Sydney, Australia

Sydney, Australia
Population of Metropolitan Area: 3,715,000 World Rank: 81
Population Density: 2,080/km^2
Gross Domestic Product: $172,000,000 USD World Rank: 26
Year Founded: 1788

Sydney is the largest city in Australia and the site of the first British Colony in the country. The city is the state capital of New South Wales and is located among the natural beauty of Sydney Harbor. Sydney is particularly interesting to me because it’s past so closely mirrors that of the development of cities in the United States. Experientially Sydney is about as different from American Cities as Canadian ones; however it is located on the other side of the world. Sydney is one of the most multicultural cities in the world, and is a major destination for immigrants to Australia. Sydney also ranks among the most expensive and livable cities in the world.

It’s not hard to understand why so many people want to move to Sydney, its one of only a handful of cities that can offer vibrant city life along with unbelievable natural beauty. To me the city feels a lot like San Francisco or Seattle with the climate of San Diego. Sydney is much more manageable in size and as such I feel that it is more distinct in a number of ways. The city has great topography and more water front than any city I’ve seen so far. Like Seattle, everywhere one turns there are amazing views to be had. The famous Sydney Opera House was designed to be viewed from all sides and can be seen from a great distance.

The city does a good job utilizing its water front. Darling Harbor is very similar to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor and is even finished with similar materials. However Sydney doesn’t have just one harbor, but three. Circular Quay is surrounded with museums and shops which lead to the prominent Opera House. To the south a harbor is lined with the Royal Botanical Gardens.

What is most appealing to me about the city is the interaction of the original English buildings with the modern structures the city has become famous for. Sydney has a wealth of ornate buildings left from its early colonial rule. Most of these buildings are detailed in what seems to be a very orange-brown sandstone. The central train station, town hall, and two other prominent structures all have beautifully detailed clock towers along the lines of an English version of Philadelphia City Hall. The Queen Victoria Building is a 4 story shopping mall, beautifully detailed in the Victorian Style. An entire neighborhood called the Rocks is comprised of period buildings beautifully situated between circular quay and the Sydney Harbor Bridge.

I was really surprised with the shopping in Sydney. I felt like there were an absurd amount of stores for a city of its size. Unfortunately though, the prices In Sydney were just as absurd. I ended up not buying a souvenir simply because every time I would find a shirt I liked it’d be at least 50 AUS. It wasn’t uncommon for simple t-shirts to be over 100 AUS. I guess that’s the unfortunate part of living in a highly desired city is that you have to put up with the high living costs.

Coming from Tokyo Sydney really felt like a city in the sense that I have known it. As such Sydney is not able to escape the homelessness, as it is a reasonably visible problem. For the most part it seemed that the CBD has been cleaned up, but on the edge of town by the central train station there were a number of homeless. Also while it would be hard to find much in the way of undesirable property in the CBD, it doesn’t take too long to find some areas that look like the could use some help as you move out of the city. For the first two nights I was in town I stayed out in Collaroy Beach, which is about 6 miles north of the city. I thought it would be good to see some of the beaches as I know that they are such a part of many coastal cities such as those in Southern California. In many ways I think this was a mistake on my part. There wasn’t a whole lot going on at the beach where I was at, it seemed very quiet and while not in disrepair, clearly the area was not thriving. With that said the beach was absolutely beautiful, although it was too cold to swim. An endless beach gave way to tide pools and cliffs, atop which large ranch style homes dominated. I am glad that I saw the beach, I think I had plenty of time to see the city, but I think I saw the wrong beach, it sounds like Bondi Beach south of the city is the place to be. Also the hostel I was at in town was substantially better. I met tons of people from England, and some from Germany, Denmark, and South Korea.
It’s hard not to like Sydney. Like I said before it’s one of those rare places that is able to combine world class city living in a pristine environment. To me I think it has just about everything going for it. The public transit system seems to work pretty well; they have a combination of subways, streetcars, and a monorail. Admittedly the bus system is a little strange. It is required to prepurchase tickets per ride bases on distance, however there is no explanation and I was actually told to wait for the bus and ask the driver. With that said though the system probably makes more sense to locals and the buses run frequently and all night. But with so much within walking distance I don’t see the need to do much else. There is little doubt in my mind that Sydney is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, it’s just a shame it’s so far away.