Hi!! I am new to this site but would like to share the last 2 years experience re. an oz move with you all (Iwill try to keep it short!)

We are a family of 4:Me Sarah 37, Hubby Chris 39 and 2 sons Owain 15 & James 14.
Husband has always had itchy feet and decided he would like to try oz!! At the time things were crap for me in work ( i run my own laundry & dry cleaning business) so i said "ok lets go for it!"

Anyway, to cut a long story short, by the time the agents sorted out applications, police checks, medicals etc we were almost 2 years down the line and work was now great!! Well for me anyway!! kids were always ok in school but wanted to go so i just thought "nah, lets let sleeping dogs lie, its not that bad here, the grass isnt always greener..... etc etc etc" I really didnt want to go.

So on march 21st 2007, here come the visas, hubby is grinning ear to ear, i just got on with the days work...

After looking in to it ,it was agreed that to validate ( i was up for that as i had 5 years to drag out him not going as far as i could see) we had to visit in August, not to disrupte schooling. So the flights were booked and we were Oz bound for 1 month.

We arrived in Sydney and it is the first city i have visited where i felt totally safe and relaxed. I hate going to London as i feel very enclosed and a bit claustrophobic.. not Sydney, i loved it!!

4 days later.... Gold Coast. Main Beach was wonderful, and the sound of the sea was a dream come true! The pace of living and the laid back attitude of all the people we had met so far was fantastic... i think i was starting to melt! By the time we left for Cairnes a week later i was beginning to think i MAY like to actually stay here!

Cairns.... a bit strange!!! By the time we got to Port Douglas that melting process was unavoidable!Completely different to the gold coast but wonderful i its own right. I loved it.... but not as much as the boys. I could now see that i had to think about the bigger picture... hubby loved it (even before he stepped foot on the soil!), kids loved it ( before but so much more after stepping foot on the soil!) and i actually loved it too!!AHHHH!!

Melbourne next and a visit to my mothers brother and his wife, who i had never met as they left in 1970 as £10 poms. What a laid back couple... they had a great lifestyle, so different in attitude to my own parents.They are both in their 70's (as are my folks) but until recently swam in the sea every day. I cant get my dad out of his chair most days, other than to pop to tesco.

By the time we got back to Sydney i was completely sold, it was here i could see my future, and the future of my children. I cannot wait to get back over to Australia, and after thinking long and hard we have decided to try to settle on the Gold Coast. Hubby can get work all over so no problem there but i just liked the feel and its in the middle of all the places i loved!!

I would urge anyone with reservations to try and visit. I know its a lot of money but if you feel 50/50 like i did its worth every penny!

I cannot settle back here now because i have seen so much better, and the applications are in for schools and the business i own is going to keep me when i make the move... job done!!

I now think i am going into this process with eyes open. I know i will probably get homesick but i felt like that 2 weeks ago.... sick of home!!

Sorry for the length of the post, but i felt i would like to share my taste of Visa application and process with those setting out on the road. If you would like any other details ( probably not!) then please PM me....

Sarah

Great post - an honest and balanced viewpoint. Thanks for sharing and best of luck.

Thanks.

Fab post Sarah. Completely different than our own experiences! Go for it!!!!!!!!!!!!

In what way... I am curious!

We had been to see my sister in Perth twice (in 2000 and 2006) and knew it was lovely I just didn't have the courage to go and leave everything my daughter and I had. Then something just snapped and I also saw the bigger picture but here in Wales. My VISA can now not come fast enough. I am so jealous you have your visa already and you are in control. I wish I had done it years ago! Maybe see you at the Heron Marsh on the 21st!

Good luck!

Great post! We too can't wait to move - waiting on the visa's to come

What line of work is your hubby in?

Lynn xx

Hi Sarah

Wot a fantastic post i just cant wait to get our visa and see it for myself.

Hope you can make the meet on 21st Oct itll b lovely to meet up. You will meet loads of other people in same situation as you, some with visas already and others who are waiting and some who are at start of the process.

Take care

Suexx

Hi Sarah

Really enjoyed your post, thanks for sharing. All the best.

Joexx

Great post

Hi! Thanks for all your comments... just speaking from the heart! I intended writing a diary while we were there just so i could remember how i was really feeling on a particular day, about a particular thing. It didnt happen but as soon as i read the messages on this site i really wanted to put down what i went through ( albeit a shortened version!) Thanks for having a great forum that has encouraged me to do something i never have done before... share!!

Husband works in leak detection and conservation in the Public water industry so is in demand in the dry southern hemisphere! We got our visa with his plumbing qualifications though.. ( i knew he would be useful in the end!!)

Hello,
What a great story,People will not believe it until they have been out there and seen it for themselves. Life is so completely different out there. Glad you have seen the difference between England and Oz. Glad you had a great time
Leanne

All the very best of luck to you and your family!

Loved reading your post, thanks for sharing that.

Love this site it gives me all the info I need. Am now going to plan our visit to the Gold Coast to see it for mysef, then no doubt back home to start the process.
Thanks xx