Not A Smooth Move: Part 3

It's finally over, we are done with the move. The last appliance delivery was this morning, so now we have a dryer and a microwave. I do find it somewhat amusing that after selling off so many major household items before coming here, we have had to buy most of them again so quickly here. The ADSL was connected today, as well.

I'm actually updating the blog on the new connection. Now we will be spending much of the next few days unpacking everything and arranging the place. About half the furniture remains to be assembled. But we can do laundry without needing coins -- not to mention the wash/dry is actually completed properly now.

The new neighborhood is definitely much quieter, and the new apartment is a better place for accommodating guests. It's easier to wind down in the evenings here, and we don't have to wake up to the sound of heavy traffic outside our window. About the only drawback is the dependence on the train when the weather is bad -- and it's been raining all week. Public transportation in Australia really is somewhat of a joke. It's too expensive to allow for more casual use, and the schedule is not as frequent as it should be to offer real convenience. I haven't seen any country's public transport hold any weight against that of Moscow, Russia.

Time to retire and read for a bit. Pics of the new apartment will be posted as soon as we are done moving in.

Not A Smooth Move: Part 2

The morning came quickly and we loaded up the van with the few remaining items from the university apartment. We grabbed a quick breakfast at a local McCafe along the way. Yesterday, it was dry and partly sunny for a good part of the day; today, it was rainy all day. Driving the moving van was easy after yesterday's running around (it was a Toyota HIACE Diesel). We unloaded the items at the apartment, ate our breakfast, and made a quick check of everything before heading back. We spotted a gas station nearby that was three cents a litre cheaper than one near the rental place, so I filled up the van there. With all the driving we did the day before, the van only used about 10.4 litres, costing me only about AU$14 to fill up. (For rental cars in Australia, the standard practice is you get the car with a full tank of petrol and return it full -- unlike in the States, where you get the tank at any level and have to return it at least at that same level.) We also checked out the small selection of groceries at the station, since our food situation was a bit more improvised than we had hoped, but the prices were typical for a convenience store, so we passed.

We returned the van a little earlier than 8 a.m., and walked the familiar route back to the old apartment. The real exhaustion finally set in. We did it. We completed a full apartment move in another country -- and this was only a couple of months after completing our international move! Overall, the move has taken about five days, including the time spent furniture shopping.

The rest of the day was low-key. Michelle got ahead on some of her work. I did some reading, then walked into town for a big lunch and some groceries. Thankfully, the rain was negligible during my walk. After reading a bit more back at the apartment, I took a long nap.

Early tomorrow morning I'm heading to the new apartment for the television delivery, and will remain there until I can confirm the electricity is hooked up. I'll probably pass time putting some of the furniture together. (Michelle and her friend, Laura, got a decent start on furniture assembly yesterday.) If we get power well before the end of the day, I'll head to the university to turn in the keys to the old place, and then we are done! Or, if the power is not on until after 5 p.m., then I'll turn the keys in to one of the senior residents at the old place. Absolute worse case scenario, if the power is not turned on tomorrow, then we spend yet another night in the ghetto.

Not A Smooth Move: Part 1

Despite all our planning, it was inevitable that some things would go wrong during our move. Earlier in the week we purchased furniture for the entire apartment and scheduled the delivery for today. The sofa was delivered fine, but there were a few discrepancies with the larger order for the rest of the apartment. Obviously, with a few phone calls, it was easy to get that straightened out, and the missing items will be delivered in about three weeks with no additional delivery charge. That was the easy part to deal with.

When we signed our application for the apartment, we went ahead and decided to let a service submit the orders to get our electricity and gas set up. The realtors spoke highly of the company, and there was no charge to us for the convenience. It turned out that the company only submitted our order for gas, but somehow "forgot" to submit the order for our electricity. So while we were able to move all our stuff to the new apartment, we still had to spend one more weekend in the university apartment. Ugh.

In between loading the van, I made some frantic phone calls and sent a nasty email to the service company. A rep called me and asked us to check some basic things at the new apartment. Michelle was there to handle all the deliveries while I was at the old apartment loading stuff into the van, so she checked out everything and verified that there absolutely was no power. The rep called the provider after I relayed these details and seemed genuinely surprised that this got overlooked at their end. He assured me that he would make certain that my order was escalated immediately on Monday, and promised me that the connection would be taken care of then as well. In addition, we will be getting AU$150 off our first bill (they bill the electricity quarterly here), so that was a reasonable compensation in my view for the major inconvenience.

After we unloaded everything at the new apartment, we made use of the van to do some further shopping. We got a small television, dvd player, vacuum cleaner, drip coffee maker, patio furniture, grill, miscellaneous office items, cleaning supplies, and non-perishable groceries (had to skip the perishables...no electricity for the fridge). We unloaded all that, got coffee to go from a local McCafe, and headed back to the university apartment.

The day was long and exhausting, and we have to get up around 5:30 a.m. tomorrow morning for the final sweep of the old apartment, drop all the remaining items off at the new place, then return the rental van by 8 a.m.

The Way Real Estate Works Here

The real estate market is hot here. It is completely a seller's market. I'll describe the rental situation, since that's what we just went through. The buying situation is similar but has additional nuances. Basically, all the apartments in this entire area are condos that people have bought. There are no traditional apartment complexes like we are used to in the States. So when a condo owner puts a unit up for rent, the listing goes through a realtor like anything else.

The main reason the market is so hot here now is because there is a severe housing shortage. That has caused housing prices to skyrocket. The average home price in this entire coastal area is about AU$380,000 and climbing. That average amount will likely only get you a really old home that would basically need to be demolished and rebuilt. A really nice home here would set you back closer to AU$500,000 minimum.

So it's not hard to see that only the rich can afford to buy a home in this area. Everyone else has no choice but to rent. This is causing rental prices to soar, so the lower class and students are only squeezed more. Realtors don't have to do much work to sell or lease property here. It's the buyers and renters who have to do all the work. The unit we finally rented had only just been placed on the market, and we were in the group of people who got the first viewing. Almost always, people from the first viewing will submit an application, so those who come later only have a slim chance of getting that unit. It's so competitive in Sydney, though, that people are out-bidding each other on rent!

I don't think the market can endure this much pricing pressure for long, but Australian lending practices are a bit more conservative than in the States. There's no subprime time bomb here. It will certainly be interesting to watch from the comfort of our new apartment (until we have to repeat the process again in twelve months).

We Got A New Apartment!

We just found out this morning that our application was approved at an apartment we really liked! Needless to say, we are ecstatic! The university apartment served its purpose, but we've had enough. Much of our misery involved the extremely noisy neighbors next door, the tiny kitchen, and the tiny bathroom. (And the laundry facilities SUCK! There are two coin-operated laundry rooms for 12 (low estimate) families! WTF?)

The new place is utter luxury compared to the university apartment. It has an elegant and decently-sized bathroom; two bedrooms each with built-in closets; a large kitchen with a stainless steel dishwasher, stainless steel gas stove, lots of cabinets and plenty of counter space; a nice, open living/dining area; a garage; a laundry room; and a beautifully done back patio.

It is located in a small town about 10 kilometers north, called Woonona (pronounced 'woo-NOO-na'). The town has a lot of charm to it, and is close to a number of scenic overlooks and other small towns.

I'll post some pics of the new place in about a week or so. Tomorrow afternoon is when we pay our bond, sign the contract, and pick up the keys. We will move this coming Saturday.

Royal National Park

Yesterday, I was planning to try surfing for the first time with my friend, Keith -- but when we got to the beach, we discovered that the waves were essentially flat. It just wasn't going to happen.

So we opted to go for a hike, and Keith suggested Royal National Park, located just south of Sydney. The train cuts through some of the land, so I had an idea what to expect. I certainly wasn't disappointed. The forest is decently dense, but the signs of land management are evident if one looks carefully. I think the right balance has been achieved in that regard. There are trails for hikers of all abilities. We took a trail that led to some nice cliff overhangs and eventually wound down to a small beach inlet containing a squatters colony. (We later found out from a local that during the Great Depression some of the coal miners built the shacks there and lived off the land and sea in order to survive, and have somewhat of a historical and unofficial claim to the land.) From there we headed back up to the top of the escarpment to circle back to our entry point. The hike was a little longer than we anticipated, but still a great workout! The total distance we traveled through the park was about 13 kilometers.

Sydney

We spent July 13 - 15 in Sydney. Our room at the Marriott Circular Quay overlooked the opera house, and each sunrise and sunset provided a postcard cameo of the landmark. Our experience at that hotel was very pleasant and relaxing. The staff provided fine first-class service, and I would gladly stay there again.

Though our stay only lasted a couple of days, we got to experience quite a bit of the city. We visited Chinatown and the Paddington market during the first day. On the second day we went to the Sydney Aquarium and Wildlife Exhibit, both which were fascinating. I learned how to use the video function on my digital camera at the Aquarium, as well as a few other advanced features. I just may accumulate a few nice photos while I am here. :)

On our final day there, we got up early. I took photos of the sunrise (including the one shown here of the opera house) while Michelle went for a nice run along the harbor. After breakfast, we spent several hours walking through the Royal Botanic Gardens. Of all the places we visited in Sydney, this was my favorite. The garden is very inviting, well laid out and open. It's full of numerous different trees, flowers, and birds. We saw a large flock of white cockatoos cackling and screeching as they flew from tree to tree. When we neared the final loop of the walk, we stumbled upon a large colony of fruit bats. There were hundreds of them sleeping in a section of the garden -- and they are huge! We found out more about them later. They are some of the largest bats in the world, and the city is working on a plan to move them at some point because they are killing the trees in the garden. They strip the leaves off the branches, and a couple of historic trees have already had to be cut down after dying from the colonization.

New Set of Wheels

Just before Michelle arrived, I happened to walk into a local bike shop to check out their prices. The timing couldn't have been better, as the shop had just begun its annual inventory clearance sale. Originally, I had planned for Michelle and I both to get bikes during our weekend in Sydney at a shop there, but the deals were too good to pass up. (Not to mention, handling the transaction locally was easier.) The bike I got was an Iron Horse Warrior 4.0. It has full suspension, disc brakes, and is just all around well built. Since bike theft is an issue here, I had all the quick-release knobs replaced with parts that require a special wrench, and bought two locks (a cable lock and a D-lock).

The ride home only took me 20 minutes without really trying (versus nearly an hour walking to the bike shop). I don't regret getting a bike with full suspension. It really makes a difference in the city, as nearly all sidewalks and streets have potholes and other uneven parts -- just a concrete version of a trail. And as a typical oversight of intersection design, there's always at least one corner where the ramp on the sidewalk has been located way off to the side instead of on the actual corner lined up with the other ramps. This is no problem with a mountain bike -- just ride over the curb where the ramp should be. Ta-daaa.

The next day when I went into the lab, several of the other researchers had brought their bikes in and were planning a late afternoon ride. I asked if I could join in to break in my new bike. By about 4:00 p.m. we were on a trail about 40 km north, just on the far outskirts of Sydney. The trail was an easy one, relatively speaking. But it had all the proper features for a good ride: bumps, gullies, hills, mud, water puddles, rocks, and hidden turns where a rider could veer off into the trees if not prepared. What an exhilarating experience it was, though! I am totally hooked on mountain biking!

By the time the ride was over, I, like my new bike, was covered in mud. I learned why riders use a camel pack for water instead of the under-the-frame water bottle. I bought Michelle the same bike a week later.

Tranquil Beaches

The scenery around the escarpment is beautiful enough, but Wollongong and the whole south coast area also have many beaches for everyone's enjoyment. The beaches are clean and well-maintained. It's the perfect getaway any day, without having to go too far. From our apartment, it's about a 45-minute walk to the beach (or 30 minutes running). At some point we hope to live even closer to the beach. We may never get such an opportunity again.

All the beaches in the area have running/walking/biking trails along the shore or nearby. People are generally quite active here, and with the scenery and climate here, it's hard not to want to be active outdoors. There are a few swimming pools on the beach, too: one that is a traditional pool, but waves sometimes roll into; a few others that are built right into the shore, so you can safely swim in ocean water.

One thing in particular to note here are the rip tides. They are quite powerful, and not to be taken lightly. Every year there's at least one major news story of a tourist who drowned by swimming out too far and getting caught in the rip. If you do as the locals do and heed all warnings, the water can be enjoyed safely.

Friendly Neighborhood Spiders

The spiders here are fascinating and scary. Some of the most poisonous spiders in the world live in the area, though I have not seen them (except at the wildlife exhibit in Sydney). My first encounter involved the common huntsman (pictured). It looks far scarier than it really is. Huntsman spiders are shy, and can move quite fast. They don't bite except as a last resort in a life-or-death situation, and the bite is not poisonous. I didn't know this before killing this one that showed up in the apartment one day. The size of this thing put me in "kill first, ask questions later" mode.

Another common spider here is the St. Andrews Cross spider, which makes large webs in brushland and gardens to trap insects. Like the huntsman, this one looks scarier than it really is.

Black house spiders are somewhat common, creating messy webs around windows. These spiders are not lethal, but their bite can sometimes cause nausea and other discomforts.

The truly dangerous spiders are the funnel webs, red backs, and mouse spiders. I've yet to see any of these in the wild. The wildlife exhibit in Sydney did have a funnel web in a glass cage, but it's not the same as seeing one in its natural habitat. The red backs are relatives of the black widows, and often live under houses, scrap wood piles, or other out-of-the-way, shaded areas. Red backs are most lethal to the young and the elderly. The mouse spiders look scariest of all. Again, I have yet to encounter any of these, but the general rule applies -- leave them alone and they will leave you alone.

Birds, Birds, Birds!

The variety and population of birds here is greater than I've ever seen. The first thing that struck me was the colors. Even the most ordinary birds here have some kind of exotic color or pattern. I've seen small finches in some of the brush areas, and huge pelicans at the beach. The remaining birds fill the range of sizes in between. There are lorikeets, galahs (pronounced gal-AHZ), white and black cockatoos, magpies, ravens, kookaburas.

The lorikeets chirp all day, and fly very quickly -- darting this way and that as if playing tag among the trees. The galahs are mostly quiet, but become more playful in late afternoon. Black cockatoos are more rare, but white cockatoos are everywhere. To find them, simply listen for the really loud screech -- it's unmistakable. The ravens' chirp sounds like Snoopy crying. The kookaburas have one of the most interesting cries. People here say it sounds like laughing (hence the song many learn as children about the kookabura), but I think it sounds a bit like monkeys. I will try to upload the sound at some point if I can record it.

The UoW Campus

The University of Wollongong campus is absolutely beautiful. Against the backdrop of Mt. Kiera, the grounds present a number of tranquil ponds, meandering paths, year-round flora, an abundance of tall trees, and large numbers of birds. It's basically a very well-maintained garden paradise allowing faculty and students a serene escape from the stresses of university life. I can't imagine many people beginning the day without a smile in a place like this.

Compared to large universities in the United States, this campus is small, almost like a community college. But that gives it more appeal, as well, since many students often just feel insignificant if the campus is too large.