Where is Darran?

Got a little sick on Friday, rested Saturday, and today I am almost recovered. Tomorrow, should be tip-top.

I have modified my strategy for locating a job. Instead of solely focusing on Sydney as a place of employment, I have now expanded my job search to cities like Adelaide, Perth, Melbourne, and Brisbane. Because I am still in temporary accommodation it is possible to fly to another city for a job and setup shop there. I have also applied to be a pedipod pilot here in Sydney. I believe there is still an opportunity available for me at Crisis Couriers, but I have not called them yet to iron out what the details.

Today, I moved hostels to a more affordable hostel, Harbour City Backpackers. Harbour City Backpackers is the type of hostel I expect hostels to be like. It is a little grungy, sort of like a frat house after a party, things are bare bones, and a diverse and talkative crowd exists to converse with. There is really not that much difference in the rooms of the hostels I have stayed in. Eva’s had the nicest rooms even though Wake Up was most expensive. The rooms in Eva’s had a private bathroom, private reading lamps and shelves for beds, and big storage lockers. Harbour City so far has the most barebones rooms, but Wake Up is very close even though it is almost twice as expensive. However, at first glance, the shower and bathroom facilities at Wake Up are nicer. Wake Up also has an enormous TV room with massive flat screen and a huge first floor lounge with another massive flat screen. On the other hand, while Harbour City might lack flat screens and private bathrooms, it is very centrally located. It has the shortest walk to the Sydney Opera, Hyde Park, and the Circular Quay. I have embedded pictures of the rooms in Eva’s, Wake Up, and Harbour City Backpackers below.

Eva’s:

Wake Up:

Harbour City Backpackers:

I have re-added the music section with a new format and begun updating the travel log. My friend Uly, pictured goofily below, is flying to Cairns tomorrow and going to buy a van or big car and travel around Australia. He will be camping and sleeping out of his van and picking up any work he finds along the way. If I don’t lock down on a job soon, I am thinking about joining him for what is most likely going to be an incredible experience.

I had to go back to Kings Cross yesterday to pick up an ATM Card and took a couple pictures. The first two are of Darlinghurst Street. This is the Red Light District of Sydney. It looks like a normal street, but almost every other storefront is a strip club. The third picture is of a Coca-Cola sign that is an icon of Kings Cross.

Needed to post this site I found about banking costs when travelling. Link

Also, if you are in UK, Australia, or Africa, you will most likely use Gumtree instead of Craigslist.  Burger King in Australia is called Hungry Jacks.

Just got back into things after 24 hours of continuous rest. It was time to take a day off and catch up on all the long days and short rests. I have heard back from three recruiters so far and am currently stepping up the apartment search. Soon I will need to invest in some biz cas in order to enter the work place.

On the 19th:

Continued looking at job options, apartments, and possibly enrolling in an Oz business school. Got a little rowdy. After killing 2 cases of brew with some friends we had a water chugging contest before hitting up McDonald’s at 3 in the morning.

Water Chugging:

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View from Top of Eva’s:

On the 20th:

Got a bank account at Westpac. Australian banking is interesting because all of the bank accounts that I looked at had monthly charges. This differs from all of the bank accounts I’ve had in the US. However, Australian interest rates are substantially higher than US interest rates. The simple savings account yields a 7% interest rate. I also got scooped a new webcam from an Australian electronics store called Dick Smiths. Got confused and thought it was the pro. This means I might be making another trip to Dick Smiths tomorrow.

On the 21st:

Switched to Wake Up Hostel. Wake Up is like a college dorm and a hotel combined. The hostel is huge and there are a lot more scheduled outings and events. For example, many days have free group tours of Sydney. Will probably do one of these tomorrow.

The real deal:

I just finished uploading the pics that tour mate Dave gave me before he left. Because I just put the pics up I thought I would post a couple of the good ones.

A friendly bird:

Wild Zebra – National Animal of Botswana:

Dune 45 again:

A beetle on the move:

Breakfast at Dune 45:

A bird with a fur coat:

Always time to build a rock pile:

We’re in the middle of nowhere:

Don’t stick things in holes:

Everybody’s got a story to tell:

Lizard:

Are those 20’s on the ride?:

Elephants at the watering hole:

Lots of ele’s at night:

Giraffes on the move:

Springbok – National Animal of South Africa:

Lions in the distance:

Wildebeest:

More Zebra:

Oryx playing around:

We were in this ele’s territory:

Land of goo:

Sand Bushmen:

Sunset in the Okavango Delta:

American Dave on Termite mound:

Lukey B fell and got a stick in his hand:

Ele getting palm nuts:

Hippo’s in the Delta:

Baobab tree:

Big Lizard:

Water Buffalo:

Baboon:

Lions on the move:

The boys at Victoria Falls:

Lions on the Night Drive in Etosha:

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