Australia: Anastasiya Kurova (We’re not in Madison Anymore)

Program: University of Sydney Exchange, Fall

My first days in Sydney reminded me most of New York, just with a few cultural differences. The first shock was the shopping mall culture. Sydney is filled with massive multi-story malls including the Australian-based Westfield, World Square, and the Romanesque Revival Queen Victoria Building. These malls host grocery stores (Woolworths, Coles, or Aldi), pharmacies, retail, and more. 

Delivery culture is equally strong. UberEats, DoorDash, and Hungry Panda are a part of the culture, through ordering food, and as a common side job for students.

Secondly, the public transit system is a way of commuting for a majority of students, workers, and tourists throughout the city. It’s clean, safe, and convenient, with buses, trams, metro, light rail, and ferries. Ferries are a normal part of commuting from places like Manly Beach to Circular Quay (Central Business District). 

The last thing that stood out to me was the effect of Asian influence woven into Australian daily life. Showing up most clearly through food. Haymarket is lined with different types of Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, and Korean restaurants. Even fast-food chains like KFC offer Vietnamese-inspired sandwiches. But the cultural influence also appears in small Australian habits, seen through how umbrellas are neatly stored in organizers outside shops on rainy days (Japanese-influenced). And how universities celebrate major international holidays such as Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese New Year.