Caroline B

What (if anything)do ex-poms miss most about the UK after moving 'down under'?
From what I've heard, Australia seems like a far nicer place to raise kids than the U.K. - have people found this?

Lj

Caroline B wrote:
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Quote from hubby - 'I've found paradise, and I'm never going to be cold to my bones
again'. But he misses things like a sense of history and permanence. Everything is so
'new' in Australia (ie most structures <100 years). He also misses the abundance of
theatre, arts, which comes both with an old culture and a larger population. One way
of looking at the differences in a really general way (which we both agree on) is
that due to climate differences, Australians tend toward spending time outdoors
(hence the preoccupation with sport, swimming, beaches etc) and the British tend
toward indoor occupations/hobbies/interests.

Family is another thing he misses. It's a helluva long way to go back to visit...

He would definitely rather raise our 3 kids here in Brisbane than back in the UK.
(grumbles about going to school in the dark and coming home in the dark...). There's
also the issue of being able to buy a huge house here for the price of a flat in the
UK (as long as you avoid Sydney!)

Well, that's a few cents worth from me anyway! LJ

Caroline B

Thks LJ,
My daughter (aged 6) has asked about snakes & spiders in Oz ! I have told her that dangerous things are in the country & not in the city - Is this true in Brisbane? (sorry to sound so naive, but there are some scary programme on the T.V. here about Oz!)
Caroline

Migration Network

Hi Caroline, Good Question. As an ex-pom I can honestly say I miss absolutely nothing
about the UK apart from the friends I left behind there. I have 2 young children and
would agree that Australia is a much better place to raise them. I took them both
down the beach this afternoon to enjoy the warm winter sunshine.

On Tue, 21 Aug 2001 08:53:19 GMT, Caroline B

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Herbie

I'm no snake/spider expert but here goes....

The "Huntsman" is really big, hairy and scary but I've never heard of it hurting
anyone. Fairly common around the house, some people like to leave them alone to help
take care of the other insects. They are most dangerous in your car while you're
driving, I once nearly lost control of my car when I looked out the side window and
one was only inches from my face Ahhhhhhh

Then the "Redback". Now this one can kill you, or at least a little 6 year old girl
(oops hope she ain't reading) ( But I can't remember anyone ever being killed by
one. They are very common, I've seen a couple in my backyard in suburban Sydney in
the last year. I understand they are very timid and only bite as a last resort. But
be careful with swimming pools! I heard of one lady who went swimming in a back yard
swimming pool, the Redback spider was floating on the surface of the pool and got
washed down the front of her swimming costume between her tits. She was bitten but
probably drunk didn't receive medical attention until the next day. She was ill for
many, many months.

Then the "funnel web". This one can kill you too. But I've never seen one (except in
glass jars). They are very aggressive and territorial and have strong fangs that can
pierce the skin. But I can't remember reading a newspaper report about anyone dying
from this spider either.

Snakes are common in the country. Don't know a lot about them because I'm a Sydney
city boy. I know the Brown snake and Red belly black snake are bad.

You can comfort your daughter by letting her know she is in much more danger
travelling around in the car than she will ever be from snakes, spiders, sharks, or
crocodiles. Thinking of crocodiles, don't leave your dog tied to a tree close to the
river. Crocodiles call that lunch ((

Regards, Herbie.

Always the optimist....



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Mark Deayton

Herbie wrote:
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Noone has died from a redback bite for at least 20 years, since the development of an
effective antivenom.

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The funnel web's venom is much more dangerous than the redback, but again, antivenom
is readily available.

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Most Australian snakes are bad. Our snakes are the most venomous in the world. But
snakes are shy cautious creatures and will only attack if provoked or maybe if you
are unlucky and step on one accidentally. Snakes won't venture near places that
are noisy.

--
Mark Deayton [email protected] http://go.to/mark.deayton http://go.to/'65Mustang
(my band) ICQ# 314598

Hills

Caroline B wrote:
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Caroline, Awareness is the thing - growing up in Australia, there are so many things
you take for granted. I found that I had to teach my husband things that I wasn't
even aware that I knew.

Things like, where snakes and spiders are likely to be found. To look under things
for spiders before sitting on them, to walk loudly in long grass or bush to scare off
snakes, when and where to go into the surf, and what to do when caught in a rip.

When visiting England, though, hubby had to show me what stinging nettles were (as I
was just about to push past them...)

I'm a local, but a city girl and I'm not into camping or hiking or anything like
that, so I can say that I haven't seen a live snake in all of my 40 years... if
you're going to go tramping through bush or even long grass in the suburbs, you'll
probably stand more chance of seeing snakes.

Spiders - well, we seem to be having a bit of a redback plague the last few years.
The good point about redbacks is they're very distinctive, and by the age of 2 all
our children knew how to recognise 'redblacks', and where they were likely to hang
out. Unfortunately, they like metal and warm spaces, so kids bikes and toys are among
their fave hiding spots. Our 3 years old knows to turn his bike upside down and check
for 'piders before riding! Huntsman just look scary, but run away very fast! As long
as they stay out of my bedroom, I don't care. If you actually manage to catch one it
would bite, but they are not very poisonous and would make a small child a bit sick
for a day or two. Funnel webs live mainly further south than Queensland, and I've
never seen one.

The worst 'bug' around our area is the mosquito! Maybe they just like 'northern'
blood, but hubby has horrible reactions to bites. I don't react at all. The mozzies
know this, and fly straight past me to bite him! He says that mozzies are the worst
thing about Australia, and refuses to live in a house that is not fully fly-screened
(windows and doors!). If we are outdoors at dusk, he'll be burning mosquito coils,
and slathering himself with insect repellent! Still not enough to make him move back
to England

LJ

Russell Driver

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We moved here to Adelaide,South Australia last year Caroline and love it!

Yes there may be a bit of homesickness and the odd thing missed but for everything we
miss there are at least 3 wonderful things to make up for it here!

The entire family are visiting us bit by bit ( make sure you have a house to cope
with visitors - we have 5 relatives with us at the moment)

Be adaptable Have a good sense of humour Lose some of the "Britishness" And you
will do fine.

My daughter attends a first class private school ( which is much more affordable
here),she can play on the beach,go fishing with me and ride her new quad bike on our
property --- kids heaven!

We certainly don't feel like visiting the UK again for a while.

Regards

Russell

--
auSEElife Run by migrants -for migrants Lot 11 Penneys Rise,Onkaparinga Hills,SA 5163
ICQ 119580733, Yahoo Messenger:russ1926,Fax +61 8 8186 1538