Originally Posted by jad n rich (Post 8236666)

We only have 32ish and humidity like glue, my lungs fell like I am drowning after the crisp UK winter weather.

Hot climates are very over rated IMO.

Originally Posted by Bailey1 (Post 8237581)

Me too...!!!

Originally Posted by eurotramp (Post 8237730)

@jad n rich

Just out of interest..what made you wanting to leave the UK and go to OZ in the first place. What did you hope to find in your new country and did you find it?

Originally Posted by jad n rich (Post 8239035)

Relationship with an aussie, its never somewhere I would have picked:eek:

When we decided to come over, he had lived in UK so I figured it was my turn in the relationship to live in his bit of the world, despite that gut feeling was noooo. Family, climate and distance basically. However aussies do a good line in spin, sorry but they do, even ones you know, the aussie upbringing is to big it up and bullshite :lol:

I actually liked it for the first 2 years, australia was very cheap back then, exhcange rate was great and houses were cheap, I was your typical big 'ouse, swimming pool, big 4WD on the drive pom:eek:

The worm turned when we went back for a trip to UK, saw exactly what I was missing to have the big items, plus the climate was never a draw for me, and then we had a summers from hell:blink:

I would have gone back then, but its not just me its me, him, 3 kids with an age range spaced out over 12 years, a business, and his family here, his mother had cancer over 6 years he didnt want to go then. It dragged on till the kids were teens and the education problems start....

But now we finally have a date, a window in the education to go and Ive told him if he dont wanna go then, he can stay :p

Originally Posted by jad n rich (Post 8239035)

But now we finally have a date, a window in the education to go and Ive told him if he dont wanna go then, he can stay :p

Originally Posted by jad n rich (Post 8239035)

Relationship with an aussie, its never somewhere I would have picked:eek:

When we decided to come over, he had lived in UK so I figured it was my turn in the relationship to live in his bit of the world, despite that gut feeling was noooo. Family, climate and distance basically. However aussies do a good line in spin, sorry but they do, even ones you know, the aussie upbringing is to big it up and bullshite :lol:

I actually liked it for the first 2 years, australia was very cheap back then, exhcange rate was great and houses were cheap, I was your typical big 'ouse, swimming pool, big 4WD on the drive pom:eek:

The worm turned when we went back for a trip to UK, saw exactly what I was missing to have the big items, plus the climate was never a draw for me, and then we had a summers from hell:blink:

I would have gone back then, but its not just me its me, him, 3 kids with an age range spaced out over 12 years, a business, and his family here, his mother had cancer over 6 years he didnt want to go then. It dragged on till the kids were teens and the education problems start....

But now we finally have a date, a window in the education to go and Ive told him if he dont wanna go then, he can stay :p

Originally Posted by jad n rich (Post 8236165)

Couple of peeps asked for update so might as well make it a thread.

Currently finding australia very hot:blink: OMG its so uncomfortable after 6 weeks of cool climes:thumbsup:. First 3 weeks were mild but cool days 10 - 12, then the infamous snow the UK is having, caused us one delay on a train, no other probs with it, just totally enjoyed it!! we had 12 days of snow in various areas, including a white xmas, snow never fell that day but there was a mass of it on trees and the ground, stunning xmas.

We spent time in York, Hastings, Manchester, Brighton, London and Harpenden, if anyone wonders where I am wafflin on about.

Crime, well never got the stab proof vest out, one area had some chavs, one lot were walking ferrets on leads with bling collars. Didnt experience any crime, didnt even see any, however as a family we were not hanging round outside nightclubs at 3 am, did go to a city centre late night, and were warned about loads of teens, well they were the same as aussie teens, skateboards and push bikes and hanging round mcdonalds.

Shops, sorry but UK wins hands down, CHEAP, even after 6 weeks we were still boggle eyed at the prices. Clothes, electronics, food, much cheaper, food stores amazing, so much competition keeps the prices down. eg, using identical items, burgen bread uk 1.20 aus 4.80 so double in oz, shampoo, head and shoulders, 1.00 uk, 5.99 in oz thats triple in oz, aussie OH was not amused to find bananas, mangos, kiwi fruit and vegemite all cheaper in UK, the fruit items are local to austraila but cheaper in Uk. Australia - sorry one big rip off.

Housing, some crazy prices, harpenden :eek: and some absolute bargains, bro bought close to city centre, similar thing in comparable melbourne would cost a lot more, other brother got a amazing deal, on top end property but, it fell through, the messy UK system of buying houses still bamboozles me.

Petrol, hired a VW 5 door hatch mid size thingo, sorry not into cars:D anyway partner worked out the petrol which is 1.08 UK V 1.32 OZ and said the better fuel economy and more modern cars meant we were no worse off despite higher cost of fuel.

Family, ohhh, pain, the emotions, why we do this moving thing :( mother very bitter still about loss of the kids, they are teens now, she was right she didnt see them grow up:( The goodbyes and one to someone we wont ever see again, the pain, cant stand it very emotional time really. Family spats rage on, as do family events all of which we miss, nope if you have close family the price to pay is high.


Jobs, didnt look but all relatives all well employed, and doing well, nobody seems broke, quite the opposite, all doing well. Everone seems to be taking advantage of the cheap prices and mortages etc that UK enjoys.

Flights, this peed me off, qantas in UK advertising its fares to OZ way cheaper than aussies get them, typical, aussies ripped off again. Kids blown away by eurostar, and the flights advertised like 49 to morocco, thats like our 99 to sydney, no contest really, give me the camel:D

The mental stimulation of the UK, say you go in a bookshop, thousands of titles oz never sees the likes of, the sunday paper, choice of 10 V the sunday mail:ohmy: food, choice of at least 8 supermarkets, think it was 10 actually, holidays, hundreds of exciting choices, and so on. The whole brain, body, experience is more colourful, less bland, more exciting, more alive, you just feel more alive, its hard to explain, the buzz, the humour, kids were in stitches with some of the late night telly, sorry just loved the whole buzz of it all, maybe you have to have lived the bbq lifestyle to appreciate it. I miss it so bloody much.

Moaning, media, it wasnt too bad actually, yes they are very realistic that the economy is grim, however is that worse than keeping everone in OZ happy with plasma TV bonus etc then hitting them with reality after the election;)

Great holiday, but emotional rollercoaster, felt like jumping off the plane when it took off, for me australia will always be too far away :(

Originally Posted by mono (Post 8240927)

Very similar indeed to my situation.

I would have never chosen to live in Australia but married an Aussie and Aussies tend to want to go home to Australia sooner or later - usually sooner. They are brought up to LOVE their country quite unquestioningly and you do tend to find that MOST Aussies have the philosophy that theirs is the best country in the world deep down, even if they are not a flag-waving Aussie banging on about it all the time - though there are plenty of those too!

O/H made it quite clear they wanted to go and I hadn't really got a lot of choice. I sort of knew it wasnt going to be right for me but you can't argue with ''just give it a go'' etc etc.

Again, the turning point for me was the first visit back to the UK after 2 years. I realised I had spent 2 years TRYING to feel at home without ever actually feeling it at all. Things have gotten steadily worse for me since then.

I hope to find a way to go back soon - rather than later. Have had about as much of it as I can take now.

Originally Posted by quoll (Post 8253403)

Join the gang!

I survive by going home at least once a year for a month or more. His part of the deal is that he needs to fund me doing that if he wont move with me. I have had him for so long that I dont want to train up a new one and he does come in handy for squashing spiders and all that so I wont dump him but sometimes the frying pan sounds like it would be a sensible solution (someone on here recommended the frying pan and gaffer tape solution and it does have a certain appeal some days!). Meanwhile, I am off on Valentines day for 5 weeks and then again in October/November this year. 31 years in March - you get less for murder (maybe that is an option after all:rofl:)

Originally Posted by Marmalade (Post 8253987)

Oh Quoll, I do so love your posts!!! You always make me giggle, even though I can feel your pain pining away for home...:wub:

Originally Posted by quoll (Post 8254559)

Aw thanks, I am a strong girl though! 4 weeks and I'll be on that plane, woo hooo! I'd hate to think I was pining away (although a bit of weight loss would be a definite bonus!) The Dh really is a sweetie, - he's wielding a crowbar and breaking up the hearth in the kitchen at the mo (dont ask!!!) - as long as he has no plans to dump me in the hole which is appearing, I think I should be OK.

Sorry to go off topic!

Only thing that makes me a tad anxious is if the long range weather forecasters dont know their a*** from their elbow and the runways at Heathrow arent cleared!

Originally Posted by quoll (Post 8254559)

Aw thanks, I am a strong girl though! 4 weeks and I'll be on that plane, woo hooo! I'd hate to think I was pining away (although a bit of weight loss would be a definite bonus!) The Dh really is a sweetie, - he's wielding a crowbar and breaking up the hearth in the kitchen at the mo (dont ask!!!) - as long as he has no plans to dump me in the hole which is appearing, I think I should be OK.

Sorry to go off topic!

Only thing that makes me a tad anxious is if the long range weather forecasters dont know their a*** from their elbow and the runways at Heathrow arent cleared!

Originally Posted by Neil52 (Post 8254568)

Snow has all gone and it is warming up:thumbsup:

Originally Posted by quoll (Post 8254559)

Aw thanks, I am a strong girl though! 4 weeks and I'll be on that plane, woo hooo! I'd hate to think I was pining away (although a bit of weight loss would be a definite bonus!) The Dh really is a sweetie, - he's wielding a crowbar and breaking up the hearth in the kitchen at the mo (dont ask!!!) - as long as he has no plans to dump me in the hole which is appearing, I think I should be OK.

Sorry to go off topic!

Only thing that makes me a tad anxious is if the long range weather forecasters dont know their a*** from their elbow and the runways at Heathrow arent cleared!