American Says Her Life Is A Lie After Discovering Aussies Don't Say 'Shrimp On The Barbie'

An American expat living in Australia has explained her disbelief after discovering that Australians don't actually use the term 'throw a shrimp on the barbie'.

While many Aussies cringe over the thought of using the term 'shrimp', considering we usually eat prawns, Brittany Neff declared that her 'childhood was a lie' after discovering the sobering truth.

"Living in America you'd always hear this one Australian slang, 'throw some shrimp on the barbie'," she said in a TikTok video that details 'things she didn't know about Australia' before moving here in 2019.

"I feel like after moving to Australia, my childhood was a lie because I've never had shrimp on the barbie here.

"And two, Australians don't even call shrimp, shrimp - they call them prawns. I'm upset."

It wasn't the only thing that shocked Britt upon her move to the land Down Under. She also mentioned how the terms 'cuppa' and afternoon 'arvos' threw her off initially.

"Until moving to Australia I didn't know Australian Rules Footy was a thing," she added, explaining that while she had no idea what was going on, she 'likes it'.

As for how exactly Aussies got wrapped up in all this 'shrimp on the barbie' nonsense, you can thank Paul Hogan's Australian tourism commercial that aired in the US from 1984 until 1990.

It seems the campaign was effective, however, with Australia being number 78 on the 'most desired' vacation destination list for Americans, but shooting to number 7 just three months after the launch.

It didn't take long before we became number one or two on Americans' 'dream vacation' list. We also stayed in that position for most of the next two decades.

It's worth mentioning that shrimp and prawn are different beasts, with the former preferred by Americans in their dishes, which is why it was chosen for the ad. Prawns, on the other hand, are much larger and will feature way more heavily with Aussies.

In her other videos, Britt also mentions how terrifying swooping magpies are, as well as the harsh realities of the Aussie sunburn.

Topics: Australia

Jessica Lynch

@jesskalynch