touchingcloth

"Is it really a new start?"


I know...its a deep question, but for those who have moved out to OZ permanently...and been there a while....is life any different than the UK? (and I don't mean the obvious things, such as weather etc).

Has it changed you?

pootle26

i think it can be as much of a new start as you want it to be
if you want it to be england with sun (not that there is any thing wrong with that before i get told off ) - it can be
if you lean more towards spending time with australian people - you can do that too
or maybe both

we have only been here 4 mths but have settled in well to our livestyle - the locals are really friendly , i have had so many people pop round with plants, eggs, veggies/ fruit from the garden you would not believe- most of them i have no idea who they are - they just knock on the door & say hi !!
we are working less & spending more time with the kids - we seem to be less stressed (although this has probably been the most stressful time lately - kids settling into school , house hunting etc etc) so that is a good thing

where we are the pressure regarding who has the nicest car/house/pair of trainers is not there (although i am not sure what the city is like) which is one of the things i didnt enjoy about the uk
so yeah i suppose we have changed
the kids have really changed - they have always been active but now they go to the sports hall most afternoons for 1 1/2 hrs to do various activities , so that is a change for the better as game boys are left on a shelf gathering dust!
the school is far better than the one they had been to & the kids get regular certificates ( & an icy pole from the canteen foc) for doing good work so the kids in the school dont get picked on for being clever - which i thought was a good idea

so yeah at the moment it has changed us - for the better
speak to me in another 4 mths time (lol)
well thats my thoughts anyway


hth
pootle26

Pam

Where have you settled? We are heading for WA next year (reccie in March), but have no real preferences on where to go - so always interested in where the Poms are, and what they think!!

pootle26

sent u a pm


pootle26

wmoore

If you want it to be a new start then it can be.

Has it changed us? Yes. Just going through the process of deciding to come here and getting the visa changed us. We realised a few things that have changed how we look at life:

* Life's too short. A friend who emigrated to Canada as a teenager with £300 in his pocket gave me lots of good advice and when he died suddenly earlier this year (only in his mid-50s)I knew he was right about taking your opportunities. Life's for living so go and enjoy it. I'm not saying don't think about your future but don't save every penny for that nest-egg that you might not live to receive.

* Material possessions. We always had loads of 'stuff' in our big house but we realised it's all crap. You just don't need it all and as someone on here once said 'posessions own you, not the other way around'. He's right. We chucked loads of our stuff away before we came here or gave to charity or whatever and now I don't care about 'stuff'. Just that we have a roof over our heads, food on the table and we're happy.

* Immigrants. I used to be one of the 'bloody assylum seekers' brigade but I've opened my mind a bit I guess. Now I see that I am a lot like them in wanting to move to another country for 'a better life', it's just that I'm lucky enough to have the means and the opportunities to do it legally.

Hels

crackin post, old boy!!!!

cranni

I dont think it has changed us, but it does make you appreciate things, and it makes you realise how lucky you are to get this opportunity wether it works out or not.
I realise how precious my children are after leaving them, they will be here eventually ,but it has made me realise how important my family are.
Money is not everything but it really does help when you do this.
For us building our home in UK was a dream ,here it is a reality.
The kids have a much better lifestyle, never in. the school is fantastic, but so was there school in UK. We went to sports day yesterday, so much better organisation, and on time, and the kids are great sportsman.
Here in Dalyellup there is something going on all the time, great community spirit, and people are so friendly.
I dont think we are better off money wise, but that does not seam to matter, you really do live for the lifestyle.
I do miss bonfire night, no bonfire night here, halloween was great. And this will be our second Xmas, i would love to spend xmas at home, but not to be, not that we wont have a good xmas here.
This will be the 1st xmas i have not had all my kids with me, so it will be difficult, but the web cam will be on, and my family will share xmas morning with us.
Denise

mand8002

Yes I think life is different. We are certainly more relaxed, and as someone else said, there does not seem to be the pressure to have the latest clothes, toys, cars, gadgets etc.
School is very different, it is cool to be the best at whatever you do, and children accept not being the best, or not winning at sports day. They are very much into competitions and the school band and choirs enter music competitions ( and music is encouraged ), and the school sports teams have matches against schools from the whole district.
I do not feel the need to have lots of possessions, as they just don't matter, and we spend so much more time together as a family and certainly spend more time outdoors.
Life is too short to not give things a go, and life is also what you make it wherever you are, but life in Australia is great.

Pomster

I find we have more time here which is not at work...
Hubby and I were reading an article in a UK paper which said most couples talk for less than 30 mins a day...we have heaps more time together than that AND I do longer hours at work than lots of the Aussies.

So yes Oz has changed us- our relationship is much better than it was in UK as we have more time together. And there is far less emphasis on having the 'right' brand of xxxxxx- or maybe it is just because we mix with plebs rather than the rich and famous!

A dogs life

How did a bloody hippy get to be a moderator?

Seriously, its what you make it. Kind of like people in the UK decide to 'downsize'. They have a reason, why they want to do it. So for them its a new start.

I'm not saying you have to slow track or downsize here, but if thats what you want, then it can happen

What emigrating won't do is fix dodgey relationships, or bring you lots of money. If you needed to work in the UK, you'll still need to work here.

The 'new start' bit is internal. If you and your family want it to be a new start then it is. Otherwise, its just working in a different country with a different house.

ADL

TopCat3

"it"can't change you.

Nothing on the outside can change you.

Change can only come from within.

Being in a different place can be the catalyst.

But only the catalyst.

What you do with the catalyst is up to you, and it will only happen if you are "ready" on the inside. Not something you can intellectualise.

My thoughts, anyway, for what they are worth.

We can never know what the alternative would have been, if we weren't here, because we are here.

And I have been here a while, nearly 20 years, hope this is helpful.

monkeymark

:scared: I want to say a big thankyou for a very well put together choice of words. Deep, meaningfull, and full of positivity. My wife and myself are moving to Perth on the 4th of Dec there is so much to do it clouds your mind as to why your putting yourself through everything, saying goodbye to loved ones, saying goodbye to friends in my case i have known for 20 years or so and you do wonder for what purpose, but I guess your words and the threads on this subject have made me take a few steps back and realize why we are doing this. We have been married 4 months no children we dident want to bring them up in London society. We wanted to see what aus would bring and then perhaps think about kids. So I know life is what you make it and posessions arent everything but society in the uk tells you different and I for 1 dont want that anymore I want to live. So thankyou all for making me realize what I had lost for a little while.
On a lighter note cos that was deep still a bit :scared: doing it ehh?

touchingcloth

For me this is a key point.

Here in the UK, we seem to spend so much time worrying about planning etc. Being an accountant, I am constantly forecasting personal life cashflows, going as far forward as 5 years. Is has now turned into an obsession - all so that we can have a comfortable life. I guess we have been missing the point of life.

I can never forget this saying which I read somewhere once:

"Life passes most people by while they they are busy making plans for it"

Regards
TC

wmoore

I like that

CtrlAltDel

We're leaving the UK today in a few hours, so we're going to find out real soon now!

I agree that there's a big discontinuity between the dreams while you're in the planning stage, and the reality when suddenly the day is there. In our case, we sent off our stuff by sea a month ago, and we filled only 240 cubic feet in the container, most of which was one comfy sofa and one comfy chair (nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!! but at least they'll have somewhere to sit). The rest was small stuff, photos and CDs and toys for the children, but that was it. Most of our furniture is old and has been scratched to pieces by a succession of cats, or is new but comes from Ikea and is easily replaced at the other end.

On all of the relocation programs that we've seen on TV, people pack their entire lives into one or two complete containers; we're pretty much going to be starting over. So much stuff that we have was not really worth keeping, let alone paying to have shipped over. I've done so many trips to the dump or charity shops, and our friends have had almost open house to take whatever they want recently!

We'll be able to give some more impressions on the change in lifestyle after a month or so...