salmonking

all I would say to you is to think carefully before you come back.i was in your position 5 years ago.my wife,me and my daughter moved to Brisbane from the uk looking for a better life,we were there for just over a year before we came "home".well to be honest I wish id stuck it out.home just is not the same anymore.our reasons for coming back.homesick,fed up of the heat,the insects(mainly bloody ants,i know it sounds stupid!),spiders,i got biten by a red back,the huntsmen,they were bloody everywhere!snakes,saw lots of them!.we were worried as my daughter was just starting to walk and explore!.also once we settled and I was working,i just kept on thinking about working back home and it was no different.well.......
now we have been back 5 years what I miss....the heat!!!.the weather in the uk really is terrible for the past 3 years.the outdoor living,you can plan ahead trips to the beach,zoo,waterparks.you cant do this in the uk.bbq's we have had 2 since we have been back!!.the wildlife,seeing kookaburra,gallar's,laurakeets even bloody bush turkeys!!,kangaroo's,koala,s,gecko's,lizards every day was beutifull.now we are back crows and magpies don't have the same appeal!lol.work,yes its the same as the uk but going to work in shorts and tshirt instead of thermal clothes for 9 months of the year!starting at 6am but finishing at 2pm that's the way forward!.
we were silly not giving it longer to get over the homesickness.if you are feeling any of this,find friends,join clubs,anything to get your mind off it,this is what we didn't do enough of.
weigh the pro's and con's of aus v uk

weather=really has to be aus,im sitting here now,end of march.it is 3 degrees,blowing a gale,damp and some parts of the country have 8" of snow.

people= I will never have a go at the brits but.....to be honest there aint many left!!.no that's wrong,there are more and more eastern Europeans coming every day.now I don't mind any nationality coming as long as they are willing to support themselves,but these are not and quite frankly,we are full!.the aussies=nice, friendly, outgoing people,who love a beer and a bbq!.

sport=do I really have to answer this one!just look at the set ups at uni's,clubs and the like.compared to uk government selling off school playing fields for housing!

cost of living= I had to pay £1.51 per litre for diesel yesterday!,my mortgage is a lot more than renting in aus,food is going through the roof,fair enough but.....wages are not going up!.

governments,now,i dont know what state out there is in at the moment,but here is a disgrace.if your willing to be honest,work hard your going to get clobbered.if you want to have 12 kids,stay in bed all day,be anti social you will be looked after fine!i wasn't brought up that way.

I know this reply is going on a bit and probably doesn't make much sense but PLEASE before you make your decision have a seriouse think about it the grass isn't always greener on the other side and it definatly isn't at the moment.try and stay out there until you get your passport,then if you want to come home you can go back in the future.this is one thing im sorry I didn't do.
id go back tomorrow if I could.i currently working on my wife as she is not keen.
one final thing about the insects,snakes and spiders.....they are not really that bad.
good luck with what you decide

spouse of scouse

arkon - I think that if all the true blue Aussie Battlers go to the UK, then it's only fair that all the true blue UK Battlers come to Oz. Never mind, at least you'll hear familiar accents in the Tescos next door

blackcab

Brilliant....thanks, laughed out lowdeeee.


Still here for now, in a better place than in Jan, lol. still bitten, but found that drink deadens any pain, so the healing process is strong german lager, thanks for erupting this thread. made me laugh how sh1t things were 2 months ago. but bettre now, wow,.z?

salmonking

its not for everyone mate,works for some,not for others.but now your there.....
just wish we had stuck it out a bit longer!

blackcab

Cum back, have to admit, its tough as f%%k at times, costs, family, i guess its what how much you have to lose? Sticking it out, a term which outlines a prison sentance, not good. It ain't prison, just not what you are used to, not surrounded by all loved ones and things which make you feel happy. My advice, if you have a nice life in the UK, stay, if you have a sh!t life in the UK, do i need to answer? Me?

salmonking

ha ha sticking it out my of been the wrong expression!! its not we don't have a nice life, we manage, I just want a better life!.also now with 2 daughters I really worry about their future in this country.thats the thing.familiar surroundings,family around us its all safe,easy if you like.oh I don't know,as I say id have to work on wifey first!

OzTennis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceWKrsJX9N4

chris955

We moved back last year, no regrets at all. People are friendly and helpful, groceries are cheap and much more variety. Ignore most of the doom and gloom nonsense. You often find people need to leave the UK to realise it isnt that bad afterall.

paulry

So in both cases it's a balancing act between heart and head and sometimes it's both the heart and head that sways the decision towards staying in Australia or the UK. To an extent it's like that for most people, myself included. I'm reasonably content to be here, sure, there's lots of things I could grumble about, things I miss, things I object to, things that are just downright annoying that "wouldn't happen at home" that make me feel like getting on the next plane. But my kids are happy and well, they're lined up nicely for great futures, so the annoying things are less important and I try not to think about them as annoying and just accept them. When I do that they somehow I can focus on the enjoyable things and get on with life. And once the kids have flown the nest and they don't need me and the mrs anymore then we'll think about what and where next ...Which sounds more or less the same as both of you

Budawang

I think Australia would benefit from having migrants coming from a broader European base. Just because Britons speak English and understand the rules of cricket does not automatically make them good migrants. It would be good to see more French, Germans, Italians etc. Many of them speak passable English anyway and would learn quickly enough. I don't think either Australia or those British migrants who fail to adapt (for whatever reason) are well served by the current over-emphasis on British migration.

BadgeIsBack

I think some of the influx of Aussies are pretty switched on. I think a lot of true blue battlers from the UK arrive in Australia where they then go head to head with the Aussie battlers..I sometimes wonder which mob are worse...

I'm under the impression that we've reached a tipping point where the Brits won't come any more - they can't afford it and half can't get on.

Budawang

Settlers in Oz in 2011/12:

16,700 UK born
406 French born
803 German born
1,622 US born

OzTennis

http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/02key.htm

The reality is that Europeans will diminish as a % of the migrant intake and Kiwis and Asians (south, east and north) will make up a growing % of the population. As Geoffrey Blainey would say, The Tyranny Distance has shaped Australia's history and it will shape the future - neighbours will be favoured rather than long distance relatives and all that.

FWIW I grew up (in Oz) in the post war period and believe me there were huge numbers of European migrants of all nationalities with of course British predominating but in my classes at school there would always be Italians, Germans, Greeks and to a lesser extent Dutch, Yugoslavs (remember that country), Czechs, Ukrainians etc, etc. European migration has had a 50 year period and it will taper off as the intake increasingly features New Zealanders, Chinese, Indians, Vietnamese etc.

The tourist numbers show the same thing - from memory British visitors were the largest group but now I think they are 3rd behind Chinese and NZ'ers.

I'm not saying it wouldn't be good to have more Europeans, I'm just saying the reality is they won't come in increasing numbers. Surely too Europeans have had a huge impact on way of life, food and drink etc.

I was just thinking how the European nationalities (understandably) used to go to areas where friends and families were and they used to have their own football (soccer) teams etc. Different suburbs were known for different ethnic concentrations. The ethnic names for teams have been long banned but I can remember the pitched battles between Serbs and Croats, Greeks and Turks etc. I can also remember the day at Olympic Park when Israel were playing Australia and the person in charge of the PA system played the German national anthem when it came to the turn of Israel!!

paulry

And the others?

arkon

Just what I was thinking. Missed off the 17,202 boat people Australia took in last year.