I tried connectting to the online broadcasting streams of local ABC radio stations. But neither 702 Sydney nor 744 Melbourne could give me a smooth connection. I got lags all the time, even at the low rate of 20kb/s, I got fragmented sentences that are broken by the constant internet lag.
Half an hour later, I gave up. I know things might turn better if I use ProxyCap to redirect the connection of Windows Media Player to a proxy which has a faster connection speed with Australian site. But that would be too complicated, first I've got to find a free working proxy, then capture Windows Media Player's connection port and then redirect the traffic of that port to the proxy.
Anyway, you can skip the second paragraph because it's too technical. To put it simple, I was forced to tune in NPR live streaming yet once again in a futile attempt to listen to stations with more decent accent, such as Australian ones.
Australian accent, I should say, one closer to that of the British Isles certainly has its own flavors. It's lighter, happier and less serious than the British accent, but not as playful as the American ones. There are many historic reasons and also geographical reasons for that difference. I presume that climate is a big factor. While the British Isles are constantly encompassed by gloomy and unpleasant rainy days, its people turn to the side of sarcasm. Australia on the contrary, has ample sunshine and beautiful beaches which made its people more lively and artsy. The same climate factor can also explain Germany and Italy. Gemany's bad weather contributed to many great philosophers and mad extremists like Carl Marx and Hitler. But Italy's Mediterranean climate and long coastal lines generated most of the prominent art masters of the renaissance.
I'll write more here concerning other geographical reasons for this matter, now I have to go for lunch.
Fine, overwhelm me with that American accent so prevailing and so omnipresent until I'm too old to switch my own.