Little things I noticed the first week in Sydney

I vividly remember the day I landed in Sydney. The sun was a little over the horizon in a clear blue morning. After getting dropped off at the hotel a group of us decided to get some food so we walked around for a bit. Even though it was about 56 degrees Fahrenheit the sun was so strong that it made it seem 10 degrees hotter. We stopped at an Asian food court and I ordered some fried rice.  They gave me so much food I couldn't finish it so I went to order a to-go box. This is where I began to notice the little differences. When I asked for a to-go box they looked at me confused, they then proceeded to pick up a Tupperware container and say "a takeaway box?" 

That was just the beginning, there were so many Australian phrases I heard some of which I did not understand. For example, brekky was breakfast and a very common meal was a  flat white with Vegemite and avocado toast. They also said, "dunny" for restrooms and "Maccas" for McDonald's. They referred to sweaters and jackets as "jumpers". When I asked for ketchup for my burger no one understood me because they know it as "tomato sauce". They also call sunglasses "sunnies" and bathing suits "swimmers". The list just goes on and on.

I was really impressed by the transportation system in the city. At first, I was scared I wouldn't be able to go places around the city because it was so big but the buses, trains, and ferries made it incredibly easy. One of the first things I noticed while walking around was that everyone walked on the left side. Also, while on electrical escalators you stood on the left to leave the right space open in case people wanted to walk by. Something else that was really big was waiting in queues. You waited in line to get in or out of somewhere and if you tried to cut in front people would let you know their disapproval. 

At a glance, I thought that Sydney looked a lot like Los Angeles or San Diego but I couldn't have been more wrong. It was after some time that I let myself get emersed in their culture that I began to notice all the little things. It was those little things that made me fall in love with the city.