Welcome to the most Expensive City on the Planet

Sydney:

Well, in MY experience…and in Corey’s and he has LOTS of experience.

Don’t get me wrong. I am super thrilled to be here. But I can’t get past the price of things…clothes, but especially food and, gasp, bottled water. Bottled water is like gold.

I arrived, took a super expensive cab ride to the city…where the cab driver (I later discovered as he peeled away) put the wrong address in his GPS so I was 4 blocks from my hotel. (YES, I asked…he pointed to a building and said it’s right there, across the street…No it was not.)

TRAVEL TIP do some extensive research about how to travel from airport to hotel before you leave home. There is a train station SO close to the hotel (yes, closer than where the cab dropped me) and I would have saved $30

Got to see Corey briefly before he went to work, I unpacked and then explored the city.

This is where I got my first err, taste of the prices. I went down to Darling Harbour to walk around, get my bearings, grab lunch. Passing a huge McDonald’s and three “Hungry Jacks” (they are Burger Kings, even down to the Whoppers), I opted for a “food court” like place where I paid $13.50 for a turkey and cranberry sandwich w/salad! The “salad” was the one piece of lettuce ON the sandwich. The turkey was a slice of something …I don’t know what.

Annoyed, I continued to explore the area. It is BEAUTFUL, full of restaurants that are also very impressed with themselves.

Now, let me say that I am so happy with my new black and pink NB walking shoes. I convinced myself that these shoes would make me look less like a tourist. (EVERYONE knows Americans where white tennis while on vacation). Well, my coolness ended in about 5 seconds when I realized I packed a stupid purse and I needed a “carry” bag. Off to buy a tote. Now, which to choose, the one in bright yellow w/Aboriginal art OR the blue one with Austrailian cities written all over it. I picked the blue one so I could put the “city” side against me an continue to look somewhat stealthy in my “tourism” `

The Quay is a definite “not miss” when in Sydney. On the weekends there are open markets (SCORE!) and this is an area with great bars and quaint, somewhat crazy but not ridiculously priced, restaurants.

Between Darling Harbour and The Quay I managed a TON of steps! That is the best thing about being in a new place…all the exploring!