Sydney

Sydney's Harbour skyline, seen from the Opera House podium. Yes, that is a grey and rainy Sydney. Don't believe the propaganda!

For some reason I had a bad feeling waiting for my baggage to come off the belt; it turned out I was right, but not as bad as I’d feared. The luggage systems had swallowed my padlock, and this is apparently deemed OK by Qantas, so no replacement was offered. I then had to queue for half an hour for a taxi to my hotel, so it was about 10 o’clock by the time I got to my room.

What a lovely hotel. Close to the office, and a really nice Art Nouveau feel to the place. Really well appointed rooms, great location in the CBD and a pleasant skyline view from my room on the 17^th Floor. Massive bathroom and clever wardrobe, though the internet was really slow. Loved the breakfasts here too, they had a great selection and good quality served in a lovely room. It’s not hard to the basics right; so many places really screw this up, but not so here.

From my room on the 16th floor - I love city skyline views.

On my first night I ordered dinner and went to bed without heading out, as I had some meetings the following morning. I did, however, find time to book a Harbour Bridge Climb for the following afternoon!

A 5 minute walk to the office the next morning ended up taking me 20 minutes as I completely lost my bearings, but I still got there in good time for my conference call. Another great fit-out in the Sydney office. There’s a real skill to taking bog-standard office space and injecting personality and life into it, and it seems them Aussies have got it down to an art.

With the Sydney EB team - as friendly as they look!

I was set up in a quiet room for my call with Cairns. This was an interesting one because they’re just beginning to think about EB as an offering there, and are planning to target particular buildings based on ‘drive-by’ assessments. Keen to find out how that goes, as it’s a novel approach.

This was followed by a few hours (and lunch) in the company of Patrick Jeannerat, part of the dedicated EB team in Sydney, and a couple of chats with his colleagues. We discussed local projects and ways of approaching clients.

After this, It was a quick dash back to my room to get changed and grab my stuff before setting off for my harbour bridge climb! It was an amazing experience – not cheap but very well organised and something I’ll remember for a long time. The guide gave a fun and interesting commentary, there were plenty of stops to take in the view and to get overpriced photographs of us taken (you’re not allowed to take your own camera for ‘safety reasons’). Aside from reaching the top, my main highlight was emerging between two lanes of rushing traffic on the bridge as you climb a cat ladder – exhilarating. Afterwards I wandered around the harbour and the CBD before heading back to the hotel for some rest.

Been there, climbed that!

The next day I set off in the rain to find some replacement padlocks, and then wandered the CBD and took Sydney’s bizarre mini-monorail to see some of the other areas I didn’t have time to visit. It was a fund 10 minute diversion. Afterwards I stopped by a chocolate cafe (yeah, I know), before stopping by my room again to freshen up.

Next up was a walk down to the Sydney Opera House and the best part of an hour spent ogling it from all angles – walking around, in, and under and taking plenty of pictures. As an Arupian, this felt pretty special (sad, I know, but it’s true!). I tried to take the time to admire the detail and ingenuity that had gone into its construction, and I have to say I left feeling inspired and moved by the achievement this building represents.

Up close and personal with an Arup icon.

I then took a walk through the Botanic Gardens next door, before deciding to continue back up through the CBD, following a trail of fancily lit-up buildings that were taking part in the city’s winter festival. I found a nice fish restaurant for dinner from my guide book and caught public transport to get there (I love getting public transport in foreign cities, I think because it offers the opportunity to compare solutions to similar problems. That or I’m just a big geek). Dinner was lovely, and left me ready to head back to my room, pack and climb into bed... a little later than planned...

... leading to my first ‘unplanned lie-in’ of the trip. I had been planning to rise at 6.00am for a 10.15am flight, but woke at 7.45am instead. I was in a taxi by 8.00am, with little traffic which calmed me somewhat. Until we got close to the airport, when we got stuck in a massive tailback, and then I was met with a huge queue at check-in. Nevertheless, I was through security and in the lounge with an hour to spare before take-off (thanks to the Business Class priority lines at emigration and security!), offering a chance to grab some breakfast, freshen up and print some work stuff out before boarding for my mammoth 24 hour journey to New York. Phew.

Melbourne

The view from Arup's main office in Melbourne, on the 17th floor.

I had a reasonably smooth journey to Australia – immigration and customs were a total breeze. I flew overnight and arrived lunchtime the following day. I headed to my hotel first to freshen up, then went into the office to get settled in and prepare for the following day’s meetings. I was sat next to the friendly Facades team, so got to chat with them about their work and share a bit about what I was doing.

My accommodation here was a huge serviced apartment, and just minutes from the office. Nice view from the 20th floor. Getting to and from the airport by taxi was easy-peasy, and the city is easily navigable by foot for the most part. I did try the tram system as well, which was pretty regular and easy to use.

I met a friendly colleague who offered to take me out for dinner, which having travelled alone for a week was a very welcome offer. He did the same the following night too, which was kind and much appreciated. Great food, too – Melbourne is very diverse (the favoured landing point for immigrants in Australia), so you can pick from any number of cuisines to suit your mood. I went with Malay one night and Indian the next.

I crashed early from exhaustion the first night and worked late the second, followed by packing etc, which with days full of meetings left no time for sightseeing in Melbourne. However Melbourne is more a city to be experienced than seen, and to that extent I did get a walk around the CBD and a couple of meals out. It has a strange mixture of big-city feel (lots of big skyscrapers), and down-home village charm (thanks to its wide roads lined with parked cars, and small street-level retail strips). There’s a nice laid-back feeling to the place and a profusion of places to hang out at night.

In the middle of the CBD, but somehow it doesn't feel like it!

Arup is split across two buildings in Melbourne. Buildings is in its own building across the road from our main office, and has done a terrific job with its fit-out to create a really colourful, smart office to work in. The main office over the road has a much more ‘corporate’ feel about it. I gave a lunchtime talk to an audience of about 10 people (I was competing against another lunchtime talk on pensions!), which allowed me to meet more people and generate broader discussion about where we’re trying to go with existing buildings, which was great.

My schedule was chock-a-block with meetings, as Melbourne was the birthplace of our EB offerings and as such is packed with people whose insight is incredibly valuable to our current efforts. It’s strange feeling when people make time for you at short notice (especially when it’s only me), so I was very grateful to those I met with for taking the time to chat with me and share ideas. There’s a connection that comes from meeting in person that you can’t get from email, video conferencing or phone calls.

James and Tania - two of the brains behind Be-FIT, which started all this off - modelling the Australian EBSS guides. Top notch!

Before I knew it, it was time to leave – I didn’t do many extra-curricular activities, but will have plenty to write about for my minutes! Sydney next, and the opportunity to visit Arup’s most iconic project.