Life in Melbourne

So advice required as the few posts I've read on here have completely freaked me out.

I am looking at potentially emigrating to Melbourne early next year on my own. Haven't got any further than that as I assume where I live will be impacted by where I get a job.

(Living in Australia has been a dream since I visited in 2008 and I have the qualifications to do it).

The whole process is terrifying doing it on my own anyway and the last time I lived in a city in the UK I had a pretty horrible experience, which isn't helping my nerves.

So I have some questions:

As someone who is constantly cold in the uk, despite living in a brand new, well insulated, centrally heated flat am I just going to be freezing and miserable for large parts of the year living in Melbourne? (Being cold is literally my worse thing ever!)

Is finding somewhere nice to live as hard as I'm reading? Despite only being 27 I'm not a party animal so don't need a trendy place to live but I have some requirements to create my comfort zone.

Is it easy to meet people? My last city living experience was very isolating and lonely and triggered my depression so I'm terrified a move down under could do the same. I also wouldn't have any kind of support network like I do here.

Can anyone reassure me that my dream isnt just making a massive leap into misery?!

Katherine

My experience is that yes, Melbourne is cold in winter and the lack of decent heating/insulation makes it feel colder. But if you get somewhere that is well heated and well insulated (rare but they do exist) then you will be nice and toasty. Melbourne has a population of 4m (or thereabouts) and that includes rich people, poor people, old people and young people. They all live somewhere. You would find somewhere too - although like anywhere, you may have to make compromises to get what really matters to you (heating and insulation).

I find Australians tend to be introverted and not looking to make new friendships. After six years here, I still don't have any close Australian friends. But I am not a gregarious person and tend not to make friends easily. Others are more gregarious and would tell you how easily they have made friends. This is more about knowing yourself than knowing Melbourne. And also about being realistic about which situations you are likely to meet people who are looking to make new friends and which situations you are likely to meet people who are already content with their social circle.

I found it very easy to find a nice place to live, there are lots of options. I hate the cold too, initially you won't feel too cold as you will be comparing it to uk but very quickly I hated feeling cold n wet a lot of time n that's one of reasons I left n won't ever go back lol it does get very warm but too much cold for me n sky too grey. There's lots to do and things are accessible so if you have hobbies or interests there will probably be some groups,clubs,meets etc if you look for them where u can meet people...lots of ppl from different places live there and appeared to me to be welcoming but I'd rather live in QLD anyday where the sky is bluer! But as a city it's a very cool place.

You should be okay. It's not that backward - we actually have these devices called heaters in Melbourne. Also I can inform you there are shops here that sell clothing designed to keep you warm. But seriously if you want year round warmth somewhere like Cairns would be ideal for you.

My aim is to have my ducted heating in June and July only. They are the coldest months of course.

Usually in May and August I find as long as we get some sun then it does warm my house up enough.

I do have a fair amount of glass which means the house will warm up nicely in the sun.

I suppose it gets cold in winter like anywhere but nothing like the UK does.

Anywhere in Australia, even Melbourne will be warmer than the UK. You can look up monthly average temperatures for where you live now and for Melbourne to get a better idea. Houses do not tend to be well insulated but that is because they don't need to be, if people wre shivering every year then by now I am sure house insulation would have become more of a selling feature. It is easy enough to turn on the heating / buy a heater.

I don't think it makes sense to make a statement about how easy it is to meet people and make friends in a particular city or not, because it is nothing to do with the city, it is to do with the individual. If you normally make friends easily then you will in Melbourne too, if you are usually slow to make friends then i would not expect ts to change in Melbourne.

Finding a house rental is harder than in the UK as the market is a lot more competitive. However most people have something within a couple of weeks and I have only ever seen one person post on the forums that therpy were having serious trouble. After a few tips from PIO-ers I recall they were sorted the next weekend.

People still eat outside in Winter. It's fine during the day.

It's obviously cooler in the evening, and you will probably feel it cooler more once you acclimatise after a year or so.

There are still lots of older weatherboard houses, which can be draughty. Double-glazing isn't really a "thing" here! Newer modern houses will likely have all the amenities for surviving a Melbourne Winter.

It's Melbourne, not the South Pole. It's nothing compared to a UK Winter.

I expect that you'll meet plenty of people through work, and you will have neighbours too, unless you choose to live out in the bush somewhere.

My aim is to have my ducted heating in June and July only. They are the coldest months of course.

This doesn't work for us. We have already had the heating on during several days this month (April) and I remember Christmas 2010 being so cold we had the heating on. I tend to think May-September inclusive are the cold months and October-April are the warm ones. But you do get occasional warm days even in winter and sometimes it is possible to eat outside, especially if there are windbreaks and outdoor heaters, but you'd generally prefer not to.

Melb is a massive city - think LA but without (as much) gangs n' stuff.... If you don't like big cities then I wouldn't move to Melb. My advice in terms of places;

- Ballarat

- Bendigo

- Geelong

- Newcastle

- Tamworth

- Toowomba

All great regional cities that are really good places to live with good climate (Ballarat does get cold though).

Making friends - easier in these places than in the cities, for sure. Don't for a second think that the rat race does not exist down here, Melb and Sydney are FAR worse rat races than any large town / city I lived in the UK with the obvious exception of that big horrid mess that is London.

Concentrate your efforts on a regional city and you will love it.... Great lifestyle and cost of living etc. Cowboy type country stuff up north and very UK like down south.

very UK like down south.

This is being discussed extensively on another thread. Many of us feel that Australia is actually very different to the UK - particularly in terms of the way people think and behave - and giving advice that it is like the UK could be very bad advice.

This is being discussed extensively on another thread. Many of us feel that Australia is actually very different to the UK - particularly in terms of the way people think and behave - and giving advice that it is like the UK could be very bad advice.

Fair enough, must have been here too long then... I find once I escape the city it's just like being back in the North East really. Normal people, normal prices, normal drug problems, normal people pissy in the pub, normal scallywags nickin stuff. It's just the main 2x cities that are like some kind of US / Asian / Bladerunner B movie!

With Melbourne some suburbs are more 'friendly' than others I think.Some suburbs are very pretty ( especially in the east) some are just plain, um, ugly. Personally I would avoid places like Geelong, Ballarat etc because the economy is not being good to them just now and they are experiencing a fair bit of job loss and associated depression. There are heaps of things to do and interest groups to join in Melbourne, you won't have any problems with that but you do need to make the effort to join things and not just sit back and wait for the invites!

With Melbourne some suburbs are more 'friendly' than others I think.Some suburbs are very pretty ( especially in the east) some are just plain, um, ugly. Personally I would avoid places like Geelong, Ballarat etc because the economy is not being good to them just now and they are experiencing a fair bit of job loss and associated depression. There are heaps of things to do and interest groups to join in Melbourne, you won't have any problems with that but you do need to make the effort to join things and not just sit back and wait for the invites!

I've been having counselling here in the UK so I'm hoping by the time I get to Melbourne I will have more confidence to go and join things and therefore meet some like minded people.

Is it easy to meet people? My last city living experience was very isolating and lonely and triggered my depression so I'm terrified a move down under could do the same. I also wouldn't have any kind of support network like I do here.

I love city living, but cities are cities all over the world. In a densely packed environment, people are more likely to "keep themselves to themselves" because they want to protect the little bit of private space they have. I'd say you'd be much better off in a regional area where people are likely to be much more welcoming.

You say you fell in love with Oz on your last visit - which part of Australia was that? As we were just discussing on another thread, different parts of Australia can be very different. For instance, I know people who love Perth but hate Sydney, and vice versa. So if you loved, say, Brisbane - don't assume you will like Melbourne.

Do you have strong reasons for moving to Victoria? If you love warm weather then there are lots of mid-size towns along the East coast which I'd have thought would suit you better, and which have hospitals.

I fell in love with Melbourne when I visited (I'd never lived in a city when I visited). I didn't like Sydney at all. I also really liked Perth, which I visited on a subsequent visit. Haven't explored more rural Victoria. I was kind of thinking of starting in Melbourne. I will have a PR so I can then explore and move once I have had chance to explore.

Part of my reason for moving to Melbourne/Victoria is my aunt and my cousins live in Launceston so Melbourne makes it a short hop across the water and same time zone if I want to call.

I fell in love with Melbourne when I visited (I'd never lived in a city when I visited). I didn't like Sydney at all. I also really liked Perth, which I visited on a subsequent visit. Haven't explored more rural Victoria. I was kind of thinking of starting in Melbourne. I will have a PR so I can then explore and move once I have had chance to explore.

Part of my reason for moving to Melbourne/Victoria is my aunt and my cousins live in Launceston so Melbourne makes it a short hop across the water and same time zone if I want to call.

If you prefer small towns to big city living, then why not look at Tasmania itself? We are going back to Australia and are strongly considering Hobart. You would be an easy drive from your relatives, in a smaller city where it will be much cheaper to find a place to live and probably easier to make friends.

Sure it is a cooler climate but still better weather than most of the UK (surprisingly,, Tasmania is about the same distance from the equator as the South of France in the Northern Hemisphere!), and as you say, it's easy to fly from there to other places in Australia if you want to explore.

Have you ever lived in Melbourne Marisa ?

How much time have you spent there ?

Have you ever lived in Melbourne Marisa ?

 

How much time have you spent there ?

I lived in country Victoria for a year and visited fairly often, and in my 20 years as an Admin and Facilities Manager for large corporations, I've spent a fair bit of time there managing projects. Personally I rather like Melbourne - but the OP is not used to living in cities, and the one time she tried it, she found it isolating. That's a very common experience in big cities all over the world.

I'm completely the opposite from the OP - I like city living and wouldn't want to live in a small town or village. They are such different lifestyles and I can understand why if you like one, you won't enjoy the other. So I think she's right to be concerned.

You will definitely get better weather regardless of where you end up, as for friends that is a an unknown, comes down to what you class as a friend. You will obviously meet people but how much of a friend they become ?? I had and still have a great social circle in the uk but in the years I been in Aus nothing even close. I know people but we aren't best mates put it that way but this may be all you need ?? Good luck with it all.

I would like to be more of a city person. I would like to think I could adjust to living in a city and that it would be different this time from the last time I tried it. But I guess I just need some convincing. One of the problems I have had living in a relatively small place in the UK is finding a partner.... there isn't really any kind of 'scene' or anything LGBT related in very small places.

I don't want hundreds of best friends, just a few people who I can ring or message and say do you fancy meeting for a drink or going to the beach etc.

I am looking at potentially emigrating to Melbourne early next year on my own.

Good choice. Melbourne is a big "singles" city, of all ages.

As someone who is constantly cold in the uk, despite living in a brand new, well insulated, centrally heated flat am I just going to be freezing and miserable for large parts of the year living in Melbourne? (Being cold is literally my worse thing ever!)

As others have said, many Australian houses aren't built to cope with the cold, so try and find one that is. Melbourne is a lot warmer than the UK all year round (for instance where we live by the bay we never get frost and can grow tropical plants).

Is finding somewhere nice to live as hard as I'm reading? Despite only being 27 I'm not a party animal so don't need a trendy place to live but I have some requirements to create my comfort zone.

Not sure what you are reading, but there are plenty of nice places to live here.

Is it easy to meet people? My last city living experience was very isolating and lonely and triggered my depression so I'm terrified a move down under could do the same. I also wouldn't have any kind of support network like I do here.

This is totally up to you. You have to get out there and make the effort. For instance, volunteering or joining a club with like-minded people will help.

Can anyone reassure me that my dream isnt just making a massive leap into misery?!

I do hope not. It's really up to you to make it work. Some people may be miserable in Melbourne. I haven't met any of them personally and I've been here 9 years!

BB

One of the problems I have had living in a relatively small place in the UK is finding a partner.... there isn't really any kind of 'scene' or anything LGBT related in very small places.

Melbourne is as good a place to be gay as anywhere. There's a vibrant scene and generally the LGBT community is accepted into the mainstream.

Avoid regional Australia at all costs. They marry their siblings, but only opposite sex ones. It is regional Australia that is the main obstacle to marriage equality.

If you want a gay scene then definitely stick to Melbourne.

If I was you I would live in Prahran. Probably the gayest suburb in Melbourne if I can put it that way.

That does make sense. Prahran has one of the hospitals I like to work in in it, but whether I can afford to live there on one fairly small wage I don't know.

In case no one had guessed I am a bit of a worrier