missymon212

Sorry but I have to stick up for Kingston....we bought a lovely big double brick house and have lived here in Kingston for 3 years now and are VERY happy here. We have the best neighbours anyone could have......introduced themselves as soon as we moved in......give us mangos off their trees...mow our nature strip when they mow their's.....no noise pollution......no hoons on our road....no late night parties etc etc. Previously rented in "respectable" Westlake....parties nearly every weekend...no sleep.....motorbikes screeching up and down the road till early hours....neighbours never spoke to us. Logan has it's bad areas like anywhere else and we have never felt unsafe or had any trouble. Feel much safer here than I ever did in UK. Just saying :smile:

Wow $29.11 as a social worker in Sydney? I work as a carer in Brisbane and get $35 per hour

Eurax cream if you've been bitten.....about $6 Chemist Warehouse and green Telfast antihistamines daily....bliss :cool: I wish Noah had swatted those 2 mozzies!!!!

Yes I read something similar.....also if you flush with the lid up the spray goes everywhere......how many people have a towel rail next to or very near to the loo...ugh....:wacko:

By "energy" I meant electricity. I use my dishwasher every other day...full load... my dishwasher uses 11 litres of water and costs 20 cents a load including heating the water. Sink takes 20+litres without rinsing. Costs more to heat water in sink than it does to run dishwasher. Plus with a very busy working life it is a God send. In my time off I prefer to be outside in fresh air.

hand washing dishes takes 5 times the effort.....uses 6 times more water and uses more energy than using the dishwasher...

Morrison's boiled ham

My son here on a employer sponsored 457 visa took out dental insurance as one of his teeth was bothering him. Went to one dentist who said he needed a root canal done at a cost of $2000. I advised him to get a second opinion. 2nd dentist did xray...said he didn't need root canal done just 4 fillings. Xray and 4 fillings total cost to my son $0. Result.

Bear in mind Dave if shipped from UK your cooktop guarantee is not valid here.

The British Government Departments have VERY long memories and they will get it back one way or another. Unbeknown to me they overpaid me by £212 when I was off work sick after a car accident in 2001. We have been living in Oz for 4 years now and I recently reached the grand old age of 60. When I filled in paperwork for claiming my Uk state pension to be paid into my Oz bank account they immediately told me I owed them the £212.....12 YEARS after alleged overpayment. I told them I had no memory of being overpaid so long ago but to no avail and they took it straight out of my pension. So they will get you in the end.

No postal deliveries on a Saturday JP's have a desk in the shopping centres for a couple of hours 2 days a week and all services free......costs a small fortune in UK Cops keen on RBT's any time any where....... If you're overcharged for an item in Coles they will give you your money back plus the item for free.......

Also don't forget that if you pack yourself then customs unpack and check everything this end, whereas if you get a company to do it they only check some boxes.

I made the BIG mistake of delaying payment of my UK pension once we came to Australia....got lump sum back dated 2 years then monthly payments of $530....forgot Aussie taxman would take huge chunk of it ...now paying taxman $340 a month in owed tax....lesson learned :-(

I too was recently referred by my doctor for a MRI and I didn't have to pay a cent. Medicare paid for it.

Great ..thank you :-)

Not sure I'm on the correct Forum but here goes.......We've been trying to find a tiler to tile our en suite, main bathroom and kitchen splashbacks for 3 months now but every time someone recommends one there is a reason why he can't help ...one has moved to Mackay for 6 months , another lives north Brisbane and said it was too far to travel etc. We live in Kingston , south east of Brisbane. We could do the jobs ourselves but are very busy with work so if anyone can recommend a guy who does a good job and won't rip us off then I would I would be grateful. Cheers :cool:

Have to say the weather was a big factor in us coming to Oz. I'm with you Hoff, bl**dy hate the English winters, so depressing. We have been in Brisbane for 3 years now and I have never worn either a coat or a sweater, even in winter. I do find the humidity in summer a little hard to cope with. Not complaining though as the rest of the year is perfect weather. In UK I "didn't do mornings"...... because I open the curtains to blue skies sunshine almost every morning, I now "do mornings", the most beautiful part of the day...today's temp was 29 :-) There's nothing nicer than sitting outside with your coffee and toast at 7am...bliss :-)

Also rates are included here.....not so in UK, plus we didn't pay for our water when we were renting here......

Oh and I forgot to say...... we don't have a credit card :biggrin:

Hubby and I earned £27,000 a year between us in UK, had 2 bed tiny house, Corsa car, struggled constantly......moved to Brisbane in 2009, earned $113,000 this last tax year between us, buying huge double brick 4 bed, 2 bath plus study house with double garage and in ground pool, bought for $296,000 in July this year, hubby has Toyota Corolla and I have 4x4.....plus we went back to UK for 3 week holiday in February. So happy here.:cute:

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/business/australia-the-happiest-industrialized-nation-in-the-world-survey-finds/story-fn7j19iv-1226363833461 Been in Brisbane almost 3 years and just been back to UK for 3 week holiday. Was wondering how we'd feel, would we want to go back to live? Apart from missing family a definite NO.....it was more miserable than we remembered. People walking around with unhappy faces......I find Aussies smile all the time.....say hi to an Aussie and they say G'day back with a smile...in UK you get the "You looking at me???" look. Everywhere looked so grubby compared to Oz. Everywhere was so cramped compared to Oz...love the big open spaces and big houses in Oz...everyone in UK still moaning about just about everything, especially the weather ......Aussies don't like moaners......UK fresh fruit , veg and meat, no comparison to Aussie produce. Aussies look so healthy.....in Uk people look as sad as the weather. Workwise UK is very depressing, especially for anyone over 45...here in Oz OH (at 60) got great job he enjoys working for Harvey Norman. I (at 60) got work as a carer bringing home $900/£560 a week, in UK trained nurses don't get that much. Yes a lot of things cost more in Oz but a lot of things cost less and we couldn't earn this kind of money if we were in UK. We lost a small fortune on selling our home in UK but managed to save up more here than we ever could in England. We have just been approved for an investment mortgage and hope to buy our 1st home here in Brisbane very soon. It's not been easy readjusting to a new way of life but life here has made us feel 20 years younger.....love the sunshine and having to wear sunnies almost every day.....not had a single cold since we arrived....love the Aussie sense of humour... 3 weeks in England was enough to convince us that we had definitely made the right choice in coming to live in this beautiful country.It's not for everyone but it is definitely for us. :cool:

If you are buying books as presents go to www.Bookdepositry.co.uk ......no charge whatsoever for postage anywhere in the world.Use it all the time. Books at great prices too.