Amaike

OK so we've finally resolved all the financial issues (I think) and now just waiting for my oh's spouse visa to come through. The next big decision is - where to live?

...Any suggestoins anyone?

Throwing Winchester into the mix. Gorgeous town, 1 hour into London, and it's got Southhampton Airport nearby which is good for getting to France.

sorry to hear the news. Hope you and he are getting support from those around.

I also have to agree with the other comments on here about the difference it makes once you are stuck thousands of miles away from family when you have children. Perhaps women feel this more than men. We brought an 18month old over here and subsequently had a child over here. As a young mum I struggled terribly without the support of family around me. I felt my kids, my siblings and my parents sadly missed out on those relationships only family can provide. True they have had wonderful outdoor lives with friends and swimming pools in the garden and fantastic beaches down the road. However they have really missed out on cousins, aunts and uncles and grandparents in their lives. We have often visited the UK over the years and even spent a two year stint back there when they were in primary school. Now they are 16 and 19 and are both planning to return to the UK. Now divorced from my Aussie husband I will be right there with them! I had a fabulous time in Australia as part of a couple. It's a friendly, laid back, outdoorsy kind of place but I cant wait to come home.

How have you managed to convince your now-Australian children to move back when they have spent all their lives here? I agree with your sentiments about missing out on aunts/uncles/cousins, it's just not the same with friends no matter how close they are.

Would you have gone back to England sooner if your husband had agreed?

How exciting that you are thinking this way. If you have current British passports then you can just walk in. You can keep both passports. When I travel I always leave Australia on my Aussie one, and enter the UK on my British one. The airlines and customs staff are used to it.

I grew up in Australia but to British parents and have never really felt at home in Australia - I always knew there was something a bit different about me but could not put my finger on it. So much of our culture comes from Britain that when one goes there it really can feel like going home. I certainly intend to go back and live there one day. It feels much more like the world is happening there, whereas in Australia I feel the world is passing me by.

Re employment, it may be easier to line up a job once you are there but if you need job security tap your family network or try Gumtree/LinkedIn/whatever you like to use.

Good luck.

Hello,

 

Well I have been in Sydney for 3-4 months and I am struggling! Is there anybody else around who feels similar? I was here on a WHV eight years ago, never wanted to leave but did, always wanted to come back, finally got my visa to do it, and now I regret it! I have a job related to my industry but badly paid... miss my old job, miss the UK as well as Dubai where I lived briefly before too. I am single so nobody around going through the same thing, though I have met a few people via "Meet Up". I have rented my own apartment as I thought it would help me settle but all I do is worry about the cost! Anybody else going through the same, has similar tales or even wants to meet up??

 

 

 

Hello Swainey

 

You are right it is tough, and there is something debilitating about "not belonging" - it can be all pervasive. I got here 8 months ago from UK, and still find I have good days and bad days. It is strange how when you are homesick, all the sunshine and blue skies don't matter. You have to keep busy, and realise that for whatever reason you are here because of decisions you made, and you can either go on feeling awful, or try to do something about it. sometimes it's OK to be depressed for a while too. Do you have options? If you're in a position to give it a few more months then know that you can go home if you don't like it by then, it's not so bad.