Life after 18 months in Perth
#1
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2003
Location: East Fremantle
Posts: 38
Life after 18 months in Perth
I am writing this brief article in case it will help anyone out there thinking about coming to Perth. We are just coming up to 18 months in Perth (well East Fremantle) after departing from Bristol, UK. We love the beaches, weather in summer, Rottnest, Swan river and relaxed lifestyle. Traffic problems are a distant memory unless you venture on the Kwinana freeway where often lanes are closed to make way for the new train line to Mandurah but this will not be forever. When the sun is shinning it makes you feel good which is often and in many areas the air quality is much better than in the UK. The lead up to Christmas was no where near as nice as in the UK but Christmas day morning on the beach with Champaign followed by lunch by the barbie was splendid and having no family to visit it was very very relaxed although also a time to reflect and be a little sad missing them all immensely. We can phone home often as it is cheap and friends and family can call us for 1p per minute and with the web cam friends and family do not seem all that far away. The centre of Perth is nice as is Fremantle although the latter very different but both are small and do not take long to become familiar with. Outside of the centres I find there is often an eerie silence, lots of beautiful homes especially along the coast but a sense of not much ever happening. Generally most places are clean and tidy and I love the free barbies at picnic sites and often laugh to myself when I think in the UK they would be in someones garage by the weekend. Jobs in mining, general engineering and the building trades are plentiful as is general labouring, driving etc. and the economy is still booming in Western Australia. The sporting facilities are fantastic and many compared to where I came from.
Winging pome is a common term in Australia but in WA there is a group of people who moan even more than the Brits. Most South Africans hate it here and are outspoken about it but few have the opportunity to return to South Africa. Personally I like them but they to seem to stick to their own kind. Both Aussies and South Africans alike seem so confident.
Unfortunately already two of our daughters are returning to the UK. Mistake number 1 was to send them to an all girls school. Initially they made many friends but sadly most turned out to be very false and extremely immature. I do not believe this is just in Australia as possibly all girl only schools are the same. The school they attend has students from South Africa, Asia, UK and Australia. However they have also found it hard to live in Perth because for teenagers once you have been to the beaches x number of times the novelty soon wears off, the shops are poor and there is little else for teenagers to do.
We were disappointed to learn of the huge drugs problem among teenagers particularly in Perth and disappointed at the crime levels so both are no different in my opinion to back in the UK. It seems there are underlying problems covered up or hidden and I do not feel as safe as I was expecting. That being said if you can afford to live in the more affluent areas you can shield yourself from the outside a little. True Aussies seem hard to come by and the ones we have met are friendly, polite but difficult to make good friends with. House prices are rising fast and we have found the cost of living higher than expected. The television is very bad but I believe you should not come to Australia and expect to stay in doors as this place is for enjoying the outdoors most of the year. Good pubs are few and far between and so entertaining is often carried out in the home although restaurants and take aways are pretty good and plentiful. Once our whole family attended a Rugby Union match between Western Force and ACT Brumbies. It was a sell out but after a while beer was being thrown, abusive threatening language heard and when we decided to leave just before the finish so our 7 year old would not be frightened when among 37,000 disappointed fans all leaving at the same time we were jeered at and heard choruses (to a 7 year old) of 'part time supporters'. It was rather like a 70's and 80's soccer match in the UK not the family Rugby Union day out we were used to in England.
We will probably return to the UK in 2007 but there are many things we will miss. Perth has many good things as well as bad things to discover and will for us make a fantastic potential place to retire to. Everyone is different and the above are only my individual observations.
In summary any new wannabe migrants should consider what they have in the UK. In my humble opinion if you are leaving many good friends and close family behind, have teenagers and do not have a lot of money to bring you should consider your reasons very very carefully. If deciding to come thoroughly research everything especially jobs, schools, houses and areas to live. Once here give it a good 2 years before making any long term decisions.
PJK
Winging pome is a common term in Australia but in WA there is a group of people who moan even more than the Brits. Most South Africans hate it here and are outspoken about it but few have the opportunity to return to South Africa. Personally I like them but they to seem to stick to their own kind. Both Aussies and South Africans alike seem so confident.
Unfortunately already two of our daughters are returning to the UK. Mistake number 1 was to send them to an all girls school. Initially they made many friends but sadly most turned out to be very false and extremely immature. I do not believe this is just in Australia as possibly all girl only schools are the same. The school they attend has students from South Africa, Asia, UK and Australia. However they have also found it hard to live in Perth because for teenagers once you have been to the beaches x number of times the novelty soon wears off, the shops are poor and there is little else for teenagers to do.
We were disappointed to learn of the huge drugs problem among teenagers particularly in Perth and disappointed at the crime levels so both are no different in my opinion to back in the UK. It seems there are underlying problems covered up or hidden and I do not feel as safe as I was expecting. That being said if you can afford to live in the more affluent areas you can shield yourself from the outside a little. True Aussies seem hard to come by and the ones we have met are friendly, polite but difficult to make good friends with. House prices are rising fast and we have found the cost of living higher than expected. The television is very bad but I believe you should not come to Australia and expect to stay in doors as this place is for enjoying the outdoors most of the year. Good pubs are few and far between and so entertaining is often carried out in the home although restaurants and take aways are pretty good and plentiful. Once our whole family attended a Rugby Union match between Western Force and ACT Brumbies. It was a sell out but after a while beer was being thrown, abusive threatening language heard and when we decided to leave just before the finish so our 7 year old would not be frightened when among 37,000 disappointed fans all leaving at the same time we were jeered at and heard choruses (to a 7 year old) of 'part time supporters'. It was rather like a 70's and 80's soccer match in the UK not the family Rugby Union day out we were used to in England.
We will probably return to the UK in 2007 but there are many things we will miss. Perth has many good things as well as bad things to discover and will for us make a fantastic potential place to retire to. Everyone is different and the above are only my individual observations.
In summary any new wannabe migrants should consider what they have in the UK. In my humble opinion if you are leaving many good friends and close family behind, have teenagers and do not have a lot of money to bring you should consider your reasons very very carefully. If deciding to come thoroughly research everything especially jobs, schools, houses and areas to live. Once here give it a good 2 years before making any long term decisions.
PJK
#2
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Great post! I appreciated reading that as someone heading out there. The crime and drug problems worry me a little. Is it just certain suburbs where crime is high?
Thanks again!
Thanks again!
#3
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
[QUOTE=PJK]I am writing this brief article in case it will help anyone out there thinking about coming to Perth. We are just coming up to 18 months in Perth
Hiya
What a good honest read, before returning back to the UK would you consider another part of Australia to live?
Wish you lots of luck where ever you decide to live.
It's good here in Melbourne if you ever consider it
Loraine
Hiya
What a good honest read, before returning back to the UK would you consider another part of Australia to live?
Wish you lots of luck where ever you decide to live.
It's good here in Melbourne if you ever consider it
Loraine
#4
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Excellent post. We're off to Perth in a couple months we've never been there before so it is good to hear everyone's version of it.
Thanks for posting your experience.
Thanks for posting your experience.
Originally Posted by PJK
I am writing this brief article in case it will help anyone out there thinking about coming to Perth. We are just coming up to 18 months in Perth (well East Fremantle) after departing from Bristol, UK. We love the beaches, weather in summer, Rottnest, Swan river and relaxed lifestyle. Traffic problems are a distant memory unless you venture on the Kwinana freeway where often lanes are closed to make way for the new train line to Mandurah but this will not be forever. When the sun is shinning it makes you feel good which is often and in many areas the air quality is much better than in the UK. The lead up to Christmas was no where near as nice as in the UK but Christmas day morning on the beach with Champaign followed by lunch by the barbie was splendid and having no family to visit it was very very relaxed although also a time to reflect and be a little sad missing them all immensely. We can phone home often as it is cheap and friends and family can call us for 1p per minute and with the web cam friends and family do not seem all that far away. The centre of Perth is nice as is Fremantle although the latter very different but both are small and do not take long to become familiar with. Outside of the centres I find there is often an eerie silence, lots of beautiful homes especially along the coast but a sense of not much ever happening. Generally most places are clean and tidy and I love the free barbies at picnic sites and often laugh to myself when I think in the UK they would be in someones garage by the weekend. Jobs in mining, general engineering and the building trades are plentiful as is general labouring, driving etc. and the economy is still booming in Western Australia. The sporting facilities are fantastic and many compared to where I came from.
Winging pome is a common term in Australia but in WA there is a group of people who moan even more than the Brits. Most South Africans hate it here and are outspoken about it but few have the opportunity to return to South Africa. Personally I like them but they to seem to stick to their own kind. Both Aussies and South Africans alike seem so confident.
Unfortunately already two of our daughters are returning to the UK. Mistake number 1 was to send them to an all girls school. Initially they made many friends but sadly most turned out to be very false and extremely immature. I do not believe this is just in Australia as possibly all girl only schools are the same. The school they attend has students from South Africa, Asia, UK and Australia. However they have also found it hard to live in Perth because for teenagers once you have been to the beaches x number of times the novelty soon wears off, the shops are poor and there is little else for teenagers to do.
We were disappointed to learn of the huge drugs problem among teenagers particularly in Perth and disappointed at the crime levels so both are no different in my opinion to back in the UK. It seems there are underlying problems covered up or hidden and I do not feel as safe as I was expecting. That being said if you can afford to live in the more affluent areas you can shield yourself from the outside a little. True Aussies seem hard to come by and the ones we have met are friendly, polite but difficult to make good friends with. House prices are rising fast and we have found the cost of living higher than expected. The television is very bad but I believe you should not come to Australia and expect to stay in doors as this place is for enjoying the outdoors most of the year. Good pubs are few and far between and so entertaining is often carried out in the home although restaurants and take aways are pretty good and plentiful. Once our whole family attended a Rugby Union match between Western Force and ACT Brumbies. It was a sell out but after a while beer was being thrown, abusive threatening language heard and when we decided to leave just before the finish so our 7 year old would not be frightened when among 37,000 disappointed fans all leaving at the same time we were jeered at and heard choruses (to a 7 year old) of 'part time supporters'. It was rather like a 70's and 80's soccer match in the UK not the family Rugby Union day out we were used to in England.
We will probably return to the UK in 2007 but there are many things we will miss. Perth has many good things as well as bad things to discover and will for us make a fantastic potential place to retire to. Everyone is different and the above are only my individual observations.
In summary any new wannabe migrants should consider what they have in the UK. In my humble opinion if you are leaving many good friends and close family behind, have teenagers and do not have a lot of money to bring you should consider your reasons very very carefully. If deciding to come thoroughly research everything especially jobs, schools, houses and areas to live. Once here give it a good 2 years before making any long term decisions.
PJK
Winging pome is a common term in Australia but in WA there is a group of people who moan even more than the Brits. Most South Africans hate it here and are outspoken about it but few have the opportunity to return to South Africa. Personally I like them but they to seem to stick to their own kind. Both Aussies and South Africans alike seem so confident.
Unfortunately already two of our daughters are returning to the UK. Mistake number 1 was to send them to an all girls school. Initially they made many friends but sadly most turned out to be very false and extremely immature. I do not believe this is just in Australia as possibly all girl only schools are the same. The school they attend has students from South Africa, Asia, UK and Australia. However they have also found it hard to live in Perth because for teenagers once you have been to the beaches x number of times the novelty soon wears off, the shops are poor and there is little else for teenagers to do.
We were disappointed to learn of the huge drugs problem among teenagers particularly in Perth and disappointed at the crime levels so both are no different in my opinion to back in the UK. It seems there are underlying problems covered up or hidden and I do not feel as safe as I was expecting. That being said if you can afford to live in the more affluent areas you can shield yourself from the outside a little. True Aussies seem hard to come by and the ones we have met are friendly, polite but difficult to make good friends with. House prices are rising fast and we have found the cost of living higher than expected. The television is very bad but I believe you should not come to Australia and expect to stay in doors as this place is for enjoying the outdoors most of the year. Good pubs are few and far between and so entertaining is often carried out in the home although restaurants and take aways are pretty good and plentiful. Once our whole family attended a Rugby Union match between Western Force and ACT Brumbies. It was a sell out but after a while beer was being thrown, abusive threatening language heard and when we decided to leave just before the finish so our 7 year old would not be frightened when among 37,000 disappointed fans all leaving at the same time we were jeered at and heard choruses (to a 7 year old) of 'part time supporters'. It was rather like a 70's and 80's soccer match in the UK not the family Rugby Union day out we were used to in England.
We will probably return to the UK in 2007 but there are many things we will miss. Perth has many good things as well as bad things to discover and will for us make a fantastic potential place to retire to. Everyone is different and the above are only my individual observations.
In summary any new wannabe migrants should consider what they have in the UK. In my humble opinion if you are leaving many good friends and close family behind, have teenagers and do not have a lot of money to bring you should consider your reasons very very carefully. If deciding to come thoroughly research everything especially jobs, schools, houses and areas to live. Once here give it a good 2 years before making any long term decisions.
PJK
#5
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Excellent post, enjoyed reading it, much to think about! Wishing you and yours the very best, wherever you finally decide to settle.
#6
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
[QUOTE=Marlo]
I would agree, seems a world a way from life in Melbourne.
Best of luck with your future plans.
Originally Posted by PJK
I am writing this brief article in case it will help anyone out there thinking about coming to Perth. We are just coming up to 18 months in Perth
Hiya
What a good honest read, before returning back to the UK would you consider another part of Australia to live?
Wish you lots of luck where ever you decide to live.
It's good here in Melbourne if you ever consider it
Loraine
Hiya
What a good honest read, before returning back to the UK would you consider another part of Australia to live?
Wish you lots of luck where ever you decide to live.
It's good here in Melbourne if you ever consider it
Loraine
Best of luck with your future plans.
#7
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Great post.........some postere have replied thanking you for posting your experiance of Perth.........I must say this isnt 'experiance' it IS what Perth is like!!!
#8
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Originally Posted by sj oldfield
Great post.........some postere have replied thanking you for posting your experiance of Perth.........I must say this isnt 'experiance' it IS what Perth is like!!!
We came out last year for a reccie and until then all set on it.We were not there long ,but by observations were similar.,particularly Perth city lovely and freemantle too but outside of those two places it just did not seem right to me.So much so that I had a real change of heart on the plane on the way home and decided that Perth was not for me.
We then went to Brisbane to the Sunshine Coast where we validated our visas,it was very different to Western Australia and I had a good feeling even though we were not there long somehow to us it felt right.We went to look at a business and decided to go for it came back home and 10 months later have just sold our house.if all goes to plan we will be leaving in 5 weeks and now I am beginning to get nervous,just hope we can make a real go of it and it all works out as so much is on the line.
Thankyou for your honest opinion sorry that it has not been a long term life style change for you but good on you for making a go of it!.
Blighty's not that bad spring is here and the weather is getting better.Same old if you know what I mean.
Good Luck take Care.Dreamaway
#9
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Originally Posted by PJK
I am writing this brief article in case it will help anyone out there thinking about coming to Perth. We are just coming up to 18 months in Perth (well East Fremantle) after departing from Bristol, UK. We love the beaches, weather in summer, Rottnest, Swan river and relaxed lifestyle. Traffic problems are a distant memory unless you venture on the Kwinana freeway where often lanes are closed to make way for the new train line to Mandurah but this will not be forever. When the sun is shinning it makes you feel good which is often and in many areas the air quality is much better than in the UK. The lead up to Christmas was no where near as nice as in the UK but Christmas day morning on the beach with Champaign followed by lunch by the barbie was splendid and having no family to visit it was very very relaxed although also a time to reflect and be a little sad missing them all immensely. We can phone home often as it is cheap and friends and family can call us for 1p per minute and with the web cam friends and family do not seem all that far away. The centre of Perth is nice as is Fremantle although the latter very different but both are small and do not take long to become familiar with. Outside of the centres I find there is often an eerie silence, lots of beautiful homes especially along the coast but a sense of not much ever happening. Generally most places are clean and tidy and I love the free barbies at picnic sites and often laugh to myself when I think in the UK they would be in someones garage by the weekend. Jobs in mining, general engineering and the building trades are plentiful as is general labouring, driving etc. and the economy is still booming in Western Australia. The sporting facilities are fantastic and many compared to where I came from.
Winging pome is a common term in Australia but in WA there is a group of people who moan even more than the Brits. Most South Africans hate it here and are outspoken about it but few have the opportunity to return to South Africa. Personally I like them but they to seem to stick to their own kind. Both Aussies and South Africans alike seem so confident.
Unfortunately already two of our daughters are returning to the UK. Mistake number 1 was to send them to an all girls school. Initially they made many friends but sadly most turned out to be very false and extremely immature. I do not believe this is just in Australia as possibly all girl only schools are the same. The school they attend has students from South Africa, Asia, UK and Australia. However they have also found it hard to live in Perth because for teenagers once you have been to the beaches x number of times the novelty soon wears off, the shops are poor and there is little else for teenagers to do.
We were disappointed to learn of the huge drugs problem among teenagers particularly in Perth and disappointed at the crime levels so both are no different in my opinion to back in the UK. It seems there are underlying problems covered up or hidden and I do not feel as safe as I was expecting. That being said if you can afford to live in the more affluent areas you can shield yourself from the outside a little. True Aussies seem hard to come by and the ones we have met are friendly, polite but difficult to make good friends with. House prices are rising fast and we have found the cost of living higher than expected. The television is very bad but I believe you should not come to Australia and expect to stay in doors as this place is for enjoying the outdoors most of the year. Good pubs are few and far between and so entertaining is often carried out in the home although restaurants and take aways are pretty good and plentiful. Once our whole family attended a Rugby Union match between Western Force and ACT Brumbies. It was a sell out but after a while beer was being thrown, abusive threatening language heard and when we decided to leave just before the finish so our 7 year old would not be frightened when among 37,000 disappointed fans all leaving at the same time we were jeered at and heard choruses (to a 7 year old) of 'part time supporters'. It was rather like a 70's and 80's soccer match in the UK not the family Rugby Union day out we were used to in England.
We will probably return to the UK in 2007 but there are many things we will miss. Perth has many good things as well as bad things to discover and will for us make a fantastic potential place to retire to. Everyone is different and the above are only my individual observations.
In summary any new wannabe migrants should consider what they have in the UK. In my humble opinion if you are leaving many good friends and close family behind, have teenagers and do not have a lot of money to bring you should consider your reasons very very carefully. If deciding to come thoroughly research everything especially jobs, schools, houses and areas to live. Once here give it a good 2 years before making any long term decisions.
PJK
Winging pome is a common term in Australia but in WA there is a group of people who moan even more than the Brits. Most South Africans hate it here and are outspoken about it but few have the opportunity to return to South Africa. Personally I like them but they to seem to stick to their own kind. Both Aussies and South Africans alike seem so confident.
Unfortunately already two of our daughters are returning to the UK. Mistake number 1 was to send them to an all girls school. Initially they made many friends but sadly most turned out to be very false and extremely immature. I do not believe this is just in Australia as possibly all girl only schools are the same. The school they attend has students from South Africa, Asia, UK and Australia. However they have also found it hard to live in Perth because for teenagers once you have been to the beaches x number of times the novelty soon wears off, the shops are poor and there is little else for teenagers to do.
We were disappointed to learn of the huge drugs problem among teenagers particularly in Perth and disappointed at the crime levels so both are no different in my opinion to back in the UK. It seems there are underlying problems covered up or hidden and I do not feel as safe as I was expecting. That being said if you can afford to live in the more affluent areas you can shield yourself from the outside a little. True Aussies seem hard to come by and the ones we have met are friendly, polite but difficult to make good friends with. House prices are rising fast and we have found the cost of living higher than expected. The television is very bad but I believe you should not come to Australia and expect to stay in doors as this place is for enjoying the outdoors most of the year. Good pubs are few and far between and so entertaining is often carried out in the home although restaurants and take aways are pretty good and plentiful. Once our whole family attended a Rugby Union match between Western Force and ACT Brumbies. It was a sell out but after a while beer was being thrown, abusive threatening language heard and when we decided to leave just before the finish so our 7 year old would not be frightened when among 37,000 disappointed fans all leaving at the same time we were jeered at and heard choruses (to a 7 year old) of 'part time supporters'. It was rather like a 70's and 80's soccer match in the UK not the family Rugby Union day out we were used to in England.
We will probably return to the UK in 2007 but there are many things we will miss. Perth has many good things as well as bad things to discover and will for us make a fantastic potential place to retire to. Everyone is different and the above are only my individual observations.
In summary any new wannabe migrants should consider what they have in the UK. In my humble opinion if you are leaving many good friends and close family behind, have teenagers and do not have a lot of money to bring you should consider your reasons very very carefully. If deciding to come thoroughly research everything especially jobs, schools, houses and areas to live. Once here give it a good 2 years before making any long term decisions.
PJK
Best of luck with the future.
#10
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Aug 2005
Location: Lal Lal a rural community outside Ballarat VIC, previously Kent England
Posts: 915
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Thanks for posting, a very honest and humble report on your findings.
Well done for having removed the rose tinted specs - it was really useful to see this post and heartening to hear the replies that related to Melbourne which is where we are going!!!
Lisa.xx
Well done for having removed the rose tinted specs - it was really useful to see this post and heartening to hear the replies that related to Melbourne which is where we are going!!!
Lisa.xx
#11
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
What does everyone else think?
What suburbs in particular nr Perth are bad and is Perth centre like this? We were thinking of Mandurah of Joondalup. Do the same problems exist there?
Grateful for any info
What suburbs in particular nr Perth are bad and is Perth centre like this? We were thinking of Mandurah of Joondalup. Do the same problems exist there?
Grateful for any info
#12
Australia's Doorman
Joined: Jan 2005
Location: The Shoalhaven, New South Wales, Australia
Posts: 11,056
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Originally Posted by PJK
In summary any new wannabe migrants should consider what they have in the UK. In my humble opinion if you are leaving many good friends and close family behind, have teenagers and do not have a lot of money to bring you should consider your reasons very very carefully. If deciding to come thoroughly research everything especially jobs, schools, houses and areas to live. Once here give it a good 2 years before making any long term decisions.
#13
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Good post!! Informative and to the point!! Thanks for sharing your views.
J
J
#14
Just Joined
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 25
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Good Post. Having been to Perth a few times I must admit I never felt like I wanted to live there. Superficially it's clean, shiny and prosperous looking. However, the CBD seemed pretty sterile and some of the Northern suburbs looked bleak with more than a few social problems. Fremantle and Cottesloe, on the other hand, were good. The advantage of living on the East Coast is that there are a lot places to visit within a few hours drive. I think I would feel a bit "trapped" if I lived in Perth. This mightn't be such a problem if I had a great job and loads of friends there, but...
#15
Forum Regular
Joined: Feb 2005
Location: Glasgow - Adelaide - Brissie
Posts: 105
Re: Life after 18 months in Perth
Good honest post...
The same could be written about Adelaide...apart from i'll admit, Perth is "nicer".
The same could be written about Adelaide...apart from i'll admit, Perth is "nicer".