The Complete A to Z of Sydney - part 2

Manly fairy: See Mardi Gras.

Mardi Gras: An annual poof parade watched tantrackside by a million residents – or a twentieth – of the world's most homophoebic nation. You work it out.

Mate: as in Gidday, mate/ thanks, mate/ 'ow are ya, mate?: a typical Aussie greetings for when you've forgotten someone's name.

McMahon, Lady Sonia: A measure of the impact her late husband had as Prime Minister on Australian history is the fact that these days she is better known as the mother of Julian, an LA-based Aussie actor who has never lost his American accent. See also Celebrities.

Melbourne: Lesser-known Australian capital city which somehow managed to secure an Olympic Games many decades ago when the selection criteria and competition to be host were obviously much, much less than is the case now.

Meriton: A high-rise apartment builder who has transformed the city skyline in recent decades. Meriton comes from the Latin for 'ugly facade'.

Monorail: Perhaps the fastest way to get where you don't want to go. Helped send Laurie Brereton to Canberra.

Murdoch, Rupert: American media magnate with business interests and several houses in Australia.

Nile, Fred, the Reverend: Long-serving public relations manager for the Sydney Mardi Gras.

Nose Bay: The city's other upper-class residential area.

NRL (National Rugby League): A working class football competition played by millionaires and once dominated by Sydney clubs who now couldn't win a grand final to save their lives.

Opera House: Truly one of the seven wonders of the modern world, this much-photographed edifice was designed by Danish architect Joern Utzon, whose soaring white-tiled rooflines so brilliantly captured the gigantic cost-over runs typical of major Oz building projects. At its most striking as you step off your transport mode at Circular Quay (below).

Oxford Street: A thoroughfare where men are men and sometimes women.

Parramatta Road: One of the city's first commercial thoroughfares, from the Aboriginal word for "Available for Immediate Lease".

Poker machines: Australia boasts a fifth of the world's one-armed bandits, as they are still sometimes affectionately called, so you can see just what a crazy gambling nation we are. The odds of winning were always bad enough, but now some venues have taken away the instant payout option, so to recover the $4 you've got left from the $50 note you fed in just a few minutes earlier, you have to leave your machine, walk up a darkened ramp past two savage bull-pit terriers, along another hallway and then wait patiently for the bar staff to finish serving customers, before they look at you as if you've just pissed in the corner, grab their clipboard, return to the gaming room, shake their head at the total left on the video screen and exchange your signature for two $2 pieces, accompanied by another rueful look and a "you poor bastard'. Have fun now.

Queen Elizabeth II: Australia's much-loved head of state who, unfortunately, has to wash her hair during the Olympics.

Queen Victoria Building: A grand old building saved in the 1980s from being turned into a multi-level commercial centre by being turned into a multi-level commercial centre.

Redfern: Living proof of white Australia's success in achieving reconciliation with Aboriginal people.

Red Kangaroos: Sadly, road kills over the past century have greatly reduced the numbers of these beautiful creatures on the inner-city streets of Sydeney. But American tourists should not despair at seeing one-half of the Australian coat of arms in the wild: at dusk when they come out to eat, large mobs can still be photographed in open scrubland surrounding the Kurnell oil refinery at Botany Bay.

Robert Hughes: Aussie slang for an American: i.e.someone who drives on the wrong side of the road.

Rocks, The: An area transformed from an overcrowded working class slum into an upper-middle class one.

Ryan, Commissioner Peter: Head of the NSW Police Force who sacrificed a comfortable life in the UK to travel to the other end of the world and live on a modest copper's wage.

SEGA: A techno fun park on the fringes of Darling Harbour. SEGA is an acronym of Spend Extra Generous Amounts.

Schofield, Leo: Former Sydney ad man turned arts man now helping stage the Sydney Biennial in Melbourne. See also Celebrities.

Singers (snort, snort): Aussie slang for any likeable larrikin who also happens to be a millionaire.

Soniaed: Sydney slang for having driven while under the influence, as in "I bloody know I shouldn't have but I soniaed home again last night".

Star City Casino: So kitchy with its golden fake palms, limestone cave and tropical fish tanks that you just know Darling Harbour must be across the road.

Sydney Morning Herald: Sydney's most self-respected daily newspaper with all the news from the world of private schooling.

Sydneysider: A local resident. Known collectively as a friendly and open people, you will not meet any, unfortunately, because they are currently enjoying an expensive and extended overseas holidays on the exorbitant rents you are currently paying to stay in their flats and apartments, all because they had limited views over part of the marathon course.

Sydney Harbour: Don't be fooled by the postcard-perfect nature of this world-famous waterway. Latest statistics show that this harbour is one of the world's most dangerous, with at least one boat bursting in flames or colliding with another vessel every week of the year. (Source: Water Rats).

Taxi driver, Sydney: Required by law to take you to your destination by the shortest foreign language possible.

Taronga Park Zoo: Boasts the world's greatest collection of Australian fauna, but it'd be pretty sad if it didn't, really.

Tangarra: The name given to the futuristic double-decker passenger train carriages to be used exclusively on the Homebush line for the duration of the Olympics to make the city look as prosperous as possible. Tangarra is Aboriginal for 'running approximately 20 minutes late and out of timetable order'.

Tonyabbotter: offensive Oz term used to denote a brown-noser, i.e. someone with exceptionally limited talent who sucks up to people in authority.

Toohey's: One of the city's premier beer brewers. Toohey's New is probably the most popular in the range, producing a robust and hoppy vomit spray with well-defined and consistent carrot shape and yeasty, lingering after-taste.

Underground, The: All of the world's great cities have an extensive underground rail system and Sydney is an exception.

Unemployment: Still with us, despite the supposed Games bonanza.

Ute: A practical motor vehicle invented in Australia and used for carrying goods. Also a Scandinavian woman's name, so be careful which one you drop a load in.

Vanstone, Amanda: Political type. Not a Sydney resident, but visible from Centrepoint on a clear day.

Waratah: The state's official floral emblem that, just like koala bears and platapuses, few Australians have ever seen in its native state.

Westfield: Development company that capitalised on Australians' love of natural beauty, wide open spaces, fresh air and sunshine by forcing them to shop in ugly, narrow, brightly lit, air-conditioned malls.

Whiteley, Brett: Arty type whose early demise through drugs had no effect on the price of his paintings – they were already grossly overpriced.

Whitlam, Gough and Margaret: Former first couple of Australian politics who'd now go to the opening of a car door. Also see Celebrities.

Whitlams, The: Popular musical group whose fans have parents who weren't even old enough to vote for their eponym.

Wran, Neville: Former Premier of NSW, still a pain in his neck who intermittently voices his opinions on issues of public importance, but no-one can hear him since the operation.

Xylophone: Acts featuring this instrument never scored highly on the old Sydney TV talent quest New Faces. Boy, we're really scratching now.

Y, The: If an Aussie sheila woman invites you to dine there, you're in luck because Australia is renowned for the quality and value of its seafood.

Zig Zag Railway: Formerly confined to a historic stretch of the Blue Mountains line, but now regularly seen throughout the metropolitan network.