05 April 2010
Today could be characterized as the good, the bad, and the downright ugly.
The good was the Manly Scenic Walkaway (MSW), the 3 to 4 hour bushwalk we tackled along the Middle and North Harbours (card #s 48 and 49 for those of you keeping track). We started the walk from a rather random bus stop along a 4-lane highway near the Spit Bridge. This bus stop was not the same stop the card described, which either no longer exists or the driver chose to just blow past, given the horrific traffic (which we have seen much of here in Sydney). That bus stop sounded downright scenic, with a lovely stairway leading down to the water’s edge. Our bus stop was anything but, and we were temporarily dumbfounded when the sidewalk ended and we were forced to determine how to cross the road.
Now in Sydney (much like Rome), cars do not give right-of-way to pedestrians even when there’s an obvious crosswalk, so it was clearly going to be nothing less than harrowing to get across those four lanes with no crosswalk in sight. And yet, another couple dumped off the bus with us were already strolling leisurely down the MSW on the other side. Now how in the heck did they manage that?
I am not exaggerating when I say that it took us a solid 15 minutes to find a brief enough break in the 100 km/hr traffic to scurry across. If it sounds a little like dangerous and a lot like crazy, frankly, it was, but with no sidewalk, no bus, and no way around, it was what we had to do. If Mr. Sydney City Walk Cards is reading this, time to update #48.
Despite its auspicious start, the remainder of our MSW walk was really quite lovely. The public accessibility of prime, waterfront shoreline along the Sydney harbour (and ocean, for that matter) continues to amaze us. We would rarely see this in the states, where mansions hug available coastlines and those of us balanced lower on the socio-economic ladder (and I’ll have more to say on this in a bit) are rarely allowed access to their prime shores and views. But here in Sydney, we have been treated to such access time and time again. In some small way it reminds us of our bike travels in Europe, where cycling paths cross directly through farmers’ properties and owners wave hello at you when you pass through, rather than glare or motion for you to quickly depart. How the Sydneysider mansion owners along these public paths feel about giving us access is something we know nothing about, but we have certainly enjoyed traipsing alongside their properties, enjoying their stunning views.
Our walk ended in the surfing town of Manly. Gina proclaimed this town to be where it’s at, for on one side are the calming harbour views and on the other, the energizing ocean views. Maybe we need to consider basing ourselves out of Manly? It’s only a 30-minute (passenger only) ferry ride up the harbour to downtown, there are plenty of services here, and it feels a world away from the bustle of the Eastern Suburbs. Perhaps just our cup of tea?
Here’s where the good meets the bad and the ugly. As we’ve mentioned, the housing prices here in Sydney are astronomically high, with the goods and services prices close on their heels. We may complain about the high cost of this or that in the States, but those costs pale in comparison to what we are seeing Sydneysiders pay for the same products, many of which are packaged in even smaller amounts – so not only are you paying more, but you are getting even less. Add to this a single-earner household with no job-subsidized anything and you start to realize that you are no longer on that same socio-economic rung that you were on in Seattle. Based on our math, we’d say we’ve dropped at least two rungs. Probably a good life lesson for us and no doubt part of taking on the challenges (and rewards) of moving internationally, but an adjustment nonetheless.
Starting to sense that our housing buying power isn’t what it was back home, we were somewhat mentally prepared for the downright ugly that came next. But only somewhat, for there is the “Really? You’ve got to be kidding” factor that is difficult to completely embrace.
It began with a For Lease sign hanging on a 4th floor condo on the ocean side of Manly. A quick phone call to the owner – let’s just check it out – and we learned the unit was already taken. However, the owner had another rental on the harbour side, with a view of the ferry, for $2600/mo (NOT a typo, simply what one pays to live in Sydney). As Gina recited our wish list for the new place – 2 bedrooms, furnished, with built-ins and storage – the owner said “tick tick tick, my unit has them all.” Great! When can we see it? In 30 minutes? Fabulous, we’ll be there.
The outside of the building was definitely 1960s, which wasn’t a tick in our new and/or modern box. But there are thousands of those buildings sprinkled throughout Sydney’s neighborhoods, and our online research has shown that although a significant number appear to be quite dumpy, some are remodeled, so we still had hope. Besides, we could see that the unit had a large deck that did indeed point toward the harbour. That deck could make everything worthwhile.
Well, if wishes were fishes, Gina and I would be swimming the ocean depths right now. Things were already not looking good when we caught sight of the ragged plywood front door. Upon opening, the next thing to catch our eye was the carpeting, and I use that term loosely. Do glued-down squares of Astroturf count as carpet? Sure, we could have painted a gridiron on the floor and had a hell of a Superbowl party, but that wasn’t quite what we had in mind for $2600 A MONTH. There were, indeed, 2 bedrooms, but one was lit so poorly that I shudder to think what was lurking in the corners. The shuddering continued in the kitchen and bathroom, which had clearly never felt the underside of a mop or the joy of Scrubbing Bubbles. But the real kicker was the deck. An absolutely fantastic lookout upon the harbour and part of Manly town … viewed through the haze of marijuana smoke. How anyone in this building could afford to be smoking reefer while paying $2600 A MONTH for this total dump was beyond me. And how the owner could seriously think that her unit ticked off all our boxes and was worthy of $2600 A MONTH was well beyond us both, not even in our universe of possibilities.
We’ll keep looking, as one unit doesn’t necessarily (or hopefully) speak for all, but there’s definitely the possibility that for those of you planning a visit, an aerobed in the living room will need to suffice. To ensure we play fair, we’ll park it at mid-field.