xiven.com stating the blatantly obvious since 2002

Down Under

I was reading through the book "The Salmon of Doubt" (a collection of writings by Douglas Adams compiled after his death, and a Christmas present from my brother) and came upon this little gem about Australia that I had to share:

…Did I know, she asked, that Brisbane was originally founded as a penal colony for convicts who committed new offences after they had arrived in Australia?

I spent a good half hour enjoying this single piece of information. It was wonderful. There we British sat, poor grey sodden creatures, huddling under our grey northern sky that seeped like a rancid dish cloth, busy sending those we wished to punish most severely to sit in bright sunlight on the coast of the Tasman Sea at the southern tip of the Great Barrier Reef and maybe do some surfing too. No wonder the Australians have a particular kind of smile that they reserve exclusively for use on the British.

- Douglas Adams, 1992

Posted: 2009-12-30 21:16:44 UTC by Xiven | Cross-references (0) | Comments (0)