House Hunting Adventures 2

Bondi or Bust

My first week in Sydney I see an ad in Gumtree for a room in a flat in Bondi. "Goody" I think, "Summer at the beach!"

The Email

So I email the advertiser and here's her response

hi
i am going oversis for 6 week and i have a nice irish gay living in the 2 bedrom he working and his verry cleen and kwit person not like the irish you now if you wont to now mo please ring me
regard ...

I'm intrigued, and pass this email around to my friends and family for their interpretation. Josie is disappointed that the Irishman is gay. She's a big fan of PS I Love You and wants to travel to Ireland just for the great accents.

Buses and Trains

So after work I walk up to Martin Place. Darn all these stairs at the train stations - my knees are aching. A kind stranger carries my heavy bag down the steps. Is it safe to entrust your bag to a random in Sydney?
I puzzle over whether I can use a combined train and bus ticket or have to buy them separately. A full day train/bus combo ticket costs $20 which seems excessive. The ticket man isn't sure, but thinks a return combo ticket for $8.40 will probably work.
I take the train out to Bondi Junction, then find the right bus platform. I check the ticket with the ticket seller at the newsagent. He reckons it'll do. I am reassured. I hop on the bus, and my trusty iPhone shows me its progress so I know roughly when to get off. How did we live before iPhones?

A Street with a View

It's a beautiful street, lined with trees full of parrots and flowering vines. I can see the ocean in the distance. I'm thinking this would be pretty nice. I arrive at the right number and am a bit taken aback by how dilapidated the place looks.

I'm reminded of home!

I knock on the door and am ushered inside. The first thing that strikes me is an odour reminiscent of my dog Gypsy after she's been swimming in the creek - just like home! The place is rundown and shabby. There's a lumpy bed that looks like my Grandma's. I would be sharing the bathroom with the Irishman who apparently is not gay - he's an "Irish guy".

I leave with the sincere hope I can do better than this...

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Time wasted:1.5 hours
Bus and Train fares:$8.40
A walk along a shady street lined with jasmine and a view of the sea: Priceless!