b'PEOPLE Sydney uncoveredYAZ, WHO GREW UP IN DUNDAS and spentasStLeotards.YazblamesaspellcheckOne of the best parts about eating ethnic in his teenage years at Pennant Hills, has beencorrection for the moniker. the burbs is the value, he says. hitting the pavement since he returned fromThis isnt a serious analysis of each suburb; aholidayinEuropelastyear.ThebusinessWhileYazknowstheHillsDistrictwell,he Im just a dude walking around, says Yaz. admitsitssometimesdifficulttogetan analyst works in the banking sector and found he still had the travel bug as he settled backWhilehebelievesmostSydneysidersthinkobjective perspective of his home turf.into his work-day routine. they know their city, he says theres no better way to rediscover it than by foot. Its probably harder to talk about areas that I AfterseeingalistofSydneysuburbs,Iknow, but even on my visit to Castle Hill to see thought it would make a great project to visitYouseealotofstuffthatyouwouldntwhat there was to see I went to places I have all of them, he says. normally see, he says. never been before, he says.The27-year-oldsphilosophicalreasoningEven his home turf around Parramatta and TheOne of those was Oakhill Village, a modern is that there is more to this town than theHills, an area that Yaz says is underrated, gave harbour and hipster brunches. up some secrets.colonial-style shopping centre that has the feel of a small town in the Blue Mountains.IvealwayshadafairlydecentParramattagetsthefullYaztreatment, understanding of what the city is and whereincluding the good and the not so good, butCastle Hill is one of those suburbs changing its going, says Yaz.can it really call itself Sydneys second CBD? fast though he says. The Metro wasnt there when I visited the suburb as part of this project Apartments are popping up more and more, butyouhaveafeelforwhatsthereevenYOU CAN WALK THROUGHand I suspect that by the time Im finished the though most of us havent gone to half theTHE ENTIRE CITY THROUGHcity will look quite different to when I started.suburbs we think we know. BUSHLAND IN PLACES YOUIf Sydney does diversity well, then Yaz also There have been areas that I havent everbelieves that it also does nature well, especially WOULDNT EXPECT for a big city.really been to at all. As I spent time in the Eastern Suburbs, the North Shore and otherIts one of the special things about Sydney parts of Sydney, I got a better perspectiveYou know what, it might just have what itbecause there are a whole lot of bush walks of what makes each area different and eachtakes, Yaz says.area great. across the city, he says.Modern buildings blend with the historic past,Theresagreatnetworkofnationalparks Familyandfriendswerentsosureaboutand theres plenty of casual dining by the river Yazs bold venture, but they now accept thatandopenspacesforcity-dwellerstorelax.from the North Shore at Lane Cove to Lake he spends his weekends taking in the sights,The suburbs around Parramatta are also quiteParramatta Reserve. soundsandaromasofAustraliasmostinteresting. You can walk through the entire city through vibrant city.Wentworthvilleisanotherfantasticsliceofbushland in places you wouldnt expect.He has already visited more than 120 suburbsWestern Sydney and testament to how diverse and, by his calculations of tackling two suburbsthis city can be. It has a big Indian communityWith five years left to complete his sojourn, Yaz a week, it will take him six years to complete. with heaps of restaurants, interesting food andhasnt lost his passion for walking the streets Indian supermarkets. Its the Real Spice Alleyof Sydney.For me it was initially an excuse to go out and explore the city. Ive always loved to exploreof Sydney. Ihopetoencouragepeopletovisitparts new places in the hope of finding interestingYaz becomes quite poetic about Wentworthville.ofthecitythatarentpartoftheirnormal things to see and do, he says. stomping ground, and show them that there When in Rome, eat curry and go home with a Most people can see what I am doing, that itssuitcase of lentils, he says. really is life west of Newtown, he says.a fairly tongue-in-cheek perspective. Western Sydney doesnt get a great rap at To the east of Parramatta, Yaz discovers the Devotees of the Completing Sydney blog woulddeliciously exotic offerings of the Chinese andtimes and I hope to show that it has more to recognise this when he refers to St LeonardsKorean community at Eastwood. offer than people might expect.URBANDRIVER33'