Living Cheaply
We have been living in Adelaide for half a year now and think that we
manage our (low) budget quite well. It took some time to figure out what
to buy where, but after a lot of discussions with other overseas students
and hints from locals, we find ourselves well prepared to face the expenses
of daily life. And here is the ultimate guide to cheap living in Adelaide:
Furniture
If you want to move into an unfurnished unit you probably need cheap
furniture. You might get some bargains at furniture stores like 'Le Cornu'
on Anzac Highway but a better idea is second hand furniture. Then, the
street to go to is Unley Road, which holds a lot of second hand shops.
Go to a newsagency or petrol station as well and get the 'Trading Post'.
It is a newspaper that has all the private advertisements and dates of
garage sales, which can provide some superb bargains. Tip: do not go to
a garage sale if you do not know what there is there, it might not be worth
the trip. Also remember that most shops deliver your purchase whereas you
need a car for a garage sale. Some pieces of small furniture (like shelves)
can be found in discount shops as 'The Reject Shop', 'Cheap as Chips' or
'Adelaide Discounts'.
Home Accessories like Kitchenware
Your first place to look should always be the discount shops that we
mentioned above. They offer extremely low prices but be sure to check the
quality. Alternatives are the supermarkets or the department stores 'Harris
Scarfe' and 'Target'. Asian accessories are best bought in Chinese groceries,
a lot of which can be found in Chinatown. You can also try the various
markets that are listed on the 'Things to do in Adelaide' webpage of the
OSA website.
Clothes
Discounted best label fashion can be bought in outlets on Glen Osmond
road whereas the big stores for very reasonable clothing are 'Target' and
'Harris Scarfe'. There are also a lot of small boutiques on Rundle Mall
or in major shopping centres with good offers. Always look out for a sale,
especially in December- January or June- July.
Communication and Multimedia
If you want to phone home try one of the various calling cards that
you can get in newsagencies. They provide calls to major countries from
3 cent per minute. For this it is good to have a landline at your home,
which is not too expensive if you compare the offers. Plus, it gives you
the possibility to connect to the internet at home which is a must if you
want to be online a lot because internet usage at uni is limited to 150MB
download per semester (just enough for your research and emails). Modem
users can get flat rates from 15AUD plus the costs for one local phone
call when dialling up. You also want to be entertained? Renting VHSs or
DVDs is much cheaper than going to the movies. If you still need the hardware
for that consider renting it as well. 'Radio Rentals' on Rundle Mall has
TVs from 3AUD per week, which is a good offer for students that are here
for a year or less. Others should look for used equipment on the uni noticeboards,
at second hand shops or 'ebay.com.au'.
Food
Lunch at uni can be expensive so you might want to bring your own.
If you want to pre-cook it at home and heat it up at uni, you can use the
microwave in the OSA lounge. The best way to have a low-cost dinner is
also to prepare it yourself, although you might find some fast food shops
that give out their food for a lower price before they close (like some
in the 'David Jones Foodcourt'). You should try to buy fruit and veggies
at the 'Central Market' (see end of article for details). It always promises
great bargains but it is cheapest late on Saturday. Around there you will
also find a lot of Chinese groceries where you can get very reasonable
Asian food. All the rest can be found at supermarkets, the best of which
are 'Woolworths', 'Coles' and 'Bi-Lo'. Tip: although you wouldn't think
so, meat, cheese and fish at the delicacy counters is often cheaper than
packed stuff.
Books, Magazines and Newspapers
You always get a discount up to 30% at 'Uni Books' in the Union Building
on campus. They also have many magazines for a much lower price than usual.
Again best buys are second hand: most textbooks are offered at the beginning
of the semester on noticeboards at uni, for fiction go and see second hand
bookshops. If you want to buy from 'Amazon.com' you have to convert the
prices into AUD and pay for the shipping from the US, but sometimes even
that is cheaper than buying from a bookshop in Adelaide. Tip: A lot of
newspapers and magazines can be found the in Barr Smith Library or online.
Transport and Travelling
If you want to be mobile in Adelaide the 'Adelaide Metro' is a good
choice. There is no special ticket for students but you can get concession
ones. Save money by using a multitrip ticket that includes ten trips and
by going during the inter-peak time (9am - 3pm) where the tickets are nearly
half price. Adelaide is quite bike friendly and cycling to Uni is a cheap
and healthy method of transport for students who live close to city. You
can get a new bike from 'Big W' from 100AUD or just look for sales in bike
stores. Used bicycles can be found on Uni blackboards or in the 'Trading
Post'. Used cars are available from 1000AUD and you can find dealers on
highways in the outer suburbs or just look them up in the 'Trading Post'.
A car makes everything easier and fuel prices are fair but parking fees
apply everywhere in the city. We reckon that it is a good alternative if
you want to travel a lot during the breaks. Apropos traveling: The 'Lonely
Planet' books have all information you need for a self-guided tour. If
you need to book your holiday or want some good hints we can recommend
these agencies: 'STA Travel' on campus, 'Sunny's' on 139 Franklin Street
or 'SA Visitor & Travel Centre' on 18 King William Street. You can
get cheap domestic flights if you are flexible and book in advance and
compare 'Virgin Blue' and 'Qantas'.
We hope that we mentioned most of the things you need even so we know
that this list is not complete. So let us just say that if you are looking
for something else or try to find a good bargain, it is always worth visiting
the markets (for information on the best markets and the best shopping
areas look at the 'Things to do in Adelaide' webpage on the OSA website)
and in cheap store chains like 'Priceline', 'Priceattack'.
Now you should be able to live your life cheaply. If you still have
some questions, please do not hesitate to ask the OSA members.
Wenke and Alexander, Germany
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