Ah, I love the smell of Eucalyptus in the mornings. Unfortunately, I haven't smelled any yet as I'm staying in the CBD of Sydney. CBD is the acronym for the central business district. Anywho, I'm staying at the Holiday Inn in Darling harbor which is pretty nice. Room service, clean sheets, 27 dollar a night internet... Yeah, that's right. 27 dollars a night. well, no, that's not true. It's 27.50.
This brings me to the first point of this post. Sydney is EXPENSIVE. It's expensive for the people who live here, but it's even more expensive for American tourists. Bear in mind that Minimum wage in Australia is almost 14 dollars an hour. I'll give a run down of some of the more obscene pricing I've seen:
7 dollars for 1.5 liter of "Mount franklin water"
18 dollars for cheese steak at nearby food court
12 dollars for a pack of cigarettes
55 dollars for a bottle of Stoli (1 liter)
19 dollars for a movie ticket and a bottle of water
50 dollars for a 25 minute taxi ride from airport
As you can see, Sydney is very much like NY and charges premium on top of premium for even average goods. I have found places to get some stuff less expensive (I shop at the thai IGA for some groceries. I now get water for 2 liters for 4 dollars), but the prices are still a hard pill to swallow.
One thing I will say for Sydney is that people here are very fit for the most part. People here are also Japanese and Chinese for the most part, so I guess that helps. I'm staying on the edge of Chinatown, so I'm definately a member of the minority here. But even once you leave Chinatown, there is a heavy representation of Chinese and Japanese. I'm currently trying to build up the courage to eat at one of the authentic establishments, but once I hear them say, "Irashaimasen" I feel that tingle go down my spine and I chicken out. The best that I've done is to eat at a sushi place with a conveyor belt. Sushi wasn't bad and it gave me a thrill to eat at a location such as I have seen in various anime's. There are without exaggeration probably 100 Ramen locations in walking distance. Average price is about 12 dollars for a bowl. I'll try to post more as I become more used to this blog format and as more occurs to me.
Be well,
Bob.
CBD
Some of the more interesting architecture
2 comments:
"The best that I've done is to eat at a sushi place with a conveyor belt. "
Ahhhhh! Kaiten zushi!! Sugoi sugoi!!
Funny how you had to go to Australia for your most authentic Japanese experience yet...
So you're staying at the Holiday Inn for the whole time? Or just this weekend? And are those prices in US dollars? Now's not a good time to be an American abroad :`(
Prices are in AUD, but the exchange rate right now is about equal (USD worth less when you factor in the exchange rate percentage the bank takes).
Staying at the Holiday inn for the duration.
Seriously, though, I feel like I'm in China/Japan half the time. The only question is whether I say Ohaiyo or Nihao
Post a Comment