Viewing 20 posts - 1 through 20 (of 20 total)
  • Anyone Lived in Syndey (Aus)??
  • burgatedicky
    Full Member

    Looking at going for a 12-month internship in a large equine veterinary practice out in Sydney from September.
    However, I’ve no family out there and the the small number of people I do know down-under all live several hundred miles from Sydney.

    Not saying I’m incapable of meeting new people, but just wondering if anyone has lived/lives in that neck of the woods who could give me some info as to what kind of city is it.
    Cost of living?
    Affordability of accommodation?
    Quality of life?
    Friendliness of the locals?
    etc etc…

    It’ll be a bit of a leap having only ever lived/worked in the UK so far!
    Any hints/tips (even its to tell me to look somewhere else!) would be great,

    Cheers!

    headfirst
    Free Member

    Still time to edit title

    vinnyeh
    Full Member

    The first thing I’d do, if on an internship, would be to investigate the cost of living issue…. 😉

    CaptainFlashheart
    Free Member

    Not lived there, but visit for work.

    Cost of living? Not as cheap as it used to be. It’s pretty much on a par with any other major world city these days. Some superb food, though!
    Accommodation – Not too sure, to be honest. However, I usually stay with a mate who earns a ” pretty reasonable” wage for a mid-30s professional, and he has a nice, but small, two bedroom place ten minutes walk from Bondi.
    Quality of life? Ace. Lovely, slow lifestyle. Like stepping back in time sometimes! Beaches, nice weather (much of the time) and a very nice relaxed culture (At least around the CBD). Weekends still seem to be weekends, not just another day to check your Blackberry, which is really refreshing.
    Friendliness of the locals – Overall, great! However, outside Sydney it gets much, much friendlier IMHO. As with any major world city, I suppose.

    One other thing – Sydney is HUGE! Sprawls for miles and miles, far beyond the size you might expect for the population.

    RichPenny
    Free Member

    My sister is living there as a student, so it must be possible on the cheap. There are some pretty rough suburbs so you’ll find somewhere. Where is your work based?

    wrightyson
    Free Member

    My best mate lives in manly which I think is like a suburb of Sydney. He loves it but reckons its more expensive than living in London. Beers out are royally expensive and accomodation is too. However he pulls different chicks each week so he reckons its ok 🙄

    Midnighthour
    Free Member

    One of my friends went out with his wife and 2 kids on a 1 year contract as a favour to his firm. Rented his house out here, intending to come back to his job held open.

    He has another 2 year contract over there now as they did not want to come back and I presume hope never to, so has willingly lost permanently the job held open for him here. Last I heard he was planning to ship his pet sports car over in a container with the rest of the stuff they still had left here. He was on I would guess £70,000 at least here and a nice cottage, so his willingness to move says it all… they love the quality of life there and the people. They all look really happy in the photos they send.

    takisawa2
    Full Member

    Wasn’t keen on it.
    Preferred Brisbane.
    Loved Brisbane.

    Was only a holiday though. 🙂

    CaptainFlashheart
    Free Member

    On that note, Melbourne is nicer than Sydney. Canberra’s duller than beige, though.

    cloudnine
    Free Member

    Lived in Avalon (northern beaches of Sydney) for the best part of a year working, surfing and loving it up with a Swedish babe.
    Great place to live but seemed like a lot of local aholes. Be very wary of spiders, ants, ticks and snakes.
    Would definately go back if given a chance but would be very choosy about which area.

    Pigface
    Free Member

    The Captain is right Melbourne is way nicer.

    Friends emigrated to Sydney and just love it, they are a boozy couple with a sports mad teenager and have the best of both worlds, commuting is a bit stressful that seems the only downside.

    smogmonster
    Full Member

    I work in PApua New Guinea, so visit Oz a lot, and travel through Sydney quite a bit. The biggest shocker is the cost of living, its truly extortionate, and that applies to everywhere ive been in Oz, be it Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Cairns. Last time i bought a can of coke and a Twix…$9 (about GBP6). If youre getting a decent wage (at least AUD 80-90k, then i would say go for it, i suspect, and it depends on your lifestyle, any less would be a struggle. Quality of Life is awesome though. Now if only i could get the missus to emigrate from Swaledale…….(sighs).

    Forgot to add…Ive worked in many countries worldwide, and the Aussies are easily the friendliest of the lot.

    konabunny
    Free Member

    Yes. It’s awesome.

    Not saying I’m incapable of meeting new people, but just wondering if anyone has lived/lives in that neck of the woods who could give me some info as to what kind of city is it.
    Cost of living?
    Affordability of accommodation?
    Quality of life?
    Friendliness of the locals?
    etc etc…

    Cost of living: high, one of the most expensive places in the world. Eating out is fantastically expensive: I paid $26 for a chicken parm and chips at a pub yesterday.

    Affordability of accommodation: low. Expensive as hell. But where is the place you’re looking at? Terrey Hills or somewhere out there? Southern Highlands or the Hunter Valley? That will have a big impact on your costs. Can you drive and would you want a car?

    Quality of life: awesome. It’s great here.

    Friendliness of the locals: high, even for a bad-tempered sociopath like me.

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    Oz cost of living in general is good. Comparison with uk prices is pointless unless your a tourist. The exchange rate is now about 1.5$ compared to 2.5 $ when I was last here in 09. Living costs are about the same. Most state capital cities are Higher for housing but good for food etc. Alcohol tax is high but petrol is cheap.

    Worth noting the locals like to whinge about the state of the economy and cost of things. They should look at the rest of the world!

    Legoman
    Free Member

    My sister’s been there for 10 years, cost of living is high as you’d expect for a large city, particularly accommodation if you want to be striking distance from the centre, but wage levels are good.

    Comparison with UK prices is pointless unless your a tourist

    True, but it’s relevant if you want relatives/ friends from the UK to visit you over there – the current exchange rate will make Oz holidays impossible for many right now and a year’s a long time to go without seeing any of your family for some people.

    Great opportunity though – grasp it. You’re asking the right questions by the sound of it, you’ll be fine.

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    It’s true, my folks are coming out in December which will be about 2 years after I came out. In the end it’s more a problem of coming from the UK/Europe, £ just isn’t worth very much these days 🙂

    ebygomm
    Free Member
    konabunny
    Free Member

    Comparison with UK prices is pointless unless your a tourist

    Yes, but comparison with overseas prices is pointful 😉 if you are affected in any way by overseas competition i.e. everyone.

    ampthill
    Full Member

    I have 2 friends who live in Sydney

    They post an endless stream of photos of them on clubs rides. All smiling in perfect sunshine

    I’ll find the name of the club if you go

    konabunny
    Free Member

    Roadies? Knee deep in em.

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