Brisbane Local Custom Tips by Krystynn

Have I mentioned that the Australians are one of the friendliest people on this planet?? Animals included (see pic below). :-))


Yes, they really are! If you want to feeel really at home here... just dress like them (read: casual attire)... Guzzle down loads of beer like them... (they ARE Australians after all... and as we all know, Australians LOVE to drink beer!)... and well... generally look perplexed at folks who seem to rush around with a load of burdens on their backs. *Grin* Aussies are known to be a pretty laid back group of folks. (Love this kind of attitude!).

Anyhow, I'm sure you get the picture of how friendly these Aussie(s) CAN be! :-)

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Brisbane is Australia's largest city in the sub-tropics, enjoying an enviable climate of hot (ouch!), brilliant summers and clear, mild winters that makes it an ideal destination for visitors all year round.

To bring home a piece of Australia with you, why not indulge yourselves in some cultural activities which includes music, dance and visual art? Such memories will stay with you forever! For more info, please surf to the following sites:

Queensland Museum

Queensland Art Gallery

La Boite Theater

For all you groovers out there in cyberspace, you may wish to coincide your visit to Brisbane with some BIG annual music festivals:

Big Day Out Music Festival

Livid

Have fun!

One last look at the beautiful city of Brisbane before bidding it - Goodbye.

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Anyone who's heading to Australia MUST try and learn some Aussie slang. :-D

It's pretty fun and it's no sweat. Believe me, what you think some of the words REALLY mean may not be what it really is! So, memorize some important phrases before you go, mate. Have fun!

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Before you scurry off into the sunset... DON'T forget to bring along a Brisbane map. NEVER forget the map!

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If you are in a crowded bar/ pub and people are waiting for their drinks and you suspect that waiter/ bartender will take forever to come and serve you... TIP the bartender/ waitress up front and let them know that you will reward good service. :-)) Yeah, sometimes, money talks. And if you leave a generous tip, the restaurant/ bar will remember you - forever. So, if you intend to come back again and again in
the near future, start by leaving an impressive tip. No, not necessarily US$11,000.... If you leave a generous tip, they will remember you - forever. This usually will also miraculously help them pick you out from a crowd and remember what you are drinking too! :-) If you do spend time waiting at the bar for your table, don?t forget to tip the bartender. The tip you leave at the table might not make it back to them. O.K.?

How to get better service at a restaurant?

If a long wait has gotten you upset, remember it's NOT usually your waiter's fault. If you waited a long time to be seated or served, chances are the restaurant is packed to the brim and all the service staff are working like mad dogs. Relax... No need to let little things like this upset you. You will be surprised to know how a little friendliness will improve the service! Remember, if you treat your
waiter poorly, even the most professional waiter will have trouble rebounding and providing you with a pleasant dining experience. Remember, that's why you waited in the first place. So, smile! And be extremely nice to your waiter. They do sometimes have a bad hair day - like you. :-))

If your waiter has done an EXCELLENT job in serving you.... then you should TELL him/ her that you sincerely appreciated their excellent
service so they will continue to take pride in their work... and yes, when you next visit the restaurant, they will miraculously remember your last order and your favorite drink! Later, you may also wish to drop a little note (email?) to the restaurant manager. As with poor service, you should let a manager know when you have received excellent service. Managers need to recognize their strongest employees to encourage great customer service, telling them about YOUR experiences will help them to do this.

Likewise for chambermaids who clean your hotel room. ALWAYS leave a tip behind after your first night's stay. You'll be impressed how spanking clean your hotel room will be for the duration of your stay. :-)) Again, tip generously. This is my motto - They
(like you) are working to earn a living. Do you like it when your boss appreciates your hard work and give you a huge bonus?

Most likely your answer is yes. This gives your morale a surprising boost and you'd work doubly hard. So I sincerely believe the same rule applies to other people in the service industry too. I don't believe in being harsh and make them work like slaves. I believe in using reverse pscyhology or offering monetary rewards/ incentives to make them work hard. We are, after all, only human.

I learnt all these important tips about treating a customer/ vendor/ client from my previous job with a huge American bank. They swear by the Six Sigma rules... We had to LEARN how some companies like McDonald's and Coca Cola have made IT. Our CEO wanted the Bank to be like Coca Cola... i.e. If a person were to think of hamburgers, inevitably McDonald's comes to mind (instead of Burger King). Talk about
aerated drinks...Coca Cola comes to mind (instead of Pepsi). So, likewise... if we were to think 'banks' - it should be a bank who's motto is 'the Citi that never sleeps' and not other banks. If good service has been extended to us/ me, I will ALWAYS follow up with an email to their General Manager. Always. This method (believe me) works 200% of the time. If you treat people well, you'd find yourself getting the best tables in the restaurant without queuing, getting upgraded to business class on flights, getting invited to special movie premieres and getting invited to special events organized by the clubs and pubs (without even being a member) etc.

So, dear VT friends, best of luck with this new 'philosophy'. :-))

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