From Harbour Bridge to Golden Gate Bridge: 2–3 Years Living in the US

[craven morehead]

After years of enjoying everyone else’s trip reports on here, I thought I’d try something a bit different. Whether this turns into a long-running thread or fizzles out quickly — honestly, who knows. Consider this a bit of an experiment, and we’ll see how it goes!

Follow along as I swap Sydney for San Francisco, and see whether this trip report survives the next 2–3 years…

I’ve lived in Sydney my whole life, but I’m relocating tomorrow to San Francisco for work. The plan (at least on paper) is to be there for 2–3 years. I work for an Aussie tech company, having started with them 3 years ago when our footprint was largely concentrated in Australia with only a handful of clients in the US and Europe. Fast forward to today, and we’ve expanded significantly overseas, with the majority of our leadership and go-to-market organisation now based in the US. Around 9 months ago I received a promotion and the opportunity to relocate in order to be closer to the action and work more closely with our Sales and GTM leadership teams. With my visa in hand, my suitcases (almost) packed, and tomorrow’s departure day looming, the time has finally arrived.

The last 9 months have been a blur of US trips — back and forth, living out of hotels, and always a little anxious about CBP’s response to my multiple entries, particularly in the current political environment. With offices in both Austin and San Francisco, my company generously gave me the chance to trial each for 6 weeks. While I enjoyed Austin, San Francisco won out for me: better weather, proximity to stunning national parks, a beautiful city, and my immediate team is based there.

As for the relocation flight itself: tomorrow it’s QF73 SYD–SFO. Originally booked in Premium Economy, but I managed to score a points upgrade to Business a few days ago thanks to the Platinum status racked up earlier this year. Couldn’t have asked for a better send-off.

So what can you expect here?

• The relocation flight itself (I’ll do a write-up on QF73).
• Some of the realities of settling into San Francisco as an Aussie.
• Future travel from a US base: I’m a sucker for both nature and big cities, so expect a mix of national parks, hiking, beaches, and major urban adventures.

Whether this thread thrives or flops is anyone’s guess — but I'd love your feedback and recommendations along the way. If nothing else, it’s a way to document the move and hopefully share a few stories that others find interesting (and of course, a steady stream of pictures!).

Sounds awesome

 

[CaptainCurtis]

By about 2:30PM I rolled into Trinidad, a small seaside town perched on a bluff above the Pacific. After hours of winding mountain roads, the sudden sight of the ocean was a welcome change.

Trinidad Pier




Trinidad Memorial Lighthouse




Trinidad State Beach (more to come)



The view back up to Trinidad town, population ~300

 

[CaptainCurtis]

I stopped at the Tsurai Trail, a short, steep walk that through Trinidad Head with views of Trinidad State Beach. It was the perfect leg-stretcher after the long drive, with excellent views over the Pacific.

 

[CaptainCurtis]

After the walk, I took off my shoes, got some sand between my toes, and wandered along the shore for a while before jumping back into to the car for the remainder of the drive up to Crescent City, the gateway to the Redwoods.



I took the 101 up to Crescent City, leaving the Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway for my way back down.



My first wildlife encounter came on this short drive, seeing a baby black bear crossing the highway and disappearing into the bush

 

[CaptainCurtis]

I arrived in Crescent City around 5:30 PM and checked into my accommodation for the night, the Crescent Beach Motel. At $98, it was reasonably priced, but I was glad it was only for one night. The room had an incredibly strong bleach/chemical smell, and a trucker parked on the highway out front ran his engine for entire night. My room was highway-facing rather than ocean-facing.







Dinner was at SeaQuake Brewery, a lively local spot that hit the mark after a long day of driving. I had the barramundi with balsamic glaze and cherry tomatoes, which was excellent, paired with a local pale ale. Afterward, it was straight back to the motel for an early night - or at least an attempt at one.