A Life in the City Centre - The Bright Side

In a city centre, if you live there, I imagine that one can more easily try new places, whether for a gig, catch up with mates, a quiet time with the special one or experiment the menu at a new eatery. The social media harps on suggesting and trying such new joints and people you know or on Facebook actually talk about them. Okay, so dress up and off you go and reach there in under half an hour (for Sydney or Melbourne that is). No fuss, you can check out what the demographics in that new cool place are wearing or chatting about - and quickly pick up what you want and decide not to. You do not even have to catch a ride on a vehicle, but walk, passing quickly by the jam lock traffic on city streets. The weather can be inclement, but you can duck from one sheltered buiding to another.


If you have moved on from the roast or salad and two veg combo meal for daily consumption, you do find a wider array of choices, especially in the exotic stuff (yes, chicken legs are available, if you ask). Living in the city centre means eventually you know someone from one of the major ethnic immigrant groups in Australia. Hey, we can't stick to our blonde haired partner always, especially when he or she is anyway trying out the new fangled stuff and fusion cuisine themselves. Just realise there are hubs in Sydney (or tribal villages in Melbourne) and it is easy to proceed. Purists say all these multicultural things have been watered down for the consumption of the still mainstream society here. Who cares? We have a taste of the sports, fitness, music, arts, food and trends from varied communities and foreign countries before we decide to spend some money on budget airlines to fly there and try the real stuff.


For migrants, the city centre also easily offers home and soul familiarity in the groups that congregate, especially around "their" food outlets -for example, just hang around the various parts of southern George Street or Surry Hills or Newtown in Sydney. You can catch the latest fad movie and walk home to be in bed within a decent few minutes, instead of facing the challenge of trasnportation back to the suburbs. Hey, what an opportunity to catch those special event movies that begin after midnight! Hair saloons are still abuzz in the east Asian strips of both Melbourne and Sydney after 6pm, even on weekends! There is no need to pay those superlative parking fees that are imposed on hapless visitors from outside the city centre.


You can buy less stuff in terms of groceries and kitchen supplies, for your personal fridge is only a stone's throw away and maintained by the commercial providers. When you have periodic bouts of insomnia due to the neighbouring noise from down the street, you just buckle up and join the revellers. Never mind staying up late, for you literally can be in your work place not long after you jump out of bed the next morning.


Summer is a great time to reside in the city centre. There are festivals, night club events, people who really don't want to go home as it is too warm and the sun sets late anyway. New Year's Eve brings home the true benefits of residing in a city centre, and many mates want to know you better and stay over. If you still do physical retail, instead of on-line buying,you can pop over to real great sales way before the hordes arriving from the outer west. You can buy takeaway from fancy diners and still have them warm on your kitchen counter - no need to microwave them, and besides they do taste odd after being put in a microwave.


In autumn, you can be at the ANZAC Day memorial way before dawn, with lots of time to spare, and I mean at major memorials. The airport is so close to the city centre in Sydney. You can escape to lonely places, those that you cannot even imagine, and on coming back, you quickly join the gravy train of the city centre, and I don't mean those dripping wet and messy stuff cluttered at some corners of some parts of an otherwise great city centre. This is the gravy train of a spectrum of roles to earn money and keep your career moving, provided the economy is doing well, even if you move on to another city. In a city centre, you do have the reality, and at times, illusion, that you are at the centre of action, even if it is just the Apple Store launching another product or if you find yourself lining up again in that queue to reach this hyped up retail outlet. You can get to see or meet or talk to people who have the same obsessions or perceptions about being based in the centre, beneath the sight of tall buildings and fascinating lights.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Aunty Gaik Lian's - Straits Chinese, Georgetown, Penang

85 Degrees Bakery Cafe Hurstville NSW

Return to Eythrope