Nine days of HELL "Sydney almost as cheep as possible."

It's tenth day of our multi-millennia journey to ? and we checked our financial statements and came to the conclusion that Sydney is one F#*%?n expensive city, but we managed to get by and this is the story how. Once our jet plane landed at Sydney airport (so long ago) our little feet felt the sudden need to be used. So we walked to the city, this ate three hours of our time, but saved fifteen dollars in dinero. Accommodation is the best way to save, so our attempt is to be as cheap as possible, as long as we have a place to sleep and a place to store our few things and a spot to feed our cockroaches, who number in many and they come in various shapes and sizes. My personal favorite is the ear canal sized individual, who goes deep in for a hard night labor, to eat the yellow substance that our ears are so keen to produce (no personal experience). Our Sydney maximum limit for accommodation was 20 AUD, witch we unfortunately had to pay for our first night as Sydney virgins, until we found the fabulous and infamous Pots Point House for lost souls. Only fifteen dollars per butt, one night, or one hundred colorful notes for one week. We ended up staying for eight nights.

Food is expensive if bought, but dumpster diving is hard or impossible at the moment so another solution had to be found. Gladly a local food drive for poor, incapable and us really helped along. Free salad and sandwiches, some Indian food and most awesome carrot cake are good reasons to stand in line and wait for with all them addicts and lovely clean homeless people. Food had been donated by stores and restaurants and it had been prepared the same day. Unfortunately the food drive we chose to go is only open from Wednesday to Friday, but is held by jolly happy people and they are very nice to all. Good thing I look like a bum. That being free we only had to pay for the rest of our meals except that one strange night the nice manager of our hostel bought us a twenty dollar family size pizza, we don't know why, but she said "cos I can".

We also used the fabulous in-house industrial kitchen to cook food we bought from Coles supermarket and this saved us a humongous piles of dead squirrels. We ate peanut butter on dark toast and extra hard boiled eggs with salad from the food drive for breakfast. Lunch was mostly things with falafel from Lebanon eateries, the only cheap thing on the street and good too, taking around seven dollars to another pocket. Snacks are eaten all the time by me and they consist of fruit and nuts. Orange balls are better than average and are quite cheap to purchase for around dollar and a half for a kilo and they are Australian grown as most of the fresh things in Coles. Dinner is a food drive privileged meal on the days that it is possible. On others we relay on the old faithful and stick with the cockroaches and cook in der kitchen. In Cambodia 2007 I ate deep fried crass hoppers, and they were quite good, so perhaps we need to lay our traps and catch us some evil cockroaches for my mad cook / secret perpetual science initiative to make free food of crawling things, at least it would be free ranged. We are vegetarians, but I do it on moral basis, so are insects sentient beings is the question of the day?

Extra money was spent on a return ferry ticket to Manly and that day of joy cost was 14 and some things small in dollars. We made lunch in the morning at the hostel and ate it at the steps of miniature North Korea in the cold ocean wind. Our visit to China town was "ok", for it is yet another "we sell you crap you will never need/want for ridiculous prices no one will ever pay" joint of things and some more things to be sold, not used and discarded to the dump just on the brink of the end. But the food court in Dixon house in Dixon street had nice oriental eateries for our bellies to enjoy at affordable prices. Seven dollars for green curry with tofu is cheap in Sydney as it is the tenth most expensive city in the world. All together our weekly budget is about two hundred and fifty AUD per person, but we used mas o menos fifty dollars less per person than our budget would allow.

All together Sydney is full of wonders, nice and interesting people, who are accustomed to talking to strangers, lovely scenery, free museums (we checked out the New South Wales Art Gallery Next To WOOLLOOMOOLOO), many things to do and places to be even for cheap bums like us. I like Sydney and it's people, who share a positive and good feel among each other and they do live in one lovely city. Only thing they should do is to move the cars underground and that city would be complete. The botanical gardens of Sydney is a must for all, so shut up, book a boat, back your packs and sail across the universe to the end of the world to feel the wonders social people have to offer to the weary traveler.

Only the Wombats are missing, but still a lovely city and definitely worth the six hundred and fifty Euros for the plain fare, two hundred and something for working holiday visa, five hundred for vaccinations not needed in Australia, but in the Asian countries might save our lives, a new passport and plenty of positivity (Wombo can tell you of that). I like this thing called traveling. 

 

Wompon (epamaaraisia) havaintoja Sydneysta

• Autot paastaa jalankulkijat melkein aina!
• Liikennevalot paastaa hassun laserpyssy-aanen kun vaihtuu vihrea ja useimmiten ei paase puolivalia pidemmalle kun punainen jo vilkkuu.
• Hassun nimisia kauppoja, esim Grandfather's Moustache. Oma lemppari on PieFace.
• Ihmiset on ystavallisia ja aina saa suunta-apua kun kysyy, eras falafel-rullan meille tehnyt nainen haki jopa takahuoneesta paperia ja piirti meille kartan :D
• Kohtaamamme ihmiset ovat pitaneet kavelya melko hulluna, ainakin jos kohteeseen paasisi bussillakin.
• Yksi suuri hammennyksen kohde oli se, etta pizzerioita oli tosi vahan (ainakin Tampereeseen verrattuna) ja ne harvat olivat sen verran hinnakkaita, (normi Suomi-kokoa pienempi pizza 10e!) etta ei tullut niita syotya. Tosin niissa on hyvat, paikalliset materiaalit, ei purkkikamaa.
• Erittain hieno ja mukava asia on se, etta kaupunki on taynna puhtaita, saippualla-varustettuja ja ennen kaikkea ilmaisia vessoja! Haha. Siihen ei ole Suomessa tottunut.
• Ainakin ne museot mihin menimme, olivat myos ilmaisia.
• Toinen yllatys oli se, (ei pelkastaan Sydneyssa) etta aurinko laskee niin aikaisin.
  Jo kuudelta illalla! Se vaikeuttaa hieman paikkojen katselua, koska kuuden jalkeen ei naa mitaan ja usein ollaankin lepailty hostellilla illat tai kayty ottamassa pimeyskuvia. Se on hirmukivaa! Pitaa soveltaa paljon kun ei ole jalustaa mukana.
• Saa tuli myos mukavana yllatyksena, vain kahtena paivana on ollut pilvista, yleensa taysin sininen taivas :) Ja lamminta on, Bondi Beachilla melkein paloimme molemmat.
• Matkustuksen sesonkiaika vaikuttaa pelottavalta, Sydneyssa hinnat nousee ylimpiin pilviin. Hostellien yohinnat melkein tuplaantuu, meidankin rupumaja nousee 25$/night (nyt siis 15$). Toivottavasti ollaan siina vaiheessa jo mukavasti tyollistettyja tms.
• Ja viimeiseksi huomioksi sellainen asia, minka tajusin vasta kun lahdettiin pois ja juna kulki isojen parkkipaikkojen ohi. Nimittain Sydneyssa en nahnyt yhtakaan parkkipaikkaa, siella oli vain parkkihalleja ja niiden katot olivat puutarhoja. Oikein kiva.

Sydney oli kokonaisuudessaan oikein mukava kaupunki, ehdoton lempparipaikka oli Royal Botanic Gardens. Siella vaan oli niin kaunista ja rauhallista ja fiilis oli hyva. Siella oli kyltti, jossa kehotettiin kavelemaan polkujen lisaksi nurmikolla, haistelemaan kukkia, juttelemaan linnuille ja halaamaan puita.

 Wolloomooloo that way...