Surf Forecasting- check out those waves before you get out of bed.
http://www.surforecasts.com/australasiaeast/index.htm
Brilliant site- full of good site specific info, history, and gear links!
http://www.surfinfo.com.au/pages/surfzones.htm1.
Three Great Zoos - Melbourne Zoo, Healesville Sanctuary and Werribee Open Range Zoo
http://www.zoo.org.au/
Three D Radio - 93.7fm - Adelaide Community Radio
http://www.threedradio.com/
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Be aware- most of the buildings in Australia do not have AC, central heat- or for that matter screens on the windows. This means you will need to purchase a heater, fan and a mosquito net depending on the season you are here.
The weather is glorious most of the time and 95% of days you will not miss AC or central heat- but it only takes one mozzie (Aussie Mosquito) biting your knuckle at 4:00 in the morning to completely ruin your night. Check out Ikea, Target, camping/outdoors stores and Holy …
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This will more than likely be the most horrifying experience of arriving in Australia. Customs, quarantine, and visa officials have got nothin’ on the apartment-hungry-maddened-hordes and indifferent real estate agents.
In Sydney- the housing market is extremely competitive- if you are moving from overseas- bring along past landlord contact information and if you can swing it- a recommendation letter. To find an apartment- look in the papers on Saturday and on the Internet www.domain.com.au as a couple of resources to start with. Once you get the paper you will have to read it as you run and come up with a list of several you want to see because…horror…they are only open for 10-15 minutes at a time.
When you roll up to see an apartment still reeling from the night before…sunnies and flip flops on (this IS Australia riiiight!)cappuccino in one hand… paper circled in pen in the other…you will immediately be smacked upside you sore head by the tension in the air. There will be 6 other couples also lined up to see YOUR perfect apartment! All with neat and tidy appearance, matching t-shirts that proclaim “Pick Me!”, references, extra pens for filling out applications, and running shoes laced up!
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While the climate is tropical this is not a resort town. Darwin is still a city and the most metropolitan one around. The dress is casual…kind of…
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Coeliac/Gluten Free General Note- While almost all of the Cafes/restraurants were knowledeable about Gluten Free requirements and quite good at working with you on gluten free products, the supermarkets have a very slim selection.
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If you are moving to or even just visiting Australia for more than 2 weeks, a mobile phone is basically a must have. You will end up meeting people you want to contact, making hotel reservations, needing to send a message home. these little babies are a fully integrated piece of Australian culture. I went…horrors… one whole week when I moved here with out a mobile. Now I have no idea how I survived. Cheaper, easier and more mobile than a land line- many people have them as their only phone (including me!).
Text Text Text! Unlike in the States where the latest fad is unlimited talk time- it is friggin expensive to call anyone- to the tune of around a dollar a minute. Not only great for finding people in nightclubs, texting is much less expensive. It is such a high tech world we live in- people text everywhere at all times-the word addiction comes to mind…..
If you are just visiting- bring a tri-band phone with you that works overseas- or purchase/ rent one from the airport arrival Vodafone shop. Don’t bother using you plan from home unless you get a really good overseas rate (unlikely). Upon arrival in OZ you can purchase a sim card that can be placed in any phone. For about $30 you get the card and $30 worth of calls and texts- enough to get you by for a week or so.
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As one person has wisely pointed out- Sydney is a very expensive place to live… to help battle that, here are a couple more suggestions for moving to Australia and setting up house on the cheap. Council Clean Up and Garage sales baby! On the North Shore of Sydney and in several on the south shore I am sure, the garage sales and council clean up piles are a wonderful redistribution of wealth. They are also the potential cause of many car wrecks due to people looking at the piles on the side of the road to see if there “is anything good.”
Cremorne, Mosman, Clifton Gardens and Balmoral definitely offer some of the best options for this second hand extravaganza. Most of you should be familiar with the concept of a garage sale, however, Australia has a phenomenon I’ve never seen before. Horrifying yet incredibly useful- ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce the Council Clean up. Sydney is divided into tons of tiny little suburbs- in fact “Sydney” is only a couple of blocks square. Anyway- Each suburb or collection of suburbs belongs to a council which governs things like zoning laws. Once or twice per year- they allow a curbside “free for all” anyone can throw away anything. Couches, bed frames, dressers, clothing racks, heaters, TV’s- anything! Granted some of it is actual trash- but Some of it is in perfect condition and works.
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OK- so you’ve arrived into Australia and you need to buy a few housekeeping items- Tupperware, toilet paper, cleaners, extension cords, etc. The first thing you will notice is how ridiculously expensive all the things are in the stores you are used to going to such as Target.
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Want to be part of the cool crowd? Want to fit in like a local? Seriously- to go to the beach, to a rugby game, to the grocery, on the train… you can’t live without…
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Taxis: For a taxi in Darwin a useful number is 08 8981 3777 or as in all Australian states you can call 131008. In Darwin, taxis only really work on a call out basis during the peak times of the year. Just because you are at a taxi rank- your chances of getting one are almost zilch if you don’t call. In fact they really seem to enjoy waving at potential passengers and then shaking their head saying “no- can’t.”
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