Hi

We live in Munich and we plan the move to Melbourne. I want to hear your opinions about life in Melbourne if you have made it from Munich (or Germany) to Melbourne. What are the differences (weather, life, health car, etc..) between both cities.

Many thanks.

Hi,
We just moved over from Germany to Melbourne in June. So far just experienced winter here and I must say I never ever felt that cold as here in winter. But that's more due to the lack of insulation, proper heating and double glazed windows than to the real cold temperatures. We came from Northern Germany, can't say anything about Munich-Melbourne.
Petra

Just to qualify the above statement - this is definitely due to some houses being built poorly to deal with the winter.

It never goes below zero here, it never snows and winter daytime temperatures are between 10 and 20 degrees. Spring/Autumn is 17 - 30 degrees, summer 25 - 42 degrees. It is a very dry heat here, not humid. The weather is very changeable but it is predictable and the forecast is normally right.

One of the things I like about Melbourne and Munich is that you can go skiing very easily from both places in winter.

BB

I would replace 'some' with 'many'!

Of course, if the houses were built to make it warmer in winter this would have an effect on how the house is in summer. I can imagine what it would be like with thick walls, double/triple glazing and really thick insulation in the ceiling when it is hot.

Why? Will people have the heating on in the middle of summer?

A good insulation not only keeps the cold out in winter but also the heat in summer!

Agree - insulation can keep heat in during winter and create a cool house in summer.

Melbourne is bloody cold in winter as many houses are not built for the cold and wind chill can create it to feel even colder. I always go back to Queensland with a cold...

If you're coming from Germany bring your thermals

You did not work as a science teacher then

No, I just don't get why everything has to be built to British standards with central heating etc.

It got me thinking later if our builders are so sh*te then why have 2 of the biggest recent construction projects in the UK been entrusted to Australian companies - Wembley Stadium (Multiplex) and Glasgow Hydro Arena (Lend Lease)?

I wouldn't be citing WS. It came in 6yrs late and 4 x over budget.

that's good for an Australian company

Problems with local firm (Cleveland) doing the centre span mainly. Demolition was held up for 2/3 years and it was delivered 1 year late due to the legal disputes between Multiplex and Foster architects and the design engineers and Cleveland. It couldn't have been 6 years late when Wembley closed in 2000 and re-opened in 2007 - 1 year to demolish and complete the whole thing? It cost £798 mill so the original budget was £200 mill if it was overspent 4 times; don't think so. That aside, my point is why go for an Aussie firm in the first place?

Lived in both cities for a number of years and loved both.

Similarities
- Fantastic inner city with great restaurants/bars nightlife
- Lovely scenery on your doorstep (Melb has the Yarra Valley, Great Ocean Road, Mornington peninsula)
- Good public transport. Melbourne isn't near as good as Munich, but they do have a good tram/bus/train network
- Good concerts and international events in both cities
- Good job opportunities in both with lots of the larger organisations (esp. banks) situated here (not as many international companies as Munich though)
- Great shopping in both, although it's a LOT cheaper in Munich. More styles catered for in Melbourne though

Dissimilarities
- Size - Munich is a lot smaller with only 1.3m vs 4m in Melbourne. This means Melb is a LOT busier, lots more people, but also a lot more going on.
- Conservative Munich - Munich can be a bit conservative and "schicki-micki" - Melbourne is a lot more laid back, a lot more styles and trends (less mainstream) where style isn't necessarily all about money. This may be an adjustment as it's not as "clean"/stylish as Munich and lots of grungy/funky places.
- Multiculture Melbourne vs majority white Munich - Melbourne has a lot of Southern Europeans from after WWII and many Asians (although to me not as many as in Sydney). Unlike the Turkish in Munich, the southern Euro's are well integrated as they've been there a few generations now and overall it makes for a lovely mix of cultures, foods, music etc.
- Ordnung muss sein - Australians in general don't go for this idea, and definitely not in Melbourne. Live and let live would be a more appropriate motto in Australia
- Cost of living - Melbourne (and Oz in general) is a LOT more expensive than Munich/Germany. The EUR/AUD exchange rate doesn't help in comparisons. Better to look at your wage and what you can afford.
- Sports - Melb is the home of AFL and they love cricket for the off season. Soccer is increasing in popularity, but you can forget the high profile teams you'd be used to in Munich. Not much winter sports, ice hockey etc, lots of netball/tennis/afl/rugby union instead.
- Housing Insulation - as per other posts on this topic, you will be colder in Oz than you were ever in Munich and it's all down to crap insulation. You probably won't see any snow in winter and temp's are usually above 0. Generally Australians don't understand what insulation is for, preferring to spend tonnes on gas heating in winter and air-con in summer. Go figure.
- Far from everywhere - Unlike Munich which is close too so many other European countries, Melbourne (Australia in general) is far from everything. For breaks you can fly to other parts of Australia (NZ/Asia if you have a few more days), but within a 2 hr flight, you're still stuck in Australia. While the scenery varies hugely, the culture doesn't, so it can put a bit of a dampner on taking breaks away when you realise you're heading away to somewhere very similar to where you left from .. it's one of the things I struggle with most living in Oz (not particular to Melb).