Lau au pays des kangourous: Welcome to Sydney!

My last day in Bali was really nice; I decided to go back to Jimbaran to avoid any kind of hassle, since it’s relatively close to the airport. I met a lovely Portuguese couple from Lisbon while I was walking around the streets and ended up having lunch and spending the afternoon with them before I left to catch my flight :) They told me the weather in Bali had been awful for the past week, so it just confirmed the fact that we made the right decision by going to Thailand!!!

My plane landed in Sydney at 7 am...I went straight to my backpacker hostel but they wouldn't let me check in early, so I had to wait until 2 pm to access my room, which I share with 5 other girls (1 English, 2 German and 2 Japanese) – good vibe, they're really sweet. It cost me around 22 euros/night (seems so expensive compared to Thailand!!).

Maze Backpackers is located on Pitt Street, very central, a 20-minute walk to Circular Quay and a 5-minute walk to Darling Harbour. I don’t think I would recommend it though - it’s not too bad compared to other youth hostels I've been to in the past, but the WiFi connection is absolutely awful: I had to pay 12 dollars for a 7-day “high-speed” Internet access (Global Gossip), which never works properly…It's very annoying since Internet was critical for my job/flat searches during the first few days...I managed to get by thanks to a travel agency providing free WiFi access for backpackers (Wicked Travel on Pitt Street and George Street) and a hotspot at Darling Harbour (near the Chinese Garden) – but I often wished I was back in Asia where you literally have free WiFi everywhere you go! The backpacker is also located right above a pub on a busy street, so it’s always very noisy (no AC, the windows are always open!) There are plenty of other good hostels around though, and from what I've heard it’s better to be around this area than Kings Cross for example!

Anyways, I went straight to Vodafone to get an Australian mobile number, and opened an account at Commonwealth Bank to make an international transfer as soon as possible…Very easy and straightforward compared to what I had to go through in Spain! I then walked right to the Opera House – it was a dream come true…I guess that’s the moment when I actually realized I was finally in Sydney :)

I went to visit a few flats on the second day: the first flat is the one I chose, located next to Redfern train station, a “dodgy” area from what I’d heard (known as "The Block" with an important aboriginal community), but I wanted to check it out anyway (please note that I lived in the UK’s number 1 city of crime for 2 years!). I met a French couple who were living opposite the day of my first visit; they reassured me and told me the flat was a good deal compared to other offers (for someplace central). Other people have told me there’s nothing to worry about, that the area is getting better and as long as I’m street-wise I’ll be fine!

I'm actually moving in tomorrow lunchtime. The landlord is very friendly and helpful, and the flat is fine; not very appealing from the outside but perfectly alright inside. It seems clean enough, not too modern, but all the basic equipment is there. The rent is 210 dollars/week, all included, with a 2-weeks’ notice if I ever want to leave. I’ll reevaluate my budget in two or three months - depending on the job I find and how much money I get per month I might go for something a little more expensive ;)

I’ll be living with three guys, all students: Spanish, German and Chinese…It should be fun being the “New Girl” ;) This is my 7^th shared-flat experience, so I’m looking forward to it!

The second flat I visited was in a very modern building in Darling Harbour (quite touristy, but I think it’s got to be my favourite place in Sydney so far)…The advert mentioned a shared room, but I basically walked in on 4 girls living in one tiny room with bunk beds and an en-suite bathroom + 4 guys in another room… The place was an absolute tip! Needless to say I was not impressed…170 dollars/week (bills not included) – not for me, thank you very much... One of the German girls from the hostel also went to visit a shared room: 20 people living together for 150 dollars/week (with only 2 bathrooms)!

In addition to looking for a flat, I've been sending CVs to various recruitment agencies, and looking through Gumtree, SEEK, SimplyHired, etc… on a daily basis for administration/office support/secretarial work positions…I reckon I've probably sent over 100 CVs in less than 4 days. Hopefully I’ll get some interviews very soon – fingers crossed! All the people I've met so far have told me it shouldn't be difficult for me to find a job, I hope they’re right. There are so many Europeans with WHV out here; you can feel the competition all around.

Another anecdote was my first visit to the doctor/chemist: I got stung by a bee on my first day (typical!!) and it wasn't getting any better after 2 days…The chemist told me it was infected, so I went for a consultation – the 5-minute appointment cost me 70 dollars (!!) and the antibiotics another 22 dollars! Thank god for my WHV insurance…

Apart from that, the weather is perfect: beautiful blue sky all day long, with a nice breeze. We had a heatwave on Friday (45 degrees!!) but it only lasted for one day.

The city feels like a mix between London, New York and Valencia – I really think I’m going to love it here! I met my friend Greg and two of his friends for lunch today which was really nice; they told me about the city and places to go to, so I’m looking forward to seeing more of Sydney very soon! Here are a few pictures ;)