I said this the last time I saw the Big Koala mentioned, but when my parents got divorced and had split custody of me, the halfway point between their houses was this rest area, so as a child I had some pretty traumatising, dramatic, and tear-filled custody handovers under the glare of that monster. 10/10
kiralee.. that story puts Blinky Bill to shame mate..we were all gripped by your harrowing tale. You must have koala nightmares! Hope ur goin' orrite now.x
The big prawn in Ballina used to be on a seafood market, you could climb up and look through its eyes and stuff, but it went bust years ago. the Prawn sat for ages and was scheduled to be destroyed till Bunnings saved it, built a nice stand and pro looking tail and now take care of it. Props to Bunnings for saving it, it still makes me happy seeing it kicking on
When I did a road trip Sydney to Sunshine Coast we made sure to stop at as many big things as possible. The big Prawn at Bunnings was most fitting. Just about everyone was stopping by for a photo.
I interviewed the artist that made that big lobster when I did my art project on 'big things' back in the 80's. the lobster was the most truly artistic one. That guy made countless measurements of a real lobster, and that thing is true to life. He went broke making it if I remember rightly, it was an absolute labour of love. Don't knock that lobster, soup or no soup. It's amazing.
The big lobster is BIG. It is as big as it is because the people who commissioned it wrote the measurements in feet, but the people building it thought they where in meters. I think it's the best big thing because you can get inside it and climb up and look out its eyes. It is full of empty cans and goes up for sale every 2 years. Five stars.
@@prolefeed9371 Some of Geordies North American fan's are we? Nice to see you taking an interest in the Political attitudes of those of us who live down here at arse end of World ... ... Now, if only we could get you to do the same at home ...
He and Gina Rinhart as Australia's fatties. You'd think with their bank they could afford all the nutritionist and health experts in the world to keep them in great shape but us mere mortals are doing considerably better eating the stuff Coles and Woolworths give us.
My favourite google review is of a local sewage treatment plant that the reviewer lives nearby. She complains that when the wind blows a certain direction "the smell is woeful and very distressing". I go back to that review every time I need a laugh. Even better is the review under it which reads"Very happy with the food, great service" 😂
As an Irishman that moved to Canberra back in 2019, I'm actually really into the fact you guys have "big" things. It is dumb but in like the most wholesome fun loving way. Big Merino was the first one I witnessed haha
4 years in Canberra. I hope you are in a diplomatic compound and don't need to go outside the gates as I've been told by a person that was very much involved in politics that Canberra is awash with drugs....of the illicit kind. So could be a dangerous place to acquire an unwanted habit.
All this has shown me is that Australia follows the bum fuck mid western American town strategy of having a random big thing to get you to pull off of the highway to go see
@@salman_3833 - Because it was posted to their Patreon 3 months ago and is just now making it to their main channel. I believe with Patreon they still post a TH-cam link, it is just unlisted, or restricted in some way so only the Patrons can get to it.
As someone that lives near the woombye big pineapple and is 28 not 90, the reviews are right. There used to be this amazing resturant and cafe that sold local fresh fruit products and deserts. it was an amazing place but it went out of business and has been in a constant state of "someone buys it-tries to bring it back-fails" and it makes me sad i loved that place.
they reopened it recently, and it isnt too bad. still got the nice cafe with local products, and the pineapple got an upgraded look, less like a toilet paper roll painted yellow. They also renovated the big macadamia that was sitting in an abandoned carpark right next to it for about a decade. Got an awesome high ropes course coming out of it. the festival got canned in 2021 cause of covid but should be starting again soon
@@mycosys oh gosh the train yes ive been saying they need to partner with the zoo down the road and have the train run back and forth and tickets to the zoo get you discounts at the pineapple or something.
@@g3nvalley173 yea i knew about the ropes course ive been meaning to go but the cafe is news to me ill have to check it out sometime i miss the parfaits they used to serve
The Big Pineapple used to have this ride called Tomorrow's Harvest where a crocodile jumped out at you and Jetsons robots farmed crops, no wonder Queensland visitors are disappointed that it's closed.
When I was in Primary School I was put into some higher-learning class, which basically consisted of just gaving us extra homework to do outside of our regular school work. One of the first "research projects" was to name the places in Australia where various "big" things were. Keep in mind this was in the early 90s and way before the internet was widely available, so this meant hours in the library digging up relevant books which the other students in the class hadn't already checked out for the same question. To this day it seemed like the biggest waste of time possible.
As an American living in Australia for over 11 years now I am still astounded that "Big Things" are a thing here. "Just make it big whatever it is and its an attraction" I don't get it, but I love it!
We’ve got that in the US, too. A lot of rural towns (esp in flyover states) have them, and they’re often baffling (like the World’s Largest Office Chair in Alabama or the World’s Largest Ball of Twine).
@@mycosysi was going to say - I’m in Texas & they do say everything’s bigger in Texas. I think every state has ‘The World’s Largest _____’. Wikipedia has a list of every country’s ‘List of Largest Roadside Attractions’ & neither Florida nor Texas have any listed at all. Go figure.
My first outside-of-city Australia experience was when I took two planes and an hour plus drive to Bowen to visit family. They took me to see their ‘famous giant mango’ that had recently been returned to its home after some crackheads stole it and moved it further into town (they also showed me a lab house that had blown up in recent weeks like it was another hot tourist photo spot). Though coming from a place that had a famed giant kiwi fruit slice and where my neighbours also cooked the crystal pepsi, I didn’t think I was in a position to judge too harshly. Edit: After some brief research (google), cheeky nandos stole the mango
I come from a rural farm town called Gore in new Zealand. We have a concrete statue of a sheep. A plastic statue of a fish And we used to have a statue of a guitar. Maybe it's still there but I can't remember. Presumably it's made of wood. But it may have been plastic. If it's still there. The council put toilets by the fish. But you have to pay to use them. 1 star.
the big pineapple was good in the early/mid 2000s when i was a kid (like 6 or 7). You could go for a little train ride, there were farm animals and you could go into the pineapple. It has been shut for like a decade tho so was surprised when there was a review from 3 weeks ago. Wildlife HQ next to it is really good. Entry is cheap, experiences are cheaper compared to other wildlife parks/zoos and they have a lot animals that Australia zoo doesn't.
I've been through Dimmeys many times and I can't tell how it still exists, they sell practically everything cleaning supplies, suit cases, 20 year old lollies and an entire section devoted to dog collars and toys. It's pretty much the black hole from the simpsons it's sucked in all the shit other shops have thrown out
The Big Pineapple rules actually (if you’re allowed in it) because you can actually go up inside it and get a pretty good view of the surrounding area from the top, the only one of these big things that actually does something apart from being big.
I remember as a kid my parents trying to hype us up about "going past" the big banana for 6 hours. We drove past in seconds. All that hype for a mere glimpse of it at a distance. We didn't even like bananas.
we had a dimmeys, it was actually sick to have in our small town but yeah, it was just stock leftover from other stores sold cheap. you couldnt find sizes or socks but you could buy a christmas tree all year round and reject candy that you always regretted buying
@@lindahunter1969 Dimmeys in Richmond was an amazing store back in the 1980s. I still have a cast iron pan ($20) and ceramic airtight jars ($1 each) I bought back then.
To be fair, the Big Pineapple went bankrupt or something a few years ago and it's been pretty much shut until the last year or two. That meant the farm went to pot and the pineapple needed repairs.
In the Big Pineapple's defense: - They have a neat little zoo. - They are on-board with Spongebob memes. - Many kids probably got their first snog while at the high school formals that were hosted there.
My older siblings somehow managed to convince me that not only can you go inside the Big Pineapple, but that once you climb the stairs inside, there's a door that opens up to the entrance of a rollercoaster. I was so hyped for it that I used to daydream about waiting in line on the stairs inside the Big Pineapple. Imagine the look on my sibling's faces when, after I finally managed to convince our parents to take us there, the first thing out of my mouth when we arrive is "Where's the rollercoaster?" The Pineapple wasn't even open.
Not technically big, but growing up in Kalgoorlie as a child, I was disproportionately proud of "the world's tallest bin" at the top end of the main street. I experienced deep pangs of grief and loss the first time I went back home in the early 2000s and saw it was gone 😢
The best part about the big pineapple 🍍 was the macadamia ‘train’ ride. It was a bunch of carts in the shape of brown macadamia shells linked together like a train so you sat inside a shell with the brown round shell roof on top. Someone drove you through the macadamia trees, then you watched the conveyer belt of masses of macadamia nuts getting packed so you could go buy them in the gift shop. Rad! Plus my grandma from the Great generation would say ‘They’re not macadamias, we called them Queensland nuts’. 😅
Used to go past the Big Koala all the time as a kid. It’s as dusty and old as it looks - inside there is a touristy shop, and if you go up some stairs you can get to the head of the koala, where it is literally a room with old farming equipment placed in it. It’s supposed o look like a museum sort of setup. As creepy as it sounds. Also yes the eyes low red a night!
There used to be an excellent book about these in my primary school library, there was things like coin operated bunyips, that rose out of water when a coin was inserted, but the book mentioned people jammed paddlepop sticks in to cheat it. There was a cool one in Coonabarabran little world? That had coin operated dinosaurs that moved and sprayed water, I think it burnt down but the crystal kingdom shop still exists in town.
Mini Land! I have family in Coonabarabran & Mini Land was always the highlight as a kid. Then the fire got to it & then the observatory became the highlight. Space is cool and all but faded dinosaurs that barely move beat space any day.
Gotta say the best part about the big merino is the seasonal decorations they put for it, like giving it double eyepatches for some reason during halloween, what's even better is that they might forget to take them off afterwards so you'll come by again several months later and the thing's still wearing both eyepatches.
I loved the big lobster it photographs really well especially on film, especially because I didn’t expect it and it just suddenly appeared on the drive to tailem
American here, love the videos! In my home state of RI, we've got 'The Big Blue Bug'. It's... a big, blue bug. It's an advertisement for a local company (pest control, if I recall). Not much else to it, but hey, it's just a short drive to get literally anywhere else, so it's got that going for it. Haven't seen it in a while, since I moved West for work. Great state, great motto, neat history, nice beaches, close to Boston; go and visit if you're in the US! Just not in the winter. Definitely not in the winter.
I remember when I was really young my dad said to go on the slide at the big banana called “kamikaze” and right before I went on it I asked what kamikaze meant and he said it meant peaceful & relaxing…. It was the vertical drop waterslide
I travelled from finland to queensland and I have drove specifically to see the big pineapple and it was quite satisfactory and one of the highlights of my trip aside along with going to woolies and coles five stars
New Zealand does have a big sheep; it's in Tirau and aside from looking like it's slightly stoned it looks OK. Even comes with a sheepdog. The biggest disappointment is the 'Mega Cow'; there was a street art project called 'Herd of Cows?' which had a bunch of cool, artistically-painted life-sized cows all over the place in Morrinsville, and some 95 year old guy was like 'Oh yeah, I was going to build a giant cow when I was mayor 40 years ago and never got around to it', so now there's a completely normal-looking giant cow and it's... fine? Like, it's just a giant cow because some old dude wanted a giant cow, and he couldn't even be bothered to stay alive long enough to see it.
NZ has the big sheep, big L&P bottle, kiwifruit, doughnut, carrot, kiwi, apple, salmon, trout, jandal, stonefruit, sherp sharer, crayfish, sandfly, bike, paua, bull, gumboot etc etc, arguably more of a thing in NZ than in aus
Grew up relatively close to the Big Banana. My parents never felt the need to take us there. I don't blame them, though I am sad that I missed out on the quintessential Australian experience of going to the Big Banana and being thoroughly disappointed.
So funny to hear your perspective from a person who grew up in Coffs Harbour. Yes, as a kid, visiting the BB was a 'thing' and our first experience of an anticlimax ..... Even though we didn't have the word for it, but we absolutely felt it. Nobody discussed how ordinary it was 🤣🤣
LOL, we all visited it, then the only time we ever went back was when visitors asked us to take them there. It never disappointed with how ordinary it was and I never defended it. It is just there.
I went to the world's biggest carousel, not only did I see the world's biggest carousel, I saw a weird museum with a giant whale statue, a house inside a mountain, a great optical illusion, and a feverdream of lights and instruments that play themselves.
I visited the big Banana on a family holiday to Coffs when i was 12 in 1982. It was an oversized yellow fibreglass tube with photos inside. I was wondering why we drove 7 hours in a full car from Canberra to marvel at this thing and spend 2 weeks in a crowded tent while it rained pretty much non stop. It wasn't Summer. It was September. It was the only time i ever punched my elder brother in the face. He hit back harder. Great times. 😂
It's a shame that the Matilda Kangaroo from Gympie didn't get featured. Apparently its head and eyes move side to side and it scared the absolute sh*t out of me the first time I realized lmao.
i used to live near the giant koala. the thing about the giant koala is that it isnt like some actual attraction like the rest of the big things are that are in a nice place and shit its just. on the side of the highway. barely even a rest stop. locals just use it as a marker for when you get 'near horsham' as opposed to 'near stawell'
Hey Jordan, I was wondering if you could be more pro Greens just because ALP is becoming more moderate and less left. For example, the safeguard mechanism that Labor proposed was nothing short of horrible if we were to meet our climate targets, the Greens however were able to put in a plan to actually reduce emissions. Also Labor has done nothing to fix the rental crisis, hasn't removed negative gearing and capital gains tax and is only building 30 000 out of the needed 850 000 public houses. Recently did the Australian Institute release findings showing how inequality between the rich and the working class has grown and nothing has been done about it. Thanks and just take this into cosnideration and I haven't even talked about the subs.
I really loved the train at the big Pineapple as a kid, went through a nice forest.... the big bannana was kind of lame, I really liked the big seal on the boarder of qld and nsw, it's not a land mark yet but maybe one day, they take donations for seals and have some fish you can look at.
I'm so glad that the big koala exists... breaks up a tragicly monotonous roadtrip, but I totally agree with the first review of it. The cafe part looks on its last legs and actually smells lol
You used to be able to go up into the prawn head when I was a kid growing up in Ballina. Hot as f*** the one time I went up in there. Used to be on top of a small shopping centre. There was also a co-op down the road that had a big-ish pineapple that you could stand in. Good times 👍
Spare a thought for the Big Pineapple that used to be at the servo on the way through Gympie. It was free to go inside and climb the steps to the top for a view of...part of Gympie. It was opened in 1971 and was demolished sometime after 2008.
Another roadside special, is the crap roadside things. The Oberon Class sub in Holbrook, and the now deceased Uluru at Tea Gardens where the old entrance to Leyland Brothers world was. Last time I was there in the food court in 2016 there was a Golliwog Doll shop next to Subway
The pineapple farm at the Big Pineapple was actually fkn rad. They did tours and you learned how pineapples grow, and they had a mini pineapple train that took you around the pineapple fields, and inexplicably they also had a bunch of emus that you could feed. One of them bit me when I was like 8. 10/10.
Big Prawn Review: ⭐☆☆☆☆ I just got my first car from me gran in woywoy and had ta drive it up to brisbane to put it on the train back up to cairns. Car broke down half way there and I had to sleep in a random carpark. woke up the next morning to find out it was the giant prawn carpark.
Which is the worst one?
Get your tickets to my new live-show: www.friendlyjordies.com/live-show
More dates and locations added all the time.
GET THE 1,000,000 SUB MATCHING TATTOOS!!!!!!!
Jordie you fat bogan notice me.
your mother
The big trout, it's filled with a European wasps nest.
Worst taxis next?
I said this the last time I saw the Big Koala mentioned, but when my parents got divorced and had split custody of me, the halfway point between their houses was this rest area, so as a child I had some pretty traumatising, dramatic, and tear-filled custody handovers under the glare of that monster.
10/10
That is tragically beautiful
That is possibly the most Australian anecdote I have ever heard. It's like a Tim Winton short story.
kiralee.. that story puts Blinky Bill to shame mate..we were all gripped by your harrowing tale.
You must have koala nightmares!
Hope ur goin' orrite now.x
Thanks for sharing
I believe that kid handovers was the original and specific purpose of the Big Koala.
The big prawn in Ballina used to be on a seafood market, you could climb up and look through its eyes and stuff, but it went bust years ago. the Prawn sat for ages and was scheduled to be destroyed till Bunnings saved it, built a nice stand and pro looking tail and now take care of it. Props to Bunnings for saving it, it still makes me happy seeing it kicking on
Don't forget the petrol station and the overpriced restaurant.
When I did a road trip Sydney to Sunshine Coast we made sure to stop at as many big things as possible. The big Prawn at Bunnings was most fitting. Just about everyone was stopping by for a photo.
Oh I thought it has been demolished! That makes me happy that it’s still there
@@MysticalAmberMC "Life Australia" the home of many big things.
I remember when it had the seafood shop under it, good times
I can't believe the reviews of the Big Koala don't mention the fact its eyes glow red at night. It's haunting.
thats actually hilarious, love that it glows !
Probably because they didnt go at night
The idol for the drop bears
Didn't think this could be real until it appeared in the video... 🤣
the BIG GLOWING RED EYES AT NIGHT EXCUSE ME???
I interviewed the artist that made that big lobster when I did my art project on 'big things' back in the 80's. the lobster was the most truly artistic one. That guy made countless measurements of a real lobster, and that thing is true to life. He went broke making it if I remember rightly, it was an absolute labour of love. Don't knock that lobster, soup or no soup. It's amazing.
The big lobster is BIG. It is as big as it is because the people who commissioned it wrote the measurements in feet, but the people building it thought they where in meters. I think it's the best big thing because you can get inside it and climb up and look out its eyes. It is full of empty cans and goes up for sale every 2 years. Five stars.
Ive heard that old myth about alot of buildings
@@DannyGruesome It was in that documentary about that band who lost all the drummers
@@man.inblack Nirvana?
It's a prawn, not a lobster!
@@VanillaMacaron551you know they both exist right?
'The Big Banana disappointing Aussie kids for almost 60 yrs' should be a shirt they sell
I went to the Big Banana a few years back when I was still a teen and I had a good time.
Yep. Got the worst wedgie of my life going down one of those bullet water slides as a kid. Disappointed was an understatement.
@@mycosys Lucky for you that you didn't need to wipe your arse then eh mate? ...
.. Or your nose!!
@Chilakkuma there are big banana candy lollipops at the candy shop
@@prolefeed9371 Some of Geordies North American fan's are we? Nice to see you taking an interest in the Political attitudes of those of us who live down here at arse end of World ...
... Now, if only we could get you to do the same at home ...
Surely Clive Palmer is the worst “big thing” in Australia
Big what? What thing would you describe him as- fat ball.
If any country can market a 'big arsehole' it's Australia.
Joint winner - Gina Rinehart.
He and Gina Rinhart as Australia's fatties.
You'd think with their bank they could afford all the nutritionist and health experts in the world to keep them in great shape but us mere mortals are doing considerably better eating the stuff Coles and Woolworths give us.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
My favourite google review is of a local sewage treatment plant that the reviewer lives nearby. She complains that when the wind blows a certain direction "the smell is woeful and very distressing". I go back to that review every time I need a laugh. Even better is the review under it which reads"Very happy with the food, great service" 😂
I won't ever live near a sewage plant or paper mill
@@MushookieMan why they have google reviews enabled is anyones guess but its created comedy gold.
As an Irishman that moved to Canberra back in 2019, I'm actually really into the fact you guys have "big" things. It is dumb but in like the most wholesome fun loving way. Big Merino was the first one I witnessed haha
I assume you've also seen Canberra's own penis owl too?
AYYYYY WERE IN IRELAND LAD ?
@@mamearl3663 Fermanagh aka God's Country aka while good soil ph
You live in Canberra... I'm so sorry
4 years in Canberra. I hope you are in a diplomatic compound and don't need to go outside the gates as I've been told by a person that was very much involved in politics that Canberra is awash with drugs....of the illicit kind.
So could be a dangerous place to acquire an unwanted habit.
I love that friendlyjordies is providing alternative vacation spots for his new international audience.
E
All this has shown me is that Australia follows the bum fuck mid western American town strategy of having a random big thing to get you to pull off of the highway to go see
When the Big Merino was in it's original spot, you could throw stuff from the eyes and hit your mates in the car park.
So they did move it! I thought I was going crazy
how is this comment from 3 months ago
@@salman_3833 the longer the comment has been there, the older it gets
fkn man from taured out here in the jordies comment section
@@salman_3833 - Because it was posted to their Patreon 3 months ago and is just now making it to their main channel. I believe with Patreon they still post a TH-cam link, it is just unlisted, or restricted in some way so only the Patrons can get to it.
As someone that lives near the woombye big pineapple and is 28 not 90, the reviews are right. There used to be this amazing resturant and cafe that sold local fresh fruit products and deserts. it was an amazing place but it went out of business and has been in a constant state of "someone buys it-tries to bring it back-fails" and it makes me sad i loved that place.
I just went for the sugar cane... Yeah, it used to be amazing.
the train was great - and the music festivals they used to have, too
they reopened it recently, and it isnt too bad. still got the nice cafe with local products, and the pineapple got an upgraded look, less like a toilet paper roll painted yellow. They also renovated the big macadamia that was sitting in an abandoned carpark right next to it for about a decade. Got an awesome high ropes course coming out of it. the festival got canned in 2021 cause of covid but should be starting again soon
@@mycosys oh gosh the train yes ive been saying they need to partner with the zoo down the road and have the train run back and forth and tickets to the zoo get you discounts at the pineapple or something.
@@g3nvalley173 yea i knew about the ropes course ive been meaning to go but the cafe is news to me ill have to check it out sometime i miss the parfaits they used to serve
The entirety of my exposure of Australian culture has been through either this channel or idat, and I appreciate it greatly.
Me agree
Ditto
Come visit.
Watch The Big Lez Show
Don't forget Fairbairn Films
The Big Pineapple used to have this ride called Tomorrow's Harvest where a crocodile jumped out at you and Jetsons robots farmed crops, no wonder Queensland visitors are disappointed that it's closed.
That sounds magical.
20 years and im still salty at my parents for not stopping when we drove past the big banana when i was a kid
Smart parents
Time to let that go I think 🤣
That's great, i love it.
When I was in Primary School I was put into some higher-learning class, which basically consisted of just gaving us extra homework to do outside of our regular school work. One of the first "research projects" was to name the places in Australia where various "big" things were. Keep in mind this was in the early 90s and way before the internet was widely available, so this meant hours in the library digging up relevant books which the other students in the class hadn't already checked out for the same question. To this day it seemed like the biggest waste of time possible.
Lol. Sounds like they wanted you to spend more time in the library.
As an American living in Australia for over 11 years now I am still astounded that "Big Things" are a thing here. "Just make it big whatever it is and its an attraction" I don't get it, but I love it!
Its a thing canada to falhar has a giant bee for some reason
We’ve got that in the US, too. A lot of rural towns (esp in flyover states) have them, and they’re often baffling (like the World’s Largest Office Chair in Alabama or the World’s Largest Ball of Twine).
@@princessaria Wots the ball of twines job..
Tryna catch an enormous cat!?!
@@mycosysi was going to say - I’m in Texas & they do say everything’s bigger in Texas. I think every state has ‘The World’s Largest _____’. Wikipedia has a list of every country’s ‘List of Largest Roadside Attractions’ & neither Florida nor Texas have any listed at all. Go figure.
@@mycosys Texan here, it was shocking to find out people DIDN'T just have random big things
You gotta do the Worst High Schools in Australia. Please.
Yessss
@@ACDZ123 then why are you watching?
@@ACDZ123 I respect that
I would 100% watch this
Cairns high schools is cursed beyond recognition.
My first outside-of-city Australia experience was when I took two planes and an hour plus drive to Bowen to visit family. They took me to see their ‘famous giant mango’ that had recently been returned to its home after some crackheads stole it and moved it further into town (they also showed me a lab house that had blown up in recent weeks like it was another hot tourist photo spot).
Though coming from a place that had a famed giant kiwi fruit slice and where my neighbours also cooked the crystal pepsi, I didn’t think I was in a position to judge too harshly.
Edit: After some brief research (google), cheeky nandos stole the mango
I'm told that Bowen is a good place for prawns and other seafood with great beaches. A hidden holiday spot to be discovered.
E
This comment is as hilarious as Friendlygeordies` video.
Welcome to Qld!!!
The mango wasn't stolen by crackheads, it was "stolen" by Nandos as a marketing campaign for their new mango sauce.
@@margaretburn713 hahaha I’m honoured thank you, QLD was a great time overall! 🥭
I come from a rural farm town called Gore in new Zealand. We have a concrete statue of a sheep. A plastic statue of a fish And we used to have a statue of a guitar. Maybe it's still there but I can't remember. Presumably it's made of wood. But it may have been plastic. If it's still there.
The council put toilets by the fish. But you have to pay to use them. 1 star.
the big pineapple was good in the early/mid 2000s when i was a kid (like 6 or 7). You could go for a little train ride, there were farm animals and you could go into the pineapple. It has been shut for like a decade tho so was surprised when there was a review from 3 weeks ago. Wildlife HQ next to it is really good. Entry is cheap, experiences are cheaper compared to other wildlife parks/zoos and they have a lot animals that Australia zoo doesn't.
I've been through Dimmeys many times and I can't tell how it still exists, they sell practically everything cleaning supplies, suit cases, 20 year old lollies and an entire section devoted to dog collars and toys. It's pretty much the black hole from the simpsons it's sucked in all the shit other shops have thrown out
Someone needed to tell that poor queenslander there's two seafood shops a minute down the road past the Big Prawn.
The Big Pineapple rules actually (if you’re allowed in it) because you can actually go up inside it and get a pretty good view of the surrounding area from the top, the only one of these big things that actually does something apart from being big.
I remember as a kid my parents trying to hype us up about "going past" the big banana for 6 hours. We drove past in seconds. All that hype for a mere glimpse of it at a distance. We didn't even like bananas.
The Big Prawn is legendary and yes Bunnings came through with making sure it stays in the same location back when it was part of a tourist centre.
we had a dimmeys, it was actually sick to have in our small town but yeah, it was just stock leftover from other stores sold cheap. you couldnt find sizes or socks but you could buy a christmas tree all year round and reject candy that you always regretted buying
Loved Dimmeys in Richmond, that was class shopping ❤️🛍️🛒
@@lindahunter1969 Dimmeys in Richmond was an amazing store back in the 1980s. I still have a cast iron pan ($20) and ceramic airtight jars ($1 each) I bought back then.
13:32 Honestly a perfect mascot for the state
The timing of the Dalai Lama joke with the information that came out about him is terrifyingly.
the road to enlightenment goes through a little tonsil succ with kiddos apparentely
Terrifyingly what?
@Faroe …
@@lesflynn4455 based on
@Faroe Not sure if it’s too late. Dalai Lama kissed a boy and told him “to suck his tongue” (not making this up). Excuse was “it’s just a tease”.
The giant koala was up for sale a few years ago. Tried to convince my dad that it was a good investment 😂
This isn't warhammer 40k..
I haven’t had a chance to watch this yet but I really hope the Big Oyster (which is now a car yard) in Taree makes the list.
Jordies is going to be fuming when he finds out New Zealand has a big Carrot.
We got the big LP bottle too and the corrugated sheep in Timaru
Also big corrugated iron sheep and accompanying sheep dog
Also a big gumboot
Big fruits in Cromwell too
Stop it!! A big gumboot!?!
In the guts of Adelaide, in a park.. there's a big thong!
(Jandal).
Jordies should do a tier list of big things. I can already see the Big Potato being S tier for more than one reason.
Can use the big tennis racquet in Barellan to fling it around! 😂
E
To be fair, the Big Pineapple went bankrupt or something a few years ago and it's been pretty much shut until the last year or two. That meant the farm went to pot and the pineapple needed repairs.
I saw a "Big Prawn (Cray?)" on the NSW central coast and a fish and chip store had one on their roof that was pretty much the same size.
You know the rules, the bigger the prawn, the bigger the...
Prices...
In the Big Pineapple's defense:
- They have a neat little zoo.
- They are on-board with Spongebob memes.
- Many kids probably got their first snog while at the high school formals that were hosted there.
Didn't Alma Park Zoo move there?
NZ already has some top novelty size items. Like the giant peaches and giant L&P (fizzy drink) bottle.
My older siblings somehow managed to convince me that not only can you go inside the Big Pineapple, but that once you climb the stairs inside, there's a door that opens up to the entrance of a rollercoaster. I was so hyped for it that I used to daydream about waiting in line on the stairs inside the Big Pineapple.
Imagine the look on my sibling's faces when, after I finally managed to convince our parents to take us there, the first thing out of my mouth when we arrive is "Where's the rollercoaster?"
The Pineapple wasn't even open.
Not technically big, but growing up in Kalgoorlie as a child, I was disproportionately proud of "the world's tallest bin" at the top end of the main street. I experienced deep pangs of grief and loss the first time I went back home in the early 2000s and saw it was gone 😢
Can't believe that Jordan didn't do the giant rocking horse in gummeraccha, the owners response to 1 star reviews are comedy gold.
Gumeracha
jordies is back at it again with some of the famous australian things i didnt bother to even think about
The best part about the big pineapple 🍍 was the macadamia ‘train’ ride.
It was a bunch of carts in the shape of brown macadamia shells linked together like a train so you sat inside a shell with the brown round shell roof on top. Someone drove you through the macadamia trees, then you watched the conveyer belt of masses of macadamia nuts getting packed so you could go buy them in the gift shop. Rad!
Plus my grandma from the Great generation would say ‘They’re not macadamias, we called them Queensland nuts’. 😅
And the diesel steam train
The madlad has the time to both uproot corruption in his country AND make entertaining content! What a legend.
Used to go past the Big Koala all the time as a kid. It’s as dusty and old as it looks - inside there is a touristy shop, and if you go up some stairs you can get to the head of the koala, where it is literally a room with old farming equipment placed in it. It’s supposed o look like a museum sort of setup. As creepy as it sounds. Also yes the eyes low red a night!
There used to be an excellent book about these in my primary school library, there was things like coin operated bunyips, that rose out of water when a coin was inserted, but the book mentioned people jammed paddlepop sticks in to cheat it. There was a cool one in Coonabarabran little world? That had coin operated dinosaurs that moved and sprayed water, I think it burnt down but the crystal kingdom shop still exists in town.
Mini land, man I haven't thought about that place since I was like 7
Mini Land!
I have family in Coonabarabran & Mini Land was always the highlight as a kid. Then the fire got to it & then the observatory became the highlight. Space is cool and all but faded dinosaurs that barely move beat space any day.
@@dr.drakeramoray6524 pretty accurate to the actual dinosaurs then, well done Coonabarabarbarian
Coona had a Bunyip!?!
Murray Bridge has one still...used to be 20¢.... probably $20 now!
Best present is a Tuesday morning upload from this legend. And you’re the BEST big thing in Australia
Gotta say the best part about the big merino is the seasonal decorations they put for it, like giving it double eyepatches for some reason during halloween, what's even better is that they might forget to take them off afterwards so you'll come by again several months later and the thing's still wearing both eyepatches.
I loved the big lobster it photographs really well especially on film, especially because I didn’t expect it and it just suddenly appeared on the drive to tailem
American here, love the videos!
In my home state of RI, we've got 'The Big Blue Bug'. It's... a big, blue bug. It's an advertisement for a local company (pest control, if I recall). Not much else to it, but hey, it's just a short drive to get literally anywhere else, so it's got that going for it. Haven't seen it in a while, since I moved West for work.
Great state, great motto, neat history, nice beaches, close to Boston; go and visit if you're in the US! Just not in the winter. Definitely not in the winter.
I remember when I was really young my dad said to go on the slide at the big banana called “kamikaze” and right before I went on it I asked what kamikaze meant and he said it meant peaceful & relaxing…. It was the vertical drop waterslide
I travelled from finland to queensland and I have drove specifically to see the big pineapple and it was quite satisfactory and one of the highlights of my trip aside along with going to woolies and coles five stars
New Zealand does have a big sheep; it's in Tirau and aside from looking like it's slightly stoned it looks OK. Even comes with a sheepdog.
The biggest disappointment is the 'Mega Cow'; there was a street art project called 'Herd of Cows?' which had a bunch of cool, artistically-painted life-sized cows all over the place in Morrinsville, and some 95 year old guy was like 'Oh yeah, I was going to build a giant cow when I was mayor 40 years ago and never got around to it', so now there's a completely normal-looking giant cow and it's... fine? Like, it's just a giant cow because some old dude wanted a giant cow, and he couldn't even be bothered to stay alive long enough to see it.
You'll see plenty of cow-theme and cowskin art, as you drive through the town of Mooball in northern NSW, as you would expect.
NZ has the big sheep, big L&P bottle, kiwifruit, doughnut, carrot, kiwi, apple, salmon, trout, jandal, stonefruit, sherp sharer, crayfish, sandfly, bike, paua, bull, gumboot etc etc, arguably more of a thing in NZ than in aus
A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they shall never sit.
The dahli llama showing up was so nice and topical of him!
Grew up relatively close to the Big Banana. My parents never felt the need to take us there. I don't blame them, though I am sad that I missed out on the quintessential Australian experience of going to the Big Banana and being thoroughly disappointed.
So funny to hear your perspective from a person who grew up in Coffs Harbour. Yes, as a kid, visiting the BB was a 'thing' and our first experience of an anticlimax ..... Even though we didn't have the word for it, but we absolutely felt it. Nobody discussed how ordinary it was 🤣🤣
LOL, we all visited it, then the only time we ever went back was when visitors asked us to take them there. It never disappointed with how ordinary it was and I never defended it. It is just there.
8:01 as a Kiwi I can confirm we have a big things as tourist scams too, including a big sheep
The big cow on the Sunny Coast became a womens gym at one stage after the Cooroy bypass killed it. Legit.
It's been moved to Highfields near Toowoomba
I went to the world's biggest carousel, not only did I see the world's biggest carousel, I saw a weird museum with a giant whale statue, a house inside a mountain, a great optical illusion, and a feverdream of lights and instruments that play themselves.
I visited the big Banana on a family holiday to Coffs when i was 12 in 1982. It was an oversized yellow fibreglass tube with photos inside. I was wondering why we drove 7 hours in a full car from Canberra to marvel at this thing and spend 2 weeks in a crowded tent while it rained pretty much non stop. It wasn't Summer. It was September. It was the only time i ever punched my elder brother in the face. He hit back harder. Great times. 😂
8:58 it's the merino "breeeeuuuhh" that does it for me XD
This recent content has been immaculate. Amazing job mate
Imagine driving six hours to the big banana when you just live in Coffs Harbour about 5 minutes away lol
It's a shame that the Matilda Kangaroo from Gympie didn't get featured.
Apparently its head and eyes move side to side and it scared the absolute sh*t out of me the first time I realized lmao.
i used to live near the giant koala. the thing about the giant koala is that it isnt like some actual attraction like the rest of the big things are that are in a nice place and shit its just. on the side of the highway. barely even a rest stop. locals just use it as a marker for when you get 'near horsham' as opposed to 'near stawell'
Hey Jordan,
I was wondering if you could be more pro Greens just because ALP is becoming more moderate and less left. For example, the safeguard mechanism that Labor proposed was nothing short of horrible if we were to meet our climate targets, the Greens however were able to put in a plan to actually reduce emissions. Also Labor has done nothing to fix the rental crisis, hasn't removed negative gearing and capital gains tax and is only building 30 000 out of the needed 850 000 public houses. Recently did the Australian Institute release findings showing how inequality between the rich and the working class has grown and nothing has been done about it. Thanks and just take this into cosnideration and I haven't even talked about the subs.
The big koala has a turkey farm across the road from it which is far more interesting
You have missed 2 of South Australia’s lively attractions, The Big Galah and the giant rocking horse!
Get it up ya, ya dog!
The koala looks like he’s gotten a high of eucalyptus
Being a fan of jordie is like being a fan of politics before there were parties
No reference to the bodalla big cheese, because it reigns supreme over other big monuments of Australia.
Watching Jordie absolutely having a godsdamned coronary has just made my night. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Would definitely come again.
I really loved the train at the big Pineapple as a kid, went through a nice forest.... the big bannana was kind of lame, I really liked the big seal on the boarder of qld and nsw, it's not a land mark yet but maybe one day, they take donations for seals and have some fish you can look at.
I always wanted a bucket list for tourist attractions in Australia! Thank you Jordie!
There's a big Bunyip at Murray Bridge mate...miss it at ur peril!!
I love how some towns would have been discussing a new attraction like:
"Well what can we make big?"
"How about a big Orange?"
"Nah they've done that"
Big Pineapple is ok, they got a zoo there now, and it's a proper one not just some kangaroos in a paddock.
Suddenly cracking out that New Zealand accent at 8:05 had me rolling 😂
I've been binging Jordan's content a lot lately, It's really lifted my mood
I'm so glad that the big koala exists... breaks up a tragicly monotonous roadtrip, but I totally agree with the first review of it. The cafe part looks on its last legs and actually smells lol
Wait, the pineapple farm is gone?!
I have pleasant memories of sitting on that little train chugging around the farm learning pineapple facts.
Years ago. Was a great farm. Fond memories of that train. Lived there for 20 odd years lol
Beast titan holding the big banana wasn’t what I was expecting this upload, big ups keep up the good work👍
Jordies I just want you to know, NZ has big things too.. you could do a spin off for Anzac day, and look at reviews of nz's big things!
Man, I wasn't expecting this to give me pride for Ontario's own Big Apple
You used to be able to go up into the prawn head when I was a kid growing up in Ballina. Hot as f*** the one time I went up in there. Used to be on top of a small shopping centre. There was also a co-op down the road that had a big-ish pineapple that you could stand in. Good times 👍
I remember going up into its head too but I thought it was a petrol station.
@@mattbaker337 actually yeah, I remember that. Didn’t it have a restaurant too? Nearby at least I think. Too long ago now 😂
@@imip1984 I do remember the restaurant, thought it was apart of the petrol station
14:04 Tomorrowland from the made in abyss soundtrack
This guy is a comedic genius I'd totally share a drink with this man
Spare a thought for the Big Pineapple that used to be at the servo on the way through Gympie. It was free to go inside and climb the steps to the top for a view of...part of Gympie. It was opened in 1971 and was demolished sometime after 2008.
Surely worst hospitals next
New Zealand actually DOES have Giant Ram, ive been to it, NOT as good
Please do the worst reviews of The Coffee Club/Shingle Inn
Another roadside special, is the crap roadside things. The Oberon Class sub in Holbrook, and the now deceased Uluru at Tea Gardens where the old entrance to Leyland Brothers world was. Last time I was there in the food court in 2016 there was a Golliwog Doll shop next to Subway
The pineapple farm at the Big Pineapple was actually fkn rad. They did tours and you learned how pineapples grow, and they had a mini pineapple train that took you around the pineapple fields, and inexplicably they also had a bunch of emus that you could feed. One of them bit me when I was like 8. 10/10.
The Big Pootato, may or may not be a relic from Pork Barilaro's most recent visit to the park.
How could you miss The Big Penguin? You'll need a trip to Tassie just so you can check it out. Its a penguin! 5 stars
Tell the cnts to vote a Labor government in and maybe they'll be considered along with the rest of the country.
Only penguin soup, no penguin, one star.
In the town of Penguin, no less.
Tasmanian’s are weird
This penguin got two heads!?!
A town nearby to where we used to live had a big AFL ball. The town has a population of 400 and 3 functioning shops (pub, bowlo, and AGnVET)
I've been to the Ungarie Big Sherrin. It was still there in 2021. Kids were not impressed.
Big Prawn Review: ⭐☆☆☆☆
I just got my first car from me gran in woywoy and had ta drive it up to brisbane to put it on the train back up to cairns. Car broke down half way there and I had to sleep in a random carpark. woke up the next morning to find out it was the giant prawn carpark.
Using the Conkers Bad Fur Day tune as reference to the Big Mighty Poo. Bloody brilliant
Do worst schools in Australia
yes!
When "Ashokan Farewell" started playing over stock footage of pineapple farms like the Ken Burns American Civil War documentary, I lost it.