After a month in Australia !

Hello everyone !

It's good to be back ... okay my last post was last Friday, but I only told you about this minor event in Australia that is Australia Day !

In fact I stopped before going to my first bush-walk in Sydney, it was like 10 days ago, and yes, as the title says it pretty accurately, it's been a month since I arrived in Australia !

What an adventure, I definitely encourage you to do it, this experience is great, and that is only the beginning for me !

The bush-walks then. Well, I only did two bush-walks, and easy ones ! These are good for socializing and to enjoy good little walks, and if what you are after is exercising you should go to the hard ones.

The first one lasted 3 hours, I crossed by foot for the first time the famous Sydney Harbour bridge, then walked next to Luna Park and kept going further up north.

The second one lasted 2 hours, we went through the Centennial Park which is quite big (189 hectares). There was an outdoor cinema with a big screen, and the seats looked quite comfortable !
After the walk we ate at a restaurant in Bondi Junction.

Next to Manly beach there is another little one, protected from the waves thanks to a cliff called Shelly Beach. I might post a picture of it someday, but I don't really like this one, the grains of sand are too big, so it makes it not comfortable to lay on or to walk on ... I know I'm starting to have high standards in term of beach quality !

On the way to the beach you can see the little Australian Water Dragons, and of course there is a fine if you're seen trying to touch them !

Here have a nice picture of a located rain over Freshwater Beach up north. (or somewhere around that point).

You should be cautious when you walk under palm trees, because if you're not, you might receive one of their branch on your head ... Yeah, this happened to me when I was walking back from Shelly beach, and no, that's not the reason I don't really like this beach !

What's next ? Let's talk about roller-blades ! As you might know, I like rollerblading when I have the motivation to go out. And since I'm in Australia, I have this kind of motivation all the time, which is good !

I should receive mines this week if everything goes right. I've heard of a weekly meeting for roller-blades on Wednesday evenings. There is in fact a Facebook group for it, that I've joined. So more about it later !

You might also have seen this post on Facebook with a picture of me holding something taller than me, and blue. Yes, I finally bought a surfboard. Well, to be accurate you would call it a soft-board but it's a detail ! it is 8 feet tall, so around 2,44 meters.

This kind of surfboard is perfect to start surfing, because you can catch the waves more easily, the ones in plastic are cheap and resistant. I got it from a surfing school selling new boards on gumtree, the Australian leboncoin.fr. It was $179 for the 8 ft board, the leash, and some wax. It's hard to find deals this good !

I went to try my board the day I bought it with Chris, my flatmate, who surfs since a long time ago. There were big waves, and a lot of them, so it wasn't easy at all to get away from the shore, and very exhausting ! When a big wave arrives, you can't get under it with this board, so you have to turn with the board so you get under it, and when the waves passed you, get back on it to start paddling again.

Once you're far enough from the shore, the water is quieter, and you have less waves coming in your face, so you can sit on the board waiting for a big one. When a big enough arrives, you turn your board toward the shore, and paddle to gain speed, so you can get on the wave.

Well, for me it was more like I was completely thrown out by the waves. They were too big for me at my current level. After some trials, I was out of energy, so I was going back to the shore, and actually the little waves when nearing the shore are way better for me to learn how to stand and keep the balance.

That's how I could for the first time stand on the board ! Only 4 seconds, alright, it's not a lot but that's a start !

I will keep practicing and tell about my progression !

I went to a place called the Japan Foundation this Monday. A Japanese friend told me about it last Friday at a Japanese meetup group.

Basically, it's a library with Japanese books, so you can borrow them for free and practice your Japanese.

There is one last major thing I want to tell you that happened in Australia. I got the job at Vero, and if the 2 month trial period goes well, they will sponsor me with the work visa 457.

That means that those holidays are almost over, but that I moving forward toward my goal that is to live in Australia. The more time I spend here, the more I am persuaded that I did the right choice to come here !

Alright, take care folks, and remember to live your life to its fullest !

The Australia Day !

In France we have the 14th of July, in Australia they have the 26th of January. Even though my first Aussie Day (or OZ Day) was a raining day, it was a nice one !

First Darren Percival from the TV show The Voice made a twilight concert.

Then there was a ceremony, with speeches and applause ... wasn't the best part of the event, but I guess it's part of it ! 

And finally the main event, the fireworks, yay ! With a DJ on another stage. I chose to watch the fireworks instead of the DJ, We had the video on the screen anyway, and the sound too ! Well, that was loud !

Yep, that was great ! :)

PS: I have videos of the fireworks ... but the camera on my phone makes such good quality videos and pictures which means big files, and since I don't have a fast internet access ... I'll upload the videos on YouTube and put the links here and on Facebook when it's done. I have to go to the cafe though. Yes, because I have found an alternative: I can use the free WiFi from the beach, but it's slow and limited.

Use meetup, you'll meet great friends !

Hi everyone !

For the job, I don't have an answer yet, but the day at Vero went well on Friday, plus I went to the bar with them, which is good !

You know, I've told myself to stay away from every French people around, so I can only be surrounded by foreign people. It is in fact very important !

I've spent a year in England at Keele University near Manchester, but during this year I was mostly with French people, which didn't help much to improve my English level.
No, what helped me were the books in English I've started to read after that, and the movies and TV shows in original version without subtitles I was watching.

Anyways, I joined the meetup group: The Sydney French Language Group, and went to one of their event this Saturday, which consisted in a coffee at an organic food market. I met a lot of lovely people there, and only one French Girl who just arrived in Australia.
An elderly couple asked me if I could help them to learn French in private lessons, and be paid for it. I don't really need this income, but I wanted to help so I agreed for $20/hour. (Their offer started with $30/hour). That can be a good idea if you come in Australia and want to make some money aside from your work. However, once I'll start working I might not be available to keep the sessions going.

I was supposed to go to a second meetup event at 1 pm in the city, but actually my foot was still hurting so I didn't have the motivation. So instead, I texted an Australian girl I met this morning and who was supposed to go back to Brisbane the day after, and that's how I filled a 'do nothing on the beach' afternoon. We spent the day together talking and laughing a lot. She is actually the first person in Australia that I talked this much to.

Her name is Nina, it's the short version actually, and I prefer to call her pug lover girl or dream crusher girl. So you're probably asking yourself why would any sane person want to spend the day with someone who love pugs ? Oh and crush dreams, yeah that too !

Well, everyone has a dark side ! She is a High-school teacher, and she loves to show to her students how lame they are on Photoshop.

I always knew that, when you mix Italian, Canadian and Australian blood, nothing good emerges from that ! She also has one good side, she likes French quiches. Okay, I'm being mean ! But that's what you get when you try to scare me by telling me how dangerous Australia is !

Because in fact yeah, the animals in Australia can be pretty dangerous. But with a little bit of intelligence and not to much of bad luck, you can avoid them. Maybe you've heard it before: In Australia, everything can kill you. (Even the sun) I won't go further around this, but there are some species you better recognize and avoid. Or some beached in Queensland you better not enjoy too much.
Here in New South Wales, no trouble, aside from a shark from time to time, the beaches are great !

So anyway I made a very good friend, and hopefully she will be back in Sydney soon ! We wouldn't want my dreams to be intact for too long would we ?

Maybe you've seen my pictures and videos on Facebook about the event on Sunday ? The Amazing Race Of Sillyness ! So much fun ! We met a little before noon, formed group of 5 and were given a paper with 55 tasks. Each task was worth an amount of points.
We had until 6 pm to reach the checkpoint at the Trinity bar near Central station with as many points as possible, and the proofs required. Mostly photos and videos.
Our team was composed of:
Patrick, a Filipino who arrived not too long ago in Australia.
Callum, a Canadian in Australia since a few years, but just arrived in Sydney,
Sarah, an American just arrived in Australia,
Timothy, a Sydneysider, our savior becoming our walking GPS.
And me.

It was a nice day, being silly in Sydney, but very exhausting ! We only finished 15th over 19 teams finishing the race ... but we were there for the fun and we got it all !

I didn't do much during the next days. Chatting with people, enjoying the beach, going to a cafe to enjoy the free WiFi while drinking cappuccinos, meetup events.

I'll miss all this chilling out when I get a job. But I'll enjoy every bit I have left even more !

On Thursday afternoon, I met the retired couple for the lesson. It was a nice talk, which lasted a little more than one hour. They own a house in France, and intend to  go there for 3 or 4 months during the Summer. They want to find someone to rent their place here in Manly. I will go and visit it, we never know !

Hey, by the way ! My foot is better now ! So tonight I will enjoy my first meetup Bush-walking activity. A 10km walk. It should be fun !

A few days ago I saw a lot of people rollerblading in Manly, and guess what, I want roller-blades so much now ! I figured out that instead of buying new ones, I should have the ones in France come to me instead. Waaaaaaay cheaper, like 50 euros instead of 250 euros for those I would buy !

I've started to learn Japanese again ! There is some good apps on the Play store. Being around Japanese people motivated me ! People usually think that it is a difficult language, which is wrong. The hardest part is the beginning. You have to learn the two syllabary by heart, and after that, it's just a question of practice. The phrases are always built in the same way, they have only past and present tenses (no future tense).
One other thing that will discourage some people are the Kanji symbols. But to speak with Japaneses you don't need them.

Well, that's it for this post ... wait ! A post without pictures ?! That wont do !

Here is a little picture I took this morning around 5:43, a lame attempt to catch the sunrise, but those clouds were hiding everything ! But no worries mates, I'll get it someday. After all, I'm here for some times !

Enjoy Life everyone ! You live only once !

See ya !

Manly it is !

Hello everyone ! I hope your day's going well ! (Or your night depending or where you are of course)

Almost a week since my last post. However I think that if I keep describing to you everything that happens everyday, this might get boring, even with my entertainment skills.

Major events only then ... and a few things that could be fun to talk about.

Saturday was nice, I participated to two meetup events, so my day was completely booked. The first one at 1pm at the Opera Bar and the second one a 8pm in a club.

I met some really nice people during the first one, and since this meetup was about the Sydney festival we though we would move soon to enjoy it. However it was planned to stay in the bar until 7pm .... So we decided to move by ourselves. We went to the Village Festival in Hyde Park, where we grabbed a bite and talked while chilling out:

Let's start with the ladies from left to right.
Mikiko is a Japanese girl, her occupation is to take care of children.
Mahum from Saudi Arabia works in marketing and sales.
Then we have Thomas, a local, he works as a Research Engineer.
And finally there is Vincent, also a local, and a systems administrator.

The weather wasn't perfect but we wanted to go and see the outdoor stage up north from Hyde Park, where we would wait to enjoy some music:

It started raining, and we only had one umbrella and there was five of us, so ultimately we decided to go our separate ways.

Which on the other hand allowed me to go to the second meetup. I spent the evening and the start of the night partying in Sydney, in an event called Pub Crawling. You pay a certain amount, then you go to several bars/clubs, with a free entrance and a free drink for each one. It was fun !

I had nothing planned on Sunday, so I applied for several jobs after finishing the painful task of writing a cover letter.

So, as you might have seen on Facebook, I moved in a flat this Monday in Manly. Well yes, just next to the beach. You've probably noticed how the sky was cloudy on the picture. Here is a picture I took when the weather was a little better:

Nice place isn't it ? I live here with a lovely couple.

Chris is a chef, he obviously likes to cook, however he doesn't really love his current job which is sad. His real passion is surfing, and he also like fixing old cars. He offered me to teach me how to surf, in exchange for some French lessons.

Apryll works in a shoe shop. She runs on the beach in the morning, and like reading, painting, knotting and doing Sudoku ... even the hard ones, which I don't.

The only problem is that there is no WiFi connection in the flat. On every ad, it is indicated that there is fast internet, and in the description, the owner usually states if you will share the internet bill, or if it is part of the weekly price.

Not in this one, and I missed it. Luckily, there is a lot of free wifi spots in Sydney. And I was told about a nice cafe with it, not too far from my place. So I might go somewhere else sooner than expected. Because, even though I can still use the 3G/4G connection, it is not unlimited here.

I haven't bought a surfboard yet. However I bought shoes so I can start to enjoy jogging along the beach, which I did on Monday for a little more than an hour.

And I don't know how, but I twisted something in my left foot ... well, GREAT start ! ;)

Okay ! Everything is nice and all but, there is still something missing. What about the job ?

On Tuesday I met Damien, who arrived in Australia a few years ago. He went at Epitech, and is now working at Vero. If you want to learn more about their product which is gaining more and more renown, you can have a look at their website: Vero

After a little talk with Damien, he organised an interview for me the day after, so I can meet the team, and maybe get a job there.

This interview went very well, and I am supposed to go back on Friday to see how they work, and to take some tests.

If I'm hired, and according to the quality of my work there, they would be glad to sponsor me. Which is perfect !

I don't know if you, reader, know your way around programming languages, so I will quickly say that they use Ruby, and PostgreSQL.

On my way back from the interview I went once again by Hyde park. Here is a nice photo of the main alley in the middle of the park:

And voila ! We reach the end of my seventh post. I don't know yet how the blog will evolve. Because once I start working, there will be a small routine going on here.

However I intend to keep experiencing new things, meeting new people ... in other way, enjoying my new life in Australia instead of spending it on the computer, and sharing it here, so that maybe you find yourself wanting to come over here to taste it by yourself !

Bye bye mates !

PS: Enjoying the beach daily is a real pleasure !

PS2: I haven't made any dangerous encounter yet. I have seen a huntsman spider, and I survived, which is good ! (Not a very dangerous one actually)

Walking around Sydney

Hello fellow citizen,

I was very sad to learn about the terrorist attack on Charlie Hebdo this week. Damn ... I can't believe it ... I've seen the video of the policeman shot ... fanatic bastards.

Australians have heard of it, each time I meet someone and tell them I am French, they say something like: "Very sad what happened in Paris".

Anyway, Je suis Charlie ! (and Ahmed too) 

So I'm not yet in my flat, but Monday I'm supposed to move in. I didn't get the big one, however I got the one next to the beach ! I will definitely show you pictures of it !

What happened since the last time ? Well, on Wednesday evening I got to the meetup event in cockle bay, near Darling Harbour, in the Pontoon bar. I met a lot of people from different nationalities there. After all it was a meeting of two groups: "International Friends Australia" and "The Sydney English as a Second Language Meetup Group". It was fun, and hopefully I will meet them again next time.

On Thursday I had a meeting with a guy working in a recruitment office, Anthony. He was introduced to me by Arnaud, a former Epitech student. We talk about the possible salary and what to add to my resume, and other casual things. There was another event from meetup, this one was a meetup for a seminar on how to date more girl, with a sincere seduction technique. Well it was fun, and today (Friday) I've tried it.

First of all, today, Friedrich (I told you I was getting better) left the dorm to travel the East cost with his friends. And guess what .... yep you got it right, another English girl got into the dorm ... I feel a little bit in inferiority here ...

So today, another meetup event planned: After-work drinks.

I left the backpacker hotel early to try the seduction technique on girls ... okay ... actually I tried it on one girl sitting on a bench, reading a book in the park. It went well, I got her number, but when I asked her if she wanted to get a coffee, she told me she was waiting for her boyfriend .... damn ...

On the way to the meetup event, something struck me. You've all seen in France how people are waiting to get into the bus, or how they get into the bus. Well in Australia, people are queuing peacefully waiting for their turn:

Have I already said that I love Australia ?

After that I went to the meetup event, met a few people and left with three of them to go to another bar. Didn't like it this much, so I left early.

On the way back to the backpackers HQ, I heard a music, with voices singing. When I got closer to the sound, I saw a circle of people singing, with some other sitting on benches, watching the singers performing.

They were all Asians, so I guessed it was a group of some sort. A girl was apart from them so I went to her and asked what it was.

They are a South Korean Chorea from a church nearby. And they are performing for a group of homeless, and other people going by.

I watched it all, and talked to them. They really are nice people. All they want to do is give, and give.

I am not Christian, I am agnostic. For me everything they do is beautiful because it comes from them, even though they think it is what god wants, doesn't change the fact that they do good.

I took some Facebook contacts and gave my number for further social interactions. I have no intention of converting to Christianity. I'm a scientific, and only believe in what I can see and touch. But once again, they are nice people, and I liked being around them.

After that I went back to the backpacker HQ and I don't know why, but it was overcrowded. I met some new people: a group of Germans, some more of English girl, and finally 4 English guys who are in Australia since 14 months. (Damn, so many English people right now in the hotel ...).

I went with the 4 guys to an Irish pub near the backpacker hotel, had a few pints, then got back.

Well that's all. I hope you enjoyed reading. Once again, don't hesitate to leave comments my posts so I can improve.

Thanks mates !

The quest for a flat

Hi there,

Update on the dorm, since yesterday two British girls are sharing our dorm with Friedric (yes, I improve the spelling from time to time) and I. They come from London and are quite nice.

People keep telling me that I am very fluent in English, even though I just arrived. I think reading and watching movies in English helped me a lot !

On Monday I went to see the Opera with Friedric, it was a twenty minutes walk, but mainly in parks so it was pretty and peaceful. There is a good view point for the Opera and the bridge both. But it was cloudy so I won't put photos because you wouldn't be jealous enough ...

We ate at Mc Donald, pretty much the same price from France.

Thinking of food, you know what ? There is Domino's pizza in Australia, and you can have the small pizza for 4.95$ (so 3.38 euros) which is enough for a meal. I only went to Domino's three times ... I should get a medal.

After that we went back to the backpackers HQ by another way, and I left for the first visit of a flat.

Well, it was a crappy flat, and I was quite sure that the second one to visit would also be crappy. And I was right .... well this quest didn't started very well ... though a Brazilian and an Australian with his mother (probably about to leave the nest) where quite excited by the offer. On the second visit I also met a guy from the backpackers HQ, we went back together to the hotel, sharing our disgust of the place we just left.

Those visits were close to the city, but I don't want to be in the city anymore. No, like I said previously, I want a flat in Bondi or Manly, next to the beach.

And another night passed.

Thanks to the premium offer I got four visits planned for today. All of them in Manly, from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm.

And today, the sky was clear so here come the pictures !

First the Opera and the bridge behind it

To go to manly beach you have three solutions:
- by feet ... quite a long trip
- by buses
- by ferry

The ferry is the fastest and the cheapest choice ... even though it is 7.18$ with the Opal card.

Wait, I didn't tell you about the Opal card ? My, my ...

Well you can buy an Opal card from the retailers, or order it online. It's free to get, but after that you have to recharge it. When you enter a bus, a train station, a light rail or a ferry station you tap in, then you simply tap off when you leave. It will automatically consume the amount needed.

But there is more to that, you won't be charged more than 15$ a day (2.50$ on the Sundays) and if you reach 8 travel during a week, every other travels of this week will be free of charges. There is still some benefits, but you can check them on the website if you're interested. (opal fares and benefits)

Other picture of the Opera from the ferry:

The trip on the ferry is relaxing, and fast enough, then you arrive to Manly ... let's see the beach:

Well, those visits were way better ! I will described the two best:

1) Right next to the beach, a small flat shared with a couple. The guy is a Chief, even though he doesn't really like his job, the girl works in the shoe shop. They are very nice, and the place is clean. The price is 350$ per week.

2) This one is a little further from the beach, but still easily reachable by foot (around 10-15 minutes), the flat is much bigger and also cheaper. 300$/pw

So I'm waiting for an answer from the second one, and if the answer is negative, I will try the first one. If none of them is ok, well, the other good one I have visited is not too far from the beach either.

After those visits, I had of course to get back to the backpackers HQ. When I took the ferry, it was nighttime ! Some seagulls were flying next to us during the crossing. And of course there were lights in the city:

Ok, good night folks !

Surf in Bondi Beach !

Hi folks !

Where were we last time ... ah right, the night in Sydney, well actually I went to drink a beer with Alex (the first German guy I talked about), we talked a little and then we got back to the backpackers HQ.

The day after that, so yesterday if you count it right, I kept searching for THE FLAT TO BE, near Manli Beach or Bondi Beach, there is several offers, so we will see if any is a win.

In the meanwhile I have two visits planned on Monday (but not near the beach for these ones).

Then I was wondering what to do of all my evenings, since I know no one in Australia. Well there is a website called meetup.com

You can join groups and participate to several events which can be free or not, but in any case these are good opportunities to meet a lot of people.

So for now I have something planned for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings but more about that in future posts !

After adding some events on my agenda, I went outside the room with my second German roommate, to enjoy a little bit of fresh air and sun. I call him Fredric because I am pretty sure I am not able to say his name correctly.

The shared space is peaceful, and nicely arranged.

Fredric arrived in Melbourne two months ago, and traveled with friends to Sydney and is now looking for a car so they can travel the east coast. He has finished high-school and is doing this trip to Australia before pursuing his studies. He doesn't know yet which field of study he will attend. So I told him about my curriculum in computer science, about why I came to Australia, and so on.

I heard a guy who was speaking French next to us, so I said hi and he offered beers. His name is Mathieu he arrived one day after me, works in the hotelier/restaurant environment and like me he has a working holiday visa for one year.

Next to him was an English guy, called Edward also here with a WHV for a year, and just arrived too. We can say he is trying to adapt to the Australian weather ... he is in fact covered with sunburns !
We took several beers and talked a lot about our plans in Australia.

We decided with Mathieu to go to Bondi Beach the day after, so we can enjoy the sun and take pretty pictures to make our friends jealous.

So yeah, today Mathieu and I were in bondi beach, and yes it was a nice day.

I tried surfing a little, without any great achievement, but still it was fun. You can rent surfboards without spending to much money. For instance for one hour it is 15$. We paid 20$ because we exceeded the hour, but they are nice so they didn't make us pay for 2.

After that we went to visit the area, and ate at a restaurant called Ribs and Burgers. You guessed it, they make burgers (and ribs), and it was good !

After that, back to the beach for enjoying a little more of the Australian sun, then we went back to the backpackers HQ.

I have to say, even with my sunscreen, like Edward I have to adapt to the weather here .... damn sunburns, but I regret nothing !

See you !

First night in Sydney

G'day !

It's 26 degrees here, and the sun is bright !
After the landing yesterday, I opened a bank account and got an Australian phone number. Everything is in the airport so it's pretty simple to do.
An Australian advised me be avoid Vodafone, so I went for Yes Optus with 30$ / month, and for the bank account I went for AZN.

The next thing to do for the day was to find a place to spend the night. I went to Kings Cross witch is the place were you will find a lot bag-packer hostels. And more precisely Backpackers HQ on Victoria Street. It's a nice place, with free wifi, all the accommodation you need and the free breakfast. For a week in a dorm of four beds and a bathroom it's 245$. There is a French and a German in my dorm.

Honestly I didn't do much more yesterday, after a little talk with my dorm-mates and a shower, I fell asleep.

I took the breakfast with Alex the German, then he showed me a little around the backpackers hq, he isn't here since long so he hasn't visited a lot either.

My goal for the day is to start the search for a collocation. This is mostly online, so I went back to the backpackers hq.

There is several websites where people post an ad of the place they rent, and you can respond. I use easyroommate, since it is not mandatory to be a premium member to send messages, even though the owner of the ad has to be premium so he can read, and answer to me. No message between two not premium members. You can't see any phone number. It's 30$ for a week, so if I don't get an answer by tomorrow or the day after, I might take the premium offer.

A second German is joining the dorm during the afternoon, and the French is getting ready to leave.

I expect tonight to be a little more interesting than last night. Hopefully the dorm-mates will be okay to go out, if not I will go anyway to see by myself.

Oh and Happy New Year !