cmcdevitt

I'd give it another 6 mths - we are back on holiday after 3 yrs away on a spectacular winters day. Truly beautiful. Worth it if the jobs are going well to keep going for a while longer.

Sounds similar to us. Having been renting in Sydney for 7 years we still couldn't buy. Came out with a 3 and 1 year old and left when they were 10 and 7! We've been back 2 years and are renting in a new area in the UK which has worked out well. It's good to be back for the familiarity of things but the weather is grim at the moment. We stayed long enough in Oz to get our passports so we could always go back. Life is about connections and rootedness and a sense of belonging - although now back we haven't seen as much of extended family as we thought. If you can pick up jobs again in Scotland then do it - but don't burn your bridges in case you want to come back. Hope this post helps a little!

eBay was great for us - prompt responses to all the items listed. The cars went first! Some things like oil heaters we just sold for a dollar each as it was summer when we left. It's swings and roundabouts I guess.

There were some apartments in Drummoyne along Lyons Rd - email to drummoyne@waldorf.com.au or google Waldorf apartments. We used them and they were ok. Hope this helps!

I sold two cars on eBay - below market value but they both went within an hour of advertising them!

Thanks Fiona for that - we are week 9 I think in being back and that's what we've decided to do. All 3 kids at the same primary - just letting them chill out and not try and replicate Oz life here. They've been pretty good so far - access to cousins has really helped!

Great post Jerseynic! If you are on the cusp then don't do it - if you need to do it for sanity then absolutely do it! I think life is harder to live day to day but if you need to have a heritage then it's the place that can offer it. If the kids put their coats on to go out - no worries! We gave Oz 7 years and couldn't make it our home - our eldest boy of 10 was in an amazing school in Sydney that we couldn't match here in the UK. However watching him play with cousins made such a feeling of settledness come over me that I think this is probably better. You need to be convinced in your decision making process because you will be forced to revisit why you made the decision once you are back the Northern hemisphere!

We just moved from Oz to near Stamford in Lincolnshire - unbelievably beautiful. Kids have settled in the local school at the RAF Wittering base - they and the school were refreshingly relaxed - Q: when can they start? A: fill in the internal school form and they can start tomorrow! Just got our shipment from Oz this weekend - 8 weeks after having arrived which brought it home that we are here to stay. No regrets as yet - we are 2.5 hrs away from each set of family and the lighter nights are already in evidence. People are a little more reserved here and there is a rougher edge to Peterborough city centre than Sydney. It's about trying stuff and seeing what resonates - we never put roots down in Sydney much as we loved it. GBP500 per week was another reason. Wages lower here but so are costs. I want to drink beer in Belgium, drive through France and visit Spain - all unreachable from NSW. It's about roots in the end I think! Hope this helps.

We're still waiting for our stuff to arrive having left on 12th Jan. OSS shippers in Sydney seem very good so far. Good luck with your plans.

Why not talk to OSS shippers in Sydney about what you want to do - they were very helpful when we moved in Dec.

Very similar to Quoll - stayed. 7 years in Sydney and have just moved back - this our 3rd week in the cold! It's great even though there are lots of hurdles - jobs and schools for two. But, family were great in taking our 3 kids of us for a week so that wife and I could scoot around a bit faster. I feel more settled in the short time we've been back and want to feel that our adventure in the sun was a great experience to look back on. No doubt we'll lose our kids back there as soon as they are independent now they are citizens!

I agree - we've settled in East England with no prior knowledge of the area and it has some benefit to it! Schools are really hard to get right for all 3 children - they've been out of school since Dec when they finished up in Oz. It's such a big part of their lives, and ours! We think we might settle for them all to be together - at least they'll see each other during the day which would be good. Good luck with your move!

We're just back from Oz living in Peterborough. Day to day is a bit tougher with the cold and snow at the moment but the house prices are very refreshing at least! My wife has a job locally but it looks like I'll need to travel to Guildford and stay away 2/3 nights a week for the moment - not so much fun. Anyway it's the beginning of a new journey for us!

We found a great place to rent in Liberty Grove - a housing complex near Olympic Park with pool/gym etc - $720pw for 4 bed house. Worth checking out. --- I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=-33.841129,151.084861

Happy to Skype the interview as moving back in Jan after 7 years in Oz! --- I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=-33.841117,151.084598