From Down Under to Down South
From Down Under to Down South is a twice-weekly reflection from an Australian making a life in the American South.
After moving from Australia to Tennessee in 2018, I began noticing the subtle cultural differences most people miss — the way politeness sounds different, the way goodbyes stretch longer, the way everyday moments quietly reveal what’s different.
Some episodes explore those contrasts directly. Others are quiet stories from the week — conversations and small moments that say something bigger.
It’s not outrage or culture wars. And it’s not a travel diary. It’s simply one Australian perspective on life between two countries.
If you’ve ever lived overseas, loved two places at once, or found yourself caught between familiar and foreign — you’ll feel at home here.
New episodes are released twice weekly as part of the broader From Down Under to Down South series across podcast and YouTube.
Episodes
87 episodes
The Moment You Realise You’re Speaking American
Living in America as an Australian changes the way you speak in ways you don’t expect. After 8 years in the USA, I’ve started noticing American phrases, cultural differences, and everyday habits slowly becoming part of my life without even real...
This Week in America - The Life I Didn't Expect to Build
This week, a few seemingly unrelated things came together.A missing dance partner. The World Cup. Memories of Fiji, Samoa and New Zealand. A part-time job that almost became a full-time career. A YouTube video that suddenly took off....
Why Australian Humour Doesn’t Always Translate
Australian humour can be hard to explain until you live somewhere else and suddenly realise… people aren’t hearing it the same way.In this episode, I talk about the small parts of Australian humour that don’t always translate in America ...
This Week in America – Two Songs From Home
This week in America, I started a new job at a self-storage facility just ten minutes from home — or, as I've discovered, exactly two songs away.What I thought would be a story about starting a new job quickly became a story about people...
The Moment You Realize You Sound Rude in America
Why do Australians sound rude in America? Why do cultural differences between Australia and the US change how we come across without us realising? This episode explores the moment you realise you sound rude in America — and why it happens.<...
This Week in America - Starting Over at 49
After 24 years in banking, more than 2,500 job applications, and a career that became my identity, I found myself facing something many people quietly experience but rarely talk about:Starting over.In this episode of This Week in ...
American Habits That Surprise Australians – Living in the U.S. After 8 Years
Living in America as an Australian, you start to notice the small cultural differences that no one really talks about.In this episode, I share 10 American habits that still surprise me after 8 years — from grocery shopping at places like...
This Week in America — My Daughter Thinks My Hair Is Ruining My Career
In this episode of This Week in America, I talk about the unexpected ways living in Tennessee has changed what feels familiar to me. I used to miss the loud chaos of Australian birds every morning—lorikeets, magpies, cockatoos—but lately the so...
Tipping, Upsells & The Small Money Habits Americans Don’t Even Notice
There’s a small money habit in America that I didn’t notice at first — and now I see it everywhere.It shows up in tipping, payment screens, and everyday spending habits that quietly add up. The moment you think you’re done… there’s often...
This Week in America - What Americans Wanted Me to Know
A week ago I uploaded a video called The First Things Australians Notice in America.https://youtu.be/a2mJtfnJU-8What happened next caught me completely off guard.The video passed 160,000 views, the comments poured ...
8 Questions Americans Always Ask Me
There’s a moment that tends to happen when you live overseas. Someone hears your Australian accent in America… pauses for a second… and then the questions start.After eight years living in the United States as an Australi...
This Week in America — My Jeep Needs Counselling
This week in America somehow turned into a mix of Jeep suspension problems, MRI tunnels, ballroom dancing injuries, drum recitals, and trying to work out why American kids seem to have busier schedules than corporate executives.After my ...
What Living Overseas Taught Me About Australia
Living overseas changes the way you see the place you came from.After eight years in the United States, I’ve started to notice things about Australia that I never really thought about when I lived there. Not the big, obvious things — but...
This Week in America — When Your Kids Feel More American Than You Do
What happens when your kids grow up in a country that still feels new to you? In this episode of This Week in America, I share a simple moment at The Hermitage in Nashville that turned into something bigger — a quiet realisation about ...
10 Small Things Americans Do That Still Surprise Me
As an Australian living in America, I’ve come to realise it’s not the big cultural differences that stay with you… it’s the small, everyday habits.In this episode, I talk through some of the little things Americans do that still catch me...
This Week in America — Kentucky Weekend: Dance, Derby & Buc-ee’s
This week in America — a Kentucky weekend that started with a dance competition and quietly turned into something more. From Louisville traffic during Derby season to bourbon conversations at a hotel bar, a visit to the Louisville Slugger Museu...
What America Get Right
After living in the United States for a number of years, there are still plenty of things that surprise me about daily life here. Some are confusing. Some take getting used to. But there are also things America does genuinely well — things that...
This Week in America — Representing Australia at a Tennessee School Night
What does everyday life in America actually feel like? In this episode, I share a week that started with representing Australia at a school international night in Tennessee… and unfolded into a series of small moments that say a lot about livin...
What Happens After “Thank You” in America
After living in America for eight years, there’s one small phrase I’ve come to appreciate more than I expected.“You’re welcome.”It’s such a simple response. But the way different cultures handle gratitude says a lot about rhythm, ...
This Week in America — The Business of Everyday Life
This week in America, I started noticing how everyday life works a little differently.Living in the United States as an Australian, it’s often the small things that stand out — like how many everyday tasks become services. From lawn care...
When You Live Between Two Countries
Living overseas stretches you.It expands your perspective. It changes you.But it’s not free.In this episode, I reflect on what it really means to live between two countries — Australia and America — and how moving across the w...
This Week in America - When Things That Felt Strange Start to Feel Normal
What feels “normal” when you live in another country… isn’t always what you expect.In this week’s episode of This Week in America, I found myself in two very different situations — standing beneath a Saturn V rocket that took pe...
Why American Goodbyes Feel So Different
Why do American goodbyes feel so different to Australian ones?After years of living in the United States, there’s still one small social moment that catches me off guard — the way conversations end. In Australia, goodbyes tend to wind do...
This Week in America - When Tornado Season Suddenly Feels Real
This Week in America: Tornado SeasonThe first time you hear a tornado siren in the American South… you don’t forget it.For many people living in Australia, tornadoes feel like something distant — dramatic footage from the n...