Mark at Sydney Uni in 99 (Skiving off from a Conference at UWS Parramatta, captured just before wine consumption in Glebe)
The Emerald City?
At last, a musing on life from me. I quit my job at QUT today. I’ve worked there for eight years, which is long enough. I’m applying for a job at Macquarie Uni. Heaps of people I went to Uni with did the whole “leave Brissie, go to Sydney or Melbourne” thing about ten years ago. A number have now come back. Being a BrisVegas boy, I’ve always resisted the temptation until now. Any advice for a member of the aspirational living in Sydney class? Any decent places to rent under $200 a week (yeah, you gotta laugh…). If I get the job, what’s the transition like for us small town folks?
Macquarie is a bit out of my comfort zone but there are decent 1 (or even 2) bedrooms for under $200 in the inner west so there must be heaps out there too.
$200/week? Are you talking per room?
Yeah, I’m guessing you’re a Newton/Glebe kind of guy, though transport to Mac U is a bitch from there. If you’re really aspirational, get a spot on the beach or harbour and really blow your dough. Maybe Bondi or Manly. I think bus connections to Mac U are better from Manly if you’re not a driver.
North Ryde seemed like standard suburbia last time I was there – QUT has a much better location.
Fyodor, I have a nice 1br in Marrickville for $165/week. Sure its the unfashionable part of the inner west but we like it. Newtown, Leichhradt, Glebe, probably not.
I was the bearded slob reading a book underneath the jacaranda tree. Probably Mysteries Of Udolpho. Two weeks before my dissertation was due that year, and I was stuck in the middle of that 500-page-wad of Gothic fantasy! So I suppose I’m not really the one to be prodding you about the thesis…
Andrew is spot on in that the area is pretty much surburbia. Lane Cove is not a bad suburb sort of close by. Not sure on transport or rent to Macquarie though.
If you haven’t already, try http://www.domain.com.au/ to get an idea of rental prices.
Move to Melbourne and commute.
It’s Darp territory, there, and where my outlaws live. Suburban, yes, but very green. This is something Enmore lacks (where I used to live, between Newtown and Marrickville). On the other hand, you are highly unlikely to ever hear a leaf blower in the inner west.
When you start meeting people, many will say “Welcome to Sydney” when they find out that you’re new. They will turn out to be born somewhere other than Sydney.
You will be a neighbour since I am at Eastwood.
no town can call itslef Vegas unless there is a slotmachine ( Yank term used as Aussie expression is understandably banned) in the toilet!
Many thanks! Yeah, $200 a week per room is what I was thinking of – I’m currently paying $150 a room to live in New Farm – and that’s a bit below market rental because we negotiated a long term lease and our agent prefers to lease to employed tenants who want to hang around rather than students who might not for so long.
Yes, Glebe, Newtown, and the inner Eastern suburbs are the parts of Sydney I know best (and Cronulla from when I was a kid and holidaying with rellos). Amanda, I don’t mind the slightly outer inner west – ie Marrickville.
Last time I went to a thing at Macquarie, I found the bus from the city not too bad. When I was working at UQ Ipswich for a semester, I didn’t mind the hour’s travelling time – train and bus rides are good times to read and think. Andrew, I actually do most of my work at Carseldine (some at Kelvin Grove and Gardens Point) though I used to have an office in the city, and at one point a 9th floor one with a river view (another time one on the 4th floor with a view of the Botanic Gardens) but Carseldine is just outer northern suburbia with absolutely nothing around it but houses and a few shops.
I quite liked the Macquarie campus the couple of times I visited.
My motivation is not to move to Sydney as such, but employment driven. Though I wouldn’t mind living in Sydney certainly! So I’ll keep you guys up to date as to how the job search goes.
btw. TimT, I thought I remembered you!
If you are going to go for inner west go for Marrickville/Sydenham as great train services from Sydenham station. Rest of inner city stations trains only run every 20 min in peak hour (that is assuming they are not running late or cancelled which is about par for the course lately. You should be able to get somewhere decent at that $.
Zoe’s right – if anyone in Sydney is friendly it’s because they grew up elsewhere.
Good luck!
Leigh and Zoe – friends who moved to Syd mentioned that they mainly ended up hanging out with fellow Brisvegas exiles and Melburnians…
Yeah doesn’t surprise me. From my experience the Sydney born and breds are an insular lot – they never seem to stray far from the suburbs where they grew up and the friends they went to school with (especially the private school types).
Don’t worry you will find plenty of imports in the inner west.
You should try the Block in Redfern ?
I doubt if anyone ever picked a suburb on the strength of advice from blog commenters but, for what it’s worth, everything depends on whether you have a car. If not, and if you are at Macquarie, you will need to be near the City, or somewhere on the bus route from the City. If you have a car, you will probably end up in the inner West, or in the outer inner West, i.e. somewhere down the road from Geoff. If you want to reduce your driving time and still be handy to the City, I’d suggest Drummoyne, which has a quite a bit of charm. But Sydney local ABC talkback is pretty entertaining (except for Sally Loane, unless you’re especially interested in underage drinking), so driving is not so bad.
Underage drinking or the evils of rap lyrics. Or the best way to import an outdoor oven from Italy.
Don’t drive!
If you see some fool walking down the street wearing a beret and a bemused expression, wave, it’s probably me.
If you are using public transport, it helps if you can start either very early or very late and avoid peak hour. This makes commuting more peaceful and often quite a bit faster, ie, you can live a bit further away.
Mark, you’d make a welcome addition to MQ Sociology. And although the student camaraderie isn’t as great as other Sydney unis, the campus is the prettiest in Sydney by a long way.
If you’re pragmatic about your travel times, James has it bang on the money. Drummoyne is pretty convenient. Lane Cove is ok too. I lived there for 18 months and I’d go back if I got a job at MQ because it’s just so damn convenient to the city and to MQ.
If cafes with all day breakfasts and vegan restaurants are you thing – and you don’t mind plus public transport commutes ie. you have a 40gb iPod – go for the inner west. With the traffic of Lane Cove Road in peak hours (and the Lane Cove bypass is at least a few years away) and the general impossibility of getting reliable connections in the city, expect an hour and a half each way.
Can’t say vegan restaurants are really my thing, dk.au but cafes with all day breakfasts are. Good wine bars are too. I trust you can get a good latte in Sydney :)
what will Brisvegas do without you, Mark? are you looking for work here too?
re “From my experience the Sydney born and breds are an insular lot – they never seem to stray far from the suburbs where they grew up and the friends they went to school with (especially the private school types).”
Fourth generation Sydneysider: I live about 15km from where I grew up and am only remotely in touch with anyone I went to school with.
Mark, you could also consider Lilyfield, Rozelle, which might be on a bus route to MU and are closer in to the city – I’m not sure about rental prices though.
You can also catch a train to Eastwood then bus to MU, and the train line covers from Redfern to Strathfield…
Cheers, susoz. I’m only remotely in touch with anyone I went to school with too.