Okay, the title may "shock" some people but I will explain the whole thing...
Hello, I am Krystal, 18, and I live in Adelaide, South Australia. I've been to Queensland in 99/00 (forgot), Sydney in 01/02 (forgot), and Melbourne in 04. I recently went to Sydney again to go see the wrestling. You see on TV and everything they say how beautiful Sydney is and it's like the heart of Australia...I saw differently though. Here are a few things.
Dirty
My first day there I got sick, terrible headache that shot my head and a very sore tummy. I had been walking around the streets looking at shops. So many people around, so many homeless people sitting on the streets very close to people (will bring this up later) and smoking...every one was smoking. Sydney turned into "Cancer City" for me, everyone to light up a fag whenever they could, was extremely terrible to walk through.
Fear
Adelaide has been seen as the murder capital of the world, I have never had a fear to hold my bag tightly though. All the other places I never had that fear till this trip to Sydney. Not saying all homeless people are pick pocketers but there were so many around and they were right on the footpaths, brought so much nervousness to me.
Un-Australian
I have nothing wrong with foreigners. My high school had a huge program where people from Japan, China and Germany came over to do their studies but there were a lot more Australian born students even then. Sydney it seemed there could have been more people that weren't born in Australia than were which made me feel like I was in a different world.
Sydney wasn't what it used to be and it scared me. It wasn't a whole beautiful place...it was cancer; it was dirty streets and unclean air.
This is not to scare anyone away from Sydney, but I learnt that I took Adelaide for granted. In Adelaide I felt safe and for most of my trip all I could think was "I want to go home". It was an experience...but I don't think I will go back there any time soon.
(Oh also...strange, odd note, but I sat next to a guy on the bus that said he was being investigated for a recent shooting...niiicceee...)
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Where the hell do you all live - the garden of friggin Eden?
Sydney is about as dirty or clean as any other major city, it all bloody depends what part you're in. It sounds like most of you guys were either in Kings Cross (in the night-time, I might add) or at the local tip.
As for the advice from people that are NOT from Sydney to stay close to Circular Quay - that's just stupid! Yeah, stay close to Circular Quay if you're a tourist visiting the place for a few hours. Stay close to the Quay on a weekend after clubbing is over and it is rough. Homeless people? Where you guys come from there's no homeless people?
Until 10 years ago, I lived all my life in the Eastern Suburbs (Central Sydney). Sure, it's overcrowded. Sydney is a major city -not a quite little country town. Now I live in the outer suburbs and it is quiter and cleaner here because obviously the outer west isn't as populated.
It's really sad that as Australians you guys have such a low opinion of one of the country's nicest cities!
Circular Quay isn't the only nice spot in the whole city. The coast is gorgeous. I went to Olympic Park last time I was there for the Young Olympics (granted it took about 2 hours to get there on public transport - hence pro-tourism) and that was brilliant! It seems like there's always something to do (which I have a real issue with in Adelaide - movies, shopping and in summer beach. What else is there?) and I have a great time everytime I go. I would not put off going to Sydney if you're coming to visit. There are other places to go of course but Sydney is worth it to me.
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