Work week review
As I mentioned when I started the blog, given the fact that I will spend a large portion of my time here working this go-around, I don't plan to update this everyday, so please bear with me!
I had a fantastic (and productive) first week in the city. After I last wrote, I spent Wednesday getting a few things in order and then Thursday and Friday working.
Wednesday turned out to be my last major day to take care of errands and the mundane details of establishing life down here. I got my Uni ID card, got my bank account open, and knocked a few other things off the list.
In the late arvo (that's afternoon, for those who haven't been privy to my Australian English lessons), I headed into the city to catch up with a friend of mine over drinks and dinner. An ex-pat who has made a life here over the last six years (with a wife and two-year-old now), we met back in 2012 and have stayed in touch.
While he finished working, I walked around the CBD as things were wrapping up for the day, popping by the old Sydney Hospital along the Domain (the large greenspace east of the city), where I sat for a few minutes.
Conveniently, he works just a few blocks from my new office, and although I wasn't actually in the office that day, we met up at a place that is great to know of in the future.
Sydney has quite a few cool underground (literally) bars that you wouldn't know about unless you were already familiar with them (Grandma's where I used to go with my Town Hall colleagues back in 2012 was the first). The one we went to—Uncle Ming's—is a cozy Asian-themed options accessed through a side door in a small clothing store beneath street level.
We enjoyed some dumplings, a beer, and catching up on stories over the last few years. It was nice to reconnect, and I look forward to hanging out with him (and the family) again soon.
The trip back to "The Shire" (as the area I am staying is known by Sydneysiders, on account of the fact that it is in Sutherland Shire—the way they identify local jurisdictions here) was easy, and while I don't plan to make the hour-and-15-minute commute for more than a few weeks, but it is nice to know that the trains and buses are frequent and relatively reliable.
Thursday, I left the house by 7:15 to catch a bus to the train to head into work. I spent the day getting acclimated to the office and the projects I will be working on. Over 100 people work in the Sydney office of the firm (with offices located across Australia and a few further afield), and it was abuzz with activity all day.
One thing about office life in Australia that I was excited to return to was the tea breaks. Throughout the day (both in the morning and afternoon) people spend a few minutes getting tea (there are a few types provided in the office, spigots the dispense hot water on-demand, and an assortment of different types of milk in the fridge). I have never been a coffee drinking, and really enjoy tea, so the fact that I am no longer odd-man-out in the office is pretty nice. Also, I've only really seen companies in the states have drip coffee and potentially a few tea bags lying around; the tea situation in Australia is much preferred.
In the evening, I wrapped up around 5:30 and walked a few blocks west to meet up with one of my closest friends from years past, Candice. I met her down by her office at Barangaroo, a new business precinct built in a former industrial area north of Darling Harbour. The area has changed a lot in the last few years as development of a number of high-rises has wrapped up.
It was amazingly vibrant, with loads of people out enjoying the bars and restaurants that line the streets and laneways of the development. We stopped by Untied, which has an amazing rooftop overlooking the water and all the street action, to meet up with a few people from Candice's office, before we headed over to grab dinner and catch up. I think we will be grabbing lunch and the occasional after-work drink in Barangaroo over my next few years here.
After dinner, we wandered the main shopping streets in the CBD, which were jammed with people enjoying the cool of the evening. We parted ways at Town Hall Station, and I made the trip back home.
Friday was work as usual, with a meeting or two to spice things up. Around 5:30, people gathered in the center of the office for some drinks, and I got to meet a few new folks. After all was said-and-done, I was able to make it home by 8:30, watch some of the Commonwealth Games, and head to bed.
All in, it was a great week and a great reminder of why I like Sydney. I can't wait to get more settled in, continue exploring, and spend more time with friends.
I had a fantastic (and productive) first week in the city. After I last wrote, I spent Wednesday getting a few things in order and then Thursday and Friday working.
Wednesday turned out to be my last major day to take care of errands and the mundane details of establishing life down here. I got my Uni ID card, got my bank account open, and knocked a few other things off the list.
In the late arvo (that's afternoon, for those who haven't been privy to my Australian English lessons), I headed into the city to catch up with a friend of mine over drinks and dinner. An ex-pat who has made a life here over the last six years (with a wife and two-year-old now), we met back in 2012 and have stayed in touch.
While he finished working, I walked around the CBD as things were wrapping up for the day, popping by the old Sydney Hospital along the Domain (the large greenspace east of the city), where I sat for a few minutes.
 |
| Sydney Hospital, built in 1811 and still functioning as a hospital 200 years later. |
Conveniently, he works just a few blocks from my new office, and although I wasn't actually in the office that day, we met up at a place that is great to know of in the future.
Sydney has quite a few cool underground (literally) bars that you wouldn't know about unless you were already familiar with them (Grandma's where I used to go with my Town Hall colleagues back in 2012 was the first). The one we went to—Uncle Ming's—is a cozy Asian-themed options accessed through a side door in a small clothing store beneath street level.
We enjoyed some dumplings, a beer, and catching up on stories over the last few years. It was nice to reconnect, and I look forward to hanging out with him (and the family) again soon.
The trip back to "The Shire" (as the area I am staying is known by Sydneysiders, on account of the fact that it is in Sutherland Shire—the way they identify local jurisdictions here) was easy, and while I don't plan to make the hour-and-15-minute commute for more than a few weeks, but it is nice to know that the trains and buses are frequent and relatively reliable.
Thursday, I left the house by 7:15 to catch a bus to the train to head into work. I spent the day getting acclimated to the office and the projects I will be working on. Over 100 people work in the Sydney office of the firm (with offices located across Australia and a few further afield), and it was abuzz with activity all day.
One thing about office life in Australia that I was excited to return to was the tea breaks. Throughout the day (both in the morning and afternoon) people spend a few minutes getting tea (there are a few types provided in the office, spigots the dispense hot water on-demand, and an assortment of different types of milk in the fridge). I have never been a coffee drinking, and really enjoy tea, so the fact that I am no longer odd-man-out in the office is pretty nice. Also, I've only really seen companies in the states have drip coffee and potentially a few tea bags lying around; the tea situation in Australia is much preferred.
In the evening, I wrapped up around 5:30 and walked a few blocks west to meet up with one of my closest friends from years past, Candice. I met her down by her office at Barangaroo, a new business precinct built in a former industrial area north of Darling Harbour. The area has changed a lot in the last few years as development of a number of high-rises has wrapped up.
 |
| One of the towers at Barangaroo, from the rooftop of Untied. |
It was amazingly vibrant, with loads of people out enjoying the bars and restaurants that line the streets and laneways of the development. We stopped by Untied, which has an amazing rooftop overlooking the water and all the street action, to meet up with a few people from Candice's office, before we headed over to grab dinner and catch up. I think we will be grabbing lunch and the occasional after-work drink in Barangaroo over my next few years here.
After dinner, we wandered the main shopping streets in the CBD, which were jammed with people enjoying the cool of the evening. We parted ways at Town Hall Station, and I made the trip back home.
Friday was work as usual, with a meeting or two to spice things up. Around 5:30, people gathered in the center of the office for some drinks, and I got to meet a few new folks. After all was said-and-done, I was able to make it home by 8:30, watch some of the Commonwealth Games, and head to bed.
All in, it was a great week and a great reminder of why I like Sydney. I can't wait to get more settled in, continue exploring, and spend more time with friends.
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