Tales from a Bruised Mind

It’s been precisely 764 days since I first arrived in Sydney. Or the equivalent of two years and one month.

And to be completely honest, I’m still struggling.

I don’t really feel at home here, and I likely never will. I’ve been pretty vocal about this, especially in my book, but I thought it needed to be addressed again, right here and now.

Here’s why I dislike Sydney:

1. Sydney is not a forgiving city. What I mean by this is that Sydney is high pressure and most people are working at 120 percent all of the time. There is not a lot of down-time in Sydney town
2. Sydney is not very friendly. In fact, recent studies came out to say that this was in fact true, and that Sydney was not one of the friendliest places to live or spend time in.
3. Sydney is extremely busy and the traffic is shit. Don’t try and drive anywhere at peak hour, or even on the weekends. It’s stressful and much, much busier than Brisbane, for instance.
4. Sydney friend groups are close knit and hard to break in to. A lot of the friend groups in Sydney spawn from school, university and work. For an outsider to become part of this group, it’s very, very difficult.
5. Sydney is not better than Melbourne, or Brisbane, or Adelaide. As much as Sydney folk will try and tell you this, it’s simply not true. And those people are usually the ones who have grown accustomed to Sydney and its pure craziness

Okay, so I won’t completely bag out on Sydney. I have done a pretty good job as it is.

Sydney, for me, does have some upsides. There is more work here if you’re a journalist or media professional. Sydney has great food, and beautiful beaches, and lots to do and see.

The Opera House alone is enough for me to kind of love Sydney… a little bit.

But the reality is that I haven’t cracked the code of Sydney, and I don’t think I ever will.

I will not buy a house or apartment here, and I sure as shit won’t start a family here. It’s just too hectic, and very ‘not-me’.

Maybe, in years to come, I will come back to Sydney and try it all again. But, for now, I am merely surviving the shitshow that is Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Love,

Zak