expatasia

Never lived there but I first visited Australia in the mid 90s, in the admittedly attractive one-horse town of Toowoomba I couldn't believe they were selling sausage rolls & chips on a blistering hot day at the cricket ground where England were playing a warm-up match. The feller on the gate asked me where I was from. When I said I'd just flown in from Tokyo he said something like 'aww there's loadsa slopes up on the Gold Coast'

Remember a stunning catch from Athers then chatting with an elapsed Pom who told me about the effects of the Oz sun on his body over time. Also got acquainted with the BYO system for the first time that night. Bumped into Darren Gough at the breakfast table next morn asking for his toast to be done with the crusts left on.

Funny the things that stick in your mind.

What was your first memory, first thing that struck you about the country? Brief impressions please.

Cheetah7

I remember BE member - Sam meeting me at the airport and feeling so relieved to see her as we had met before on expat meets in the UK and I remember Gobbyjock letting us stay with her for a month till we found our own place and waiting for us in her house with cold bottles of beer and cider, telling me everything would be OK and helping us organise what we needed to.

Those are my two key memories and ones I will treasure - there are some damn good people out there.

bcworld

I flew into Melbourne...it was the start of April...about 5am, cold & rainy. I was staying with my then OH's parents...I was expecting Melbourne, but we left the airport and turned right. Drove for about 45 mins through brown, flat, bleak land as it was starting to get light before arriving in Lara. It topped out at a grey 12C. In the afternoon we walked down over to the sporting club and drank tiny glasses of rubbish beer and played these things called pokies.

Thoughts? Hmmmm.

Sun came out the next day though.

Kelli28

I was almost crying driving to the bayside, Brisbane from the airport. All I could say was "look at all the trees" and thinking shit what have I done!

LINZI

The warmth and the clear blue skies and how bright the sun was

scottishcelts

Not good - it all started with the giant mutated Huntsmen that bombarded the airport.



Lucky I had a giant bunsen burner on me.

Wendy

I remember coming out from the airport and thinking Australia is bloody cold and wet! (early July)

I remember my Aunt and cousin picking me up from the airport and driving us all to our accommodation, and me thinking Adelaide isn't like a scene from a western movie like I thought it would be (reading too much BE and looking at pics of Port Adelaide)

I remember walking out to the beach on the first day here and thinking wow

The rest is a blur, and I still feel like pinching myself because I don't actually believe I live in Australia! (always something I wanted to do)

Buzzy--Bee

Jacaranda trees in full bloom in Brisbane, November 1998. I had never seen them before and I was amazed. I have now planted one in our front yard in memory of that day.

BB

expatasia

Great replies so far - keep 'em coming.

Geordie George

The very first time we came here I remember thinking, "It's horrible. I don't get what all the fuss is about." That was on the drive from Sydney airport to the CBD. Went on to have a very nice holiday and completely changed my mind about Aus - I did get it by the end.

First time we came here to live I was relieved. We'd taken a long route to get to Aus (via the Us, Fiji and New Zealand - about four weeks, I think) and I was just happy to have finally arrived and be able to start getting on with it all.

The most recent time we flew here to live (again!) it felt like home. Best arrival of them all. Although that journey from Sydney airport is still miserable.

Pollyana

Very first impression, back in 1999, landing at Hobart - was that the landscape was stunningly beautiful, blue sky, mountains, sunshine and the air was so clear and clean, almost enough to make you dizzy if you took a deep breath.........I relive that moment every time I go back to Hobart

In those days you could travel jumpseat in the cockpit, so I flew over Tassie with the 737 Captain saying to me that it was "Hobbitland" down below, and the landscape really did look magical - this was in the days before the Lord of the Rings films.

The Squire of Onchan

Sand ... and lot's of it.

Wol

>>In those days you could travel jumpseat in the cockpit, so I flew over Tassie with the 737 Captain saying to me that it was "Hobbitland" down below, and the landscape really did look magical - this was in the days before the Lord of the Rings films.<<

Ah, those wuz the days - before they banned them witches <g>.

scottishcelts

my favourite trees in the world, they are stunning. I felt the same way. I also love Wattle and Grevillea trees too, but certainly the purple colours of the Jacarandas are breathtaking.

Pollyana

On that first trip I also had the jumpseat across the Black Sea - sunrise was fantastic - and over India for a while - stunning towering green thunderclouds off to both sides - and for the last three hours as we came into Melbourne, it was April so it was dark and the towns stuck out so clearly in the rural areas. Crew were great at pointing things out (I Qantas) and I sat in the cockpit for the landing in Melbourne as well - they let themselves down at that point by being so busy pointing stuff out to me that they forgot to advise Qantas that they had landed and got a reprimand on the company frequency