Aboriginal Art, Kakadu Nt'l Park, Australia

WHAT’s SO GREAT ABOUT AUSSIE BARBIES?

1. They make the word “barbie” a whole lot manlier.

You’ve all heard it before. There’s nothing manlier than throwing hunks of meat on roaring flames, while sipping beer. Even calling barbecue a “barbie” doesn’t make it any less manly. After all, in Australia, barbecue is (generally) men’s work.

You have to love that an entire country of men love playing with their Barbies. And, by that, I mean adjusting the flame… of course! Thank you Australia, for making a much better definition of the word “barbie.”

2. Beer is required, as illustrated by this old Australian saying:

When hosting a barbecue, a knock on the door should never be answered as it means the guest isn’t carrying the required case of beer. (One should only answer a kick on the door.)

3. Speaking of beer, in 1954 Bob Hawke (from Australia) downed 2.5 pints of beer in 11 seconds, granting him a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. He then became Prime Minister.

What’s the correlation to Barbies?? Hmm. Maybe he did this at a Barbie? Or maybe I just felt like telling you! 🙂

4. Barbies can be held year-round in most parts of the country.

This means that a BIG day for Barbies is Australia Day (January 26). Australia Day commemorates the day (on 1777) that England sent over the first convicts. Over the next 80 years they dumped a total of 160,000 convicts on the shores of Australia. Wow!

5. In the summer it is not unusual for Aussies to host or attend 3-4 Barbies a week.

That’s a lot of Barbies! And, considering salads are “optional,” that’s a whole lot of meat, too.

6. Barbies can cause “Barbie Belly.”

Unfortunately, Barbie Belly does not mean that a diet high in barbecue will make you thin like, well … a Barbie doll. Barbie Belly is actually a reference to food poisoning. Maybe not so great, but still, a fun fact.