British Expats - 8 Months In .... Love It .... :)

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8 Months In .... Love It .... :)

Hi
Where to start ????? This post is way overdue and I apologise now that it may be a long and garbled one – hope some of our findings may help you guys in the process of moving here………

Well we are 8 months in – Living in Victoria on a SIR Visa and we are so happy – we love it here – Its everything we hoped and more – the people – the places – the wildlife…………………
We have both been very lucky -landed fantastic jobs – where the people we work for and with have made us so welcome and we have made so many friends.
Cost of living on the whole we feel is cheaper – its been an expensive time setting up home again from nothing but its starting to become evident that our standard of life is better here.
If you want info on bills etc feel free to PM me.
We love the whole Australian outlook on life and everyone here seems to live life to the full.
On a Monday at work everyone had a tale from the weekend.
Women don’t spend their lives in the kitchen !!! sorry guys – take out food is BIG here not always a good thing but you can even get a Sunday roast cooked ready to go for $8 each.

We have not wanted to come back at all and have only had times where we have missed the people – which is inevitable. It will take time to settle properly but we came here with no expectations and the attitude to take things as we found them and it seems to have worked for us.

Advice & General Comments : PM me if you want more info on anything as I could type for ever on all sorts of different things we have experienced – but wouldn’t be relevant to you all.

1. Don’t try to be too organised as I was and find a permanent rental before you come- unless you have someone you know to view the property for you .We got stung the photos looked great etc etc – It stunk and was totally unliveable – we then got stung for 4 months rent and didn’t even live there – this could have easily meant we couldn’t afford to stay here and really wasn’t the best way to start our new lives.
2. Whatever your skill double check what licences you need BEFORE you arrive.
Most stills and trades will require some form of certification here and it’s very hard to get a job in your field without it.
3. Be willing to work doing any job if you need to financially until you find the right one.
4. Don’t sell stuff you love – bring it ( we sold and gave away nearly everything – for virtually nothing ) – wish we had brought it with us
5. Be as organised as you can ( except for house ) when you arrive – PM me if you would like a copy of my lists
6. We didn’t have lots of money to bring and whatever you do bring ( unless its heaps ) don’t spend any more than you need to until you have jobs – You can pick up great bargains on furniture etc at garage sales and Op shops and upgrade it but by bit as your money comes in. I have noticed a few people landing and buying loads of new stuff and then after a month of not finding jobs they have no money.
7. Don’t arrive in June / early July if you need to find work quickly – It is the end of Aus financial year and the jobs vacant pages dry up – we landed mid June and the first 2 weeks papers scared me as there was no jobs ….. A neighbour said ‘oh no it’s the worst time to be job hunting ‘– I had never even thought about it or realised it would make a difference.
8. When you arrive don’t feel you have to see the whole of your areas tourist places in the first month – we did and it made us so tired – we then realised we live here now and there is no need to pretend we are on holiday every weekend – chill out time is good.
9. Don’t allow any UK visitors for at least 6 months – we had the in-laws stay for 6 months 6 weeks after we landed – it’s a stressful enough time – give yourself time to settle first.
10. Don’t expect anything to get done in a hurry – it doesn’t happen – people are in general 100 times more polite but no one seems to rush. Takes some getting used to.
11. In Victoria the weather is very changeable – more than I expected.
12. Have a leaving party but arrange a close friends night just before you go then at the leaving party you wont be saying goodbye to closest friends so it wont be so bad – we enjoyed our main leaving party and saved the emotional stuff till the night before which is hell…. Nothing can prepare you for it so best not to try to – just go with it. When you arrive and after a while you will be surprised as to who makes the effort to keep in touch……..
13. Christmas will play with your mind and won’t be anything you expect.
14. Used cars are expensive – new cars generally cheaper than the UK – ( I work in the car industry so let me know if you need any help if you are in Victoria)
15. IT’S GREAT HERE …………..

Well I could go on for ever and ever so I will leave it there but if anyone wants any help or advice please ask – if we can help we will. Obviously everyone has different outlooks and ideals so my biggest tip would be do your homework and look into everything – at least that gives you a head start.

Good Luck wherever you’re at with your move ………. ;)