beachlou

Hello,

So we are coming to the end of our travels around SE Asia (in Cambodia at the moment) and have decided to bring our flights forward and we now land in Melbourne next Saturday!! (was originally on 5th Jan). Just looking for some general advice please.

1. We are looking at a place to rent in Brunswick East-can anyone tell me anything about the area?

2. Our suitcases are still in transit and won't arrive until mid-late Jan so need to go shopping. Can someone recommend anywhere? My husband needs smart shoes/trousers/shirts for work-cheap though because he has stuff in the suitcases and needs stuff to tide him over. For me, I just need smart/casual-a shop like Topshop/Primark would be good.

3. Mobile phone-just a pay as you go would start us off-any suggestions on where to go?

4. Food shopping?

That's all I can think of at the moment. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

Louise

Jen1977ni

Hi Louise, I can't help you with any of your queries but I just thought I'd say hi and good luck to you both for your new life Down Under. While you've been travelling my OH (main applicant) and I have been granted our visa under the ENS scheme so my 175 is no longer required, how relieved were we! lol We're flying 8 weeks tomorrow and it can't come soon enough! Take care and good luck with everything! Jen xo

LiseM

Hi There,

Victoria Markets are the cheapest & largest selection of fresh fruit & veg to shop for in Melbourne. I refuse to purchase fresh produce from the overpriced supermarkets now. They're open on particular days during the week & all weekend - check their website for info. Just around the corner from the markets is an ALDI as well, which is handy to pop into.

Clothes wise you may find 'cheaper stores' like Big W, Kmart (& Target) could be the solution, but the quality of fabric is shite in comparison to the UK.

There seem to be plenty of mobile phone shops around the city to pop into & grab brochures / have a chat about payg plans / buy a sim.
Dick Smith Electronics also offer them and probably JB Hifi if you see either stores.

faf

Hi Louise

If you are staying in Brunswick East then your not that far from the city, there you will find all the shops you need.

Target is a cheap place to buy clothes and they're not too bad either (once you get use to the aussie fashion)

There is also David Jones and Myer which are the two main department stores which are very similar to Debenhams.

Can't really advise on which mobile to go for but the main companies are telstra, optus, vodafone and virgin, they all have shops in the city.

As for food shopping not much choice I'm afraid with the main ones being Coles and Woolworths. I'll let you make your own mind up about those ones.

I have done a quick search and there are 2 Woolworths and 1 Coles in Brunswick so you won't go hungry. Many more in the surrounding areas.

I have been here 3 years now and I really do miss English supermarkets!

As for accommodation, well we have a sparsely furnished one bed apartment that's available. We are not in the area you are looking for but if you can be flexible we live in a lovely little leafy suburb called The Basin which is east of the city at the foot of the Dandenong Ranges.

Even if you just wanted to use it as base while you find something more permanent that would be okay too.

Anyway I hope I have been of some help and if you want anymore info just drop me a PM.

Good luck
Sara

bigkaz

I lived In Brunswick East until very recently,just made the move to Brunswick!! Where abouts in Brunswick East are you looking??
Great area to live,lots of cafes etc,easy to commute to city.
Barclay Sq shopping centre in Brunswick has 2 supermarkets (Coles and Safeway) and a large Kmart where you will get cheap clothes to tide you over. There is also and Aldi on Sydney Road in Brunswick
When I first arrived here,we got Virgin pay as you go phones as Virgin to Virgin calls and texts are free and they had a low rate for overseas texts. Not exactly sure of the costs now,sorry

If you want any more specific info about the area let me know and I'll do what I can to help
Kaz

Sugo

definately go clothes shopping in myers or david jones, some of the malls are better though. we usually go to doncaster westfield, better choice and myers isnt hideous like the city centre one.

i wouldnt call target or k mart places to buy smart clothes.

for rental check out realestate.com.au and sign on to be emailed new places to rent. be selective but be organised, it can be cut throat here, i hated the last time we searched for a rental. you need to have all your paper work ready and applications filled fully for the viewing day, you might need to hire a car to get around.

good luck

beachlou

A big thank you to everyone who has posted-there's so much to think about and take in. We have just secured a one bedroom apartment in Collingwood for the first month. Does anyone know much about the area?

We really need to do some clothes shopping as we only have our backpacks. Our suitcases were picked up from my mums house mid-oct and they still haven't been shipped!! Has this happened to anyone else? Everything we need is in there. We went with Simpsons. Would love to go to a shopping centre fir a one-stop shop for clothes and mobile phones-can anyone recommend where would be best?

Many thanks again. Can't believe we arrive in 2 days. Doesn't quite feel real but I think that's because we're in Cambodia and not coming from the UK.

Zambia

Anything on a trainline is fine

Most malls have smaller suit shops and good wear. If you really want something decent a trip to Chadstone is worth a go. If you cant get what you need in Chadstone I would be shocked.

Buy a Vodafone sim card €2 (Post office or supermarket)and stick it in your UK phone. Top it up with a €49 Dollar cap this gives you €300 credit for a month including international. Should start you off

Buy veggies from a veggie shop , Meat from a Butchers and the rest from the supermarkets. There are plenty of all around where you will be.

We have all been where you are welcome to Australia, Victoria, Melbourne

beachlou

Thanks for that info. We arrived today and are settling into our rental. Have done our food shop at woolworths-surprised how expensive it was though. Thinking of heading to chadstone tomorrow to get phones and look for clothes. It's colder here than we thought!!