Debbs72

Hi all, just a quick update. Me and Anon have met few time now for a few drinks. Don't be afraid to post asking for friendship. I'm happy to say we get a long great and are Intouch every few days. Makes a world of difference when you can just sit, laugh and have a girly chat no matter what age you are. Thanks poms in oz for putting me Intouch with Anon

I've sent you a pm Ann

Hi Ann,

thanks for your reply, what age group are you I have many friends in Australia younger and older than me. I'm not bothered about age to be honest. I see your from Cornwall origionally, I lived in Plymouth for many years before moving out here.

Debbs

Hi Ladies, I've been living in Cairns for just over a year now but not really made any friends. So looking for any Ladies out there that might fancy getting together for lunch, shopping or a few wines. I am married with 2 grown up sons. Just looking for friendship and some girly laughs and fun. I'm on the beaches end of the city.

Hi, I did my course through Med train. I did the administration and Terminiology. I got a job with a private practice and they said it was due to me doing this course as it touches on Medicare.

the link is

http://www.medtrain.com.au/

Hope this helps Good luck

Debbs

Hi, my son did this couple years ago. You will not be classed as a resident as you will not have lived or worked in the same place for 6 months. If you do pay tax which is normal even on a WHV approx 30% You can claim it back end of financial year. Not sure about how the travelling bit NZ. Very easy to claim back your tax if you are with a good employer. Just have your EOFY statement will tell you what you have paid and then you can just go to a mall where there are a lot of tax claimant officers or I use etax online takes about 15 mins so easy cost approx $90 tax refund normally in bank within 14 days

hope this helps Deb

Hi really can't be hundred per cent but son on a BVA wanted a holiday with his girlfriend to FIJI called immi as wanted to make sure wouldn't affect his visa was told anything up to 12 weeks depending on how busy office is could be 24 hours could be 12 weeks. Very hard to answer I'm guessing goes on personal circumstances maybe best to call and ask.

Deb

I don't live in Cairns and never have but from the several times I have been there ( includng a couple of weeks at Trinity Beach a few months back) I would say it is every bit as beautiful as pomqueen says. Gorgeous place. I expect we will be up there again early next year.

I could't have said it better myself. Just bought a house at trinity park. If I had to leave cairns I would go kicking and screaming. I walk my dog every day and think how lucky I am to live in one of the beautiful places in the world, barrier reef one side and rain forest the other...Boring...rubbish

Cairns is definitely safe and I would never class it as boring we moved to cairns from Sydney and I wouldn't want to live anywhere else in the world

Hi Deb,

i live in cairns what do you need to know, conincidental im also from Manchester

debbs

Hi I live in cairns, before we settled here we stayed in a few lovely places around trinity beach. On The Beach is very nice has lovely ocean views few minutes walk to beach bars and restaurants and local bus runs every 30 minutes in to the city costing $4.70 about £3 if you get a return you can use the ticket all day to jump on and off buses. We had an apartment that we lived in for a year that had holiday rentals at BLue Lagoon it's very peaceful beautiful resort and same as above few minutes walk to everything. Not stayed in the city so can't help you with that. Just 2 suggestions for you.

Debbs

Hi, we live in Cairns and it's fantastic if you want wonderful scenery, temperatures and stunning places to go cairns is for you. I work for a health service and deal with the hospitals they are really good places for your wife to work. We have found cairns really friendly. Property is easy to find but you do need a pool for the kids.

Any If you need any info on the beaches areas of Cairns I can probably help.

Debbie

We didn't get insurance but we were really lucky nothing broken. TBH we were so preoccupied it wasn't until we got to oz and someone mentioned it we thought oh bugger.

Hi, we live in Cairns, Kuranda has a small wildlife park you can cuddle a koala. Hartleys Crocodiles are excellent well worth a visit. Such a shame about the tropical zoo was lovely place. Hope this helps

debs

Chillagoe do have backpackers, I've already mentioned it to Stacey many moons ago now lol. Cobbold Gorge is lovely apart from the road in which hadn't been graded the last time we went. Did you get to agate creek?

Another place you may fancy Debs is Undara Lava Tubes.

We we didn't get to the creek. The road had been done but God it was still really rough but we enjoyed it. I've seen adverts for Undara I think we will be trying there as well. Just started the camping thought I'd be screaming at every noise but I love it lol. Great way to see some fab places.

Stacey, have you thought about other places we were in the outback at a place called Cobbold gorge they were looking for staff it's a camping ground all the staff stay there as there's nothing for miles but where it is I'm sure would qualify. It's obviously Cairns way but it's an extra thing to look into. It's a stunning place they have a bar shop and tours. Off to CHillagoe next week another outback resort so will keep my eye out if anything going

Debbs

Hi, there's no way she can sponsor you unless you are her last remaining relative in UK no other immediate family alive and this is such a long process we had to do it for our son as our only way for him to stay with us. As far as I know she can get you an extra 10 points on your visa if you have a job that is required on the SOL list, they may have changed but last we looked it was still available.

Debbs

Hi Debbs,

 

What discharge papers did your husband received O/H did ten years in army and we are not sure if he has these only left 2015.

 

Thanks Lynsey

hi Lynsey,

when my husband left he was issued with a discharge notice it was just like a letter in the post. If he doesn't im not to sure who he would contact in the army but I think if he contacts payroll or human resources they will help him on the right track. It's better to get everything in advance before you apply for your bisa makes things go a lot quicker. You will need to fill in a form 80 if you are going for a 189 visa so will need the last 10 years travel abroad for you and your hubby I just went through holiday pics with round about dates I could remember that's one thing that holds people up not filling in that and attaching it.

Hope this helps let me know if you need any more info.

debbs

30 degrees in the evening - no problem wondering if you'll have to cancel bbq plans then!

Thanks for the offer of photos, will get back to you once we're a bit clearer about actual jobs.

 

Planning the move is such a strange combination of excitement and terror at times. Made so much harder by wondering if it's the right thing for the children.

Its ts terifying but worth it in the end, leaving family and friends is the hardest but you get there in the end. We were excited then me and my youngest 16 at the the time were terrified felt physically sick on the way over but it's worked out great. Oz is just an amazing country I really wish we had the opportunity to have brought our boys up here. I just don't have the same concerns as I did in the UK. I just find cairns peaceful yes there is crime of course ...not come across it but it's truly paradise

If you would like any pics of the local area just from where I live I'm happy to private message you. I noticed your in the north east. My husband is from that way I'm a Manchester lass

Thanks very much Debbs, really helpful and reassuring. Certainly tempting as I get up ready to scrape the ice off the car and stand on my sons footie sidelines in thermals, still freezing!

Brrrr I certainly don't miss that. Infact I've never seen de-icer here I'm sat in 30 degree heat at 17.30 on a cool cairns evening lol

happy to help I know how daunting it is and can be moving,

Thank you Debbs, the beaches area sounds lovely. We would need to live within 20-30 mins of the public hospital for work. Would the beaches fit that?

Bit of a pathetic question but what's the bug/croc/snake situation? Are there a lot of mossies? Guessing there aren't crocs all over but is it fairly straightforward to avoid them?

The contents cost seems high but guessing buildings insurance will be eye watering!

Do you feel isolated in cairns?

 

Really appreciate the help from everyone on this thread.

Hi, pretty much as Pom Queen says. We live maybe 20 -25 minutes to the hospital the job I just got is across the road it takes me that long on a bus rather than parking in the city. Never seen any snakes but I'm sure they are around more towards the rainforest. I have seen a croc on the side of road but it was last year in wet season up near Catalan wetlands he was spotted again just the other night. It's very rare to see them and just as you would anywhere you don't venture into places that have the warning signs. The mossies have always liked me so I just spray myself if I'm going to sit out or go out in the evening I don't find them a problem. As Pom queen says spray round the house with mortein in Sydney I was forever fighting with huge huntsman spiders not had any spiders or creeps since we've been here.

I don't feel isolated here in cairns it's easy to get about and you don't have the craziness of the big cities. I'm going back to Sydney for a weekend break and cost me $190 return with carry on bag the airlines do some great deals here even Bali for $170 at certain times of the year.

We are now heading towards the end of wet season and I have to admit we've not had anything this year like you would expect although the humidity is pretty much up there still. Once the humidity has dropped its like a beautiful summers day blue skies, temperatures from what I know don't really drop below 17 in the day.

We have found our electric bill has doubled but now I'm being savvy with the aircon there's only one electric company so your kind of stuck with it.

they are developing all over cairns there are some really good properties to buy especially in the northern beach areas. Also plenty of places to rent they are nearly all on real estate if you want a look put in post codes QLD 4878 and 4879 that's the areas we have lived here.

anyway anything else you need help with or any more info I'm always around.

debbs

Hi I live in Cairns, we moved here mid January from Sydney as my husband was working here. We love it I'm in the beaches end I'm not to sure about the south. The humidity is a bit over whelming sometimes but we are gradually getting used to it. I don't know anything about the schools as my boys are older. The thing with cairns you have to think of is you have everything on your doorstep the barrier reef, the rain forest it's truly stunning. I agree with Pom queen this is probably the most beautiful place in world.

As your husband already has work that's good as work here is hard to find, my son and I have applied for probably over 200 jobs in the last 8 weeks luckily we both now have a job but they are quite hard to get.

i think it would be an excellent place to bring up children. I've never felt more safe anywhere in the world and we've done a lot of travelling.

We got a quote for contents insurance for $680 which was a shock as was only $105 in Sydney. I know this is due to the cyclone problems but I have in my experience had much worse weather in Sydney.

Anyway I know quite a lot about the northern end of cairns if you need any info. I've been up and down for the last year before we did the mive.

Debbs

Hi Leah,

My husband is ex forces and we had lived in Gibraltar when you apply for your police checks you just put it all down they do all the checking it takes an extra week or so but the discharge papers and everything you just add to the visa application it helps to speed things up,rather than being asked for it. We didn't have any problems. Hope that helps

Debbs

Hi can anyone recommend a good migration agent please?

Partner wishes to sponsor her sister to migrate here from Morocco.

Thanks

Hi, there is no family sponsor for sisters, brothers etc. She would need to come on their own merits through the SOL list if she has a trade. Unfortunately we were in the same situation we couldn't sponsor our son only on a 835 Remaining Relative visa which we had to prove he was and the wait for PR is 56 years, it's not an easy way but was our only way.

Debbs