What you've hit on there is quite important actually. That is called Irony... it's meant to be humorous and 95 pct of Aussies, Brits, Kiwis, Canadians, South Africans and most likely Americans would get it straight away.....Even the Scandinavians may get it as well, especially Norwegians....definitely not the Germans or French though. Now my question is, if Indians speak English to a large extent in their home country, why doesn't an obviously educated fellow like yourself, see this article as a definite ironic spoof. ? Makes me wonder how many people take things the wrong way, when they first see something.

Yea 'cultural newbies' may not catch such ironies

e.g. in Aussie they say - How are you ladies (to gentlemen). This may be taken as slander by an Asian.. just a cultural difference.

Well a fast track could be the "carry on" series of movies... there are a lot of them .... heres a clip.

You'd think anyone who called themselves Beaver would have got the joke, never mind.

That's brilliant, just read through it and its sooo well done

"I was smuggled into Australia under my father's lumberjack jacket, hidden in his burly Canadian chest hair, my sister hidden in my mother's. ............ They wouldn't let me sing the Australian national anthem, it always had to be the Canadian anthem, Gordon Lightfoot's If You Could Read My Mind."

I think I'll become a Canadian, I love Gordon Lightfoot

You'll be fine MP. I'm the same as you (Sikh guy born in the UK) but a few months ahead as have been here 4 months. I haven't encountered anything. I've heard they are but if you think like that then you've got a problem before you've started. Way I see it is its a million miles from what my dad had to put up with when he came to the UK in the 60's and they never complained. Pops always taught me do as the romans do. You're moving to a new country so its your job to integrate with them. Not the other way around. Anyway the difference between us and Aussies here is practically nothing. Its harder for Indians coming directly from India but most of them are pretty modern nowadays. We;re not talking about people from the villages

Been to melbourne couple of time and there are a lot of Indians there and they seemed to be together a lot - so not much integration with the Aussies. Maybe thats why all of the problems are there. i prefer sydney where there is a mix of lots of races but they seem to mix together.

Great post to end the thread on I think, from someone with real life similar experience. This one answers the original posters question the best

I love irony - I love the use of deadpan even better. It is recognised everywhere and it never fails to get a laugh in the UK or Australia.

Sarcasm is nasty though and I don't like it. Amuses me when expats talk about getting a 'fix' of it.

Danny Katz's columns are fantastic, one of the funniest writers in the country, has a bit of Jerry Seinfeld about him I reckon with his hilarious takes on the mundane trials of daily life.

Americans really struggle with irony.