FeralBeryl

Got that right. And so many beaches to choose from. It is almost overwhelming deciding which one to go to. I do all my shopping in Mona Vale. It is a fantastic little suburb. MV beach is one of my favourites too. Love the rockpool for swimming. Saw a humpback whale from MV beach last year too. Just fantastic. Do I miss living in London. Well that would be a big fat NO.

Difficult to say. I live in Bilgola on the Northern Beaches and work in the CBD. I absolutely love Bilgola and could not imagine living anywhere else. I am within walking distance to the beach and can see the sea from my house. Yes the daily commute can get a bit boring. But that is the sacrifice I am happy to make. I start work at 7.30am, so I always beat the traffic to and from work. I do a combination of driving and train. A friend of mine catches the bus from Mona Vale to the CBD every day and either sleeps, or catches up with his emails (he is a solicitor, so has a lot of emails). Growing up in London I always dreamed of living by the beach, and now having the beach lifestyle is beyond brilliant. Honestly I cannot even begin to tell you how great it is. If you are that desperate for a beach lifestyle, then you will find ways to make it work. And if the commute gets too much, then move closer to work.

Have a look at the community paper and rentals: http://www.thebushtele.com.au/ https://www.realestate.com.au/rent/in-berowra+heights,+nsw+2082/list-1 May see you there!!!

Berowra has a fantastic community. Honestly everybody raves about it. And everybody I know that lives there, absolutely loves it. Very friendly and non-clicky. A great place to raise children. They even have a Berowra Community Newspaper, Berowra Mums Facebook page and a Berowra Community Facebook page, as I said, very much a village community feel. They have a doctor, dentist, church, pub, cafe and shopping centre there. Nearest big shopping centre is 15 minutes away in Hornsby. We have been to the woodchop and fine food festivals there recently. Very pretty too, as near a National Park, so good walks and mountain bike riding and horse riding. Very safe area. Apparently the biggest crime there is somebody having their garden hose stolen! You can rent a nice house there for $700 per week. Takes about 30 minutes to drive from Berowra to North Ryde. Or you can take a train or bus. We would like to buy a house in Berowra Heights.

If you want to live near the beach, then Caves Beach or around Lake Macquarie would be great, and less than 40 minutes to Newcastle.

Lovedale in the Hunter Valley is a nice place to live and less than an hour from Newcastle. Good restaurants, cafes, wineries, and wildlife. But not near a beach.

I would give that place a wide berth.

I cannot comment on their reputations. But I know a lot of schoolkids that live in Berowra and go to school in St Ives. They get the train from Berowra to Gordon (Waitara is on the same train line). Then a bus to the school. Doesn't seem to be a drama for them. Some schools also have their own buses that pick up and drop off for students that live a distance away.

Do a search on Tenancy Rights. There is loads of information online. It will explain how the rental payments work.

Funny. I would actually say the opposite. Why go through the expensive and stress of shipping things, that you can buy here. I say sell everything (expect for family heirlooms) and then use that money to start afresh in Australia. I don't see the point in shipping things like fridge/washer/dryer/TV/mattress/hoover, etc.... when you can easily buy them here.

My cat sleeps on my bed. In fact, usually on my pillow. I didn't check her properly when she came in. I got a tick on my eyelid. Had to go to hospital and have it removed. It was a very unpleasant experience.

Really! I didn't know that. I must have been lucky with all three of my cats over the years. They were all free roaming and all lived to 20. Then again, I have never lived near a main road with them.

Well it depends on where you plan to live. I live in Sydney and my cat goes outside. Never had an issue. But of course, living somewhere like Far North Queensland would be an issue, as they have scrub pythons up there who could eat a baby or a cat. And so, I would never move there with her.

They hardly ever get back to you even if you are in Oz. They have so many people viewing or applying for a rental, that they either don't have time or think they don;t need to. Just book into a motel or hostel when you get here for say 6 - 8 weeks, have a look around and apply in person. Took me a few days to secure a rental once I put my mind to it. Just make sure all the required paperwork is on hand, so this won't delay you once you are ready to pounce. If coming to Sydney, there are thousands of new flats just come onto the market for rent.

Google pony club brisbane - large selection to choose from

Emma. Just because other people cannot hack it or settle, does not mean you will have the same issues. Seems to me that most people go back because they are missing family. I don't miss my family at all, and have been extremely happy in Australia for 25 years now. You need to try things for yourself. Don't worry about what other people say.