Australia Quiz

My friends Shaula and Darrin recently returned from a trip to Australia, and they invited several people over for dinner and to see their pictures. Dinner was Australian themed: crackers with Vegemite (in a squeeze tube), salad with cheese and bacon, beef and cheese pie, and some Australian cake and cookies they brought back with them.

They were entirely on the east coast, except for a trip to the center to see Ayers Rock. They visited Sydney, Brisbane, Alice Springs (Ayers Rock), and took a few interesting hikes and day trips. Seeing their pictures reminded me of my own trip to Australia I took in December 1995, which was very enjoyable.

After dessert, they surprised us with a quiz! They handed out sheets with 20 questions - many of the answers were covered as they spoke of their trip... if you were listening carefully.

I only got 13 out of 20 questions correct, but this was good enough for first place of my fellow quiz-takers (six total - Shaula and Darrin exempted themselves).

My prize was the "pouch" pictured below.

Kangaroo Pouch?


They also had door prizes as we left - I chose a cute little Koala bear hugging a boomerang.

Koala Bear


I know some people may want to take the quiz, so here it is:

1. Name 3 Australian cities.
2. How many species of venemous snakes are there in Australia? Is it 22, 57, or 115?
3. Which of the following musical acts is NOT Australian:

• AC/DC
• INXS
• Kylie Minogue
• Def Lepperd
• Midnight Oil

4. What sport debuted at the Sydney Olympics?
5. What is the name of the crocodile hunter?
6. Who of the following was the highest grossing Australian performer last year (2004)?

• Nicole Kidman
• Russell Crowe
• Cate Blanchett
• The Wiggles

7. Sydney is in which: New South Wales, Queensland, The Northern Territory?
8. Which one of the following Australian performers was actually born in Australia?

• Cate Blanchett
• Mel Gibson
• Nicole Kidman
• Russell Crowe

9. Mammals are broken in the three groups: Placentals, Marsupials, Monotremes.
Match those to the following animals: Camel, Koala, Platypus
10. What WWI action cost Australia 26K+ casualties and 8K+ deaths and still looms large in their history? G________?
11. The soldiers who fought there are still referred to as ANZACs, and their memorial day is called ANZAC day and happens to be April 25th. What does ANZAC stand for?
12. The aboriginal name of Ayers Rock is:
13. Which is bigger, Australia or the contiguous 48 States?
14. Which side of the road to people drive on in Australia, left or right?
15. True or False, Australia has the world's largest Alligator species?
16. The busiest travel day of the year in Australia surrounds which holiday? Christmas, Easter, ANZAC day?
17. Name a famous WNBA player from Australia.
18. What famous navigational aid of the night sky can you NOT see from Australia?
19. What two-word feature do they rely on instead? The ___ ___
20. Australia comes from Terra Australis which means what?

I missed numbers 2, 6, 8, 10, 11, 17, and 20.

Maybe I'll put the answer key up also. ;)