is aus all that it is cracked up to be

[Johndoe]

What's the big deal with not having people "out and about"? Do you say "Hiya" to every one of them and stop for a nice cosy chat or do you just walk on by?

There were plenty of people "out and about" where I lived in the UK and most of them were just looking for empty houses to burgle. The peace I've gained from the streets being empty here is immeasurable....................I don't have to jump up and look out the window every time I hear a noise outside my front or back fence.

Just because there's nobody "out and about" doesn't mean that my life is less tolerable................just the opposite..................I can sit out with friends in the garden and not have to dread some yobbos passing by and taking the plss.

[NeilanGemz]

I think it all comes down to personal preferrence. 1 mans pleasure is another mans pain so to speak. We have just come back from being out on the east coast and to be honest we are heading back out to Sydneys northern beaches at the end of April. I personally think that the UK is finished as a GREAT country, it should be renamed OK Britain or even Poor Britain, because there certainly isn't anything Great about it any more as there once was. As I said this is purely my opinion which is why we are moving out to Australia, we loved our time there. We aren't expecting the streets to be paved with Gold or to have such an easy and effortless life there, because I know that this is not the case, we will have to work hard and there will be loads of bills to pay the same as anywhere. I do know however that it is the right thing to do for me, my wife and our little boy. Sometimes you have to look at the bigger picture and not just the here and now. More importantly you need to do whatever is best for you and your family, whether that is in the UK, Australia or anywhere else in the world is a minor detail really.

[PaulandDeb]

Stats and other stuff related to crime etc - http://www.mapsofworld.com/world-top...ime-rates.html

[CrimsonPetal]

In answer to the OP's question...not for me. I've been here five years and heading back home to the UK later this year. Can't wait. Australia has been good to me and my family but ultimately it isn't home. Not having family and close friends around is a very lonely experience to say the very least.

[PaulandDeb]

Where ever i lay my hat, that's my home.

[fish.01]

Compleely agree with this it was the same for us in Qld....not a soul out & about. It's funny when you see the 'Wanted down under' on TV you will notice there is never anyone about in the streets when they go looking for houses...it's a really eerie feeling we thought. We are loving life back in good old blighty x

From memory didn't you live beyond the black stump out in the country somewhere Connie...surprised you even had cars on the road out where you lived

You do pay a price for low density housing. In general the street are quieter and for some this can be a hard adjustment. In saying that though you do generally have a choice. If quiet isn't for you move to a more active suburb. I didn't like it so I moved to a suburb in Brisbane where there are shoppers on the streets, people out jogging, prams, playing etc. For others they prefer the quiet suburbs. I think immigrants should think long and hard about what would suit them...or rent a while and try it out. It is people making ill fitting town/city/suburb/location choices that sometimes makes more difference than the country.

[clark]

I returned back to the UK 2 weeks ago after living in Perth for 6 months, and I couldn't be happier, we could have stayed longer but children were at a difficult age with high schooling, and since we decided to go we then found out that if we weren't in the UK for 3 years before they apply for uni we'd have to pay international fees....so although we could have stayed longer this factor helped our decision to come home sooner.....some things about day to day living you take for granted...it wasn't till we came back I realised how great it was to open windows without stupid flyscreens
have lovely fresh air blowing in the windows,
have freezing cold water from the cold tap,
feel the cool refreshing air on your face/hair etc, instead of the heat, which makes you so sweaty and uncomfortable.....f
eel much cleaner since coming back( able to wear make up.....in Perth it would have run off your face.....forget about having nice hair,
within half an hour of being outside you look like a frazzled wreck........
buy a full weeks shopping in the supermarket for one third of the cost of Perth supermarkets
better tv, radio stations without crude sexual undertones, great choice of newspapers, media coverage much better of world events, felt really dumbed down in Perth, is there a political agenda going on over there...I used to call the news happy news over there..
living in Perth for all of us was an uncomfortable experience compared to living in the UK....living in the suburbs in Perth was such a souless place, no one walks about due to the heat, kids don't play outside in their neighbourhoods as much due to the heat, compare this to the UK, OMG you do forget what its like seeing people.....and they are walking here everywhere in the UK!!!! the other day I walked out to the local shops about a quarter of a mile from where we live and I know I am sad....lol I counted more than 50 people walking, jogging , pushing prams, waiting at bus stops etc, the only time I ever saw more than 5 people walking in Perth was when you go into the city or Northbridge, Kings Park etc, when you are born and live in the UK I must admit I found it quite a culture shock moving to Perth and seeing no -one, even the neighbours seem non exisiting.....everyone drives home into their remote control garages and disappear into their houses!! compared to the UK on an everyday sense without making an effort you can speak to more people here in than you ever will in Perth, and it is the small things that really count that you don't think about till they aren't there anymore xx

tahnx very much im feeling the same at the moment im 41 yrs and here on my own as not married or gf/kids. i feel lonely with out fam around, fortunately im renting with a buddy and his bro iv known for a long time, if i didnt know these guys i would of rtnd to uk by now. i ve got a job in blighty lined up if i go back but im working here in joondalup, which is ok but not my 'dream' job, but how many get the chance to get there dream job, although id be happier with the job in the uk, am i a odd bod for thinking maybe aus isnt for me, after the trials and tribulations ovr the years of trying to get here in aus
i am going to different place s as much as poss and there are great opps to see, big name artists, going to future music festival later today at joondalup, as i need things to keep my mind of the fam in uk

[clark]

In answer to the OP's question...not for me. I've been here five years and heading back home to the UK later this year. Can't wait. Australia has been good to me and my family but ultimately it isn't home. Not having family and close friends around is a very lonely experience to say the very least.

yea cheers crimsonpetal, completly agree that its not home but trying to make things happen for me in oz. but i think at the end of the day (wat a cliche football quote) ill always miss the fam bak home , parents sister bro in law, cousins aunts uncles, god children, etc. got this job in uk in sept if i want it so quite confused at the mo, having good days and bad etc

[clark]

i did actually wake up for work just b4 sunrise and thought this is the same as the uk and i wont gain anything if i stay in oz, confused confused

[yorkiegirl]

tahnx very much im feeling the same at the moment im 41 yrs and here on my own as not married or gf/kids. i feel lonely with out fam around, fortunately im renting with a buddy and his bro iv known for a long time, if i didnt know these guys i would of rtnd to uk by now. i ve got a job in blighty lined up if i go back but im working here in joondalup, which is ok but not my 'dream' job, but how many get the chance to get there dream job, although id be happier with the job in the uk, am i a odd bod for thinking maybe aus isnt for me, after the trials and tribulations ovr the years of trying to get here in aus
i am going to different place s as much as poss and there are great opps to see, big name artists, going to future music festival later today at joondalup, as i need things to keep my mind of the fam in uk

No you aren't an odd bod, Australia isn't for everyone. Some people "love it" before they even get out of the airport, others never really settle.

I've been here 20 years, it was all fine to start with for the first few years, and I've had some great times & experiences but I don't really feel as though I belong here.
We're off back to the UK as soon as our house sells, missing family is something you can't really prepare for. It doesn't bother some people but I suppose everyone has different relationships with their families and it affects different people in different ways.
Only you know how you feel, it must be extra difficult to be here by yourself. Don't feel as though there's something wrong with you though for wanting to go back because there isn't.
It's easy to look from the other side of the world and say it's all going to be great and the best thing since sliced bread like some people seem to think, but the reality can be very different and you never know if it's going to work for you until you actually start living here.