Paul1Perth

I think Darwin has improved since to 90's. They have done a good job around the old docks. Nice apartments, new hotels, a big closed in swimming area, good pubs and restaurants and the biggest wave pool in the Southern Hemisphere. I've always enjoyed the main street, lively good pubs, decent food, a few live music venues. The park around the water front has been refurbished and they seem to have moved on the indigenous that used to hang about drinking and causing problems. Plenty of families in there with kids now. Might be the meth capital but I never noticed anything getting worse and I've been going up on work trips for 20 years.

How'd you manage that? My Sister and family wanted to emigrate after they visited us for the first time. Her then hubby was in the police force and police were recruiting all over. They applied but there were hundreds of applicants for a few hundred places. Went for interviews, medicals, eventually got sent down to London for an interview and talk at the Embassy. Cost them lots of money to do all that. They then got put in a "pool" for the next intake. Never happened, try as they might they never got in. It's not easy.

That's what I thought about the car too. My last one I changed for a 2nd hand one last year. It was a 2005 X trail. 240,000km on the clock, my son bought it off me and it's still going strong. I have now got a 2014 Audi Q5 that will probably see us out.

Watch a film called oranges and sunshine. It's about hundreds (at least) of kids in the UK being taken from their mothers, told they weren't wanted and shipped off here to places like Christian Brothers, where loads of them were abused for years. If it wasn't for one lady from the UK following up the story years later it would never have come to light. One of the places featured in the film is Bindoon, pretty close to Perth. Really good film, used to be on either ABC or SBS catchup.

Don't know much about Canadas' history, or America come to that. How long do we have to dwell on it though. Every nation on Earth has had periods in history where things were terrible for different people at different times. England must have been pretty ruthless to run a lot of the nations they did. England itself was invaded by Vikings. How far do we go back? No, move on I reckon.

You might feel guilty and blame mismanagement, I don't. Sometime they have to take responsibilty for their kids, their property, the law and move forward. The longer they get handouts, treated favourably in so many areas they are never going to move on. On top of that we have to thank them at every event, anywhere for letting us use their land then say sorry again.

In the 80's I worked in Pipeline Testing for oil and gas pipelines. We had to stay in Brighton for a couple of weeks. Me and the 3 guys I was working with found a boarding house and when we were checking in it was obvious a gay couple ran it. One guy there with his sciffon scarf, other guy holding his poodle. At breakfast the next morning schiffon guy is coming round taking breakfast orders, asks the other guys one egg or two, never asked me, thought he'd just missed asking. Breakfast comes, mines massive, extra sausage 2 eggs, guy puts it in front of me and says "I brought you 2 eggs, thought you looked like a 2 egg man". I had let myself go a bit to be fair, not had my hair cut for ages, couldn't be bothered to shave when we were travelling so had a beard and I'd put a fair bit of weight on, due to living in the pub. Moved to a different guesthouse the next day. Breakfasts weren't as good though. My workmates thought it was hillarious Gays were definately over represented there then. Don't know about now.

The elephant in the room is the problems in Darwin, Alice Springs, Tennant Creek and Perth are mostly caused by the same types.

I enjoyed my trips up to Darwin with work, don't think I'd want to live there though.

If you like pebbles instead of sand. London by the sea would put me right off.

Lake Grace I think Nat Fyfe is from. Farming community.

Iluka was just kicking off when we arrived, around 92. Most homes are big and new. Not many apartments at all. The one you mention sounds expensive for a one bedroom. You could get a house for that.

You'd be crazy not to be "street aware" in any City or even small town in the UK. Where I grew up, Chesterfield, was really bad for trouble, makes you aware of stuff before it kicks off. Something that seemed to be lacking in my eldest when he was growing up, him and mates didn't used to go out till 10:00 and come back early morning. Clubs used to shut at 2:00 when I was young.

Pity about todays weather. Give it a month and it'll be clear blue skies every day.

I've mentioned before Vancouver is the worst place I've ever seen or been. They seem to have just given up on a part of the City. It's not that far from where the cruise liners come in either. Gas town is a popular place but right on the edge of the dodgy area. People openly smoking crack pipes, doing drug deals, layed around in sleeping bags on a rainy day, people just walked round them, that was the middle of the day too.

We were from near Stockport Cal and my wife worked in Moss Side. The difference here I find is there's a reaction from the police, Northbridge and the City will be swarming with them, in an attempt to clean it up and do something about it. There were some issues in Scarborough when they finished the foreshore development and the cops had to go downa few weeks on the trot to sort things out. In the UK they just gave up and called places a no go area after dark. If you were daft enough to be in any of them it was almost your fault. Pity it's taken something this bad to trigger a reaction and if the 15 year old and the bunch of younger girls turn out to be who I think they are they'll get a slap on the wrist. Feel sorry for the cops and security people sometimes. See his parents have managed to get a flight here. Hope the young guy gets better.

Forgot to say I am a McGowan fan. Think he's done a fine job but they need to sort out the staff shortages in the hospitals quickly. When the borders are open they'll be recruiting like mad.

Don't know whether it's drug issues, it's a 15 year old who they've got in custody and another story of a lady in her 20's beaten up by a gang of teenage girls, some as young as 11. Obviously can't release names but usual suspects I reckon. I think the soccer player was near the station on his way home. Round the station and "the cultural centre", on the way to Northbridge always dodgy. I went to Badlands bar on Friday a couple of weeks ago, went through the main station at about 5:30. An Indigenous lady was calling the Indian guard a white C****, the railway police went over to her to look at her ticket, she throws the ticket at them gives them a mouhful and storms off. Obviously not worth doind any more about it. I was smiling at the railway cop and said he had a tough job. Said wait till later when the real problems start, it's only early yet. He also said he didn't know what's happening but the last 4 or 5 weeks things have seemed to get worse. He thought might be the amount of homeless and just trouble makers. Reckons it's been worse since they moved the illegal camp they had in Freo. It's a City with City problems.

Yep, there is a new pub in Iluka. We've been a few times, have friends who've moved into the new apartments next door to the pub. They moved from a huge house in The Vines to a 3 bed apartment. The kids have left home, we went to their 60th last year so they thought time to downsize. We met them and another couple in the pub a few weeks ago. I noticed they had a big screen with the soccer roundup on, we were chatting though so weren't really watching it. Nice pub, good food, massive selection of beers, London Pride on tap, that's a first. Most have Guiness and Kilkenny but not seen London Pride before. There apartment is on the top floor, 3rd, not a massive high rise, thankfully and the views are fantastic. Over the dunes 180 degree sea views looking over Burns Beach. Glorious sunsets and they're on the right side of the building to be protected from the wind. They bought it off the plan, best apartment in the block I reckon. They are loving it at the moment but it'll be tough coming from a big house with garden, pool, sheds, garage.

We have a few breaks over the year. Rottnest a few times and go down South a few times, mostly for adventure races, running, biking, ski paddling. Good thing about that we can take the toys with us.

Brlliant

Have you got family or friends you can move in with for a while? You'll get here, it's only time.

I didn't mean to be rude Marissa and I know some people love Melbourne, that's fair enough, as you say it wouldn't do for us to be all the same. I was meaning normal people as in mortgage to pay, work to go to, limited time off, saving up for a holiday. You made it sound as if your average Sydney or Melbourne dweller would be popping off to the Whitsundays for a weekend. As you say, it's a days drive to Queensland, great if you've got friends there, most haven't. We can (or could) pop to Bali or Singapore when you put it like that or, days drive South heaps of places. More than a days drive North Coral Bay, Broome. Not much different really.

I got back to the UK after my Dad died. He had a heart attack so died very quickly. He was at the undertakers, in the coffin and I went along with my sister. They asked if I wanted to see him but I felt I'd rather remember him alive and didn't go in. My sis went and said he just looked like he was asleep, happy with my choice though.

Who kows what the kids will think? In a few years they might see it as a big chance to have a cheap European holiday. My eldest had a ball staying with his Grandad and flying to European destinations, using his Grandads place as a base. Might work out just fine.