- Student
- 30/04/2024
And how are things in Sydney?
After two long flights and some time traveling (GMT+10) I arrived in Sydney. The joke that my world would now be turned upside down, since I am on the other side of the planet, is closer to the truth than I had previously thought. I was able to get used to the time difference and the fact that they drive on the left side of the road fairly quickly, but the fact that I left the Dutch winter and arrived in the Australian summer is still strange.
It also took some time to get used to such a big city. Sydney has approximately 23 times more inhabitants than Eindhoven and in terms of surface area it is around 146 times larger! Cycling to the other side of the city was therefore not an option, also because they have not been properly introduced to the concept of a cycle path. Fortunately, public transport is well organized and a lot cheaper than in the Netherlands. Luckily, I also live in a beautiful old English townhouse near the university and the road to it happens to have a cycling path!
I'm here in Sydney for my master's internship in Mechanical Engineering. I will carry out the internship at the University of Sydney at the Department of Materials Engineering. The campus reminds me a lot of Eindhoven as almost all the buildings are grouped together with lots of greenery in between and most of the buildings were built in the 20th century. The big difference is that there are a number of buildings here that date from 1850, so sometimes it feels like you are walking around in a Harry Potter film. Unfortunately the building I am in is not one of these beautiful old buildings and looks more like Gemini. Fortunately, the lab where I am is ultra-modern.
Of course, there is also a lot to do outside of the university, as well as in and outside the city. When you think of Sydney, you immediately think of the Sydney Opera House. It remains a magical experience to see that building again and again. In addition, it was a very nice surprise when I found out that you can visit virtually all museums for free. After a busy day at the university, I would take a train to the centre of Sydney and take a leisurely stroll through a museum for an hour or so. Next to this, you can admire beautiful nature inside and outside the city,
in the several parks of Sydney and the National Parks beyond. In the parks of Sydney, and actually everywhere in the city, all kinds of unique animals roam around. Well, special for a Dutchman. Instead of pigeons and seagulls, there are ibises and lizards walking around and cockatoos and bats flying through the air. Just outside Sydney there are several National Parks where you can do fantastic hikes through gigantic landscapes completely covered with trees.
On the other side of Sydney you of course have the ocean and everywhere along the coast you will find beautiful sandy beaches. However, the ocean is very rough with huge waves, which is great fun for the people who come here to surf, but a casual swim is not an option. In addition to swimming and surfing, all kinds of water sports are practiced here. On a random Saturday I accidentally met a group of sailors who took me sailing on their boats the next day. It was a wonderful experience to sail through the Sydney landscape and that is and will remain a memory that I will keep forever.
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