However, in the same way that there are differences between British English and American English, there are some interesting differences between New Zealand and Australian English. Even the accents are noticeably different, although most people aside from Kiwis or Aussies struggle to tell the difference – even other native English speakers find it difficult to tell them apart. Ask any Kiwi or Aussie to identify the accents and they will have no trouble at all, but ask almost any British or American person and they would probably have a hard time!

Aside from accents, there are also certain words and phrases that not only set NZ and Australia apart, but may even be completely incomprehensible to any other native English speaker. To highlight some of the differences, here is an imaginary dialog that may be taking place anywhere in NZ or Australia right this minute…

Kiwi guy, to a friend:

“Hey bro, wanna go for a walk to the dairy and get an iceblock? It’s hot as, so I’m just going to wear my stubbies and jandals, and I’ll bring the chilly-bin so the ice-blocks don’t melt on the way back to the bach. I’m feeling like a box of birds today, but bloody hell – I was off my face at that bun-fight last night!”

Aussie guy, to a friend:

“G’day mate, wanna go for a walk to the milk bar and get an icy pole? It’s mad hot so I’m just going to wear my stubbies and thongs, and I’ll bring the esky so the icy poles don’t melt on the way back to the weekender. I’m feeling beauty today, but strewth – I felt like a two-pot screamer last night!”

You may have noticed that “stubbies” appear in both conversations. For some reason, this item of clothing (most females consider them a heinous crime of fashion) is widely popular across both countries… here is an ad from NZ television for a fizzy drink/soda (called L&P) that explains the Stubbie phenomenon in more detail…

So, between the two of conversations above you probably figured out what’s going on, but just in case you are still confused - let me explain here in some very plain English…

“Hello, would you like to go for a walk to the nearest convenience store and buy a sweet, cooling, icy treat on a stick? It is very hot outside, so I shall just wear my short shorts and open footwear, and bring a portable cooler-box so the sweet, cooling, icy treats on sticks don’t melt on the way back to my small house where I spend my weekends (generally near the beach). I am feeling really great today, but my goodness, I had far too much to drink last night!”

One major similarity between NZ and Australian English however, is our use of understatement. In general, particularly amongst the male population, if it is possible to only use one word to describe something, then that’s what they’ll do. The word that best encompasses this concept is “Bugger”. Not used in the British sense of the word (in British English “bugger” can relate to gay sexual acts…) rather it is used as an expression of annoyance, regret, sadness, anger or as a “who cares” kind of expression. So, you dropped your can of beer? “Bugger”. Someone ran over your cat/favourite hat/Grandma? “Bugger”. You have an exam today, but you haven’t studied for it? “Bugger it”.

A New Zealand commercial showing our love for understatement, and the word “bugger”.

bona fide
(boh'na fide) [Latin]: in good faith; genuine. “For all her reticence and modesty, it was clear that she was a bona fide expert in her field.”

carpe diem
(kar'pay dee'um) [Latin]: seize the day. “So what if you have an 8:00 a.m. meeting tomorrow and various appointments? Carpe diem!”

caveat emptor
(kav'ee-ot emp'tor) [Latin]: let the buyer beware. “Before you leap at that real estate deal, caveat emptor!”

de rigueur
(duh ree-gur') [French]: strictly required, as by etiquette, usage, or fashion. “Loudly proclaiming one's support for radical causes had become de rigueur among her crowd.”

doppelgänger
(dop'pul-gang-ur) [German]: a ghostly double or counterpart of a living person. “I could not shake the sense that some shadowy doppelgänger echoed my every move.”

fait accompli
(fate ah-kom-plee') [French]: an accomplished fact, presumably irreversible. “There's no use protesting—it's a fait accompli.”>

faux pas
(foh pah') [French]: a social blunder. “Suddenly, she realized she had unwittingly committed yet another faux pas.”

hoi polloi
(hoy' puh-loy') [Greek]: the common people. “Marie Antoinette recommended cake to the hoi polloi.”

verboten
(fer-boh'ten) [Ger.]: forbidden, as by law; prohibited. “That topic, I am afraid, is verboten in this household.”

Zeitgeist
(zite'guyst) [Ger.]: the thought or sensibility characteristic of a particular period of time. “She blamed it on the Zeitgeist, which encouraged hedonistic excess.”

We hope some of the people on this list might inspire you to begin your own adventure. There are so many opportunities for you to study or work abroad, whether you are a high school or university student or a recent graduate, the world is your oyster and just waiting for you to explore it!

So, back to business… What these bloggers need now is your vote. You may have already selected your favourite blog and be ready to vote now, if that's the case you can vote here.

However, if you are still undecided as to which blog should get the number 1 spot and one of our great prizes, then take a look through the list below and check out our selection. There are blogs in English, German, Russian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Swedish, Italian, Polish and Turkish so there is bound to be one that you love! Have fun reading, and don’t forget to vote for your favourite!

CLICK HERE TO VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE BLOG

Here you can easily grab the code for the voting button and add it to your sidebar or to a blogpost and get your readers to vote for you.

Cast your vote by clicking on the poll below.

If you haven't decided on a favorite blog yet - view a list of the nominated blogs with descriptions here

Here you can easily grab the code for the voting button and add it to your sidebar or to a blogpost and get your readers to vote for you.

We have seen some great blogs so far and we know there is going to be some hot competition for the number 1 spot! There is still time to get your blog (or another blog you love) relating to international exchange or experience into the race, simply enter it into the comments field below or send me an email directly – erin(at)bab.la

Apart from all the new readers and the internet fame that could come your way, we also have some great prizes up for grabs that we are sure will not only put a smile on your face, but also on the face of a bunch of kids in Africa!

For the top 3 blogs in this competition, we will make donations to Schools in Africa, an amazing and inspiring campaign run by Unicef.

Schools in Africa aims to benefit 4 million children by creating conditions that will attract children to school, keep them there and provide them with a safe and protective environment where they can learn, play and become masters of their own lives. Working with governments, local authorities and communities initially in six of Africa's most needy countries, UNICEF is helping build basic new schools and repair existing ones. Children receive exercise books, pencils and other learning materials, and UNICEF is training thousands of additional teachers to provide children with quality education.

We here at bab.la and Lexiophies are huge fans of this charity and we are sure you will be too!

Winners will receive an update from the recipients about what their donation has achieved, and a button for their blog to let everyone know about the good deed you have done. Blogging and good deeds – a perfect match

Aside from lists, we also love languages and international adventure as most of us here at Lexiophiles and bab.la are foreigners living in Germany on exchange programmes! So, to celebrate and recognize all the other adventurous students and young people around the world we are making a list of the best international exchange & experience blogs on the web. These blogs can come from anyone undertaking a semester abroad, an international internship, or any sort of exchange programme that involves them living, learning, exploring and experiencing a foreign country.

This is where we need your help… we want you to nominate your favourite blog relating to international exchange! In a couple of weeks, we will publish our new list of the most interesting blogs and you will then get to vote for your favourite, who knows – you may even find a NEW favourite!

So, to nominate your favourite blog (it could even be your own blog!) enter the URL in the comments box below and our happy team will collate them all into a beautiful list and will publish it back here on Lexiophiles in a couple of weeks so you can begin voting. There are some cool prizes up for grabs for the winners, not to mention the huge group of new readers they could get – it’s every bloggers dream!

The cutoff date to submit your favourite blog is Sunday May 24, so hurry! If you have any questions about how the competition will work, then email erin (at) bab.la

Good luck!

Unless you have ever been invited to a hāngi this word may not be familiar to you, but in New Zealand it is as well known as saying “roast”, “bake” or “fry”. Māori is an official language of New Zealand (along with English), and although there are relatively few fluent speakers of the language (around 157,000 people), there are certain words that every Kiwi knows and uses in daily life.

In case you are ever planning a trip to Aotearoa (the Māori word for New Zealand, literally meaning long white cloud), I thought I would share a few of these with you so you can always keep up with the whānau!

Lets start with the alphabet - Māori language is simple in the fact that it has 5 vowels and only 10 consonants. The vowels in Māori can be pronounced as either short or long sounds, so in written form, the long vowels carry a macron e.g. ā. Māori words always end in a vowel. Consonants are always followed by a vowel. A vowel can also follow another vowel. The Māori vowels are a, e, i, o, u with long versions ā, ē, ī, ō, ū. The Māori consonants are p, t, k, m, n, ng, wh, r, h, w.

The “wh” is said similar to an “f” sound, and the “ng” is is a nasal sound, like at the end of “thing”. Two consonants never appear together – “wh” and “ng” function as single consonants.

• Hui – a meeting of any kind; a conference or gathering (sounds like who-ee using Englsh sounds)
• Haere Mai! – Welcome! Enter!
• Kia Ora! – Hi! Hello! (a non-formal greeting)
• Tangata Whenua – the original people belonging to a place, local people, hosts
• Whānau – extended (non-nuclear) family – can be “extended” pretty far!
• Puku – belly, stomach (yours will probably be pretty full after the hāngi!)
• Haka – war dance with actions (made famous by the All Blacks rugby team, see the video below)
• Kai – food,
• Pākeha – New Zealander of non- Māori decent, usually European

For some great tips at pronunciation, here is a cool link with audio clips for each word so you can hear a native speaker: http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/culture/maori-language-week/100-maori-words

Maori is a beautiful sounding language, and can be very poetic in its descriptions of people and places. As a perfect example, take a look at this word – currently in the running for the longest place name in the world: Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu. This Māori mouthful translates into English as "the place where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, who slid, climbed and swallowed mountains, known as 'landeater,' played his flute to his loved one." How romantic!

And just before I go, here is a video of the All Blacks performing the haka before a match, an awesome sight, enough to make any Kiwi feel homesick!

One of the things for any tourist travelling to NZ is getting to grips with our accent. Yes we speak English, but it may not be like any English you have heard before! The letters “i” and “e” probably cause the most problems, and can lead to interesting discussions… You might say “six”, and a Kiwi would say “sucks”, a Kiwi would say “pen” and you would hear “pin” etc etc. A solution to this problem for all foreign visitors to NZ would be the iPhone Kiwi-Speak application! Simply record the Kiwi who is talking to you, select which version of English you would like it played back to you in (Australian, American, British etc) and let the iPhone do its thing… you never need to be confused by “Kiwi speak” again!

Here is a classic example of our beautiful Kiwi accent and how it confuses a person from the USA… Murray and Brett from Flight of the Conchords – “he maybe did…”

iPeep – the iPhone’s answer to counting sheep!

As everyone knows, NZ is a land full of sheep. In fact, we have more sheep than people. But spare a thought for the actual farmers who must tend to these enormous flocks, how do they ever keep count? How do they know if they lost one, or 10 or even 50?! If you have a flock of 1000 sheep, 50 sheep would be pretty easy to miss! NO MORE! Simply install iPeep and your sheep counting problems are solved! Hold up your phone and take a photo of your flock and this clever application will cleverly count the sheep and let you know if any are missing. Every sheep needs a tag in its ear that the iPhone recognizes and connects to, which means you can tell which sheep are missing and makes finding the missing animals even easier. Also available would be the professional upgrade of iPeep, which would tell you current market prices for wool, meat, and exporting – the perfect planning tool for every farmer, enabling them to maximize money from their flocks.

iSurf – never be disappointed by the waves again!

One of the great things about NZ is how easy it is to get to a beach. All Kiwi’s grow up spending holidays at local beaches or lakes, our summer’s are spent on or near the water. For this reason, many people take up the beautiful art of surfing, the perfect combination of two of NZ’s great loves - sport and the sea! But how does a surfer know the best days to bother heading to the beach? With the latest iPhone application – iSurf! This amazing application would tell any avid surfer the current wind conditions at their local beaches, and what the tides are doing, helping the surfer make their decision about which beach they should head to, or if they would be better just staying at home! No more frustrating trips to the beach to find no waves, no more wasted mornings at home only to discover later from a friend that the surf was going off!