What to Wear in Australia? A Trendy Beanie, of Course ; Central Australian Aborigines Keep Everything from Car Keys to Photos of the Grandkids under Their Beloved Beanies

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The sunburnt, red landscape of central Australia is usually celebrated for its unrelenting heat. But at this time of year - winter in the Southern Hemisphere - it's the cold that rules.

And for many people that means one thing: beanie season.

If you use the definition of the organizers of Alice Springs' just-concluded annual Beanie Festival, a beanie is "any head gear whose primary function is warmth."

But that doesn't mean people here settle for austere wool noggin warmers that you'd wear through a New England winter.

A good beanie is handmade, colorful, bound to inspire giggles and rivalries and, occasionally, even a good debate.

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