MichaelP

I've had one for a month and I like it for the convenience. It's not saving me any money, and it's stupid not being able to use it for journeys that combine train and bus ... but still allows you to avoid the ticket queue. You also get to travel for $2.50 on Sunday, I believe.

Photo was taken at the cafe strip at Bronte. Here's another from same day:

I was there today and very nice it was too.

In my 15 years living mostly in western Sydney have never met an asylum seeker, so I can't really comment on whether stopping them is a good idea or not. Some Australians feel very strongly that they should be stopped. Others believe equally strongly that they deserve to be treated humanely and in accordance with the treaties that Australia has signed. The anti-refugee schemes such as "Sovereign Borders" and "Pacific Solution" certainly cost billions of dollars. I personally would rather my tax dollars be spent on something a bit more worthwhile.

Abbott is just fulfilling his part of the deal with Murdoch. The Libs and National Party got 110% backing from Murdoch before the election, now Abbott is repaying the debt by attacking the Murdoch family's main business competitor. Do you think Abbott would be talking of abolishing the ABC Australia TV service if Murdoch had won the contract to run it back in 2011? Murdoch was quite upset about being excluded.

The 'garage bar' at Turramurra is now operating - it's a posh wine bar called Kiplings, I think. The bar at St Ives (?Superbon) looks like it has closed down. We've now moved to Roseville and go for a drink at the friendly RSL.

What northshorepom said - Pymble's a nice leafy area with good schools. It's real North Shore suburbia out there - you really need a car to get around the long empty residential streets, not a place for walking, shopping or cafes/restaurants. There's a strip of shops by the station and small shopping centre at West Pymble and that's about it. We lived just up the road in Turramurra and there's a good (state) high school there, with many of the kids coming from West Pymble.

The 'new' ticket inspectors are present several days a week at Chatswood, backed up by police. They wear orange and grey uniforms and the rules are strictly enforced. The old 'revenue protection/train safety' staff (in police type unforms) used to check tickets on trains as well - haven't seen any of that since they were disbanded.

About 6 months too late .. I was in Leeds (and offering to meet up with would be migrants) after moving back to the UK from Sydney around Chrstmas. Now we've returned from Horsforth to Turramurra after realising this is our home, where our kids have spent most of their growing up. We've done the ping pom thing and learned the hard way that Australia is the place we want to be.

I was wondering what they were doing with that place ... look forward to seeing it open.

If you want quiet and somewhere green to run the upper north shore is the place. We're in Turramurra and it's very green and bush-y. You could probably say the sam for much of the upper north shore. Nice family feel and people are surprisingly friendly for Sydney. Not much to do round here in terms of drinking, dining or entertainment, but plenty of parks and beautiful views. We used to be in the inner west, which is just the opposite - more hipsters and cafes than trees. You could probably try anywhere on the northern beaches as well - why not make the most of one of Sydney's main advantages over other Australian cities?

Same here - up for a drink at the Pymbl. I often pop in after work on Friday to wind down before heading home.

Good to know. Had a look in at Superbon in St Ives one evening but there was nobody in at all and we felt a bit intimidated so gave it a miss. Maybe another time. The Pymble Hotel is growing on me - it has a minimalist so-bad-it's-good charm. Its weird how places like Surry Hills and Newtown have more cafes and bars than you could ever visit, but the upper North Shore is completely bereft of places to eat or socialise. You'd think there was a law against it.

Thanks for the info on Wahroonga etc - will be back there no doubt. We tried one of the patisseries last weekend during a downpour and it was packed out, presumably because nobody could sit outside. Might try the Terrey Hills pub & Superbon at some point as the wife works in St Ives ... in the meantime it looks like I'm stuck with the Pymble Hotel for the Friday night after work pint, the only place I can stagger (or bike) home from.

We actually thought the Pymble pub was the best in an ironic way - really no frills, isn't it? They have BOTH kinds of beer, Toohey and Tooheys New. Maybe we went on the wrong evening but the Blue Gum seemed like just a big blokey sports bar with everyone glued to the action on the screens. Didn't try the bistro side though. Wahroonga seems nice - at least it has some cafes and a village feel to it. Turramurra suffers from being strung along the sides of the roaring Pacific Highway, haven't found anywhere for coffee yet.

We've just moved to Turramurra and are loving the leafy environment. The only fly in the ointment is the lack of anywhere local to go out for a drink of a weekend. We've tried the hotels at Pymble, Killara and the Blue Gum near Hornsby - all a bit ho hum. Is there anywhere we've missed? Even a friendly RSL would be welcome. Having moved from the pub-infested inner west we are now very much missing real locals like the Carlisle Castle, the Courthouse and the Shaftesbury. What do the residents of the upper north shore do for a social night out? Or do they just stay in and count their money?

Another museum worth the visit (if you can get in) is the Army Museum at Paddington Barracks on Oxford St. The museum itself isn't much, just a couple of rooms with some old uniforms and medals - but the setting is amazing. Not many people get to see the interior or grounds of this grand old property that dates back to Victorian times. It's usually out of bounds because it is still an active military base and there are security guards on the gate. Not sure if the museum is still open to the public on a regular basis, but we managed to get in there one Sunday when we saw a sign at the gate. Worth looking up. The Artillery Museum at North Head is also an interesting place in a superb location, with an old parade ground and a spooky tunnel tour underground. However I heard that the army had withdrawn support for it and the exhibits were being shifted to Melbourne or something like that. The view of the harbour from the nearby car park is one of the best in Sydney - and as featured in David Bowie's video for Let's Dance.

The State Library has some great exhibitions, and it is a wonderful building in itself, always worth a visit. I've seen some great local photographers' work shown there. They also do stuff on natural history and early colonial history.

1. Breakfast at Bronte cafe followed by walk via Tamarama to Bondi. 2. Swim at the Macallum outdoor pool at Cremorne with the best harbour views. 3. Saturday morning shopping at Flemington veg market followed by noodles at a local Chinese or Vietnamese restaurant. 4. Coffee at Campos, Newtown, any time. 5. Do a bushwalk - either walk up to Barrenjoey near Palm Beach or walk down (and back up) the cliff track at Wentworth Falls.

A lot of Australians don't like the place - see this recent opinion piece: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/comment/happy-birthday-to-a-vision-turned-sterile-20130306-2flhp.html Must admit I share their views. If Canberra has a soul or any locale with a community/village feel then they are keeping it very well hidden. My only experience has been that shopping mall in Civic, which is dismal. The locals get very defensive about the place - was given a lecture by an ACT taxi driver about the joys of Canberra and I hadn't even said anything about the place: big chip on shoulder. For balance, here's a story on the positives: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/what-we-love-about-canberra-20130308-2fq21.html

OK, replying to my own post to bump this up - last chance! We're off after next week.

I am shortly to return to Sydney, where I have lived for more than 15 years (and seven more before that in Auckland). In the remaining few weeks if there any would-be Aussie residents in the Leeds area who would like to meet up for a pint and a chat about 'what it's really like', let me know. Happy to share experiences about migrating, housing, schools etc. Had my heart set on staying back in Yorkshire, but unfortunately the UK's new spouse visa rules means my Australian wife is persona non grata here - so back we go. We're departing on 1 April so get in quick.

Sounds like you've given it a good go and Australia is not for you. No shame in that. I think a lot of people feel guilty for not wanting to stay in Australia despite it appearing to offer 'the dream life' of warm weather, big house and good job opportunities. You've seen the reality, so trust your own judgement. I spent years in Australia thinking 'I should like this place, it ticks all the boxes' when really I just didn't feel at home there at all. All my friends and family in the UK told me how lucky I was and how they'd be over to Australia in a shot if they had the chance. You're lucky in that you're still young and haven't put down roots there. Not sure what the NHS is like from a work point of view, but I found the Australian public hospital system to be OK in Sydney at least. Had plenty of opportunities to experience it with our kids being hospitalised several times for things such as asthma and infected bites from marine nasties. Never used a private hospitals but found the docs and nurses in the public system to be great.

I'm a UK citizen but had my claim for Jobseekers Allowance rejected (and refused on appeal) when I returned to UK on the grounds that I am not a habitual resident of the UK (been away more than 3 years). Bit cheesed off as I have worked and paid NI contributions here for years and never claimed any benefits. Had to borrow off family and live off credit card for several months until I found work (and some time after since I work freelance and get paid 2 months in arrears). Being a UK citizen does not give you many rights these days in the UK - can't even bring your spouse into the country any more until you have been back for a year and in work.

Cold damp drab Britain? It's a beautiful clear day here in Yorkshire. The birds are singing, the daffs are coming out, I'm eating toasted hot cross buns and looking forward to a pint of Theakstons at the friendly local pub. I like Clovelly (especially the snorkelling) but it's not the be all and end all.