Boring Perth?
Feb 26th 2009 | 9:03 pm
#91
Account Closed
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 2,375
Re: Boring Perth?
Perth is certainly not boring, it's more of an acquired taste ...
We find the distance thing more of an issue than we'd envisaged, well not so much the distances, more the cost.
It is very, very expensive to travel interstate & even more so with a sizeable family. We would love to see more of Australia as I don't believe Perth nor WA represent the full picture. We've been fortunate enough to visit QLD & the Whitsundays and thoroughly enjoyed it ... So did Mastercard ...
It's so difficult to sum Perth up and that's what makes it so unique I guess ... All I would say is that coming from the Isle of Man, we thought our lives were insular before the move ... now, despite Perth having a population nearly 20 times the size of the Island, we've never felt so claustrophobic??? It's absolutely frigging bizarre ...
It's a great 'town' with a climate that can't be beat ... it's just a funny place.
We find the distance thing more of an issue than we'd envisaged, well not so much the distances, more the cost.
It is very, very expensive to travel interstate & even more so with a sizeable family. We would love to see more of Australia as I don't believe Perth nor WA represent the full picture. We've been fortunate enough to visit QLD & the Whitsundays and thoroughly enjoyed it ... So did Mastercard ...
It's so difficult to sum Perth up and that's what makes it so unique I guess ... All I would say is that coming from the Isle of Man, we thought our lives were insular before the move ... now, despite Perth having a population nearly 20 times the size of the Island, we've never felt so claustrophobic??? It's absolutely frigging bizarre ...
It's a great 'town' with a climate that can't be beat ... it's just a funny place.
Feb 26th 2009 | 10:23 pm
#92
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 3,342
From: Scotland
Re: Boring Perth?
Lets stop beating about the bush - Perth is Dullsville, always has been and with the city council in place always will be.
For those who say that those who bemoan the lack of culture are those who never actually visited anything before, well yes we did and we did a lot in when we lived in Sydney as my wife is amn artist and we both find it cultureless.
We are lucky to live next to a beach and it is great to have it, but for those that think the yob culture is a thing of the UK, then think again when you are chased out of the water by pratts on jet bikes.
The city has no real restaunt scene and what there are are pretty dire - have a look at the reviews in the West and you will notice the majority are actually for cafes - that sums it up
I have come to believe that the reason Perth is so isolated is because the rest of Oz likes them to be - a sort of modern day penal collony
For those who say that those who bemoan the lack of culture are those who never actually visited anything before, well yes we did and we did a lot in when we lived in Sydney as my wife is amn artist and we both find it cultureless.
We are lucky to live next to a beach and it is great to have it, but for those that think the yob culture is a thing of the UK, then think again when you are chased out of the water by pratts on jet bikes.
The city has no real restaunt scene and what there are are pretty dire - have a look at the reviews in the West and you will notice the majority are actually for cafes - that sums it up
I have come to believe that the reason Perth is so isolated is because the rest of Oz likes them to be - a sort of modern day penal collony
Feb 26th 2009 | 10:45 pm
#93
Forum Regular
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 246
From: Perth
Re: Boring Perth?
Lets stop beating about the bush - Perth is Dullsville, always has been and with the city council in place always will be.
For those who say that those who bemoan the lack of culture are those who never actually visited anything before, well yes we did and we did a lot in when we lived in Sydney as my wife is amn artist and we both find it cultureless.
We are lucky to live next to a beach and it is great to have it, but for those that think the yob culture is a thing of the UK, then think again when you are chased out of the water by pratts on jet bikes.
The city has no real restaunt scene and what there are are pretty dire - have a look at the reviews in the West and you will notice the majority are actually for cafes - that sums it up
I have come to believe that the reason Perth is so isolated is because the rest of Oz likes them to be - a sort of modern day penal collony
For those who say that those who bemoan the lack of culture are those who never actually visited anything before, well yes we did and we did a lot in when we lived in Sydney as my wife is amn artist and we both find it cultureless.
We are lucky to live next to a beach and it is great to have it, but for those that think the yob culture is a thing of the UK, then think again when you are chased out of the water by pratts on jet bikes.
The city has no real restaunt scene and what there are are pretty dire - have a look at the reviews in the West and you will notice the majority are actually for cafes - that sums it up
I have come to believe that the reason Perth is so isolated is because the rest of Oz likes them to be - a sort of modern day penal collony
Good Luck.
I'm sure not everyone feels the same and our experience will be a happier one.
Feb 27th 2009 | 9:51 am
#95
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 16,623
From: Hill overlooking the SE Melbourne suburbs
Re: Boring Perth?
Gee. And there is me hopping around in excitement at the thought of staying free in Melbourne's CBD with just about everything on our doorstep.
Feb 27th 2009 | 10:02 am
#96
Forum Regular
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 141
Re: Boring Perth?
I agree with the earlier poster. It is a superb place for young kids. I also feel that I am on holiday every day pretty much and don't feel a desperate need to have a break.
I kind of like the small town feel because I think it's a fair trade-off for having such a calm, soothing place to bring up children. I do wish I'd have had the great lifestyle that Perth offers children when I was young.
I've also realised that if you are the type of person who is constantly criticising the place then this will rub-off on your kids.
Wherever you live I think you get bored. When I lived in the UK I was constantly bored. There are only so many times that you can look at a beautiful tree or the old church - you soon take it for granted and travelling to London or Edinburgh every weekend for something new isn't practical or affordable. We talk about access to Europe but, really, how many times a year do you do this?
When we lived in SE Asia I got bored - there are only so many times you can swim in the South China Sea and find it stunning. Only so many times you can go rainforest trekking in any one year. What do you do for the other 90% of the time?
So, ultimately you have to look at the broad picture. Where will your children be healthiest, happiest and most content in the day to day routine that is life? Let's be honest kids don't want to be whisked off at every opportunity to a different activity.(and on that front I think Perth is great - our kids still nag for AQWA and Scitech even though they've been many times - it's also brilliant for the multitude of after-school activities for kids). Kids want their parents, they want their friends, they want decent weather to play out and they want opportunities for getting out of breath. Perth provides all of this.
My eldest is approaching 10. And when I think back to when I was 10 I still don't think there's a better place to be. What do 10 year olds do that younger kids don't? And more so what do 10 year olds do that Perth can't provide? I really can't see that she'll be thinking "I'm so trapped. I'm bored". Well she might but she would also be saying that if we were in the UK or SE Asia.
I think we often perceive that things will be more interesting elsewhere - and for the first 6 months or so they might be. But ultimately we settle in to everyday life. Before you make a move to Perth, to the UK, to anywhere, ask yourself where you and your family will be most content with the everyday normality - not with the potential access to the Natural History Museum, Edinburgh Castle or Paris.
I kind of like the small town feel because I think it's a fair trade-off for having such a calm, soothing place to bring up children. I do wish I'd have had the great lifestyle that Perth offers children when I was young.
I've also realised that if you are the type of person who is constantly criticising the place then this will rub-off on your kids.
Wherever you live I think you get bored. When I lived in the UK I was constantly bored. There are only so many times that you can look at a beautiful tree or the old church - you soon take it for granted and travelling to London or Edinburgh every weekend for something new isn't practical or affordable. We talk about access to Europe but, really, how many times a year do you do this?
When we lived in SE Asia I got bored - there are only so many times you can swim in the South China Sea and find it stunning. Only so many times you can go rainforest trekking in any one year. What do you do for the other 90% of the time?
So, ultimately you have to look at the broad picture. Where will your children be healthiest, happiest and most content in the day to day routine that is life? Let's be honest kids don't want to be whisked off at every opportunity to a different activity.(and on that front I think Perth is great - our kids still nag for AQWA and Scitech even though they've been many times - it's also brilliant for the multitude of after-school activities for kids). Kids want their parents, they want their friends, they want decent weather to play out and they want opportunities for getting out of breath. Perth provides all of this.
My eldest is approaching 10. And when I think back to when I was 10 I still don't think there's a better place to be. What do 10 year olds do that younger kids don't? And more so what do 10 year olds do that Perth can't provide? I really can't see that she'll be thinking "I'm so trapped. I'm bored". Well she might but she would also be saying that if we were in the UK or SE Asia.
I think we often perceive that things will be more interesting elsewhere - and for the first 6 months or so they might be. But ultimately we settle in to everyday life. Before you make a move to Perth, to the UK, to anywhere, ask yourself where you and your family will be most content with the everyday normality - not with the potential access to the Natural History Museum, Edinburgh Castle or Paris.
I also think as a society (and this is debatable), we have too much choice, for the sake of choice?. If we had less, would we be more content? Interesting question... Allen De Botton talks about such matters in his TV series and books.
Cheers
Feb 27th 2009 | 10:25 am
#97
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 16,623
From: Hill overlooking the SE Melbourne suburbs
Re: Boring Perth?
I had a German friend come to visit Australia not all that long ago. She booked herself into accommodation in Sydney for a week, but was ready to go after the first day (she really took a dislike to the place).
But she said to me, "I guess I expected Australian cities to be like European cities."
What she meant was that you're not going to find history on every corner, or a lot of beautiful architecture, or things like that. She whizzed around on a sightseeing bus and climbed the Bridge, and she was done.
But then surely nobody comes to Australia for the culture!!
But she said to me, "I guess I expected Australian cities to be like European cities."
What she meant was that you're not going to find history on every corner, or a lot of beautiful architecture, or things like that. She whizzed around on a sightseeing bus and climbed the Bridge, and she was done.
But then surely nobody comes to Australia for the culture!!
Australian cities are more about lifestyle, people and food, less about very old places. Melbourne I think is a slightly different story.
I kind of like the small town feel because I think it's a fair trade-off for having such a calm, soothing place to bring up children. I do wish I'd have had the great lifestyle that Perth offers children when I was young.
I've also realised that if you are the type of person who is constantly criticising the place then this will rub-off on your kids.
Wherever you live I think you get bored.
So, ultimately you have to look at the broad picture. Where will your children be healthiest, happiest and most content in the day to day routine that is life? Before you make a move to Perth, to the UK, to anywhere, ask yourself where you and your family will be most content with the everyday normality - not with the potential access to the Natural History Museum, Edinburgh Castle or Paris.
I've also realised that if you are the type of person who is constantly criticising the place then this will rub-off on your kids.
Wherever you live I think you get bored.
So, ultimately you have to look at the broad picture. Where will your children be healthiest, happiest and most content in the day to day routine that is life? Before you make a move to Perth, to the UK, to anywhere, ask yourself where you and your family will be most content with the everyday normality - not with the potential access to the Natural History Museum, Edinburgh Castle or Paris.
Melbourne suits us for day to day, but there is also a bank of cultural capital too - with our friends and with things to see and do.
I lived in Europe and it was great and I occasionally reflect on it - but I remember being bored there too.
It seems to me that many posters who claim to miss UK 'culture' are not referring to castles or old burial grounds, or specialist areas of academia. Rather they are lower-middle class folk who miss their pubs and the net-curtained semis of Betjeman. There are a few cases reported where people have had a private renaissance and have gone back to the UK and have signed up for the National Trust Family Annual pass as soon as they got back.
I reckon people that say Australia has 'no culture' are actually showing a side of their own 'lack of culture'. Look in the Sunday papers and magazines and you will see the same eclectic mix of artists and creatives as you got back in the UK. These people live and work somewhere - generally not where your average migrant heads though! I shake my head sadly when people seem to meet noone but bogans because that would drive me mad too. But I think the same happens in the UK - except at least there is the saving grace of countryside and pubs in the provinces.
Feb 27th 2009 | 11:17 am
#98
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 451
From: Kallaroo, Perth
Re: Boring Perth?
I believe that some people are unhappy and will never be happy wherever they lay their hat 
Feb 27th 2009 | 4:01 pm
#99
Proudly Deplorable
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 24,249
From: Alloha snack bar
Re: Boring Perth?
Did anyone go and see toolboy Chris Martin and his band at Burswood last night?
They are playing again tonight. It would be my idea of hell going to watch this mob but they are obviously popular as they are sold out.
They are playing again tonight. It would be my idea of hell going to watch this mob but they are obviously popular as they are sold out.
Feb 27th 2009 | 4:18 pm
#100
Gutter Gob!!
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 13,098
From: Perth
Re: Boring Perth?
Feb 27th 2009 | 5:47 pm
#101
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 1,145
Re: Boring Perth?
Apart from the trips to Europe, we have done far more in Perth on a general day to day living, than we ever did when living within an hour of London. Partly because it is so much cheaper and also because things are so much more accessible. I'm talking Perth and outer suburbs, not travelling Australia. To have gone to a concert in London would have been a nightmare, either by car or by public transport, so we just didn't do it. Yet groups we have gone to see in Perth have been so easy traffic wise or by train. We go to the outdoor cinema as a family, we socialise with friends at the weekend just as we would have done in the UK. We were never ones to be spending the evening down the pub anyway.
In the UK we lived in a small village and a general day to day living would have been to work, shop, take a walk around a park (weather permitting), play golf occasionally, watch our son play soccer, see friends, go to movies, eat out or watch tv. We do all this here and more. We now work, shop, fish, play golf often, walk dogs on the beach or in the bush, camp (cos we can plan ahead due to the weather), watch our son play soccer but in a total variety of settings then stop off for sightseeing on the way home, rafted in rapids in winter and scaled the dry rocks in summer, picnic, attend free entertainment days out in the city for Public events, go to concerts both indoors and out (a fab way to see a group is outside with a picnic on hand and smuggled in wine/beer), we socialise with friends both out and about in the city or at each others' homes, we swim in the sea, we cycle, take an evening stroll along the beach after work while son is soccer training, visited wildlife park and national parks on our doorstep, the list goes on. We don't have to time miss an annual trip to Europe nor have time to get bored.
In the UK we lived in a small village and a general day to day living would have been to work, shop, take a walk around a park (weather permitting), play golf occasionally, watch our son play soccer, see friends, go to movies, eat out or watch tv. We do all this here and more. We now work, shop, fish, play golf often, walk dogs on the beach or in the bush, camp (cos we can plan ahead due to the weather), watch our son play soccer but in a total variety of settings then stop off for sightseeing on the way home, rafted in rapids in winter and scaled the dry rocks in summer, picnic, attend free entertainment days out in the city for Public events, go to concerts both indoors and out (a fab way to see a group is outside with a picnic on hand and smuggled in wine/beer), we socialise with friends both out and about in the city or at each others' homes, we swim in the sea, we cycle, take an evening stroll along the beach after work while son is soccer training, visited wildlife park and national parks on our doorstep, the list goes on. We don't have to time miss an annual trip to Europe nor have time to get bored.
Feb 27th 2009 | 6:43 pm
#102
Proudly Deplorable
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 24,249
From: Alloha snack bar
Feb 27th 2009 | 6:45 pm
#103
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 242
From: Perth NOR
Re: Boring Perth?
Approved!! Chris Martin is a complete knobhead even though his music not bad. He reeks of STUDENT and does he still do the 'Free Trade' scribbles on his arms.....
Feb 27th 2009 | 6:47 pm
#104
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 242
From: Perth NOR
Re: Boring Perth?
Perth is certainly not boring, it's more of an acquired taste ...
We find the distance thing more of an issue than we'd envisaged, well not so much the distances, more the cost.
It is very, very expensive to travel interstate & even more so with a sizeable family. We would love to see more of Australia as I don't believe Perth nor WA represent the full picture. We've been fortunate enough to visit QLD & the Whitsundays and thoroughly enjoyed it ... So did Mastercard ...
It's so difficult to sum Perth up and that's what makes it so unique I guess ... All I would say is that coming from the Isle of Man, we thought our lives were insular before the move ... now, despite Perth having a population nearly 20 times the size of the Island, we've never felt so claustrophobic??? It's absolutely frigging bizarre ...
It's a great 'town' with a climate that can't be beat ... it's just a funny place.
We find the distance thing more of an issue than we'd envisaged, well not so much the distances, more the cost.
It is very, very expensive to travel interstate & even more so with a sizeable family. We would love to see more of Australia as I don't believe Perth nor WA represent the full picture. We've been fortunate enough to visit QLD & the Whitsundays and thoroughly enjoyed it ... So did Mastercard ...
It's so difficult to sum Perth up and that's what makes it so unique I guess ... All I would say is that coming from the Isle of Man, we thought our lives were insular before the move ... now, despite Perth having a population nearly 20 times the size of the Island, we've never felt so claustrophobic??? It's absolutely frigging bizarre ...
It's a great 'town' with a climate that can't be beat ... it's just a funny place.
