Tell us a little about yourself and family.

There's me Steve, (age 32), my wife Carla, (also 32), our daughter Elissa (17 months), and one imported dog, Charlie. I am from the Manchester area originally, and Carla is from North Devon/Edinburgh. I work as a psychologist and ergonomist. We live in a lovely riverside village in south Hampshire.

You are now 'back home'. Where did you return from, and how long did you live there?

We returned from Sydney after living there for 2 and a half years. We lived in Coogee, in the Eastern Suburbs.

What where the issues that prompted your return to the UK?

Lots of issues really. Mostly it was a feeling that just never left us, a creeping, engulfing sense of boredom, and some disillusionment after 16 years of dreaming about Australia rather than experiencing the best of the UK. It was a feeling that life was very pleasant, yet unfulfilling, and somehow passing us by. The trouble with Sydney - is that it was too good, and so in a bizarre way we became hostages of a small island on a big island. Despite it being so big, Australia just felt too small because there were such distances between places that were worth going to. It's not that we had a bad life - not at all. Most weekends we relaxed with great coffee, sitting overlooking the beach with a blue sky above, and a great Thai takeaway in the evening. But it wasn't enough. Something important was missing.

There also were career issues for both of us. I was a university lecturer and the salary was only sufficient for our day to day expenses, so holidays or trips back cut into savings. My job is also very specialist and job opportunities in Australia are few compared to the UK. Once I decided that academia wasn't for me, the options were limited. Moving jobs could well mean moving state, or to Canberra (and that wasn't an option). Carla was doing a counseling Diploma, and counseling jobs paid very poorly, which was demotivating.

Of course, we missed friends and family immensely. I have a big family, though I've always moved around the country so never lived in their pockets, but still, it's hard when you know there is no way you can see them, without several thousand dollars and over half of your annual leave. Carla has close family who she saw more, and missed them a lot. We also have some very close friends who are like family, and we missed them immensely, especially with our new baby. It is hard to start all over again with new friendships, though we did develop a handful, mostly when our daughter was born. But old friends and family are simply irreplaceable. They become a part of you.

While not part of our decision to leave, some time before we left we had news that Carla's mum had cancer. Upon hearing that we made plans to come back a little early but as it turned out it wasn't early enough. Her mum died just a few days before we landed in the UK - just a few months after diagnosis. We were too late. While we don't regret any of our experience in Australia, we now have to live with the fact that our daughter and her grandmother never met. Unfortunately this is one of the realities of emigration. You can't live you life around what-ifs and maybes' but losses are inevitable.

Still, we are very glad we went. It was good as long as it lasted, and we left before we stopped enjoying life. Our daughter was born an Australian citizen and so will future children, since we because citizens too. It is a privilege we have for life.

Initially did you find you, or anyone in your family suffered from reverse culture shock?

No, not at all. I never felt any culture shock. I don't think the UK and Europe ever left me really. Don't get me wrong, I lived life to the full in Australia, but my heart didn't belong there - not at that time of life anyway. We moved to the South coast and lived with friends in Bournemouth for 4 months, which must have been hard on them with us and out then 9 month old baby! But they were very kind and helped us to get on our feet. We love the south coast and can't really think of anywhere else we'd prefer to live.

How easy, or difficult, was it to find employment and how have you slotted back into the British work environment?

I had a job offer before we returned to the UK  and I am back with my very first employer and love it. I feel I am properly rewarded and work with some great people, doing a great job. Carla applied for a job as an addictions therapist and got it! She starts soon and is looking forward to it immensely.

How easy was it to enroll to children in school?

Well, it was nursery for our little bub, and it was a doddle.

Have you and your family settled?

Yes.

How does the cost of living compare?

For this you have to take salary into account. But compared to Sydney, some things cost more in the UK, like petrol (and so it should), new cars, public transport, coffee, takeaway food. Some things cost less in the UK, second hand cars, telephone/broadband, books, clothes. Some things cost about the same, like houses, food, electricity, electrical goods, tax. When we take income into account, the cost of living is slightly lower in the South of England compared to Sydney.

Has your quality of life improved, if so how?

For things that matter to us, yes - very much so. We have lots of people in our life, and we see them regularly. We live in a nice village near rivers, woods, the sea, great cities - there is so much of interest so close by. Even the weather has been great since we got back! We are certainly not bored. If anything we have a little too much activity in our life and sometimes need to hold off visitors and trips just to chill out. To me quality of life is more about meaning than anything and we have that.

Quality of life depends partly on your perspective too. We never read the Daily Mail/Daily Express and are much better off for it. One thing I noticed in Australia was how the media work so much differently. An upside of the parochialism and insularity of Australia is that the media are always on the lookout for positive stories about Australia. People's perspectives are affected by the messages they expose themselves to. So we are discriminating in which papers we buy, with whom we spend time, and so on. We just don't buy into the "Britain has gone to the dogs" idea because it is nonsense.  We see the best of the UK, and Europe. We change the things we can change and accept that there are some things that we can't change.

Are you back for good, or do you feel that once an expat always an expat?

Who knows. We're here now and we're happy now. I have a wondering soul and have lived in several part of the UK, but the South Coast is the place for us for the next few years or longer. We also love Edinburgh which is Carla's birthplace, but it's just too cold for us. Other than that, I'd try other parts of Europe - Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, possibly elsewhere. We would even consider Australia or New Zealand again later in life once we've seen more of the UK, Europe and the world, and when Carla's career is well established - but no time soon. For the
foreseeable future we are here and very happy to be happy where we are. We have a good life full of great people and places and have no desire to change that.

In retrospect is there anything you would change about your move abroad and your subsequent return?

Possibly. Part of me wishes we had come back a few months earlier so that Carla's mum could meet her first granddaughter. But the loss of that would have been so great that I don't really know if it would have been for the best. Other than that, I'd change nothing.

Are there any final thoughts you would like to share?

Emigration is a great adventure, a part of the rich tapestry of life. Treat it as such. For me, thinking of emigration as forever was too much to bear. Once I thought of it as a part of my life story, it became exciting. Whether you stay in the UK, come back to it, or emigrate permanently, remember your roots and the opportunities that they gave you.