Best Country Tourism Ad: Don't You Want To Visit Now?

Tourism Australia Ad

I've been to over 26 countries and I've seen a lot of tourism ads inviting people to visit their country. It's a little on the 'It's a small world' side, but very catchy. Don't you want to visit now? Enjoy!

She's Called It

PM Julia Gillard v. Tony Abbott

Labor Leader & Liberal Leader

Not one to ever be a political pundit, I had to comment on the biggest news in Australia. It’s been a short-lived premiership and Australia’s PM of 3 weeks (she assumed office at the end of June 2010) has called an election for August 21st. This is somewhat peculiar to me.

Not quite familiar with the parliamentary system with exception to flashes of Comparative Politics AP (thank you Mr. Greer), I know that the leaders of the two leading federal parties, Labor and Liberal, will be going head to head for the biggest seat in the government.

What I don’t understand is, why now? If you have your cake, why tempt to give it away? The only reason I could find is that the Australian government must have a general election every 3 years when there is a change of power in the parliament. In this case, Gillard, who was never elected, but appointed because former PM Kevin Rudd stepped down, must now have an election for the sake of democracy.

According to weekend polls, this contest is pretty split. 52% of the public favor Labor while 48% favor Liberal. However, the story is different in terms of who the public favors as their PM. 55% of the public favor Labor leader and current PM Julia Gillard against a 32% rating for Liberal leader Tony Abbott. All I know is that whichever side wins the majority, their leader takes the premiership.

Some of the core issues, more like buzz topics, are education, climate change and refugees (or asylum seekers as the media calls them). Julia Gillard tried to persuade East Timor’s president to allow Australia to create a detention center there. Questions loomed of who will pay for it and who will govern it circulated the minds of tax-paying Australians. One town in the state of Victoria wants to house the asylum seekers by creating their own detention center to improve their economy. Does that mean that they intend on giving these people jobs? Without proper citizenship, won’t they be treated like second-class citizens, a form of slave labor? Aside from the circular reasoning, the reason why they want to bring in the asylum seekers is that rural life is hard right now. The news reports that Australia is heading into a 3% budget surplus. Urban areas are doing great, but what about those drought-driven farmers in the rural areas? Employment is high in the urban areas, but extremely low in the rural areas, thus affecting productivity and the economy of the interior. It’s a double-sided coin really. Rural areas are at times even giving favorable treatment to immigrants for farm work allowing for them to earn much more than they would in their home countries, but these farmers are discounting Aussie residents or even Working Holiday Visa holders from the opportunity to earn some cash and extend their visa.

*Working Holiday Visa allows outsiders to work in Australia for a year, but cannot work under one employer for more than 6 months. It is a visa meant for travelers who want to earn more money while they travel. I have said visa, but am seeking permanent residency through company sponsorship.

With this 5 week campaign underway, I watch the news anticipating the next mud-slinging political antic. First on the agenda is each side’s campaign slogan.

Labor: Let’s Move Australia Forward Together

Liberal: Stand Up For Australia

Abbott attacks Gillard for her party's slogan because it infers that Abbott will take Australia backward. Furthermore, he thinks the slogan assumes voters are simple-minded or stupid. Does that mean Abbott thinks the Australian public is a bunch of handicaps?

Despite the accusations, they both know this will be a tough fight. Gillard wants "a robust election campaign" because she believes that "election campaigns should test their leaders." Abbott affirms that he would face a "filthy campaign."

*Quotes in courtesy of the Herald Sun

The Abbott Family Parody
It Compares the Liberal Party to a Creepy Distrustful Family

Kevin O'Lemon Liberal Party Ad

It Compare Former Labor PM to a Lemon

A lot of commercials have shown anti-Abbott infomercials because he apparently cut $1 billion from hospitals and is a "liar" when it comes to work choices or union capabilities. These below-the-belt classless ads are my favorite part of this whole celebration of he-said she-said.

Another hot topic is the rise in income for PMs. What’s interesting is Gillard has yet to comment. I think they’re all filthy rich politicians who want more of our tax money.

*As a non-resident, 29% of my income for my first 6 months goes to the government. Then, I give 15% until I leave.

The deadline to get on the electoral role is 8pm Monday July 19th. Of the 20 million citizens of Australia, 1.4 million aren’t enrolled. This doesn’t leave much time for the last-minute crowd. She calls the election on Saturday and expects 1.4 million people to get on the role by Monday night? Even the electoral commission didn’t get a heads up. At least the U.S. allows its citizens to register up to 20-30 days (dependent on the State) before an election or primary.

On a lighter side, Tony Abbott loves working out and promises to teach surfing lessons. Each has gone all over Australia and kissed hundreds of babies.

Beyond what each party is saying pro their party or anti the opposition, the biggest concern for Australian residents right now is the debate on Sunday July 25th. Apparently, Gillard and Abbott are participating in a public televised debate on the same night and the same time-slot as the Master Chef Australia finale! Media speculation asserts that broadcasters will move the debate one hour earlier to appease the public and capture viewers. What will the public tune to? My money is on higher ratings for the cooking show. Can you believe the power of cooking show?

Master Chef Australia & Pavlova

Since I’m addicted to Bravo’s Top Chef, it was really disheartening to know that I wouldn’t be able to get it in Australia, much less Korea. To replace my hunger for reality TV cooking competitions, I found a suitable replacement; Master Chef Australia.

It is also a reality TV cooking show that has an interesting media formula. Being a communications major, I constantly critique any media I use. Like most reality competitive shows, it has contestants, hosts, and judges. Usually, contestants face off each week during a prime-time slot in 1-2 challenges; one being minor to win an advantage while the other being an elimination challenge. At the end of each week’s show, a contestant is eliminated. The winner at the end wins money and extra promotional prizes. Master Chef Australia takes these concepts and full-out assaults the media landscape.

First of all, it airs 7:30-8:30pm from Sunday to Friday! That’s a show that airs 6 days a week! Each day is a different challenge.

Sunday: Challenge Night. It is a night with two challenges. The first being a Mystery Box of ingredients. Afterwards is the Invention Test where contestants are to prepare a themed dish with a main ingredient chosen by the winner of the Mystery Box challenge. The bottom three competes the following night for elimination.

Monday: Pressure Test. It is where the previous night’s bottom three are to replicate a dish. The worst of the three is eliminated.

Tuesday: Celebrity Chef Challenge. It is where the winner of Sunday’s Invention Test competes against a celebrity chef in the celebrity’s cooking style. The amateur is given a head start. If the contestant scores higher than the celebrity, he or she is given a MC pin that can be used for immunity for future eliminations.

Wednesday: Off-site Challenge. It is where the contestants are split up into two teams having a task, budget, and specific time frame to finish the challenge. The losers face off in an elimination the following night.

Thursday: The bottom two of the losing team during Wednesday night’s challenge cook head-to-head. The loser is eliminated.

Friday: Master Class where the head judges Gary, George, and a celebrity chef teaches the amateurs new techniques. This is a nice end to their schedule because they have gone through the stress of an elimination and can now sit back and watch their heroes showcase their expertise; unlike Top Chef where we NEVER see the judges cook. By demonstrating their own talents, the judges create a sense of audience approval. We know they are good chefs (otherwise they wouldn’t have been asked to judge/host), but now we really know they are good because we see it. Furthermore, they create a sense of community with both the contestants and the audience. The judges are inviting like university professors and the audience and the contestants find that they too can cook like the judges.

They began with 50 then the judges whittled them down to the Top 24 where they face-off in 14 weeks of competition. The winner gets 100,000 AUD and a book deal.

In addition to all the publicity the show has at its coveted time-slot, the show has had developed spin-offs, a magazine, an exclusive Cole’s (biggest grocery store) advertising deal, shout outs from almost every talk show and newspaper, and an enjoyable rising rate of cooking school enrollments. This show has really taken the Australia media universe by storm! Whether I’m walking around Cole’s or glancing at free newspapers on the train, I cannot miss one Master Chef personality dominating the communications mediums across Australia.

I’ve really enjoyed this show a lot especially since I only have 5 free channels and this show airs at the perfect time almost every night. Because I’ve been following these contestants every night, I feel like I’m right with them through the entire process. Furthermore, I feel like I’ve gotten closer to understanding and appreciating Australian characteristics; sense of humor and colloquialisms.

Some words I’ve discovered from hearing them on Master Chef.

Cracker-Really Good
“That dish is a cracker!”

Motor-Move Quicker
“Guys, we have no time. We’ve really got to motor.”

Reckon-Think
“I reckon that dish needs more seasoning.”

Fiddly-Tedious Work
“You hardly see crabs on the menu because they are so hard to clean. Crabs are fiddly.”

Quibble-Complain About
“Judge _______ is the expert. I can’t be one to quibble about it.”

To top off my experience here, I’ve had my first celebrity sighting! She’s not the biggest celebrity, but since she’s on a show that Australia loves that airs 6 days a week, this is pretty exciting. I was walking around Chinatown looking for my first Chinatown meal when I walked into a bakery still looking for Pavlova. Right outside the door, a group of 6 young women were sitting at a long outdoor table at a Chinese restaurant. There, closest to the wall I saw her. Courtney Roulston. She was eliminated and brought back onto Master Chef. I knew this was her, by her hairstyle, face shape, clothing style, and of course her voice! Unmistakable! I kept looking back at her without being too obvious. Tempted to take a picture, I withheld my urge since a) that’s completely inappropriate and b) I don’t know how to turn off the flash on my cell phone. Either way, it’s the final week of the show, and I got to see her out and about in Sydney’s Chinatown enjoying herself looking like any one of us.

Courtney Roulston of Master Chef Australia
Top 6 Contestant

So the Pavlova search…

In the first episode of Master Chef, the top 6 of 50 contestants were chosen to do a Pressure Test. They had to replicate Donna Hay’s (Aussie Martha Stewart) Pavlova. It is a meringue cake with a soft eggy interior and a sugary crust topped with whipped cream and fresh fruits. It named after a ballerina who toured here in the 1920s and is part of the national cuisine often served during the holidays. Since seeing it on the show, Dave and I have been on a hunt for it. Being a national dish, I expected to easily find it. Reading blogs, posts, and classified, we went to bakeries all over town and failed. After seeing Courtney Roulston and having my first Chinatown meal, I desperately wanted some sweets. That Chinese Soy Sauce/MSG really gets me. Across the street from where we ate was a small lowly bakery with two slices of Pavlova in the window! Probably the worst standard of the national dessert (they used canned fruit and it was insanely sweet), I didn’t hesitate to order it. Mission accomplished! Next food adventure…kangaroo!

Pavlova

Merengue Eggy Cake

Enjoying a Large Slice of Pavlova in China Town, Sydney