Just a quick disclaimer, everything I write in this blog is purely based on observations I have made in my month is Australia.
So I arrived to Australia 4 weeks ago today, in this time I have been in Sydney for two weeks, Melbourne for one and then drove across the country to Perth were I find myself today. There were a lot of shocks awaiting me when I arrived over here, now some of this was my own fault for maybe not doing enough research.
Firstly the cost of living here is very high when you first arrive here, it’s very important to have the $5,000 in your account. Without it you could find yourself in serious trouble very fast, especially when you find out the cost of drink and accommodation here in Australia.
Drink:
Me: “Ah...Can I get a pint of that stuff there? (Pointing to one of the local beers, Tooheys Extra Dry)”
Bartender: “Sorry mate, we only do Schooners”
So now you’re asking yourself what the fuck is a Schooner, it’s a smaller glass of beer than that of a pint, to be precise it 425ml which is 143ml less than a pint. Oh and it will cost $6, that is the average price of a schooner in my experience so far. But I would tell you to stay far away from the draft beer over here, as it is piss poor.
And for all you Guinness lovers I have only found one pub here so far that sells drinkable Guinness and in fact it’s very good Guinness. The bar is called Dirty Nelly’s and it’s in Sydney and it’s also the only real Irish pub I have been into, outside of Ireland of course. Everyone in there is Irish, and they run a lot of competitions and they even have a hall of fame wall, if you’re in Sydney its worth checking out.
Accommodation:
I’m sure most people will look at the usual sites like Domain & myhome. But don’t be afraid to look on Gumtree or even look at a shared house. But one thing I didn’t take into account was the vastness of Australia and the urban sprawl. The further out from the city you go the cheaper it gets, but if you decide to go renting straight away and you get work the other side of the city, then your commuting costs could be very high. So sorting out accommodation can be very difficult, and there are other factors to look at, such as paying a bond (normally 4 weeks rent). On top of that most houses for rent here are unfurnished, but that is something that can be addressed quickly enough, if you willing to buy second hand stuff for thrift stores and the Salvation Army.
Hostel can also be very experience and from my time in them, they tend to be shit holes. I stayed in three different hostels in my time, and the cheapest one I stayed in was by in far the best, it was in Melbourne. The ones in Sydney were just awful; they stunk and offered very little services and facilities. So keep the hostel stays to a minimum and you might be able to keep your money longer, the average cost of the bed was $30 a night.
Job:
So we all here that Australia is the new land of opportunity right? Well it can be for the right person, if you have a trade, such as bricklaying, electrician and plumber, and have experience driving contraction machinery you should be ok.
But they are mad about having all these government cards in order to work in most industries, for example you must complete you White Card (like a safe pass0 in order to work on a contraction site/yard. But it could set you back over $100, and it’s the most boring day you’ll ever do. Even if you want to work in a premise that serves or sells alcohol you most have a card called the RSA, which cost upwards of $50.
Everyone who comes to Australia thinks they’ll get a job very fast, but that’s not the case. I have been here for 4 weeks now, and I only just got a job which I start Monday. It’s a door to door job, and my pay is totally depended on sales, so if I don’t make a sale, I don’t get paid. This is a job I would never have done at home, but I have to try and get something here if I want to eat.
When looking for a job, try seek, mycareer, onecareer and gumtree. Also if you’re in Western Australia there is a paper called the Western Australia which is good for job listings on a Wednesday and Saturday.
So to finish off, I think that it is imperative to do as much research on Australia before you arrive, if possible try and have a few job interviews or even have signed up with a few recruitment agencies(this can be done through seek). Try you best to get into work asap, and then you can get a place to stay more permanent. I know people are going to be saying, well I want to holiday for the first week...your here for a year, so if you can get straight into work and save up some money it will make you holiday time cheaper when you take it.
Again these are just some things I have noticed since being here, and i hope this can be of help to other people who are thinking of coming to Australia
