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Not Luxe ☼ Travel
  • ABOUT NICK & RAYCHEL
  • WHY “NOT LUXE”
  • Cambodia
  • Australia
  • Travel
  • Teaching ESL
  • Move Abroad
  • Travel Insurance

why move to sydney

    living in sydney australia

    Living in Sydney (What It’s Like)

    by Nick & Raychel May 8, 2020
    In the past few years, we’ve been so lucky to live in different cities around the world like Toronto, Vancouver, Phnom Penh, the Okanagan and Sydney. Now, in a time of reflection, we are looking back on all these amazing places we’ve been so lucky to live. So alas, let’s talk about the pros & cons of living in Sydney.
     
    We moved to Sydney from Canada in 2018 on a Working Holiday Visa. Of course, everything in this article based on our opinions and experiences. We also believe it’s important to mention that we moved to Sydney after having lived in Phnom Penh, Cambodia for a year, as we believe that impacted our perspective. 
     
    Prefer to watch, not read? Find our YouTube channel here.
     

    High quality of life in Australia

    As you probably know, Australia is a country where people generally live high quality lives. Living in Sydney (or Australia in general) typically means reaping the benefits of a developed country.
     
    The drinking water is clean, the education system is fantastic, and the medical system is amazing. It’s all around a lovely, safe, clean place to live.
     
    Depending on what your circumstance is, if you’re thinking about moving abroad for the first time, Australia is a great choice. It’s well set-up, it’s safe, it’s clean, its beautiful. Many expats settle in well, since it’s not a hard country to adjust to.
     

    It’s easy to find an apartment in Sydney

     
    Because there are a lot of expats there, we found it very easy to find an apartment (multiple apartments) while living in Sydney. 
     
    There’s no shortage of finding a place to live, whether you want to live by yourself, whether you want to live with roommates, a place by the beach or something more expensive, or less expensive. There’s tons of options because there’s so many expats in and out of the city.
     
    It’s a traveler’s paradise, so there are a lot of options for places that you can just pick up a lease and live there.
     
    We found Sydney to be a really inviting city in general. It wasn’t very hard at all to find an apartment. It’s not very hard to make other friends that are expats. We lived in a house actually at one point that had a whole bunch of different travellers in it – and the city is full of those types of arrangements.
     

    There is a wide variety of really good food

    Because of the rich diversity in Sydney, there is no shortage of great food from all over the world.
     
    Like many big cities, there are a lot of food options in general! Cheap food, expensive food, street eats, anything! Seriously. Anything you are craving, you will be able to find. 
     
    And when it comes to living in Sydney- that is a huge pro in our books.
     

    Sydney offers an amazing mix of city and nature

    You never really feel like you’re in a big stinky city while living in Sydney, because you are surrounded by so much nature! Beautiful beaches, hikes, and parks – Sydney really has you covered when it comes to getting your nature fix.
     
    Within Sydney alone, there are well over 100 beaches, and you are always a bus/train ride away from beautiful destinations like the Blue Mountains or Kangaroo Valley.
     

    A fantastic transit system

    Some locals may laugh at us. I know some of my colleagues sure did when I *constantly* commented on how efficient the transit system is within Sydney.
     
    The transport system consists of trains, buses, ferries and the light rail – and they all work together to get you around (and out of!) the city as efficiently as possible. 
     

    The jobs pay well & the market is great

    Like finding an apartment, we found job hunting in Sydney pretty easy to do. There were a few things we wished we knew before moving there, but once we got the hang of the job market, we had jobs within 48 hours. 
     
    The pay in Australia in comparison to (especially) Canada or the US is really high. The pay is really high. The minimum wage alone is very high, and we found that actually many entry-level positions pay higher than minimum wage.
     
    For example, in Ontario (Canada), the minimum wage is $14 and MANY employers pay $14 an hour, a lot. In Sydney, the minimum wage is $19.49, but many employers are willing to pay more than that – even in coffee shops, restaurants, and other service positions.Of course, you have to take in consideration the conversion rate, but we think it’s important to mention.
     
    The best part is that we found jobs in our field – with ease – and high pay. Not much gets better than that.
     

    We can’t deny that Sydney is expensive 

    All that said about the wages, they do match how expensive the city is. Especially if you’re planning on going out and having drinks at the bar or just doing recreational activities that typically cost money.
     
    Sydney is expensive. We can’t deny that. We do believe our wages matched how expensive the city was, however, and we never struggled with money while living in Australia.
     
    Most employers understand that you’re in one of the most expensive cities in the world.
     
    Hey, if that’s our only downside (and it’s not really a downside since the wages are so good), we can’t complain.
     
    Have you ever lived in Sydney? Let us know what you thought about it!
     

    What about the nitty gritty stuff about moving to Australia? Find our article here.

    or read here: the SURPRISING costs of moving to Australia & everything we did wrong 

     


     
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Nick & Raychel
Nick & Raychel

In 2018, we sold everything we owned and moved to Cambodia to teach English.

Let’s make this clear: this journey didn’t start with money. This journey started with a desire to see the world and to do something different for a change.

We’re not going to fool you with photos of floating breakfasts and private jets. We know what it’s like to be on a budget. Although we like to take pretty pictures, we aren’t going to wake up at an ungodly hour to give you unachievable travel jealousy. We aren’t going to censor ourselves or lie to you.

What we are going to do is stay in cheap hostels, find ways to make money, give the advice that we would want to hear, and share our experiences with you honestly.

Are you in?

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ABOUT NICK & RAYCHEL

About Us Hi! We’re Nick & Raychel, the Canadian travel couple behind the brand ‘Not Luxe’. Far before we were married (and on a mission to see the world), we were working…

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  • This summer has been filled with a lot of hard work so we can continue the adventure.

Working odd jobs and picking up work that we aren’t necessarily *passionate* about (sorry to break it to you, Santa, I didn’t love being a Christmas elf at the mall during the holidays) isn’t always easy.

Working hours at the office, doing data entry, reception, and cleaning out the fridge every Friday isn’t exactly my idea of fun. Nick doesn’t love driving a truck for 11 hours a day, or getting home at 1am. 

But we are committed to the cycle, we are passionate about alternative living, and we want to see the world.

We don’t work hard so that we can have a margarita at the beach (although that’s fun too), we work hard so that we can experience different cultures, try different cuisines, learn about different climates, connect, and grow as people.

Travel to us is more than bright blue waters and aesthetic IG photos, it’s about the experience, and we can’t wait to see more.

__

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

Tags: #notluxe  #camperlife #camperlifestyle #vanlifeproject #vanlifeculture #tinyhome #tinyliving #vanlifediaries #travelgram #livetoexplore #vanlifeculture #budgettravel #worktotravel #traveljobs #travelblogger #vanlifestyle #vanliving #livingoutdoors #campinglife  #vanlifevirals #vanlifeideas #vandwelling

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  • Yeah, the first ever “odd job” I took in order to afford travel was as a Christmas Elf at the mall.

I worked this job on top of my regular 9-5 so that I could afford to pay off my existing credit card debt and move to Cambodia. It was my first step away from the ‘big girl jobs’ I was used to working, but I had a dream to live abroad and a bank account that didn’t match, so I had to do something about it.

The next few jobs I’ve done either part or full time over the years.

💻 REV: I’ve worked as a transcriber on Rev for a few years now. The pay isn’t great, but I’m a super fast typist (80 wpm who!?) so I figured it could be a way to pass the time & earn extra income.

🐶 Rover: This summer, we’ve ventured into caring for dogs on Rover. While we can’t do this in our van, we are currently staying with my brother and between all of us, there’s always a dog here. If I had learned about Rover prior to moving out of our apartment, I would have definitely offered my services years ago.

👩‍🏫 Teaching English online: Many people know that we taught English overseas - but only long-time followers of the YouTube channel would know that teaching ESL was my job beyond that. Unfortunately there were major pay cuts within the company that I worked for (PalFish) so I quit, but I still teach on Cambly and Outschool (more on that in part 2).

We don’t have a lot of money but we have expensive dreams, so we’ll do anything to make it work. What odd jobs have you done to earn some extra cash?

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

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  • Anyone who knows our story knows that we have been working throughout our entire travels. Seasonal / temporary work has afforded us a lifestyle filled with travel and adventure. ✈️

We have explored temp agencies, Craigslist ads, used websites like Airtasker (Australia) and Kijiji to find our temporary/seasonal jobs. But in the US specifically, there are some websites designed specifically for this type of work. 🌲

Here are 3 websites designed for seasonal work (mostly U.S. based):
1. Vagajobs: a resource for seasonal & year-round work with a heavy focus on travel/adventure jobs. Some jobs posted on Vagajobs include staff housing.
2. CoolWorks: job opportunities in great places - from national parks to ski resorts, summer camps, to national parks. Some jobs posted on CoolWorks include staff housing.
3. Occupation Wild: job board for the outdoor / adventure and travel industry. Hiring all sorts of positions at ranches, camps, resorts, conservation areas and national parks. 

Outside of the U.S.? Same (kinda). Our main go-to in Canada is Indeed (search by job type & select contract / seasonal)

Do you have any seasonal job boards to add to the list?
Drop ‘em here. ⬇️

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 

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  • If you’re in Ontario, you don’t want to miss this next year ✨ 

This was our first time visit the Hamilton night market and it was so worth the visit. Come along with us! @hhnightmarket 

Have you tried stinky tofu? ⬇️ 

—

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  • Shoutout to anyone who does these tiny (or big) builds on your own 🤦🏼‍♀️

We all have different strengths, right?… 

What’s your most dreaded part of DIY? ⬇️ 
_

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  • Saying goodbye is the hardest part about travelling.

We have said dozens and dozens of goodbyes throughout our 20s. We have met countless new faces, made a ton of connections, and have shed a lot of goodbye tears.

Even a visit ‘home’ comes with the looming feeling of saying goodbye again.

We wish we could take everyone we love and put them in our pocket.
But we know that everybody has a different dream, a different life. 

When we take our next flight or fill up the gas tank to our next stop on the road, they go off on to see the world for themselves, to raise their families, to chase their career goals, love lives, or whatever else.

And we are so stoked to be able to stay in touch online.
But it’s definitely the hardest part of living nomadically.

➟ follow @nickandraychel // full-time van life & budget travel 
__

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