Lets start with the built environment.
The first glimpse of the built environment I experienced not just of Sydney, but also Australia was from the small window of an airplane. I suppose this is almost always the case for Americans coming to Australia unless travel is done by way of ship. Looking out over the rooftops of houses and buildings, I noticed a dominant reddish-orange-brown color. Once on the ground, I discovered that this is a type of clay tile roofing similar to that used in Spanish architecture, though the style of the individual tiles is different here in Australia. Here is a picture of the phenomena:
Once on the ground, I was able to properly observe the architecture and buildings. Wow. The Sydney skyline is such a wonderful sight to behold! From the countless skyscrapers all around (at times difficult to distinguish which side of the Harbor is downtown) to the iconic Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge, it is absolutely beautiful. Once out of the downtown area, the shops and streets have a quaintness about them that looks as though it has European influence.
Along the lines of my thesis topic, I saw a few solar panels, though it was unclear as to what the panels were providing power for. In the newspaper I glanced through at the Museum of Sydney, I saw an article where a group is beginning to research tidal energy and how Australia can begin to utilize this new technology. Apart from these instances though I did not outwardly observe clean energy strategies for buildings. Perhaps a job site visit would have led to finding more methods, though the group was unable to procure any field trips to a job site. One last note on clean energy, though not a building, involves the extensive bus system. The hundreds of buses the city uses all run on natural gas!
The layout of the city has a nice balance of buildings and park areas where you can take a lovely afternoon stroll amidst towering shade trees and green fields dotted with beautiful plants. Usually these parks are centered around a lake or pond which makes for a delightfully relaxing and cool atmosphere. One of these places was located just on the outskirts of the University of Sydney Campus. Here is a look:
On to the local culture!
A significant number of Asian peoples occupy Sydney. However, a good number of Caucasians are also present and just walking down the street you may pass 20-30 people on one block and have the privilege of possibly hearing 4 or more different languages. Needless to say, walking down the street in Sydney can be a very interesting experience and at times, I was probably the only one who could speak English. This is an odd feeling - a mixture of awe and also isolation due to lack of ability to communicate. On the whole though most people speak English, each person with a slightly different dialect - no doubt influenced by their first language.
As many people may be aware, Britain claimed Australia and established it as a penal colony several centuries ago. However, the British were not the first human inhabitants of Australia. The Aborigines were the first people group to populate the continent, though they were no technological match to the British and have since taken a backseat (by force in the beginning according to history). In my travels around the city of Sydney I came across this people group on two occasions. The first instance occurred the first day. Although I did not speak with them, I saw a group of them posted up at Circular Quay playing a didgeridoo, taking pictures, and selling CD's. This in and of itself was not how I pictured this people group, though their loin clothing and body painting absolutely followed their traditional culture. Our journey through the Blue Mountains began at Echo Point where I also met an Aboriginal boy who was with several other Aboriginal men who performed shows. At the time we arrived, a show of how to play a didgeridoo was just ending. I caught the last bit in which the Aborigine playing the didgeridoo explained that you should play with as little tension in your throat as possible, as tension in the throat can cause damage to a man's adam's apple. (Ironically enough it was a female who had asked this question.) I was struck at the wonderfully clear Australian English accent the Aborigine man had, though I am not quite sure what dialect I expected them to have.
For the Journey Down Under course at Auburn University, we are supposed to have a video for each city we visit. A good deal of freedom is given towards this video, so I had some fun with mine. I hope everyone enjoys a comprehensive recap video from Sydney, NSW, Australia:
Sydney Recap Video
On the whole, I thoroughly enjoyed Sydney. It was an experience of a lifetime and only the beginning of my trek around Australia. Now to Brisbane!
I am stoked about those buses!!!
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