A Tale of Two (or Three) Cities

In my 29 years (and some months) I have lived at various times in three different capital cities and two country towns.

I grew up in Sydney, but haven't lived there permanently since I was in my mid-twenties, back in 1989, when I moved to Hobart. Despite what some people say about the excitement factor of Sydney, it's not a place that I would ever choose to live again. Of course, since moving away, I have returned many times, mainly for the purpose of catching up with special people - family and friends - and not for the sake of visiting the city itself.

Hobart is a completely different kettle of fish. In the 17 years I lived there, I fell totally and utterly in love with the place. Actually it took me far less than 17 years to fall in love with Tasmania. I think it was only a year or so after moving to Hobart that I found myself driving into Bright, Vic, to attend a national meeting of Fusion leaders. As we entered the town, I remember looking around at the breathtakingly beautiful scenery, and thinking, "Wow, this is beautiful! Almost as nice as... ooohhh!!!" (because that sentence was heading towards the ending: "... Almost as nice as the Midlands of Tasmania".) It was at this moment that I realised that I had become a Tasmanian- in spirit at least.

Hobart to me is the perfect city. It has all the facilities and advantages of a capital city, without any of the disadvantages. No huge skyscrapers, no pollution or traffic, and people actually look at you on the street, and you often see people you know around town (which can be an advantage or disadvantage, at times). Wherever you go in the Hobart city and suburbs, there is always a view of either the river, the mountain, or both. (The flat I bought in the northern suburbs has a great view from the balcony- the river to the left, the mountain to the right, and straight ahead, a wonderful vista of the Glenorchy industrial estate- what more could a girl want?!) Hobart is the place that I think of when I think of my true 'home', and since moving to Victoria, I have been dreadfully homesick for Tassie.

And then there's Melbourne.

There are good reasons why Melbourne was recently feted as the world's most liveable city. I lived in Melbourne for just over three years, whilst I was doing my theological training. For the first six months, I lived in Kew, a painfully silvertail suburb, where I felt nervous every time I drove up the street where I lived, as there were so many Porsches and other very expensive cars with which I definitely did not want to have a close encounter with my humble little Ford Festiva. For the remaining 2.5 years, I lived in Brunswick, and loved it.

During my time in Melbourne, I always felt safe when walking around the city or catching public transport at night, and actually enjoy coming back to the city whenever I can get down from the north east of the state (or Sydney, where I am based at the moment).

There's just something about Melbourne. I love the feel of Sydney Road in Brunswick, the buzz of the inner city, the trams zipping around, and it's quite easy to drive around and find your way around the city in Melbourne.

I learned to drive in Sydney, and for the two years I studied at UNSW, I drove every day to Kensington from North Ryde, so I was quite experienced at driving in traffic. However, I would never choose to drive around the inner city in Sydney, much preferring to use public transport or taxis. There has always been something scary to me about the prospect of driving around the city or inner suburbs of Sydney.

Melbourne, on the other hand is much easier to get around in a car. In the time I lived there, and  in the almost four years since (of living in a country town that doesn't even have traffic lights), the prospect of driving in Melbourne's CBD has never fazed me. Whenever I go to Melbourne I often choose to stay in hotels in the inner city, and have no problems navigating my way around the city to get to my hotel, and wherever else I need to go. I just look up my route on Google Maps, or consult my trusty Melway, and off I go. I have even become quite proficient in the execution of the infamous 'hook turns' of Melbourne's CBD, where you have to turn right from the left hand lane. This may sound a bit counter-intuitive, and many people criticise hook turns, but I think the hook turn is eminently sensible, as it facilitates traffic flow, which is not held up by cars waiting to turn right in the middle of the street.

It's interesting how two big cities can be so different (at least different in how I experience them).