Canadian expat shares ‘weird’ differences in Aussie shops

A Canadian expat living in Australia has dished on what she thinks is “weird” and “ridiculous” about shopping centres Down Under.

A Canadian expat living in Australia has dished on what she thinks is “weird” about the shopping centres (or “malls”) Down Under.

Cassie Chuang has been living in Brisbane for almost a year and while she thought some things about Aussie shops were “ridiculous” — paid parking and shorter trading hours, for instance — the expat said she wanted to bring other features back home.

Ms Chuang said she was surprised to see that, unlike in Canada, shoppers can take trolleys wherever they please inside the centre, even on the escalators, rather than only being able to use them in the shop they came from.

However, she didn’t rate shopping centres closing at 5pm most days bar Thursday, or that customers have to pay expensive fees to park for more than a few hours.

@cascee_

Weird things about Australia to a Canadian part 2 since you guys love these things 🤪 This time we’re talking about malls and shopping centers! #aussiethings#movingtoaustralia#canadianinaustralia#workingholidayvisa#livinginbrisbane

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The expat shared her thoughts in a TikTok video that attracted the attention of hundreds of Aussies, who were quick to correct her slang and spruik the best parts of shopping Down Under.

Ms Chuang said having to pay for parking at the shops was “ridiculous”.

“What if I want to just watch a movie and then spend another three hours at the mall hanging out with my friends?” she asked.

“You really have to watch how long you’ve been there otherwise you then have to pay the expensive-a** parking fees.”

She did, however, praise Aussie carparks, which she said were “so much more modern” — particularly the red and green lights that tell drivers which spots are full.

“When you go in they have these little light things at the top, so from a distance you can tell which spots are available,” she explained.

Ms Chuang was unimpressed by Aussie parking fees, but she loved the lights to indicate which spots are available. Picture: TikTok

Ms Chuang wasn’t such a big fan of our trading hours, given most Australian shops shut at around 5pm with the exception of Thursday late-night shopping.

“Thursday here in Australia is their late shopping day so that’s the day where all the malls, all the groceries stores are open later,” she said.

“I would think Friday, Saturday, Sunday is when people actually have time to shop and back home they always close at around 9pm.”

Ms Chuang was impressed that shoppers could take their trolley away from the shop they got it from and return it in the carpark, which she said was “so convenient, perfect and amazing”.

“That was so foreign to me when I first came here and I was like wow, this is genius, this is an amazing idea, why don’t we do this in Canada?” she said.

“In Canada you’re not supposed to take that shopping cart away from that department store or whichever store you took it from. Even the grocery store, you’re supposed to return it back to that grocery store.”

She was grateful she could take her shopping trolley anywhere, even on travelators. North American shops typically have a separate escalator just for trolleys. Picture: TikTok

Also impressive were our “flat escalators” — aka travelators — that mean shoppers can even take their trolley between different levels.

“So much better than the way America does it right now. It’s just so much faster and so much more convenient,” she said.

In Northern America, Ms Chuang explained, many department stores have separate escalators specifically for shopping carts.

Aussies took to the comments to explain to the expat the terms used in her new home are “shopping centre” rather than “mall” and “trolley” not “cart”.

“Mall? Oh! You mean ‘the shops’!” one woman joked.

“The flat ‘escalators’ are actually called travelators, escalators are the ones with stairs,” another explained.

The expat was sceptical about trading hours, but loved Aussie “long tube” sushi. Picture: TikTok

Others shared the reasons behind shops following standard business hours, or gave tips on how to park without paying fees.

“I am pretty sure Thursday is the late night day because it aligns with most people’s paydays and doesn’t interfere with Friday night life,” one viewer wrote.

“You can scan your movie ticket to get an extra free hour,” another suggested.

Ms Chuang has previously shared other parts of Aussie life that shocked her.

“First up is the sushi. It comes in these long tubes, un-cut, and they’re all on display,” she said in a previous video.

“You pick one, grab it and go … It’s freaking amazing and I love it.”

Ms Chuang was surprised to see so many Aussie men rocking mullets. She said the style made some blokes look like Joe Exotic. Picture: TikTok

The expat also said she was surprised to find that most Australian men aren’t following the “nice surfer boy look”.

“That is not what’s in trend in Australia. This is what’s in trend,” she said, showing dozens of pictures of men with mullets.

“You’ve got like the mullet look with that little ‘stache thing going on,” Ms Chuang explained, joking that the haircut makes some blokes look like Netflix star Joe Exotic.

The final thing that surprised the Canadian was the word “keen” — rather than the American “I’m down” — to express excitement for an activity.

“I’ve never, ever used this (word) in my life,” she puzzled.