about distances and travel, US people are quite used to driving very long distances. Australians not so much.
Deletethecontemplativecat here. That is impressive. Going there is never going to happen, so I will have to watch Crocodile Dundee and Thornbirds. I am praying for you. Keep well.
ReplyDeleteCC, there may be some truth to Australia as painted in The Thorn Birds but although I haven't seen it, I am not sure there would be much in Crocodile Dundee.
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