Tuesday, 15 December, 2020

Look out Kiwis, here we come!; Venezuela’s pirate gold; Cody Simpson: Olympian?; and the First Lady stands up for girls.

 

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

 

THE LOWDOWN

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Hello Kiwi cousins! And brace yourselves for an Aussie invasion! As New Zealand’s Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern yesterday confirmed an Aussie-Kiwi travel bubble was on the cards – and could be a reality by March next year.

International borders have been closed here in Australia for months because … coronavirus. Meaning, no-one has been allowed to travel overseas – except in exceptional circumstances. And while that’s done wonders for sales of camping equipment and caravan park bookings – Aussies do like hopping on planes and visiting countries near and far. 

And if all goes to plan – and COVID case numbers remain low here in Australia – then New Zealand is shaping as the first country to roll out the welcome mat. How do you say thank you in Maori? Kia Ora… 

It may be just as well New Zealand is opening to Aussie tourists – as some of our more iconic beach destinations, including the famous Main Beach at Byron Bay, were yesterday smashed by huge seas and record-breaking rainfall.  

Byron’s beach was washed almost completely into the sea yesterday as a large stretch of Australia’s east coast was smashed by weather conditions similar to cyclone.

Rainfall in some areas broke new 24-hour records and swells of up to 10 metres high were reported in some parts of the coast.

It was a long and nervous night last night too for many coast and hinterland dwellers with forecasters yesterday warning they were in for another overnight downpour – adding more water to already flooded waterways – and stretching emergency services to the limit. 

Stay safe out there people.  

 

SPIN THE GLOBE

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Each day we give the world globe a spin and find a news story from wherever it stops .. and today we’ve landed in Venezuela – in South America – where locals in a fishing village have been feverishly digging up the beach and uncovering all sorts of treasure.

It all started back in September when a local fisherman found a gold medallion in the sand – sparking a three month treasure hunt by his neighbours who have since turned up hundreds of pieces of gold and silver jewellery and even gold nuggets. 

Rumours were rife that the booty belonged to a pirate’s treasure chest that had washed up on shore – but experts have since examined the jewellery and concluded it has much more modern origins – mostly likely came from Europe and was most likely created in the last couple of decades. So there goes the romantic pirate theory.

Still – the mystery remains of where the treasure came from, who owned it and how it came to wash up on that particular beach. 

For the villagers – who don’t have much money because their country is in deep crisis  – it’s fair to say Christmas has come early. And good luck to them too. 

 

POP CULTURE CORNER

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As if it’s not enough that he’s a chart-topping pop singer, Aussie Cody Simpson is apparently really good in the swimming pool too.

The Gold Coast-born singer whacked a photo onto his Instagram yesterday – of himself in swimmers, next to an Olympic-length pool, announcing that he had qualified to try out for the Australian Olympic team and hoped to swim butterfly for his country at next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

Revealing that he was a top-ranked swimmer when he was a kid, and that he had been training hard for the past five months, rediscovering his love of the sport, Simpson said he had swum 100m butterfly in just over 54 seconds. The cut off for Olympic trials qualification is 56.87 seconds. 

As Simpson says in his Instagram post: “You can do absolutely anything if you are willing to work for it.”

Can I get a hallelujah?

 

SQUIZ KIDS SALUTES 

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On the subject of inspiring social media posts – the incoming First Lady of the United States, Dr Jill Biden, has taken to Twitter to remind little girls and women of the world that they too are capable of great things.

After a newspaper columnist wrote an article criticizing her for using the title ‘Dr’ when she wasn’t a medical doctor – which in turn sparked a storm of criticism with people describing the attitude as old-fashioned, anti-women and out of touch – Dr Biden simply replied by tweeting: Together, we will build a world where the accomplishments of our daughters will be celebrated, rather than diminished.”

Can I get another hallelujah?

 

SUMMER PROGRAMMING

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Ah yes .. the smell of sunscreen, the tip-toe dance across burning sand .. the summer holidays are so close you can almost smell them.

Also close is the bunch of summer programming we have in store: starting this Friday with the first Annual Squizzie Awards. 

Which news story from the year just gone will win the Squizzie for the Weirdest Story Of The Year? And which one will win the Squizzie for The Smelliest Story Of The Year? Will it be the emus who poohed on the pub floor or the lion tamer in Germany who sold lion pooh in jars?

Tune in Friday to find out .. and otherwise subscribe to Squiz Kids in your preferred podcasting app to make sure you don’t miss out on any of our programming over the summer ahead.  

 

THE S’QUIZ

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This is the part of the podcast where you get to test how well you’ve been listening …

  1. Which neighbouring country looks likely to open a travel bubble with Australia?
  2. In which country has a fishing village been on a very fruitful treasure hunt?
  3. Name the Aussie pop singer who’s pretty handy in the pool too.

 

SHOUT OUTS

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It’s December 15 …. International Tea Day .. a day to celebrate the world’s most popular drink .. and the people who work in fields all over the world picking the leaves that go into it. It’s also National Cupcake Day in the United States. Tea and cupcakes – what a winning combo.

 Plus it’s also only 10 sleeps ‘til Christmas … gaaahh … have a holly, jolly, Christmas!

It’s also a special day for these Squiz Kids celebrating a birthday today .. Kobe from Eastwood, Jonah from Tasmania, Adwin from Taree, Penny from Craigburn, Sophie from Murwillumbah, Jenna from Abbotsford, Levi from Baldivis, Aidan from Albany Hills, Annabelle from Willoughby, Jonah from Hobart, Zoe from Thornbury, Nicky from Tennyson Point and Ella all the way from Geneva in Switzerland. 

And a belated birthday shoutout to… Tao from NSW

Classroom shoutouts…  all the kids and teachers at Coledale Public School, class 3/4N at Tarro Public School, class 5C at Brisbane Grammar School, class 4W at Berwick Lodge Primary School, class 3/4A from Ardeer South Primary School and class 5B with Mr Keady from St Mary’s Primary School in Dubbo.

 

The S’Quiz Answers:

  1. New Zealand
  2. Venezuela
  3. Cody Simpson