Wagga Wagga is located in the southwest of New South Wales, Australia. The city features, among other things, a main street with an inspiring number of pubs, a river called the Murrumbidgee which has a beach that has to be regularly replaced, and a very distinctive name. Furthermore, with a population of just over 56,000, Wagga Wagga proudly holds the title of being the largest inland city in New South Wales.

Why Wagga Wagga?

The duplication of the word 'Wagga' comes about through the Aboriginal method of pluralisation. The term translates from the Aboriginal language as 'place of many crows'. The majority of the population of Wagga Wagga refer to the city as simply 'Wagga'. However, this doesn't sit well with the pedants who, understandably, think that numerous crows are better than one.

Economic Infrastructure

Wagga's economic infrastructure is based around agriculture, education, and defence, a combination that produces an interesting populace. There's a university campus, a Royal Australian Air Force base, a Royal Australian Army training base, and there was talk of a Royal Australian Navy base¹.

What to do in Wagga Wagga

For visitors to Wagga there is, admittedly, very little to do. One can drive around for a while, though this tends to get terribly monotonous. The nightlife of Wagga offers the unique experience of being able to visit and drink at the nine pubs that have premises on the main street. Of a Friday or Saturday night, it is not unusual to run into the friendly, though unhelpful, drunk parties of students, farmers, army recruits, and misplaced sailors who stumble from one pub to the next.

What's in a Name?

Wagga is a nice enough city with nice enough people. However, people who visit the city purely for its name tend to be disappointed. The trick is to have a reason to visit - preferably work-related - so that when you stumble across something interesting, you can enjoy the pleasant surprise.

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¹ The problem of insufficient coastline was apparently overlooked.