Like hanging out the washing. It’s no surprise the inhabitants of the nation that gave the world the Hills Hoist should have a habit of hanging out the wash. This was one of the routines I missed most about living outside of Australia – harnessing the sunshine to dry clothes. It's not merely the routine of hanging them out, though it is so much more satisfying than using a dryer as they do in the US (even in California with all that sunshine) and Europe, where clothes can dry quickly overnight thanks to in-home central heating. In suburbs throughout this nation, hanging out the wash has to be up there with backyard cricket as a favourite outdoor activity.

Kookaburras. Credit:Fairfax Media

Usually it's accompanied by birdsong. The tune varies according to where in Australia you hang out, so to speak. It might be kookaburras laughing at you to warn of rain, rosellas and lorikeets chirping overhead, magpies chortling on the paling fence or cockatoos screeching and swooping to destroy the wooden backyard furniture and fruit trees. These were the sounds I missed most, other than my parents' voices, no matter how often I called home from overseas. And I loved hearing the birds in the background whenever I did call home. I suppose I missed the birds like family, even the annoying koel and its repetitive cuckoo calls in the early hours that announce spring has sprung.

Of course, the gum trees the birds nest in were something I missed too, although they are commonly found in most places I’ve lived.

They're considered a weed like lantana in some places – because they grow so quickly and their root structure invades and sometimes strangles local plant life. Australians, like their native trees, are resilient and can thrive on foreign soil.