Differences between Manchester and Brisbane

by Ffion Davies, University of Queensland, Australia

The first one is obvious – the weather! The weather really does influence your mood and helps to set up your day! It was nice waking up almost every morning to sunny, blue skies. Studying outside on university grounds or in a park with a coffee made it much more enjoyable. The locals were also very friendly and helpful. On many occasions when I was looking lost trying to navigate my way around the city or university campus, people would come up and ask if I needed help – which is rare in my experience in Manchester. Brisbane has a nice balance of city and beach life which I absolutely loved. The chilled, outdoorsy lifestyle is much more laid-back than the hustle and bustle in Manchester.

There were also differences in accommodation. In Manchester it’s common to move out of halls after 1^st year but not so common in Australia. Most international students live in halls for the duration of their degrees. Australian students rarely move away from home and live in halls as it’s expensive. Although I was expecting to meet lots of Australians in my accommodation there were barely any living there. Some even commute around 2 hours a day for classes.

Both cities host many sporting events, with Manchester being home to two main football clubs and Brisbane having the Broncos. Australian football is a big part of their culture and living 10 minutes away from a stadium was ideal to watch the Broncos.

The cost of living in both cities is quite similar in my opinion. The biggest difference was the cost of accommodation, with Brisbane being considerably more expensive. But groceries and activities were quite similar in cost.

The misconception that you’ll see snakes and spiders everywhere is not true (in my experience). Of course they exist but you won’t come across these everyday like I was warned about by everyone before I moved to Brisbane. I probably see more spiders at home when the weather turns warmer than I saw at all in Brisbane!

Finally, public transport in both cities is very reliable. While Manchester has its trams and buses to get around the city, Brisbane has buses, trains, and ferries. The travel cards differ, in Brisbane you purchase a travel card and top it up when required, instead of a one-off payment for the bus pass in Manchester.