NELBHOY

Every post I have read in the past week or so seems to be negative about life in OZ. From the education system, through to difficulty making friends, Aussies lack of a sense of humour, no culture, dark too early at night, house prices, the employment situation, you get my drift.
Now I'm sure that these are genuine concerns for the people involved. My question is, "Am I kidding myself on about a move out there?"
I've always wanted to move out. My dad served in Sydney as a Royal Marine during the war and loved it (OZ that is , not the war. I think my dad was a closet hippy without the drug taking!!) He & my mam planned to move out in the 50s, but due to family commitments, decided against it. My big sis moved out in 1978 & during the 90s I was out a total of 6 times to visit. Totally loved it. The Aussie attitude to life, the weather, the people were so friendly. Brash but friendly.
I am now starting to wonder, am I remembering it all through rose tinted Dame Edna specs? I was single & in my 20's then. Now happily married with 2 kids, I've just turned 40.
Are there any successful emigration stories out there? If so, remind me please of why I fell in love with OZ. Or has the big slapper changed that much in 10yrs that I woudn't recognise her now!!?

Jaycee1

I am having a similar dilema.
Lived there as a kid and returned tothe UK when i was 14.
Now i am dragging a husband and 2 daughters there and wondering if i am doing the right thing!!
The only thing keeping me going to be there is that i do not want to be 50 and regret not going. If it doesn't work out i know i went and tried it.
Good luck,
J x

laguna33p

The conditions will never be perfect, but if you dont move you will always have that regret of not going.

Pollyana

HAve a read through the Update forum - plenty of experiences in there from people who have had the same doubts beforehand but are now here

ozhappy981

We've been in Perth 18 months and love living here . Can't comment on how much Australia in general or Perth in particular has changed in the last ten years, 'cause we hadn't been here before .

I haven't posted an update story, because I feel our lives are very ordinary and nobody would be interested.

We were very much on the wrong side of 40 when we moved here, lol, but it didn't stop us. Before we came out, I read a lot of posts in the MBTTUK forum. From that I learned that there are certain personality types who can't settle (ignoring the people whose circumstances force them into a particular location) and I knew we would be okay.

Don't forget: whether you make friends, "get" the Aussie sense of humour, like the culture, whether you can cope with the differences etc etc, that's down to you.

If you've lived all/most of your life in the UK (or wherever), you'll of course notice that Australia is different. If you are one of those people who thinks "different" is interesting and take it from there, you'll be fine. If you are the kind of person who thinks "different" means worse, you'll struggle.

I guess our update story is that we're very happy here (told you it was boring) .

kiwinow

OP, there's no easy answer to how you'll find it. If you've visited and loved it you'll be ahead of many who haven't. If you're adaptable and willing to take life as it comes you'll probably be fine. Why not try it?

Read through people's impressions and you'll see that some people can't settle and others settle very quickly. Mybe it's more down to character than anything else.

dickchap

Give it a go. You will never know unless you try. Loads do it and love it. Some do it end up going back. Life is what you make it. Don't live with regrets! We have done it, know it's not for us but don't regret coming. Life is all about taking a risk and life would be boring if we never followed our dreams. Good luck.

Amazulu

Never make decisions based on what you read on here (unfortunately many do). Use it as a guide only. The only way to find out is to come out and see for yourself.

I love it here and am very happy. I have a better lifestlye, a better job and earn more money than I did in the UK.

Centurion

You should remember what makes up the readership and posters of this forum. Those of us who do actually settle happily are in the majority of migrants statistically, but represent the minority of the posters here as most move on beyond the regularly repeated topics that come up year after year and no longer frequent these boards.

People whinging and whining makes for a better thread than "My life's just *****ing great and the sun is shining" (which it is...) threads which would get a little dull.

Take what you read on here with a pinch of salt to say the least.

kids carer

If you have always wanted to move here then you should try it. There are always going to be ppl that see things differently to you even in the same situtation ie the glass is half empty/full. Life is what you make it where ever you are. If you cant make friends go out and join a few clubs, there are jobs you just have to look for them. As for it getting dark here early it does get dark early and this is one aspect I personally dont like but I just have to be more organised and get up earlier to make the most of the sunlight we do have, the constant sunshine and endless warm days we have here I feel more than makes up for it.

We havent been here that long but already Im loving it, am starting to make a few friends (and I am a very quiet shy person) my DH had a job to come to, and I am just about to turn 40 with 2 kids. If you asked my friends back home if they thought we would ever move over here there answer would be no way but here we are and are loving it.

OzWannabee

We've been here over 3 years now and we've always loved it. As have our kids. But everyone is different and you really won't know until you've done it.

We have no major concerns with the education system, have made loads of friends with both Brits and Aussies and get invited to parties/bbq's most weekends. Have made friends with Aussies who have a great sense of humour. Not as much culture admittedly but it is a very young country so you can't really compare. It does get dark early at night but in the summer it doesn't bother us because its still warm and in the winter its a good excuse to light a fire. House prices are rising but you can still find affordable homes if your realistic and look in the right areas but you won't find a cheap 4 bed house with a pool and sea views! The employment situation is bad at the moment but so is the UK. I personally wouldn't give up a good job in the UK to come out here at present.

Thats just my opinion on your concerns, other people will see it differently and when you get over here (if you come!) you will probably see it differently again! Good luck with your decision!

moneypenny20

Sounds a bit presumptive to claim I'm a successful imigrant but in three and a half years we've been nothing but happy with the decision we made.

What I would say is that when I was researching the move, if I was in a 'oh my god, what are we doing' frame of mind, I only seemed to see posts about how awful it was and all the negatives. When I was in a 'oh my god, this is so exciting' frame of mind I only noticed good threads. It's hard but you need to find the 'up' threads and there are thousands around, and maybe ignore the 'down' ones for a few days. Obviously don't stick your head in the sand and assume everything will be fine, but try and find the fine line in the middle.

sonlymewalter

The whole migrating malarky is probably one of the biggest and most costly gambles any of us has ever taken. The reason for all the negativity on the site at the moment is probably due to the effects of the recession and I suspect if you read a British migration site, there'd be just as many "don't go - it's all doom and gloom" posts

Migrating during a recession is an even bigger gamble and at least we had the chance to start again without a recession looming overhead. Moving during a recession is bound to be more difficult.

Personally, we feel very lucky to live in Aus and we love it "warts and all".

Would we have moved during the recession? Probably not.

Would we have let anyone sway us either way? Definitely not.

Follow your own heart & mind

scottishcelts

Hello Nelbhoy - fancy meeting you here
We are coming home in Feb mate - told all the family, have to get the house ready for sale when the time comes.

We will be staying wi Wendy's maw up the avvies - just over fae you, we'll have to meet up for a beer, will explain all to you then mate.

aasmith1957

we moved here in 1992 during the last recession,eager to get away from a dying pit village in south yorkshire.been here 18 years and are now heading back but to scotland where i am from.i thought of going back after about 8 years but my kids were young adults and were settled.got 3 grandies here and one on way.hubby decided last year he wants to return to uk,parents,culture etc.i was gob smacked and couldnt understand it as i thought he enjoyed australia,always said he wouldnt go back.anyhoo upshot is house is on the market and we are heading back as soon as things are sorted out.family (one daughter)very upset with us,has come around now but she tends to have more to do with her hubbies side,(we live 3 hour drive away).i kept swinging between our lives and enjoying the next 20+ years left together or living my life around what my daughter wants in regard to being on hand for emergencies,babbysitting etc.know it sounds harsh but its now our time to enjoy together and be there for elderly parents etc.

maybe not the best time to emigrate unless you have a profession in demand,(iam a nurse) hubby a tradesman.if you want work something will be out there,just set your sights a bit lower until something else comes up,some take 2 years to settle.we burned our bridges when we left uk so had to work hard and make a go of it especially for the kids.