Australia_bound?

Thanks everyone for the varied replies. We're heading for Victoria and have family there (although don't really know them, as most are Aussie born & bred, only seen them on fleeting occasions).
Wouldn't go to Perth as not much there for my lot.
Reason for posting is looking for an alternative to Australia forum where unhappy people are begged to hang on in there and UK is slated.
We love living in UK, but couldn't get onto housing market for around a decade, I adore being in a hotter climate, I have spent time in Aus and found it to exceed expectations (abet only there for a short while).
As time draws on I do worry if it's all going to be for the best?
Once again thanks for replies

LouiseD

Cos they realise that the grass isn't greener and that the silly programmes on telly aren't true

horrigans

It's not really missing family, it's not about not earning enough, it's not even about really disliking Australia... it's just not home.

You can't know how you feel about it until it becomes 'permanent'. It's a whole different ball game coming out here to live than it is to think about it or visit, even if you visit for a fair while... you're still going to go 'home' at the end of the day.

Risks - lots. If you want to do it but aren't 100% sure, make sure you have a contingency plan in place and an escape route agreed so that you spare yourself the heartache which can come when one of you can't cope with living away from 'home' on a permanent basis.

Don't mean to sound really negative - but thinking about other people's pitfalls beforehand is one thing... the reality is different. For me, I found that you can rationalise it all you want, it's something far deeper within you which knock you over.

Sarah (going home three weeks today - YES!!!)

TraceyW

You're totally right Sarah. Noboday can know how they will feel until they do this. Take my situation for example; we had goals to achieve in coming out here, and we've exceeded every single one. But it doesn't 'feel' right for me. I don't care that the lifestyle is more relaxed, beach orientated, barbified etc....it's what I feel inside that matters to me.

Also totally agree on the "Get Out Clause" in the great migration adventure. I was lucky, me and OH made a deal before we came here if one of us wasn't happy, we'd go home. Thank God he's a good bloke and will stick to that. How many people do you know who've split up over here because one's unhappy and the other isn't? I know of a few women who've gone home alone because the blokes are adament they'll stay here. I also know of one woman who is desperately unhappy here, wants to move back and OH doesn't, he's actually gone and hidden the kids passports so she can't take them home.

mattmc

Make the deal before you come. We did and although we are undecided we are both going to stick to it. Very good advice indeed.

GordonH

i face the same, but moved to Melbourne and now I seriously think about coming back to the UK;

so called vacancy rate in Melbourne is about 2% it means problems to find accomodation, took me almost 3 weeks to find a room, now the most expensive apartaments and rat holes only are available for immigrants, don't be surprised in Mel. if you have to pay more than agents want, this looks like "auction" when you compete with 20-30 people for one house,if you are able to offer more then you win, or you can sleep on the street;

job market - I had a job, got lower wage and lower position, i left it, over 40 miles away - daily distance to get there - at least 1 hour by car, trafffic jams all the way, now i am looking for a job and a recruitment agency found me something for 18$/h, casual, ongoing; I have a much lower standard of living here,

the food is crap and extremely expensive, beer - I loved to drink beer, but here one small can costs 2-3$, second hand cars are very expensive too; ripping off everywhere;

i can't understand what people say and try to convince themselves and
everybody this is a paradise, "beatiful country", really I saw number plates with "Victoria - place to be" or "living in paradise" so in this paradise recently i went to try bbq on the beach, took me 3 hours to get there, who knows "Connex" knows how it works in melbourne, and only 15 miles; another bbq - flies made it immpossible,

Jumbo Celsius pointed something important, and i will add

something:

a.) I had a higher standard of living and wages in the UK

average salary p.a. in Oz is 47k$, in the UK is 28k£, convert it now 1£=2,17$ looks like english avarage salary is 60k$

b.) I feel too isolated in WA

how far are you from the nearest neighbour?
c.) There's no culture

come to Melbourne, 100 years old cast -iron urinal is shown as

national heritage, so you can see "culture" here
d.) I have nothing in common with anyone socially.
e.) I feel like Perth has been mis-represented and thus, is over
rated.

Oz is overrated, not only Perth

f.) I've realised I'm not a "beach" person.
to enjoy "australian lifestyle" you must first: earn well, second: have time to enjoy,
g.) Everybody here is trying to rip you off from real estate

agents to mens clothing shops to car hire places etc, etc

true
h.) I find the people false in an L.A. sort of way.

I was promised many times a job offer and stil don't have

i.) I'm fed up hearing about how great this country is.

tell Aussies it, then you will hear their answers; any negative opinion about Australia makes you a public enemy; in melbourne i heard so many times how great this city is, the greatest, and locals saying it were nowhere, even in other australian states, life spent in melbourne only, no international awarness

internet in australia - my workplace had dial up modem only, located at Melbourne outskirts, was not possible to connect broadband, 21st century, people landed on the Moon 40 years ago, and in Australia dial up modems are still in use, and for 30$/monthly I have so slow internet like I used in Cambodia, but Oz is not a 3rd world country like Cambodia, "unlimited" (but only first 20GB) broadband, interruptions everyday, to download email sometimes takes 15 minutes, i can go to the loo, come back and still I can't open email, snail speed internet, what can we have in the UK for 15£?;

banks - I applied for visa debit card, got it, but this card has no a chip, magnetic stripe only, in Europe many card terminals will not read this card, a chip is a must nowadays, 20 years behind the rest of the world; Barclays offered me a bank account +visa debit for free, ANZ charges me 5$ for account + 5$ for useless visa debit card, i am ripped off

i am very dissapointed of living here, and see that Australia looks nice on leaflets for immigrants given during Skills Expo, reality is much worse;

quoll

Now that is seriously sick. What a prat!

Mrs Miggins

Well I am moving back from Southern Alberta, Canada, and I have loved my time here to say the least, however I won't miss..........

Not being able to crack a rude joke for fear of the abundant Mormons/fundamental christians

The serious lack of green (prairies!!!)

The fact that you have to have snow shovels and know survival crap (and that's living in a city)

-30+ for weeks

The wind

The lack of real history

The racisim that nobody admits towards the natives here

The natives asking me for loose change

The idea that education is secondary to hockey - and it's only cool to be a jock

The lack of political awareness (I have been sat in classes where young people know less about their own countries politics that I do)

The lack of travelled people (many of the peeps here have never seen the ocean - I sh it you not chaps!)

The nightlife (everything is so spread out that you have to walk miles to go to the next bar)

the + 30 heat for 8 weeks

The lack of rain

The TV

The red necks

Tim Hortons (I have gained 5lbs thanks to their coffee lol)

Their serious lack of cheap clothes shops

The lack of choice of good food at reasonable prices

Their friggin trucks that roar past and wake me up

The night club at the end of my road

Cowboys (who quite literally say hold my beer while I kiss your girlfriend!)

Fake cowboys

Hunting types who slay stuff for the sheer hell of it

People who are totally intolerant and ignorant of other cultures

The lack of diversity of people (they are all canuks or Japaneese)

Missing my husband

My Children missing their dad

Up until now I have been dreading going back - this is cheering me up no end!

Anyway Ill let you all go now, I am cleaning my bedroom before the OH comes back from his trip away - I swear my room was tidier when I was 14!

Take care chaps - and thanks for the rant

R2D2

Missing the UK countryside. Here = green and pleasant for 5 months, then dirty brown, followed by dirty white, followed by dirty and littered brown, and eventually back to green, (Oh, and with Mozzies !)

The winters are too Loooooooonnnnnnnngggggggg.............tediously long, unless you can ski every weekend that is, but heh, not made of money !

The radio is truly diabolical. Never even considered getting hacked off with the radio, but I'm one of these who likes to have background music on when I'm at home, and theres only so much Def Leppard and Pat Benatar one can take in one day>!

TV is crap, but I knew that before we came, so no great surprise there.

Isolation.

Blandness



Now, having moaned about all those things I feel a little guilty, as Canada has been good to us, but almost 3 yrs and never truly feeling settled must tell us something. We just need to live somewhere that feels like we belong there, and as someone else said, warts and all, England is home.

manc1

Reading these last few posts it sounds like OZ, USA and Canada have a lot in common.

Jumbo_Celcius

Ha-ha, congratulations GordonH on your first post and welcome to the MBTTUK forum.

minihaha

Flipping heck, and there was me thinking it was because your hubby was away for weeks at a time and you missed your family and mates back home.

Sorry you wont miss much about it. Im sure you will find most of your things on your wont miss list are pretty much the same back home.

Dont look back in anger dude, look forward and enjoy planning the next exciting phase of your lives.

Id ask you to meet for a Timmies over the weekend but its on your list now so, mm can I treat you to a Starbucks instead.

Take it easy and if you need another pair of hands or a monkey sitter give me a shout.

x mrs minihaha x

Kat71

Australia is great, you just have to come with an open mind and realise that you are not living in the UK anymore. I have been in Central Victoria for 15 years and am now only considering going home because my hubby has been offered a job over there.

It is dry, there is no getting around that, we are in the middle of a drought but you to adapt. I miss the green grass of england and the feeling of history but there are places you can find that here. Just remember you cant get hula hoops and flumps and you'll be OK. Missing family is a huge consideration but some people prefer their family miles away. Where abouts in Victoria are you going to?

saveme

All huge countries that people migrate to, decide it's a dump after liviing in one small part, then return without trying another part? Why not Vancouver for instance - I reckon I could live there OK, could quite happily move to the Californian coast between San Diego and LA too - Carlsbad? is that the name of the town? Went there once and Loved it! Burlington, Vermont too and if you hate WA, why not try Sydney? (as I did in 78, would have been easy to return to UK after four weeks in Perth but I thought I'd give Sydney a go.)

There's a memorial to the Pilgrim Fathers here in Southampton (UK) - why did they have to call in at Plymouth anyway - would have been Southampton Rock then. I look at Americans, Canadians, Aussies, - and think you're still 'English' in a way (at least the ones that came from England (and Scotland, Wales, Ulster, sorry)

Australia_bound?

Have loads of faimly all over Melbourne, not exactly decided on where. Think it'll depend on where OH gets work, can stop with relatives until we get sorted. Also my sister may be out there before we get there, so could possibly want to be near to her?
When we've been in aus we've not sought out British food stuff and found fod shopping to be better than UK in some places! Don't want to recreate UK life, just want to do something different. I'm very much aware we'll be worse off when it comes to wages, but hopefully will be able to get on housing chain far quicker and cheaper than in UK (halifax now wanting average £30k + deposit on house, more than I earn in a year before tax , would take years and years for us to save that much)