Mandy Bale

I agree, Parramatta and the west are renowned to be a bit of a dump. You should take a drive around the North shore, Ryde, Epping, hills district are much nicer. We have the commodore Wagon (berlina 7 seater) V6 3.8L and think its great, we got a 3 seater settee in the back of ours!! sounds like you are having fun mate!

Mandy

pommie bastard

Tyres have sod all to do with it rear wheel drive is shite on Aussie roads in the wet as for Falcons and crapadores give them a wide berth they lose value quicker than the rubber dollar.
The Australian tourism board gave its view last week that Sydney looks tired , nackered is more like it.

Mandy Bale

It ain't the cars mate, its the drivers. People that live round here just haven't got a clue how to drive in the wet, but then it ain't that wet here so they don't get much practice!!

Mandy

Slater

I found Parramatta OK, but we were on holiday, didn't have to travel in the rush hours. We took the water taxi into Sydney, most pleasant way to travel.


Slater

pommie bastard

Sydney and Manchester have around the same average rain fall , but the drivers in Australia are prats .
The big factor is over powered rear drive Automatic's , its out dated as are Aussie cars.

Florida_03

good-looking prats, thank you...

pommie bastard

Which the women or our you a Sydney guy in which case look out for V8 Crapadores some lovely lads behind the wheel of these Hoon wagons.

sashimi

Just been driving round some parts of the UK for two weeks on holiday - and the same can definitely be said for a not small number of English drivers.

Did not have same experience in Scotland, so am specifying "English" drivers - or maybe they were all just foreigners in rented cars

Even found the French less of a prob a lot of the time.

kevmitch

Useful info, thanks - If everything goes to plan (i.e. visas) we'll be in Sydney early in the new year following a 'scouting mission' in October - I must admit I have mentally 'crossed off' Parramatta from earlier comments - and you've reinforced the view.

I'd had the same idea with regards to opening a HSBC account, as I've been with Midland/First Direct over in the UK. Interesting you say there is no benefit and they cocked up.

Keep up the postings

Best wishes


Kev

Jolyn

The western suburbs of Sydney (starting just before Parramatta) are definitely not the place to live. You've definitely started in the worst place for ugliness.

Depending on your commute and how much work will cough up for the rent:

Balmain - beautiful, expensive, OK schools, the Hampstead of Sydney

Eastern suburbs by the beach - Bronte, Clovelly, Vaucluse great but seriously pricey

North Shore - stay on the east, no further west than Ryde, no further north than Wahroonga. Many great family suburbs - Lane Cove, Roseville, Lindfield, Killara, Gordon, Turramurra or further east near beach.

North West - wouldn't be my first choice as you miss out on a lot of the Sydney experience but some of the Hills areas are OK. Stay well north of Blacktown.

South - fine once you cross Botany Bay - Cronulla, Illawong, Oyster Bay.

South West - avoid.

Far West - OK again from Penrith outwards into Blue Mountains.

Mr. Ee

That's the sort of info I'm after! Thanks!
But if you're in London now and soon to be in Melbourne how did you find this out about Sydney? Insider info?

Jolyn

I'm actually Australian - from Sydney. Sorry, should have mentioned that. Been in London 12 years, now off to Melbourne with British husband and son.

Good luck finding a great place.

Herman

The basic rule of thumb is the same as in London. The desirable places to live are expensive and beyond the means of most. The cheaper places to live which are convenient are priced that way because they are rough, congested and run down. You've got three choices in Sydney, same as in London - get a well paid job and spend a large chunk of your salary on living in a decent and convenient suburb (Eastern suburbs, North Shore, Inner West), spend less and live in a convenient but dodgy suburb (western suburbs) or spend less and live in a nice place a long long commute into the centre (eg, Hawkesbury region, lower central coast, south of the airport).
We opted for lower north shore (mosman then north sydney) and paying a third of our income over in rent every month (like we do in London!).

kaleb777

Western Sydney has a bad rep. The residents are known as "Westies". Mt Druitt, Parramatta, Blacktown etc are probably the worst. Lakemba is Lebanese and the local police station there was recently shot up. According to channel 9s Today show, ASIO has the streets of Lakemba wired like a Christmas tree trying to keep track of several Islamic fundamentalist groups based there.

Cabramatta AKA Vietnamatta, is Sydney's heroin central. Needles galore in the streets.

Best bet is north or south, although the Lucas Hts nuclear reactor is in the sth and was singled out at a terrorist target by a group that were caught in Auckland by the NZ police.

East is the nicest but you will pay.

Avoid the west. Not only is it endless sprawl of grafitti covered brick apartments and units filled with rough as guts people and solo mothers but it has the worst smog in Sydney and the highest asthma rates.

I wouldn't go west of Strathfield.

Sydney does have traffic that I've heard LA people say is bad. Be aware of flight paths. Most bushfires occur in the outer northern suburbs. Other than all of that Sydney is a great place to live. :-)

Mandy Bale

'Most bushfires occur in the outer northern suburbs'

Wouldn't worry about that now though, most of it was burnt out last year!!

I think the views on the traffic problems all depends on where you come from in the UK and where you are in Sydney. I come from the South East of London and I find the traffic no problem at all here, rush hour seems to be just for an hour. I have spent a bit of time in rush hour in Aberdeen, Scotland, and I think this is comparable in my view, other people may have different views, thats just the way i see it. But then I have only experienced the rush hour from the city to the north/west. I think it is worst out to the west and down to the south.

Mandy