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CC good point the goldcoast is just the one city covered by the Gold Coast City Council, it covers approx 70km of beaches from Paradise Point Down to the NSW border. Places such as Sufers Paradise are just suburbs of the city. Surfers Paradise, and to a lesser extent Broadbeach (where the casino is), and soutport are the main tourist areas, many of the other areas are just typical aussie suburbs with single story houses an easy walk or drive to the beach.
Most people would associate Sufrers Paradise as being the Gold Coast, when its actually only a very small part of the whole. When i said I have not being their for 5 years, i was talking about surfers paradise itself. I regularly visit a friend who owns a unit on Kirra beach, and its wonderful down their.
Last edited by danielsa1775; 09-16-2009 at 08:12 PM..
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
24,544 posts, read 56,155,963 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by laurenaus
Malaysia I am SO SORRY you had to deal with this absolute stupidity. It's not very comforting considering that my trip to the gold coast is in less than two weeks. I had to share with you a story about Melbourne that reminded me of yours and its a little off topic but oh well..I visited Melbourne with my friend Kietzke and we tried to get into a bar. She's filipino and I am persian. The bouncer looked at us with disgust and without giving us a second thought basically told us to **** off because there was no more room in the bar. I was about to leave when I saw him immediately let in 6 scraggly white people right after denying me access. I asked him about them and he said they were "friends" but when I asked him to give me one name from the crew he could not answer my question. I asked the other bouncer if I could talk to the manager and he was just rude to me as well. I definitely caused a scene over this because of my outrage..I walked to another bar and gave them the rundown of the treatment I had just received and a very pretty spanish girl standing next to me talking to the bouncer said "forget them, they're racist jerks. I never bother going to that bar"
So yes. I'm sure this isn't representative of the whole population but it causes one to wonder. At home in Orange County I work in one of the most upscale uppity restaurants catering to rich white WASPS and I have NEVER had to deal with racism...not until I visited Melbourne. Don't get me wrong though I am still head over heels in love with that city and plan to maybe get my masters there but it still sucked and was a very sobering experience /:
o ps..funny story? the guys who refused to let me in weren't even white...
Bouncers (of any race) are mostly pricks. Like here in Cairns (where I am at the moment) there's this club which has a dress code that says you can't wear thongs inside. So we're lining up, I'm wearing thongs, but so are this group of attractive, blonde German girls in front of me. Of course the bouncer lets them in, but tells me bluntly I'm not allowed. I tell him that's sexist and unfair, but he dumbly says 'but she's a woman.' What the hell different should that make? This kind of double standard bull**** is perpetuated by horny c*nts who just want a roomful of hot chicks they can pick up.
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
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I hear what you're saying catevary. I'm 'Asian Australian' myself, and despite being culturally Aussie, alot of Aussies won't let you forget you're somehow different. This adds to your insecurity, and makes you paranoid...Put it this way, you DO get this treatment in one degree or another from a fair percentage of Aussies here (of all races, really) but you kinda come to believe that applies to everyone, and you start thinking everyone is constantly eyeing you, singling you out and purposely treating you differently, which is not the case.
I'm surprised you singled out the Gold Coast. I know it was awhile ago, but I didn't find it all that bad. I find Sydney the worst actually - maybe not in racism but general unfriendliness. When my German friend asked a local for directions he was rudely told to '**** off'. On the escalator I was pushed out of the way by a young man as he crankily admonished me to 'move out of the way.' Typical Sydneysiders with their head up their arses.
Anyway, as to NZ, when I went there I found the locals particularly friendly. True I was only there for 2 weeks but I find there was less 'latent racism' there if you like. I must admit even I kinda feel racist at times. There just seem to be so many Asians about, and they stick to themselves. Most being students. I just hate being lumped in with them, especially by all the ignorant people who assume you can't speak English or something like that.
I hear what you're saying catevary. I'm 'Asian Australian' myself, and despite being culturally Aussie, alot of Aussies won't let you forget you're somehow different. This adds to your insecurity, and makes you paranoid...Put it this way, you DO get this treatment in one degree or another from a fair percentage of Aussieshere (of all races, really) but you kinda come to believe that applies to everyone, and you start thinking everyone is constantly eyeing you, singling you out and purposely treating you differently, which is not the case.
I'm surprised you singled out the Gold Coast. I know it was awhile ago, but I didn't find it all that bad. I find Sydney the worst actually - maybe not in racism but general unfriendliness. When my German friend asked a local for directions he was rudely told to '**** off'. On the escalator I was pushed out of the way by a young man as he crankily admonished me to 'move out of the way.' Typical Sydneysiders with their head up their arses.
Anyway, as to NZ, when I went there I found the locals particularly friendly. True I was only there for 2 weeks but I find there was less 'latent racism' there if you like. I must admit even I kinda feel racist at times. There just seem to be so many Asians about, and they stick to themselves. Most being students. I just hate being lumped in with them, especially by all the ignorant people who assume you can't speak English or something like that.
Eh? What insecurity and paranoia? Im absolutely happy to be Asian nor do I think everyone treats me differently for it. I know that a degree of racism cannot be helped. What are you on about bro? Perhaps you should read the posts just a little bit closer - note that I was not the one who noticed the racial specific unfriendliness but my white friend.
Although it would be sooo much easier for me to just say that Australia is a racist country and be done with it, I actually believe it and I dont want to get shot for my laziness.
I was trying to approach this as a Cultural Studies Academic's point of view. I am simply stating the 'observation' that GC seemed alot worse than every other place that I have been (and I have been to many places, although not as many as I'd like to) and wanted what other people thought about that observation - which you have disagreed on (which I respect regardless of how polemic your post may seem) - and hopefully figure out why if my observations were shared by others, NOT just bag them into being "Gold Coast Neanderthals with their Heads up their Arse" or something along that line.
and Jamie, I am not disappointed at all! - I am sorry if my post appeared as if Im generalizing too much and saying that ALL Asian females are treated better than males - perhaps who MIGHT be disappointed is the dude (im sorry I am too lazy to scroll back to find the ID) who pointed out that his Asian female friend didnt get bad treatment at all!
* I still stand by my point that there are more perrywinklers than dragonchasers tho - much to my disappointment haha
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
24,544 posts, read 56,155,963 times
Reputation: 11862
Quote:
Originally Posted by catevary
Eh? What insecurity and paranoia? Im absolutely happy to be Asian nor do I think everyone treats me differently for it. I know that a degree of racism cannot be helped. What are you on about bro? Perhaps you should read the posts just a little bit closer - note that I was not the one who noticed the racial specific unfriendliness but my white friend.
Although it would be sooo much easier for me to just say that Australia is a racist country and be done with it, I actually believe it and I dont want to get shot for my laziness.
I was trying to approach this as a Cultural Studies Academic's point of view. I am simply stating the 'observation' that GC seemed alot worse than every other place that I have been (and I have been to many places, although not as many as I'd like to) and wanted what other people thought about that observation - which you have disagreed on (which I respect regardless of how polemic your post may seem) - and hopefully figure out why if my observations were shared by others, NOT just bag them into being "Gold Coast Neanderthals with their Heads up their Arse" or something along that line.
and Jamie, I am not disappointed at all! - I am sorry if my post appeared as if Im generalizing too much and saying that ALL Asian females are treated better than males - perhaps who MIGHT be disappointed is the dude (im sorry I am too lazy to scroll back to find the ID) who pointed out that his Asian female friend didnt get bad treatment at all!
* I still stand by my point that there are more perrywinklers than dragonchasers tho - much to my disappointment haha
Perhaps your case was particularly bad. I mean more in my case, especially when you stand out and people notice you, or make immature jokes you begin to feel like they do treat you different and thus are insecure. Sometimes it can be sub-conscious: I don't think you can entirely avoid it.
But as to your actual assertation. No I don't believe the Gold Coast is any more racist than anywhere else in Australia. I don't know if anywhere really is, actually. If it's anywhere it's actually areas that are quite mixed where the locals are intolerant of the many other ethnicities and races. In mostly homogenous country areas they seem to have no reason to be racist other than ignorance or plain bigottedness.
To be fair...perhaps, those who populate GC want to preserve aspects of their culture and lifestyle which are often under threat and can be easily eroded by the repeated presence of new-comers (or foreigners)?
But their way of communicating defense leaves much to be desired.
Admittedly, Asians tend to set-up "Chinatown" everywhere we go and it can be very unpleasant if it's not contained. The "over-asianisation" of Sydney has really spoiled the urban landscape.
Perhaps, GC residents just don't want another Sydney.
Of course, this is no reason for treating tourist/s (like Catevary) in such an uncivilised manner. Afterall, it is the "tourist" dollar that fuels the local economy.
and Trimac20....you were told to move out-of-the way on the escalator because you were standing on the wrong side!
Catevary,
Just curious. When you say "Asian," what precisely do you mean. In some places, the South Asians (Pakistani, Indian, and Bangladeshi) get treated very differently from East Asians (North & South East Asians) and from Near East Asians (Turkey). And the responses of these different communities to perceived racism in Oz has also been markedly different.
While I am not condoning any racism, I would imagine the root causes might be very different across Asian groups.
S.
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