holte end

1) explain to your boss that you really don't need all that wage, he can halve it, no worries.....get used to it

2) never say thanks if someone opens a door for you, just barge past and ignore them

3) if someone askes "how're you going?" they really aren't interested so don't bother telling them.

now a couple of serious ones;

4) play Good Guys and Retrovision off against each other...works wonders for discounts.

5) If you're in Perth and need a good computer deal go to PLE Computers in Wangara, excellent deals.

6) Haggle, haggle haggle....get money off everything you can from rent to cars, they're all pretty negotiable.

Teresa

* Take a plastering course before you arrive, you will need it with all the exposed brick here....and thats inside the house!!!

* Forget sending presents back, they will cost you more to post than you bought them for - or do you xmas shopping now - how sad

* Don't have a tin roof in winter - trust me on this one

* Bring your hot water bottle, electric blanket (this will be ok til you have a powercut like last night), fleeces etc etc......please don't get rid of your winter stuff because your coming to Oz....you WILL need it

* Above all bring your sense of humour and positive attitude and you won't be wrong

Amazulu

And don't mention the 36000 British troops that died there compared to the 14000 Aussies/Kiwis.

Start watching rugby league & that other braindead sport (on sky) Aussie rules instead of Rugby Union, no one follows in Australia.

MikeStanton

Become an instant expert on Aussie cars by dropping one or more of the following words in to a sentence:

ripper!, hoon, V8, ute, Brockie, Bathurst, Holden, Ford, Ford, Holden and strewth!

Obviously, women need not spend time learning these words - after all, what do sheilas know about stripping down a V8, mate?!

Loopy

jayr love your top tips, more please!

Go shopping on a thursday night taking your kids in their pjs

Go bare foot even in the rain & even if you have to walk over broken glass (left by the hoons)

stop moaning, give up & join in!

Loopy - off to put my stubby in a stubby holder so it keeps my hands warm????

Pollyana

Practice turning electrical appliances on and off with wet hands - after all, Aussies have power points in their bathrooms, right next to the taps, so it must be safe.......and don't use the light cords in your bathroom, have them replaced with ordinary switches.

Block up the overflow outlets in all your baths and sinks, and practice catching the water JUST before it goes over the top and floods your house..........

Wol

And a serious one!

On your validation visit, buy a couple of dozen Aussie plugs, and spend some of that time before you pack up re-plugging all the electrical equipment rather than doing it all when you arrive!

Pollyana

Put your beer in the freezer so that when you open it, its so cold it hurts your teeth and you can't taste it (guess that explains a lot of Aussie beer )

Turn off the main electric switch a few times, and back on straight away, to get your pc and other appliances used to the erratic electrical system (esp if coming to Queensland)

And another one for Qld = make friends with someone who works for a cold storage or refrigeration company, and spend a few days sitting in the depot getting used to the temperature of the air conditioning in shops, offices, houses.......

bindi

I thought this 'Top tips' thread was going to be useful and constructive. I've had a good laugh at some of the suggestions but overall I'm disappointed it's turned into page after page of making daft comments about things that really don't matter, like TV adverts!

Then again, its actually a relief to think that if me and Mr B are going to be giving up everything and spending a small fortune moving to Oz, that all we have to worry about is rubbish commercials or people walking around with no shoes on!!!

I'm an Aussie but I'm really curious to know what's changed since I've been away, and what to prepare for. Any useful suggestions from someone???!

bindi

p.s. In the interests of a 'balanced thread' here's some 'top tips' for any Aussies who are planning their move to the UK. I've been here over 4 years and absolutely love the UK, but as it takes a while to settle into a new country, I'm hoping the following will make it all the more easier and you'll know what to expect...

1) Make sure you bring enough money with you (probably about half your airfare or £300 will do it) so that you can buy plenty of warm clothes when you get here. Not only will you have to buy fleeces during 'summer' but you will need plenty of boots and waterproof shoes for the torrential rain. Invest in some thermal socks cos walking through knee deep snow in Winter is an amazing experience not to be missed.

2) Make sure you don't expect to get a job straight away. Most job agencies (in the North anyway) will tell you that you won't get a job and locals will get preference over you, because being Australian you won't stick around as you will go off on 'walkabout'. Seriously.

3) Get used to people asking really DAFT questions and practice replying with a straight face without cracking up... for eg. "Does it rain in Australia?", or "Do you ever get thunder and lightning in Australia?" or even "Do you have dogs in Australia?"...

4) Get used to being called 'convict' at some stage by EVERYBODY and watching them giggle incessantly.

5) You will have some fabulous trips to castles, stately manors, museums and galleries, but be prepared to be told that Australia has no culture and no history. Try to find a way of gently explaining to your fellow Brits that there may only be 200 years of 'white history' but the Aborigines, the orginal Australians, have approx 50,000 years of extra-ordinary culture and history. You just don't see or hear much about it over here.

stephenwhite68

1) Make sure you bring enough money with you (probably about half your airfare or £300 will do it) so that you can buy plenty of warm clothes when you get here. Not only will you have to buy fleeces during 'summer' but you will need plenty of boots and waterproof shoes for the torrential rain. Invest in some thermal socks cos walking through knee deep snow in Winter is an amazing experience not to be missed.

2) Make sure you don't expect to get a job straight away. Most job agencies (in the North anyway) will tell you that you won't get a job and locals will get preference over you, because being Australian you won't stick around as you will go off on 'walkabout'. Seriously.

3) Get used to people asking really DAFT questions and practice replying with a straight face without cracking up... for eg. "Does it rain in Australia?", or "Do you ever get thunder and lightning in Australia?" or even "Do you have dogs in Australia?"...

4) Get used to being called 'convict' at some stage by EVERYBODY and watching them giggle incessantly.

5) You will have some fabulous trips to castles, stately manors, museums and galleries, but be prepared to be told that Australia has no culture and no history. Try to find a way of gently explaining to your fellow Brits that there may only be 200 years of 'white history' but the Aborigines, the orginal Australians, have approx 50,000 years of extra-ordinary culture and history. You just don't see or hear much about it over here.

[/QUOTE]

Well said Bindi
All good reasons why we are emigrating ...

Grayling

You won't hear much about it in Australia either

G

MikeStanton

Your husband will not have a steep learning curve moving to Oz. Just take your comments about UK and apply them to Oz.


Specifically:


Didn't Oz invent the must-have fashion accessory - the fleece-lined Ug boot? It can get very cold in Oz : try Canberra in Winter. BTW, Sydney receives 50% more rain each year than London.


Just change the word 'North' for 'Oz' and you'll reflect a lot of immigrants' experiences.


Replace with "Of course, you Poms never wash". "All those blacks and illegal immigrants etc". And, contrary to what some Aussies may believe, rationing in the UK has been over for many years....


Pom, Pom, Pom. Or, for a bit of variety, 'whinging Pom'... get the message?


To add to Grayling's excellent response, many Aussies seem to want aborigines to quietly disappear. After all, their treatment doesn't do a lot for Oz's international standing, does it?

diddy

Good tip.

Simone

Was talking about this in Hev's Annual parks fee thread:

In WA (and probably a few other states), get a Annual All Parks Pass.
In WA, it costs $51.
One entry, into one park, already costs $9.
So, just figure, over a whole year, you'll have it 'back' in no time.(unless you only visit a few).

In these first few weeks we bought it when we went into John Forrest NP(in the Perth Hills) and used it for Nambung NP (Pinnacles).

See here for WA:
http://www.calm.wa.gov.au/national_p...rk_passes.html

Oh, Gold start pass is also good option(didn't know about it when we got ours)

Even if you don't plan to venture far from Perth, it still probably worth it.
These parks are in the Perth area:
Yanchep, John Forrest, Serpentine, Walyunga and Avon Valley.

Then there's:
North of Perth:
Nambung (home of the Pinnacles),
Kalbarri
François Peron, near Monkey Mia in Shark Bay
Cape Range, near Exmouth
Millstream-Chichester and Karijini, in the Pilbara
Purnululu and Mirima in the Kimberley

South-west:
Gloucester, Warren, Beedelup, Shannon and D'Entrecasteaux, near Pemberton
Porongurup, Stirling Range and Fitzgerald River, near Albany
Cape Le Grand, Cape Arid and Stokes, on the south coast near Esperance

For Monkey Mia itself, and the Tree Top Walk in the valley of the giants, you still have to pay a fee.

Simone

phew phew phew!

My browser just crashed, but luckily my post went through just before it did!!

Top tip: either type your posts in Word first, or do CTRL + C before posting!