denver

Nothing wrong with expressing an opinion Northernbird, i like the robust discussions on the website. Maybe I am not as sensitive as others? I really feel for people missing family and friends that they have known for a long time, especially as Australia is so far away from UK. However, I notice that some people on this website seem to critisise Australia for not providing a ready made social network when they arrive and that therefore there is something "missing." It is an unrealistic expectation.

Dolly

[QUOTE=zerohero;4246173]British culture created literature like Shakespeare,Harry Potter,Lord Of The Rings,Peter Pan,Alice In Wonderland,Frankenstein,Dracula,Sherlock Holmes,HG Wells classics,Roald Dahl classics,Charles Dickens classics and countless others which had a worldwide influence.It created different popular music -The Beatles,Rolling Stones,Pink Floyd- psychadelia,glam rock,heavy metal,punk rock,goth music,the fusion of ska and rock etc-these were all British.British culture gave the world street fashions and styles-mods,tudors,punks,goths,new romantics,skinheads(the proper ones)etc.There is a distinct British sense of humour.I could go on for ever about British culture.

I totally agree, but all of the above can be taken with you to Australia, music, books, art etc etc, I don't feel like I need to be there to experience them, therefore I won't miss them. I also don't think the people who don't settle in Australia necessarily miss any of the above, they miss their family and familiar things, and surely there can only be a handful that actually miss Glam Rock

HiddenPaw

So you don't remember posting that you left Perth because you were so bored there, and that Perth needed a bit of culture injecting into it ?

wardy2

I hadn't realised that when i asked the question I would open up such a can of worms.

We are moving to Australia because trying a new life and starting afresh appeals to us. We move to Australia having paid of debts and to create new ones although I must insist on avoiding credit cards. We go knowing no one and hope to gain new friends along the way whichever culture or background they are from.

The fact that I can not visit a castle or walk along Hadrians wall in the rain somehow does not appeal to me anymore i've done it for 30 years, now its time for something new and exciting. I hope to embrace a new lifestyle and culture and go expecting nothing but to be able to enjoy spending more time with my OH and children. I don't think that because someones culture is the not the same as they have lived with for the past 30 years makes it worthy of critiscm.

Kaye

MartinLuther

That's why I said the main part. Read my post. The oldest bit is just a function hall on the side. Nice try to you too

gruffbrown

Oh...... you mean the new main part that replaced the old main part after it burnt down?

ShozInOz

The only people wh can really give qualified comment onthis are people who have lived in both the UK and Australia. Then I think it is easy to understand this issue. If you see culture as customs, own literature and arts, buildings and artefacts with depth of history, then true, Australia has little. Aboriginal culture is just not visible in the populated areas of Australia. If you see culture as the common personality of a country - perhaps society - then Australia has plenty. Australian society is arguably stronger than British society. In fact Australia has a stronger set of shared 'values' than Britain, even if these area a little superficial or even mythical ("fair go", "laid back", etc). Australia has a strong enough living culture, in the people alive today, but far less by way of a historical culture. Actually, it is the living culture - the traits we share now - that make a bigger difference to how people get along than the historical culture (compare Isreal). What this means for me with a foot in both countries is that Australia is more pleasant but sometimes more boring, and the UK is more interesting but sometimes harder.

MartinLuther

That's it. The bit that everyone thinks is really old because Pugin did it in the gothic style, but is really only about 150 years old.

gruffbrown

You're absolutely right of course, before that was built we never had a Parliament, the populace just kind of made it up as they went along.

ShozInOz

MBTUK helps to balance one's expectations (the top of a slippery slope), and therefore may make the difference between staying and moving back! eEither that or a reputable optitian to remove some of the rose tint from one's specs.

MartinLuther

I'm going to have to disagree with you on that point. The UK parliament started in 1801.

gruffbrown

Where did I mention UK? I'm English, now bugger off and google Simon DeMontfort.

ShozInOz

Utter, utter nonsense. Let's take it to the extreme to falsify your hypothesis - would you be stimulated living in a deserted part of Outer Mongolia? I doubt it, you'd move somewhere more intesting.

Hopefully you didn't expect to get away with such a sweeping (well, just wrong) cliche Scot-free ?

Unfortunately you chose one of old 'Wombat's chiche's there, and he was quite possibly the most stupid man on the internet.

Context is everything. (Now you've got me on cliches, though that one is closer to the truth.)

ShozInOz

I would tend to aree with this. Certainly in Sydney there was a real acceptance of other cultures, but with more integration. Immigrants to Australia do seem to be more proud to be Australian than is the case in the UK. This is betrayed, though, by what can appear to be more overt 'racism', e.g. overt and often more disparaging use of the words Poms, Wogs, etc, which would not be tolerated in Britain, but exist more covertly.

ShozInOz

Am I correct in remembering that you live in England?