Sydney Life
From it’s the insanely intimidating ibises to the ever-temperamental weather; Sydney definitely has its defining traits! Here are 20 signs that confirm you’re from Sydney.
1. It’s Hot then It’s Cold
Katy Perry sang “Hot N Cold” about a guy but she might as well have been singing about Sydney and it’s indecisive weather.
You can enjoy a weekend of sunshine on the beach and think winter is finally over, but less than twelve hours later you could be stuck waiting for the bus to come and the long, grey showers to stop. Sometimes you’ll need shades for the sun and an umbrella for the rain all at once; other times you’ll experience a day of absolutely no sun and just an insane amount of rain flooding the skies, air, and road. You’ll even get a heaven-and-hell combo of blazing sunshine and ice-cold winds just to keep your skin on edge. Just this past April it even hailed!
Seasons don’t seem to mean a thing in Sydney. Hot or cold, Sydney? Make up your mind!
2. Sun’s Out, Bum’s Out!
The good thing about Sydney’s indecisive weather is that it means even in the midst of winter, you can still have yourself a few beach days. Even if the wind’s a little bit chilly, you’ll see people lazing out at the beach in little pockets of sun at every given opportunity.
But know to avoid crowded beaches because everyone’s got the same idea to fight off the winter blues when the yellow rays are out! Grab your sunnies and swimmers, and maybe an umbrella and coat to keep in your bag, and head on for the sea and sand when you can! Beach in winter? Only Sydney!
3. The Surf’s Always Up
The good thing about Sydney’s indecisive weather is that it means even in the midst of winter, you can still have yourself a few beach days. Even if the wind’s a little bit chilly, you’ll see people lazing out at the beach in little pockets of sun at every given opportunity.
But know to avoid crowded beaches because everyone’s got the same idea to fight off the winter blues when the yellow rays are out! Grab your sunnies and swimmers, and maybe an umbrella and coat to keep in your bag, and head on for the sea and sand when you can! Beach in winter? Only Sydney!
4. Jog, jog, jog!
Surfers in the sea and runners in the street, that’s a true description of Sydney! In this ever-sporty city, you’re sure to see at least one jogger whenever you go out. With several marathons and fun runs throughout the year, Sydney may well be the ultimate city for fitness fans.
Whether you’re a gym junkie or an outdoors person, seeing everyone getting in their cardio might even inspire you to go on a run of your own. From running by the beautiful views of the coast, jogging in the streets while being cheered on by the city buzz, and even walking your dog along by the quay, there are so many ways to exercise in and experience Sydney! And everyone knows, if it’s not a jogger you see, it’s a cyclist!
5. Meat Pie & Sausage Roll Galore!
Whether you’re a pie person or a roll resident, with all of the meat pie and sausage roll places, you’ll be happy to call Sydney home. From coffee carts to humble bakeries, hipster cafes to upscale restaurants, there is almost always a place selling meat pies and/or sausage rolls a walkable distance from you wherever you are!
They’re both a must-try traditional and classic Australian food so if you haven’t tried either of them, get on it! Watching AFL? Head in the game and pie in the mouth! Out for a stroll? Roll in one hand and your date in the other! Quick snack? Get both!
6. Café Capital
Sydney isn’t just the capital of NSW, it’s also the café capital. Whether you’re at the beach enjoying the waves or by the harbour adoring the view, there is always going to be a café nearby. You name it, from beach side cafes at Bondi or Coogee, to city cafés that fuel the CBD with coffee, and the classy cafés by Darling Harbour or Circular Quay with the most picturesque of views, Sydney’s got it all.
Whether it be for a quiet day out on your own, a friendly catch-up, a family get together, a business meet up, or a date with your other half, an endless amount of petite eateries out there await you! Not to mention, no matter where out of the infinite cafés you choose, they’re always going to be worth the trip!
7. Pub Hubhub & Bar Banter
After a day of a café hopping, what’s better than heading off to the pub for a night out with your mates? With an endless line up of pubs and bars, there is never a dull night in a Sydney Sider’s life.
Home to many rooftop pubs, Sydney will take your drinking experiences to new heights. On the opposite axis, with an impressive a list of underground watering holes, a.k.a. basement bars, say hello to a whole new level of stories to tell.
To make things even more exciting, there are hidden bars and pubs all across Sydney for those adventurers keen for a little treasure hunt (check out our other list of 12 Hidden Sydney Bars to get started!). A relaxing drink by the harbour or a wild night in the city, you know you’re in Sydney when you get the best of both worlds!
8. A Taste Of Everything
Ranking high as one of Australia’s most international cities, another sign that you’re in Sydney is that you’ll always get a taste of home, no matter where home is.
Whether you’ve been raised with the spicy flavours of Southeast Asia, accustomed to the colourful and healthy cuisines of Asia, a huge fan of South America’s eating and bonding culture, or Europe’s elegantly displayed food for every occasion, you’ll be able to feast on your international favourites right here in Sydney!
It can be hard moving to a new place but if there’s anything that can beat a hard case of homesickness, it’s a taste of familiarity. Check out some of our other articles featuring must visit restaurants and you’ll see just what we’re talking about!
15 Japanese Restaurants In Sydney That Will Take You To Japan
11 Best Korean BBQ Places In Sydney To Eat At This Winter
10 Thai Restaurants In Sydney That’ll Leave You With Nothing But Smiles
11 Best Spanish Restaurants In Sydney Sure to Give You A Full Belly and A Happy Heart
10 Best Malaysian & Singaporean Food In Sydney Under $15
9. 何? ¿Qué? What?
Not only are the foods in Sydney international, so are the people! You know you’re in Sydney when you hear at least one foreign language every time you go out. Be it a group of animated friends on the bus speaking in German, a Japanese family in a restaurant waiting for their meal, or a Spanish group of backpackers mapping out their next destination, you just can’t help but eavesdrop on their conversations!
You might not understand a word but that doesn’t mean you can’t appreciate how cool the foreign tongue can be. It can also be reassuring if you hear someone speaking your native language. One of the beauties of Sydney is that it’s so multi-cultural; it can be home to anyone from all over the world!
10. Have You Been To…
Whether you’ve just landed or you’ve been here for a while, you know you’re in Sydney when the question “Have you been to ____?” is a common one.
That’s because there are endless restaurants to eat at, shows to watch, events to go to, and places to be. First timers might be asked if they’ve been to the Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, Darling Harbour, Blue Mountains, or any of the beaches. Long time Sydney Siders might be asked if they’ve been to some of Sydney’s hidden bars, newly opened restaurants, must-try eateries, or even some of Sydney’s pop-up and annual events. It’s an exciting city regardless of how long you’ve been here and that’s the beauty of Sydney!
11. There’s Always An Event To Go To
Speaking of always having a place to be, another sign of Sydney is that there’s always an event to go to. There’s the Sydney Festival in January, Vivid Light, Music and Ideas Festival in late May to June; City2Surf Marathon in August and Sculptures By The Sea in October. There’s even fireworks at Darling Harbour every weekend, and pop-markets and food festivals every month.
The best part is, even though a lot of these events are annual, you’ll want to go every year because the next one always outdoes the previous one!
12. Public Transport Is Never On Time
When there are so many places to be and so many people that want to be somewhere, there is no doubt public transport is never going to be on time.
In Sydney, trains and buses are either early or late. When public transport being on time is a myth, Sydney Siders know to rely on TripView, an app that tells us what’s running late and what’s running early.
So if you see a bunch of people at the train station or the bus stop looking at their phones, chances are they’re checking whether they’ve already missed the early bus or how long they have to wait for that late train!
13. Road Rage Is Real
If the public transports are late, it’s either because there’s a massive event on or because of plain traffic. In Sydney, road rage is real and just like the weather it heats up real fast!
Sometimes you might notice the driver next door yelling in muted swears or hear a driver abusing the corn horn a little too much. Either way, when traffic is bad in Sydney be prepared to be late. You might have to calculate when you leave if you want to be on time, especially during morning and evening rush hours. Also watch out for the weather, when it’s raining the traffic and the rage is dialled up!
14. Street Parking? Ha!
Just as you might need to calculate when to leave home during rush hours, you may also want to calculate how long it’ll take to find a free parking spot (and if you’re like me, the time it takes to reverse park!). It’s near impossible to find a spot regardless of where you’re going.
If you’re a driver, you know all too well the mini dance of joy you do in the car when finding a spot, and the lazy feeling hours later of having to move it before you get fined. If you’re not a driver, you’re secretly glad you don’t have a car when seeing the never-ending line of cars along the road!
Sometimes you might have to park several minutes away from your destination and that’s when you’re lucky. The reason is that car parks are just insanely overpriced in Sydney so everyone looks for free roadside parking.
15. Rent Is Painful
Like finding a parking spot is painful, so is finding an affordable place to live. It doesn’t matter if you’re looking for a share house with a bunch of university students, trying to rent an apartment near your workplace, or finding a studio by the train station, the prices will have you cringing.
But once you find a place of your liking at a reasonable price, you’ll realise living in this city is well worth everything it has to offer! Sydney is in fact the most expensive city to live in in Australia but I guess if you want to live in one of the world’s greatest cities, there’s a price to pay!
16. Forget Spiders!
Australia’s known for its deathly spiders but what you really need to watch out for in Sydney are the ibis, magpie, and cockroaches. Not that any of these things will attack you, no promises though because there have been cases, but these creatures a huge!
The ibis won’t move out of your way, you move out of the ibis’ way because that’s just the way they are. And if you don’t, prepare for a beady-eyed death stare. Same with the loud and obnoxious magpies, they act like The God Father gang of the birds. The cockroaches aren’t harmful but they are so big you’ll mistake them for a leaf, until it moves and you do a little hop and yelp out of fright right on the sidewalk. Self-entitled ibises, intimidating magpies, and giant cockroaches, that’s Sydney!
17. Dude, Where’s My Cart?
Not as intimidating but just as all over the place as the ibises, magpies, and cockroaches are shopping trolleys. Abandoned on the sidewalk, left in the parking lot, or toppled over in the alleyway, these trolleys are everywhere. Sometimes you’ll find them in weird places and think, “But how did that get there?”
Whether the trolley is from good old Woolworths or ever-reliable Coles, there’s always a bunch on the loose. Once in a blue moon, you’ll see a long line of trolleys attached to a ute being driven back to their grocery shop home, being herded like a bunch of metal sheep. It’s actually a hilarious sight to see because you always wonder how a trolley gets somewhere but never how it gets back!
18. Sydney Siders, Assemble!
One of the most defining traits of being in Sydney is come State of Origin time when everyone unites. It doesn’t matter if you’re more of a cricket fan, an avid netball person, or a rough and tumble rugby enthusiast, when it comes down to The Maroons versus The Blues you’re most definitely a True Blue Sydney Sider.
You’ll see bars filling up quicker than the jugs holding the beers, blue merchandise being sold faster than anything on sale, and a lot of sporty banter being exchanged at a speed you’ve never seen before! We’ve all got our own individual lives but when it comes down to uniting against Queensland, Sydney does it best!
19. The City, The Mountains, & The Sea
You know you’re in the right place when it offers the ever-exciting city life, a bucket-list full of mountain adventures, and endless days by the sea. There aren’t many places in the world that has all three gifts packed into one place but Sydney is one of them.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a career driven on-the-go worker, a wanderlust type traveller, a surf loving beach bum, or a combination of all three, Sydney will give you the every bit of experience you want guaranteed! Miley Cyrus said she had the best of both of worlds but Sydney Siders? We’ve got the best of three!
20. It’s Home
The vibe of a city says a lot about how well you’ll settle in but you know you’re in Sydney when you don’t have to worry about that at all. Because whether this is “Home Away From Home” or “Home Sweet Home” to you, everyone feels the same welcoming feel where everybody is just out looking to have a good time!
There’s no pressure to do anything but always something to do, no burden to see people but an endless crowd of friends-to-be, absolutely nothing forcing you to experience everything Sydney has to offer but if you wanted to, you’re always welcome! It’s a place that invites everyone because it is for everyone. And no matter where you’re from or how long you’ve been here, Sydney is definitely a place you can call home.
Bonus: Where is 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney?
Those of you who have watched the popular Disney Pixar movie Finding Nemo will find the name and address above familiar.
Nemo has supposedly found himself at P. Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney, and it’s up to his dad Marlin and his newfound friend Dory to find him and rescue him.
Apparently, the name ‘P.Sherman’ was used in the movie because Filipinos in the production crew thought it sounds like the word ‘fisherman’ spoken with a Filipino accent! Now you know who to look for when your pet clown fish goes missing.
No place like Sydney
How was that? Didn’t it make you glad you’re in Sydney, even with the late public transport and giant cockroaches? If there are any more signs that remind you that you’re in one Australia’s greatest cities, let us know in the comment below!