The City Of Dreams - Sydney Australia

If you dream about living in a big city, Sydney is the place to be. With a population of around 5 million people (2016) Sydney is a true metropolis. Even listed at position number 90 for Metropolitan Areas by Population in the world, it still beats Melbourne at position number 96. As the capital of New South Wales and located in the South Eastern part of Australia, it has been attracting visitors from all over the world.

Over the course of the last 10 years or so the city has been growing by leaps and bounds. Also you may have seen the beauty of this city on your television in the year 2000 when the Olympic Games 2000 was hosted there. Sydney is known as a world class city, with its strong economy guarantee. It is also a safe place, due to the law that states that no one is allowed to walk around with a weapon, no knives, guns, mace etc.

Historical Sydney

James Cook’s arrival in 1770 was reason for a huge change in Sydney. He occupied the east coast of the continent for Britain, and after 18 years, on January 26th ,11 ships were led into Port Jackson. The plan was to build a prison for British convicts.

You can still see remains of these buildings. Through the years Sydney was starting to become a city with big dreams of the future. The economy was evolving with churches, markets, schools, theaters and even a library, convicts earned emancipation, and settlers began to arrive.

By 1842 the city was established with all the trappings of a free society. After gold was discovered a lot of people from Europe, China and North America began pouring into the city.

Mellow golden sandstone was also discovered and used to build the General Post Office, and Town Hall. At the end of the 19th century this city was one of the largest western cities.

Weather

With temperatures ranging between 9 and 26 degrees Celsius (depending on the season and time of day of course), with warm summers and mild winters the weather isn't too bad at all. Most days are sunny and bright and this helps make Sydney a very enjoyable city to live in.

The summer is a great season where you can spend your holidays. You can enjoy the beaches with temperatures between 20 and 25 degrees Celsius. Autumn (from March till May) is the season of the year where you can enjoy coastal walks.

The air during this season is fresh and crisp. You can still go to the beach to swim during Autumn. During the winter you can go for a swim and also surf. In December the sun rises early between 5 and 6 am, and sets between 7 and 9 pm. While in June the sun rises at 7 am and sets at 5 pm.

When visiting Sydney especially during the summer be sure to use SPF30+ sunscreen to protect your skin from sunburn.

Growing Population

Sydney has over 5 million inhabitants, with an average growth rate of 4 to 5% in the last 5 to 7 years, which is the highest growth rate in the country, and makes it the third most populated city in Australia. People move to Sydney in the hope of finding a job, which is smart, because Sydney offers a lot of job opportunities due to the rapid growth of industries in this city.

There are different kinds of religions found in this city, 1.6% Islam, 1.8% Uniting church, also 1.8% Reformed and Presbyterian, 2.3% Christian, 2.4% Hinduism, 4.7% Anglican, 14.6% Catholic, 16.1% Buddhism, 22.6% unknown religious conviction, 26.6% has no religion. This city very diverse and multicultural, which makes it easy to meet new people, and experience new things.

Interestingly enough almost 40 to 48% of the people who live in Sydney were born outside of Australia, most of them are born in the United Kingdom and China. A smaller amount is from Scotland, Germany, Vietnam, Ireland, Greece, and Italy. The age group is between 20 and 25 years, a lot of young people live here

Work and Salary

The average salary in Sydney is comparably higher than other cities in Australia making it even more attractive to both immigrants and Australians alike. According to the most recent ABS data, the average Australian income is $60,892 per year, while the average salary for people living in Sydney is closer to AUSD $66,662 annually as reported by Payscale.com.

The main industries most people work in are Financial and Insurance services, Health care and social assistance, Administrative and support services, Information media and telecommunications, Training and Education, Manufacturing, Retail trade, Professional, scientific and technical services, and Accommodation and food services.

The most popular jobs which pay between AUSD $65,000, and AUSD $85,000 include Business Development Manager, Operations Manager and Account Manager. The most well-known employers are Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Woolworths, and Westpac Banking Corporation. Working in Sydney for a couple of years gives you lots of time to save up money, which gives you the chance to buy a house.

Education:

This city contains one of the most prestigious schools, universities, and technical institutions including the first university in Australia, University of Sydney.

It is also one of the biggest student cities in Australia with 5 public universities, 4 multi-campus government-funded Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutes, and 3 other universities that operate secondary campuses. Most of the private schools are Grammar, or Catholic.

There are also 3 international schools. The catholic education system has an outstanding reputation. The school system is as follows: Preschool (not compulsory)-Primary School (kindergarten to 6 years)-Secondary school (7-12 years).

After the secondary school students can enter the tertiary education through an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR). Parents who live on a temporary resident visa have to pay for their children’s schooling, and parents that have a permanent residency status have access to free public education.

Living in Sydney

Most of the popular big artists perform in Sydney while they are on tour. Sydney harbour has the most sparkling water. The harbour foreshore is dotted with harbour islands, and is the perfect place for plenty of events like boat races, and one of the most awesome displays you will experience here is the New Year’s Eve fireworks.

There are secret beaches near the harbour. Outdoor rock pools, and the Bondi to Coogee Coastal Walk. The shores of Bondi, and Sydney’s Northern beaches are popular for their surfer friendly breaks.

There are a lot of performances, events and parties during the year, one of them is the Sydney Festival with a gorgeous light display of vivid Sydney. Each year there are art and cultural events, museums, galleries and gigs.

The food here is excellent, if you crave Vietnamese food Cabramatta, and Marrickville are the perfect restaurants, you like Middle Eastern food visit Auburn, Punchbowl, or Lakemba. If you crave Chinese food, visit Chatswood, Chinatown, or Ashfield. There are so many other restaurants where you can get a lot of different food.

You can shop and browse at local weekend markets, the Rozelle markets for vintage clothes and antiques, and the Glebe Markets for perfect gifts, souvenirs and clothes, the Carriageworks Famers Market for extraordinary delightful local produce, and the Rocks Markets for handmade finds.

There are also a lot of coffee shops that offer the best brew coffee. A lot of daytrips and weekend getaway opportunities are offered to beautiful places that can be accessible by public transport. Daytrips or weekend getaways to national parks, wine tours, bushwalks, or sightseeing mountains.

Interesting Facts About Sydney Australia City of Dreams:

  • People who live in Sydney are called Sydneysiders.
  • The Sydney Opera House is Sydney’s most famous icon, with a total cost of $102 million.
  • The third tallest building in Australia is the Sydney tower.
  • The largest steel arch bridge in the whole world is the 1,149 meter Sydney Harbour Bridge.
  • Move over Las Vegas, Sydney is also called Sin City.