In Australia, what we would call “hiking” is referred to as “bushwalking.”  Gina and I have developed a new yet similar activity, called “hoodwalking.”  This is an activity performed by expatriates – in our case, Americans – who are in search of the perfect neighborhood for settling down in for a few years on their 457 visas.  Similar to bushwalking, it requires a good map, sturdy shoes, and a decent sense of direction.  Differently, perhaps, it also requires a visa card and willingness to try on clothing sizes that at home, would throw you instantly into Jenny Craig mode.

Yesterday, as my Australian flu released its stranglehold on my energy level and returned me to a still under par but now recognizable human being, we hoodwalked the Darlinghurst and Paddington neighborhoods, to the east of the CBD (Central Business District).  We must give a shout-out here to Cousin Cynthia, who armed us with the City Walks card series for Sydney – “50 Adventures on Foot.”  Gina plays these cards every day like Kenny Rogers, counting her blessings while sitting at the table, mixing and matching card after card until she has the perfect winning hand for the day.  So thank you, Cousin Cynthia, for supporting her OCD with the perfect gift of organization (each card is numbered and each walk fully described) and activity (the distance varies by card type).  For anyone traveling to a new city, we would highly recommend the City Walks series.

The Darlinghurst neighborhood is described in one of our tourism books as mingling “seediness with a certain hedonistic style.”  Not necessarily our cup of tea but worth a look, we thought.  What we found were some interesting side streets where one might want to share a weekend coffee with friends, but when we ended up back at the burrito stand in Kings Cross, where traffic signals aren’t the only red lights, we decided that this neighborhood might still be a bit more inner-city than is to our liking.

Onward to Paddington, formerly a slum neighborhood a century ago but lately gentrified, the colorful terrace homes remodeled and restored.  Think what you will, but Gina and I prefer the term gentrified over seedy, suggesting Paddington could be full of promise.  Heading into the neighborhood via Oxford Street, a rather busy, 6-lane road but on this more eastern end, less of a Highway 99 and more of a Ballard-esque Market Street on shopping steroids, our eyes caught sight of a Sale sign in a Sketchers store.  Something actually on sale in Sydney?  Something we might pay a normal price for, rather than a 300% mark-up?  This we had to see.

Fondling the merchandise inside, with its shiny red stickers, we quickly learned that one had to stick to the sale rack, no matter what else caught your eye.  The same Sketcher sandals I had purchased a few years ago in Seattle for somewhere around $50 were on the non-sale rack for $139.  That is about $23/per square inch of material.  At these prices, we will (a) continue to wear what we’ve shipped, even if it means cutting off sleeves and pant legs and walking around like island castaways in order to tolerate this hot climate, and/or (b) pester family and friends back home to send us care packages from Macy’s and REI.  Luckily Gina found a pair of sandals that she’s been in desperate need of (desperate being a relative term but not so far off track, given her tennis-shoed feet on these melting hot days) that bore a red sticker, and even more luckily, her new Australian visa card was not denied.

The next shop down the street also had a Sale sign in its storefront, and bore the name “Sportsgirls.”  How perfect for us?  Let’s go inside and see what summertime wear we can gather from here.  Having been warned by Shelly of Bellevue that sizing is different Down Under, Gina, normally a size 6, bumped up her sale rack selections by a size or two, thinking that couldn’t possibly be right but then again, those sundresses did look small and she had been eating out a lot lately.  Let’s see, size 8?  Forget about it.  Size 10?  Nope, that wouldn’t even fit over her big mane of hair.  Size 12?  Hello Goldilocks, I’d say Baby Bear’s bed is just about right.  But then again, skinny, boney Gina as a size 12?  We are definitely living in a different land.  Shelly of Bellevue – you were right on target.

The other take-home lesson from our mini-shopping spree?  If you see a price tag of $50 or less, buy it.  Grab four oversized versions off the rack, try them on, tell yourself they look great no matter how unflattering, and don’t leave the store without a full shopping bag and receipt.  It’s that or start saving for a round-trip ticket back home to the Mall of America.

Shopping completed, we wandered into the terrace-homed neighborhood of Paddington, deciding that this was a neighborhood we could very well enjoy.  Close to multiple parks and the CBD, serviced by several buses that can take one out to Bondi Beach or back into the city, and not a far wander from a few harbourside vistas, Paddington has made our short-list of possible places to call home.  We have yet to check the rental prices there, which, if anything like the rack prices at Sketchers and Sportsgirls, could send us wandering in a different direction, but at least it’s a start.  City Walk cards #20 and #21 get two thumbs up.