A comparison between the Philippines and Australia

I have observed that there are many and varied differences between these two countries in both climatic conditions and their ways of life.

The Philippines is made up of over 7000 different sized islands. It is subject to a number of small earthquakes each year and has some active volcanoes. It is in a tropical part of the world and there are three seasons which are generally hot and wet or hot and dry except from December through to February which is considered to be the cold part of the year. The average rainfall varies from 960mm to 4,060mm per year with a humidity level averaging 80%.

The population of the Philippines is around 94,031,200 people. Manila, the capital, has around 11,553,427 which is more than half the total population for the whole of Australia. Filipinos are very caring, family conscious people who are very friendly to others in their neighbourhood.

The majority of houses in the provinces are small bamboo nippa huts with whole families living together. Rice,suger cane and many different types of tropical fruits and vegetables are grown throughout the islands to supply food. This helps poorer people make a living and they set up small stalls along the roads. Each town has a market day each week so families can sell their produce. Due to the vast population, the shopping malls in the cities are at least three times the size of those in Australia.

The mode of transport varies from planes, trains, ferries, large passenger ships, large and small busses, jeepnies to tricycle ( motor bike and passenger compartment) and put puts, which are bicycles with a passenger section.

In comparison, Australia is a single large island continent which extends from a tropical climate in the north to what is known as a mediterranean climate in the south. There are 4 separate seasons - summer, autumn, winter and spring with an overall rainfall average of approx 472mm. The centre of Australia is desert-type country, unsuitable for large centres of population, which means that a lot of the people live in the cities within 50 to 100 km from the coast.

Australia is one of the richest countries in the world with vast deposits of iron ore and other valuable minerals such as gold, silver, uranium, nickel and aluminium. In the good rainfall areas wheat, barley, oats, canola and other grain crops plus fruit and vegetables are grown. The population is approximately 22 million people who are housed in some of the world's biggest houses . Transport consists of a number of different airlines, trains, buses and privately owned cars.

Although there is a great difference in the life styles of the two countries I do love my Australian experience.