Grayling

You are missing the point.

the poster said that if you are on a pension when you arrive your pension can be supplemented by an Oz pension....it can't.

You need to be resident for some years to qualify for an australian pension which is index linked....if you qualify for the UK pension it will cancel out.

G

suanne

hello suanne here. i have just read some of the replies to my email about coming down under .to the person who quoted the about the 't' shirt slogans ...i would expect to find those in most countries. and yes we have a lot of imigrants from overseas ,specially muslims who refuse to settle into our way of life and are very hostile toward our women and the way we dress. however it's mainly in sydney that that happens not here where i live which is a rural city near the beach. no country is perfect, if it was all the imigrants would stay in their own countries wouldn't they? all i'm saying is that australia is a beautiful country and if you are willing to intergrate with us you'll never be sorry you came, but if you take everything you hear and see to heart then i doubt if you could settle anywhere.
in regard to the uk pension being transferred to oz and supplemented by an oz pension ... i am going by information from an english friend of mine who states she is in receipt of an english pension and part oz pension so she may be imagining it or worse she may be trying to pretend she has .no one cares .if she's wrong no one is going to make a big how-do-you-do about it .yes the sun does burn your skin and we know that to stay out in very hot sun is certainly going to give us skin burns and worse ...skin cancers ,but we have air conditioning and trees and lots of lovely shady parks and swimming pools and the beaches are wonderful and the sand is soft .we welcome all people who come here .some love it as we do and some can't wait to get back home to where ever they came from but on an average most of those returning to their home country come back. if i went to live in england i wouldn't be pleased with the cold weather but i would know that it was something that happened every winter . i'm sure you would like it over here and how can you make a decision if you've never been here .i wrote in to tell you about the good part of being an aussie .the bad part is not liking anything about us but you can gaurantee we will do our best to like you ...suanne

Pollyana

Wonderful view of Aus.......it has a lovely rose-coloured tint to it though, maybe I need new glasses?

stm1971

Maybe she works for the immigration dept or tourist board!!

Sounds a bit suss to me.

ABCDiamond

It is ten years residency to be able to qualify for the Australian Aged pension, and it is means tested.

ABCDiamond

I disagree.
If a person comes here thinking they will get it, and rely on it, but then find they were misled, then they may just be a tad "upset" about it.

Grayling

Indeed

But if they came over already claiming a pension from the Uk they would not qualify for an Australian pension due to means testing and not having paid into the system.

G

The_Wookie

I don't remember ever seeing a t-shirt with that kind of slogan the whole 37 years I lived in the UK.....

jad n rich

Back on sun strength, I spent most of yesterday in a car, tinted windows, a hospital, obviously no sun danger there, and about 5 minutes walking from car park etc...

Last night looked in mirror and my face and neck were red with sunburn I can only guess the sun got me through the untinted windscreen, plain bloody scary, seared face and basically hadnt been outside for more than 5 minutes. I usually wear sunblock but hadnt bothered as was going to be inside all day.

Nothing pleasant about the sun here, avoid like plaque, unless you want to look like some seared, parched, piece of cow hide by middle age

ShoreyM

Hello. Am sorry to say but P20 is simply not safe. So many people rave on about it and I used to think it was the bees knees as it stopped my prickly heat. However, it doesn't have ANY UVB protection whatsoever. I know this as I contacted them once about using it on my children (as it was handy being able to apply it once a day when they were in school) and they said they weren't allowed to recommend children use it as it doesn't have any UVB protection. This is just as important as UVA protection.

bcworld

P20 was reformulated some time ago....it has both UVA & UVB protection....I think it originally had only UVB, not UVA.

http://www.p20.co.uk/

But it designed to let through some UVA radiation to allow tanning....so probably not good for kids......or anyone else!

chocciecake

i grew up in australia.
i have pale skin and freckles (unfortunately!) and never bothered sunbaking as i don't even tan one iota anyway!
but i have had a number of horrendous sunburns throughout my chldhood/teens,accidentally, to the point of being able to peel huge sheets of skin off my legs (we used to love to stick it onto the dining table ..mm) and huge blisters on my back.
it only took forgetting sunscreen a couple of times , and a few hours of exposure...

we moved over to the uk when i was 27, and the sun feels different here...you don't feel the sting, that the aussie sun has after only a few minutes!

when i was 31 i noticed a patch on my shoulder that was pinkish and rough, and looked a little grazed, and assumed it was where my jogging top seam rubbed on my shoulder.
6 months later, i realised it was still there, but told myself, it was because i still used that jogging top occassionally, but when i got pregnant and stopped jogging and it was still there, i knew it wasn't good.
the doctor laughed at me, and told me off for coming in for a patch of dry skin and that i was wasting valuable appt time and sent me home with a cartoon booklet titled " i feel sick- when should i call the doctor?"

when we went for a visit to australia, i went straight to a skin cancer clinic and paid to see a specialist, who immediately thought it was suspicious and biopsied it.
it was a malignant basal cell carcinoma and i was happy to take the paperwork and shove it in the doctors face back in the uk.
fortunately, the type of skin cancer i had, in the area i had it, was treatable and dealt with simply, but even having the same type ,but on your face could end up spreading further, causing nasty disfigurement or worse.the doctors in the uk are not as good as recognising it as cancer, but the aussie doctors are more aware of it.
the specialist told me ANY area of skin that even looks like a scab, or even a simple abrasion, but does not heal up, needs to be investigated.it DOES NOT have to be an ugly ominous looking thing to be dangerous!
a friend over here in the uk had a mole on her tummy that was itchy and went black, and bled when she scratched it and still had no idea it was dodgy, until i shouted at her that she needed to go see a doctor now! it wasn't funny and it wasn't normal.
it was malignant melanoma in fact, and she has since had a number more pop up, but she was clueless about it before then.
so i would recommend that everyone read up on the type of skin cancers and what the warning signs and presentations are REGARDLESS OF YOUR SKIN COLOUR OR TONE, as even black people can get melanoma.
also, squamous cell carcinoma is a less known but very common skin cancer, and can look just like nothing really, just a little sore or spot and can kill you, so make sure you find out about every type, and take care in the sun.

the type of skin cancer i had used to only be seen in the older population after a life time of exposure in the sun, but is now popping up regulary in young people, and often goes ignored.
i know i most likely will have to be vigilant watching changes on my skin, as the damage that caused the last cancer, has already been done to my skin and will cause future cancers too, that i will need to look for early

when we go back to QLD shortly, i am going to end up looking like one of those ladies out of the movie , ladies in lavender, with a hat and scarf and a flowing white shirt on...not quite the young and fashionable look i was hoping for, but i also don't want to end up scarred and butchered by multiple skin cancer removals either!

fake tan is your friend...in fact, my husband says he has never seen me look better than when i used fake tan don't know whether to take that as a compliment or not,but trust me, the sun burns you to a crisp and you really have to respect it!
and enjoy it safely!

carolinephillips

I emigrated to Sydney 6 months ago- have had more rain than sun!!!! So don't come here expecting endless sunshine, as you get pretty wet too. However, the sun is much stronger here- the few times I have forgotten my hat I have burned my parting, resulting in horrific "dandruff" as the burnt skin flakes off. Not a pretty sight. also ladies put sun protection on collarbones and chest area, feet and hands- often sadly neglected. You can end up with a 30 year old face, but a 70 yr old chest, hands and feet.

chocciecake

YES!!!
I FORGOT ABOUT THE SUNBURNT PARTINGS!!

it kills when you have a shower!
oh bugger!

i feel like my 8 years in the uk will stand me in good stead compared to some other aussies in the wrinkle stakes for my age, but i will have to watch it when i go back...maybe get a big sombrero!

viviennef

Re: the racist t-shirts. I am sure they are here but in 6 1/2 years I haven't seen one. I lived in sydney for a couple of years but perhaps not in that kind of area . I find most Australians to be very very friendly, weird but friendly.

My husband works away a lot and my neighbours all help me carry things from the car, offer to mow my lawn, pick up those bloody aggravating newspapers they keep throwing on my grass etc. I lost my dog and nearly the whole place came out to help me find him, they all know my children's names etc.

Re: the sun - I have to remember the sunscreen with the kids - my little girl has a brown mark in her hair, like a mole on the parting. I keep forgetting to ask my GP - do people usually go there or to one of those skin clinic things?

My dad had skin cancer all over his bald head from working in Saudi and S Africa. Its not a good look

Viv