Lambethlad

I'm hoping to get back for a visit next year. It's disappointing how many come here for the big money and adventure and seem to feel the need to trash Oz on the way out.

Great read. I think some of the more negative bits should be attributed to Sydney not Australia. To me Sydney is more like a separate country to the rest of Oz. You have to get away from Sydney to find the best of Australia.

Relief. Where I am 40 kms south its starting to cloud over and the temperature has dropped a few degrees. I don't think it will make 41 degrees here.

It's 10am and already 32 degrees so I'm going to Bunnings to buy a water sprinkler to leave on in the garden. I hate finding birds or possums dead or dying from the heat.

I think you should go by yourself. Your hubby has a temp job for 2 months, then what. If you are the main breadwinner they should support you. They sound a bit selfish. It wouldn't kill them to think of you and give it a go.

Good luck. Sounds like you have made a very pragmatic decision. Sydney is the worst place for new settlers unless you have very deep pockets.

They are talking about making all the road signs in Melbourne in Chinese and English.

Sydney is okay for a visit but I wouldn't want to live there. Melbourne has a unique character and culture unlike other Australian cities which are a bit bland and boring.

This appeared on Facebook today. Interesting set of observations from a visitor from the other side of the Pacific. David Mason is a US writer and professor, and poet laureate of Colorado. 1... Health care. I know the controversies, but basic national health care is a gift. In America, medical expenses are a leading cause of bankruptcy. The drug companies dominate politics and advertising. Obama is being crucified for taking halting baby steps towards sanity. You can't turn on the telly without hours of drug advertisements - something I have never yet seen here. And your emphasis on prevention - making cigarettes less accessible, for one - is a model. 2... Food. Yes, we have great food in America too, especially in the big cities. But your bread is less sweet, your lamb is cheaper, and your supermarket vegetables and fruits are fresher than ours. Too often in my country an apple is a ball of pulp as big as your face. The dainty Pink Lady apples of Oz are the juiciest I've had. And don't get me started on coffee. In American small towns it tastes like water flavoured with burnt dirt, but the smallest shop in the smallest town in Oz can make a first-rate latte. I love your ubiquitous bakeries, your hot-cross buns. Shall I go on? 3... Language. How do you do it? The rhyming slang and Aboriginal place names like magic spells. Words that seem vaguely English yet also resemble an argot from another planet. I love the way institutional names get turned into diminutives - Vinnie's and Salvos - and absolutely nothing's sacred. Everything's an opportunity for word games and everyone's a nickname. Lingo makes the world go round. It's the spontaneous wit of the people that tickles me most. Late one night at a barbie my new mate Suds remarked, ''Nothing's the same since 24-7.'' Amen. 4... Free-to-air TV. In Oz, you buy a TV, plug it in and watch some of the best programming I've ever seen - uncensored. In America, you can't get diddly-squat without paying a cable or satellite company heavy fees. In Oz a few channels make it hard to choose. In America, you've got 400 channels and nothing to watch. 5... Small shops. Outside the big cities in America corporations have nearly erased them. Identical malls with identical restaurants serving inferior food. Except for geography, it's hard to tell one American town from another. The ''take-away'' culture here is wonderful. Human encounters are real - stirring happens, stories get told. The curries are to die for. And you don't have to tip! 6... Free camping. We used to have this too, and I guess it's still free when you backpack miles away from the roads. But I love the fact that in Oz everyone owns the shore and in many places you can pull up a camper van and stare at the sea for weeks. I love the ''primitive'' and independent campgrounds, the life out of doors. The few idiots who leave their stubbies and rubbish behind in these pristine places ought to be transported in chains. 7... Religion. In America, it's everywhere - especially where it's not supposed to be, like politics. I imagine you have your Pharisees too, making a big public show of devotion, but I have yet to meet one here. 8... Roads. Peak hour aside, I've found travel on your roads pure heaven. My country's ''freeways'' are crowded, crumbling, insanely knotted with looping overpasses - it's like racing homicidal maniacs on fraying spaghetti. I've taken the Hume without stress, and I love the Princes Highway when it's two lanes. Ninety minutes south of Bateman's Bay I was sorry to see one billboard for a McDonald's. It's blocking a lovely paddock view. Someone should remove it. 9... Real multiculturalism. I know there are tensions, just like anywhere else, but I love the distinctiveness of your communities and the way you publicly acknowledge the Aboriginal past. Recently, too, I spent quality time with Melbourne Greeks, and was gratified both by their devotion to their own great language and culture and their openness to an Afghan lunch. 10. Fewer guns. You had Port Arthur in 1996 and got real in response. America replicates such massacres several times a year and nothing changes. Why? Our religion of individual rights makes the good of the community an impossible dream. Instead of mateship we have ''It's mine and nobody else's''. We talk a great game about freedom, but too often live in fear. There's more to say - your kaleidoscopic birds, your perfumed bush in springtime, your vast beaches. These are just a few blessings that make Australia a rarity. Of course, it's not paradise - nowhere is - but I love it here. No need to wave flags like Americans and add to the world's windiness. Just value what you have and don't give it away. Source: http://www.theage.com.au/comment/put-away-the-flags-and-enjoy-your-country-on-australia-day-20140125-31fm4.html

You sound like you're having great time. Good luck with everything. I was wondering why it takes 24 hours to get from Singapore to Fiji.

I need a penis enhancement procedure. I know this because I keep receiving emails offering pills that will enlarge me. Also I have seen many "adult" videos that have convinced me of my inadequacy. I'm wondering if Medicare will pay for this.

The Australian taxpayer has been ripped off long enough for our infrastructure by Australian companies and workers. Here in south-east Melbourne we are desperate for new roads, bridges, freeways etc. If Chinese companies can build them in half the time for half the cost I'm all for it. Also I don't care if the Chinese are buying up the top end of the housing market. Most people could never afford to live in Toorak or Camberwell anyway. Hopefully it will trickle down and push up values in undervalued suburbs.

New home building is booming in Melbourne. Most new houses in Melbourne are of the brick veneer type. Son-law works for a major company that produces house frames and roof trusses - two months ago they had to stop taking orders because they just couldn't keep up with demand.

There must be at least one positive story from WDU.

Thanks for pointing that out. I do live in Skye and have done for the last 30 years. I always thought I was lucky living on 8 acres of peaceful paradise. Now I find I have been living in the worst place in Melbourne!

This has got to be a joke. For instance no one in their right mind would choose to live in Frankston North with its poverty, unemployment, crime and drug problems yet it is ranked much higher than Frankston and Frankston South which are vastly nicer areas. Frankston North has low property prices for a reason.

I have an old house in Frankston on a 900 sqm block which I have decided to sell due to problems with tenant. To get some idea of the current market I went to an auction. The property was the same size as mine but it had plans and permits for 3 townhouses. The estimated price range was $550,000 to $650,000 - it ended up selling for $718,000! I don't think you would get anything under $300,000 except maybe in Frankston North. So of course I now have engaged a town planner/architect to get the plans and permits for 3 townhouses to maximise the value. Frankston has always been the bargain basement for bayside property but people's attitudes towards Frankston are changing and values are starting to rise.

The only 7 seater I have driven is the Kia Carnival which is a dedicated people mover. It was very spacious and comfortable, easy to park and had plenty of power. I thought the sliding doors were great - it was very easy to get in and out of. 4x4s and SUVs are just wagons with an extra seat bunged in the back. If you don't need a 4x4 or SUV I would recommend the Kia.

I spent a couple of weeks in Cairns and Port Douglas in August and didn't see one mosquito or one fly. Everything was perfect. Also, I did swim in the sea as it was winter and the stingers had cleared off. I would love to live there. One thing I really loved in Cairns was the Woolworths Supermarket where they had two Japanese chefs creating the most stunning takeaway Sushi dishes.

It's a terrible traumatic situation for the children. Get the best legal help you can afford. The welfare of the kids is the most important thing and the law will decide what's best for them. Good luck.

Point taken. I can understand someone being unhappy but blaming and slagging off a whole nation and its people is a bit over the top.

Yeah and I also feel sorry for the 15 people who have "liked" the post they must be a sorry lot.

Pure greed.

Here I am having a great life and thinking Oz is the best place on earth to live, but after reading your post I realise it is really a living hell. I will try much harder to be miserable in the future. I am thinking you are probably winding us up - anyone who hates Oz as much as you wouldn't have stayed so long.

50 is only old when you're applying for a job.