Joob joobs

Oooo, cheers for letting me know. I posted them all the same way, but I did get strange error messages on some of them - but thought I'd fixed it. Will see what I can do.

We weren't asked for medicals for the 457 process at all. However, you are in a different situation given your daughter's condition. It might be worthwhile getting one done, that way you have it sitting ready to go if they ask for it. Are you using a migration agent? What have they recommended?

Candygirl, the doc says it was a reaction my skin had to the mozzie bites and gave me steroids for them... made sure I was lathered in bug spray after that. Felt like my skin was so tight it was splitting. My mum had the same reaction when she was over visiting.

... And for any other Scots out there who might be worried... Coles sell Irn Bru! ... and 1st Choice sell Tenants. Lol We've managed to fit quite a lot into the last 6 months. I had to go to Sydney, Longreach, Bundaberg for work. Had a day trip to Sydney with my mum and been to lots of Brisbane/ Gold Coast/ Sunny Coast touristy places and we've even managed a camping trip out west. By this time you are all probably fed up with all my photos, but I might start another thread with our sightseeing shots if anyone is interested in seeing some of the places we'd recommend? I hope this thread will give some of the folk who are yet to move over some ideas on what our first 6 months have been like.

I'd definitely recommend wearing bug spray in summer... this is what happened when I ventured out without covering myself in 'Off'... However, summer is definitely the 'wet season' here.. ...

Lol, both!

... We found ourselves a nice house in Oxley and moved in on Australia day. The rental prices are a lot higher in the UK but we had researched this while still in the UK so were expecting it. And 6 weeks after arriving o/h managed to secure a great job, albeit on a 6 month contract. This was a huge relief as we didn't have a tenant in our Glasgow house yet so were having to pay that mortgage too. I'd recommend http://www.realestate.com.au and domain.com.au for house hunting. ...

... There has been a range of creepie crawlies and wildlife... ...

I was lucky enough to be sponsored on a 457 visa with the same company I worked for in the UK, which included a company car. So I can't comment on the searching and buying a car over here. I miss my wee magenta Fiesta from the UK though... this one reminds me of a big 'old man' car! Lol. I also had to get used to driving a manual which I'd never done before. I'd recommend shopping around for your food and veg etc. We have a great butcher nearby (Oxley) and Rocklea market is great for fresh produce. There has also been a lot of this... since we arrived.. ...

We found a really good Indian restaurant in Graceville, the Ceylonne Inn. The food is delicious and the staff are always really friendly. I think there are others around Brisbane too, including one in Toowong.

... We had Xmas in Brisbane, which didn't much feel like Xmas to be honest. We were invited to dinner with the brother of our Glasgow neighbour which was lovely as we'd only been in Aus for a week and didn't know anyone. On 28 December Oakley was released from quarantine and despite having lost a tooth at some point since leaving Scotland, he was none the worse for wear. We had to register him with Brisbane City Council and he can only go off-lead in certain parks and beaches but he's loving it over here too (apart from being scared from the possums!) The dog parks here are great and have free agility equipment and poo bags. Our first New Year in Aus... was... quiet... ...

... I had pre-booked a 6 week holiday rental in Graceville before we arrived. This was booked via stayz.com.au and I'd thoroughly recommend them. It's called Graceville Gables and the owners were really helpful. They had the fridge stocked with bread and milk etc for our arrival, they came round to cut the grass when needed, provided ant rid when we had a problem with ants in the kitchen and brought round a vacuum cleaner for us to use after we asked if there was one in the house (dog losing his winter coat!) The fist few days are a bit of a blur, but we sorted out things like bank cards, TFN, mobile phones (started with Optus, I'm now with Vodaphone and o/h is with Telstra). Did a bit of city sightseeing in the first few days too. ...

... ...

Can't believe that 6 months ago today we were heading from Glasgow to Brisbane (via Hong Kong). The time has flown in and while finances were a struggle at first, despite this we have had a ball and are loving every minute... despite the weather being remarkably Scottish like at the moment! :err: The hardest part has definitely been missing friends and family. However in the past 6 months we've had my mum visit for 4 weeks and o/h's mum and husband for 2 weeks! O/h's aunt and uncle will be over nearer the end of the year too. Think we've had more visitors here than we ever had in Glasgow! :biglaugh: So I thought I'd give you guys a wee update on what we've done... and as I take photos of everything (so my o/h tells me!), I thought I'd give you guys literally a 'snapshot' of our time here in Aus. Apologies to any of you guys that have me on Facebook... you'll have seen these all before! If there is anything that you wanna ask fire away! We used Crown Relocations for the shipping of our stuff. They guys who came to pack our things up were excellent - quite partial to a cuppa and a biscuit! They were scheduled to pack up over 2 days but had to come back on the 3rd day because of hurricane force winds! We went with a shared container and despite Crown assuring us that the container would go before Xmas, it didn't actually leave until 7 January - much to my dismay. They eventually managed to get it on another ship at some point in the journey and it arrived with us at the end of February which was a huge relief. And even better... there were no breakages! For insurance we went with Insureyourmove.com. The dog had left a few weeks earlier and we used Pet Travel Services, based in Dunfermline. Can't recommend them enough. http://www.pettravelservices.co.uk/ On 11 December 2011, we left Glasgow to fly (via Heathrow) with Cathay Pacific. No problems with the flights. Seats were fine, entertainment was good and food was tasty. They were also about £350 each cheaper than Emirates! ...We stopped in Hong Kong for 3 nights which was excellent and I'm so glad we did. Trailfinders got us a good deal and the hotel was lovely.

Think this one was returning from Fraser Island - 2003 Isle of Skye - 2012 Sorry for the photo overload! They were all or mostly taken on my phone so the quality isn't too great.

Rocks Riverside again Sunset from the Bruce Highway Snowy sunset, Priesthill Park, Glasgow Sunrise on a QLD beach - 2003

Loving this thread! Rock Riverside Park Brisbane River from Rocks Riverside Park And again, on a different night Sunset at Hervey Bay One of my only sunrise photos... I'm not a morning person! Sydney sunrise

Got my tickets for Brisbane on Friday.

I had to leave my bunny in the UK at the end of last year when I moved to Brissie. :'( My good friend is looking after him and he's going to be 9 years old next month.... If you don't want to be left cleaning him out when your daughter leaves to go to uni then I'd say stay well clear! They aren't an easy pet by any means, so many things can go wrong with their delicate digestive systems. However, they are one of the most rewarding/entertaining pets I've ever had. They are happier and healthier if they live in pairs/groups and if you get them neutered at a young age and that stops the 'multiply like rabbits' problem. In UK you also have them vaccinated against myxo and VHD.... don't think they let you vaccinate against myxo here and I'm not sure they have VHD. But both are likely to be fatal if caught and not vaccinated against... Mine started out as a house rabbit, you can litter train them like cats and as long as you don't mind a few nibble marks here and there, and you bunny proof all your cables, they can happily live free range in the house. ) Bearing in mind that I only have UK rabbit experience.... the fine for having one in QLD is too much to even consider it! ... lol, sorry for long rambling rabbity post!

We have used both Thrifty and Avis with no problem.

Woohoo! Where are you guys heading?

My dream was to move to Perth, but I was sponsored on a 457 visa and they needed me in Brisbane. I'd only been in Brisbane for about 5 days back in 2003 and it hadn't really made that much of an impression on me. But having been here for 4.5month now I love it. So much to do and despite it being cold (19C) and rainy today I still love it!