CAPA WORLD

In this week's post, Kara writes about the student accommodation options for those looking to study abroad in Sydney. She contrasts the features of Urbanest Apartments and Oaks Goldsbrough Apartments and outlines what you can expect as a CAPA student. Want a look inside? Kara's got you covered! 

In my last post, I briefly discussed my experience living at the Urbanest student accommodation and commuting to my internship. CAPA’s accommodation can differ from term to term, but this semester some CAPA students also live at Urbanest like myself, while others reside at the nearby Oaks Goldsbrough Apartments or in a private homestay. Read on if you’d like to learn about fellow a CAPA student’s experience living at Oaks Goldsbrough and commuting to her internship.

Pyrmont Street in Sydney.

Located about one mile (1.5 km) north of Urbanest Central, Oaks Goldsbrough Apartments sits on a calm street adjacent to the Sydney A4 in the suburb of Darling Harbor. While Urbanest is a student accommodation, Goldsbrough Apartments is an apartment-style hotel managed by Oaks Hotels. Like the other accommodation, the hotel is within close distance to a number of grocery stores, restaurants, and shops and a 25-minute walk from Central Station. Despite its proximity to the beltway, the neighborhood here is also calm and relaxed.

Oaks Goldsbrough Apartments is another home to CAPA students in Sydney.

The smaller, enclosed kitchen.

The very bright living room at Oaks.

One of the first things I noticed when entering the building was how spacious its lobby and rooms were. In contrast to my suite that is one-story, compact, and shared between eight people, the hotel room has two-stories, a more open plan, and is shared between just four people. On the first floor, there is the kitchen, living/dining area, and laundry room (at Urbanest, residents must pay $6 per load to wash and dry their clothes!). The living/dining area is a similar size to the one in the eight-person apartment, but the kitchen, located in a separate room, has significantly less floor space and can get crowded quite easily.

A different bedroom setup.

The view from the bedroom.

Extra closet space makes up for the lack of desks.

Upstairs, residents share a bedroom and bathroom with one roommate, but the bedroom is not broken into two sides like the student accommodation. Instead, it is one large room, with two beds and nightstands against one side of the wall and large wardrobe closets on the other across from it. In the master bedroom, the bathroom is to the right of the closets. The second bedroom, which is significantly smaller than the master bedroom, does not contain a bathroom, but one is located in the hallway between the two rooms. Since the room offers no built-in privacy, finding time alone at home can be a challenge. Having had a roommate since freshman year of college, my friend who lives here does not mind living in close proximity to another person and is used to leaving the apartment if she needs time alone.

Instead of taking five minutes to walk to class and 40 minutes to get to her internship, it takes my Oaks resident friend about 20 minutes to walk to both her classes and internship (which is located very close to CAPA).

The emerald pools of Oaks Goldsbrough.

In addition to free laundry, the hotel offers other free amenities and services that Urbanest does not, such as a swimming pool, hot tub, sauna, and a weekly room cleaning service. However, the building houses fewer students and does not hold daily social events and outings like Urbanest does. As someone who hates cleaning and paying for laundry, I feel a bit envious of my friend’s living situation. But as someone who values privacy and enjoys opportunities to try new things and meet new people, I appreciate living at Urbanest.

Thanks, Kara!

Kara Davis is an official CAPA blogger for spring 2019, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Sustainability major at Arizona State University, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

Kara's journey continues all semester so stay tuned.