Cheery Thistle

I am in process of shipping and using Doree Bonner. John Mason also seem to have good reviews and were similar price. As above we are using LP for insurance.

Emergico, True Blue, DUC, Go Matilda. Good luck with it.

I think some people have managed to get successful skills assessments with the SCITT but it’s a battle, takes a while and only a few are successful. You will need a successful skills assessment to go for a 189/190. Registration with the teaching boards for each state are a different thing and unrelated to the skills assessment. Good luck with your pathway - could you not do a WHV and then transition to a partner visa after you’ve lived together?

Sounds like you’ve had a bit of a hard time of it recently and it does feed in to what I was saying about a change of circumstances often leading to this decision….be it a break up, having children, an illness. It does sound like you’ve thought it through and are at least aware of potential downsides. Your salary cut might feel a bit worse than you expect it to just because prices here have increased a lot…..everything from haircuts to insurances have increased by 20-30% since Brexit and Covid. I used to pay £75 for my hair colour and cut - it’s now £120 for example. Went up in Covid and never came back down! We fully expected Aus to be much more expensive than the UK but it wasn’t really. I truly believe there is no such thing as ‘moving back’ - you move forward into a new life in the UK, as things and people will have changed in the interim. I don’t think you can fail, you can only learn. Wish you all the best and if it’s not for you, you can always ‘pong’ back, or have a new adventure somewhere else!

Thank you! I tried to be as honest as possible in my reflections on that trip. Admittedly perhaps my posts about the UK are probably not as balanced! Life in the UK just feels very…..embattled to me at times. We have had a few dry days in the past week which always helps and I’m close to escaping for a week in the sun too. Blue sky is such a novelty! DH and I know this move might not be forever but we doubt we’ll come back to the UK. Never say never, maybe I’ll be back on this section of the forum in 5 years! I think it bothers me a bit when people say they have more £ in the UK as well - what they often forget to say is that they’ve got that from earning more money in Aus or selling property there making a big gain and bringing it back, enabling them to have a low (or no) UK mortgage. Let’s at least have disclosure and honesty!

I haven’t argued against anything or overlooked any element. I have said (from what we can see from one limited post) it’s probably a good idea to move for this person and wished them well. Not everyone who posts about returning says they feel alienated. Some say they miss family, some have young kids and want a support network, some just feel like their initial reasons for moving are no longer valid (lots move when they are footloose and fancy free in their 20’s but find it’s not that practical when they have a young family). That’s all fair enough. I can literally never understand why you want to try and start a fight in every empty room you’re in @Marisawright. What I would say to @Dougie is consider carefully where you head to in the UK and try to choose an affluent pocket (if you can afford it). Also great that you can keep options open. Have no desire to hijack this soul’s thread and suggest neither should you @Marisawright.

I’m usually the first to say to think about this really carefully. But usually those people have kids and to be honest I do think Aus is generally a ‘better’ environment for kids and young people. But it sounds like you’re on your own - if you don’t want to stay by this point you probably will never feel comfortable there so I say go back. As for trips to Europe - as a Europhile and multi-linguist I will miss trips to Europe more than most. But I’m moving to Aus for the impact on our daily lives - not for the rare trips to Europe (that have become much less affordable in recent years). Good luck with your move back it definitely sounds like the right love for you.

Yes it was the same in that Airbnb, a drain in middle of bathroom. Boak!! It was a ringtail possum I saw on the telegraph pole - the tail at first made me think it was a rat!

Oft Marisa I will almost certainly be outsourcing that to an expert - I’ll pay for the platinum package just to make sure Worst comes to the worst, Mr Thistle can always be a human shield - knew I’d included him on my visa for some reason!! The cockroaches were the worst that we saw on our trip - or maybe the 2 possum encounters, the second of which I first thought was a rat!!

Well your winter sounds better than our summer this year. I have had central heating on several times in July - that’s unheard of in my lifetime. It’s very strange. I’m bringing 2 coats, one heavy padded waterproof Jack Wolfskin jacket, several pairs of boots and jeans, a light non padded waterproof jacket and also waterproof over trousers! Be prepared lol. But most of my recent purchases have been ‘summer’ clothes or things I can layer. Our Airbnb in Brissie had some cockroaches - became a running joke with hubby and daughter - me vs cockroach, every night running about spraying all the nooks and crannies, to get up the next morning to several lying dead on their backs!! We are looking forward to an adventure and just hope it’s the right move. Time will tell.

We are headed to Brisbane. Wanted to escape winters. I’m fairly sure that winters are milder in QLD than in Scotland. Though I’m sure someone on PiO will tell me I’m talking rubbish and QLD is freezing. Chilblains are not on my list of concerns - spiders and cockroaches are though! We are not moving for the weather, but climate is a factor in our move - if it wasn’t Aus we’d be going somewhere else warmer. It’s not just the cost of living crisis exactly here, it’s the combination of that with low wages and the lack of investment and the lack of public money, the closure of services. You’ll (maybe) see what I mean once you’ve been back a while. For example, a local school parent who is in the parent council told me the school has £8 per pupil per year for resources. My daughter’s swim club has a constant battle to find suitable venues for swimming lessons because so many pools have closed. In Brisbane we were literally tripping over pools and free lagoons/splash pools. We were also pleasantly surprised by the price of things when we were over - found many things to be very similar in price and going out was definitely quite a lot cheaper. My advice to anyone moving back is to try and move to one of the more affluent pockets if you can afford it and jobs allow - that way you’ll be cushioned somewhat. This article gives a wee insight into my ‘whingeing’ https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-66954929.amp North Lanarkshire to close 39 pools, leisure centres and libraries. Also attaching some pics of the bare shelves in supermarkets (taken in the middle of the day, not last thing at night) and a video of our summer so far (watch with volume up)! IMG_7629.mov I genuinely wish you all the best for the move back and if you strongly feel that’s where you should be then it’s likely you’re right and all the other stuff is completely irrelevant/insignificant. We have reached the point of no return with our move and we’re going to find out for ourselves the challenges of living in Aus. It’s true that life is a challenge no matter where you are. Good luck with it.

Well there’s definitely a reason you moved, which may come into sharp focus when you return! That’s similar to us - feel very privileged to have a choice. Have decided if Aus doesn’t work we’ll go to Europe - hubby has Irish grandparents - we are definitely craving a warmer climate. 43 Scottish winters is enough. I think the big difference for us is our stage of life, we are a bit older with just one parent left between us and daughter about to start high school. Don’t have young kids or a massive supportive extended family. It’s an exciting move for you guys, wish you all the best!

That’s how I feel about the UK. I am just so ‘done’ with the lifestyle and systems here! I can’t put it into words! So I completely understand.

We haven’t built Aus up as ‘perfect’ (we went for a look around and I posted my thoughts on our trip elsewhere on the forum) but it’s a change and I think that’s actually what we need. So I haven’t really got massively high hopes, hopefully if my expectations are low-ish/realistic we might not be too disappointed. It would have to go some to beat the health scenarios we had here though. Really go some. But that’s another story. Lockdown was strict across the whole UK (except Downing St ) having 2 lockdowns across Scottish winters was the absolute pits. I can’t even put into words how traumatising it was with my mum being so ill as well. It was just - too much. Dealing with a 6 year old only child and a dying parent in that environment. More than happy to admit this has coloured my perception of the past 10 years here and we are looking forward to a fresh start. People who have had other experiences will perceive things differently I’m sure. We need a reset and an adventure and I’m more or less sure Aus will give us that. If we win financially too that’s a bonus! I don’t want to hijack the thread (it’s not ALL about me after all lol). So wish the OP all the best with this big decision and I’m glad that Cheshire is working out for you too @Amber Snowball. I’ll let you know how I get on.

You are probably right! I do need a change and I’m glad to have this opportunity. It might not be forever but I don’t think I’ll be back to the UK if Aus doesn’t work out. I have had enough, totally. Brexit was the start of it. Covid, Scottish winter lockdowns, homeschooling, and watching my mum die of lung cancer during lockdown without being able to see anyone or go anywhere, then having a Covid funeral was probably the last straw. Then a series of medical debacles with my hubby and the NHS which I won’t go into. Since then having to watch what used to be vibrant and well looked after areas get run down and facilities close one by one due to a lack of resources has given me a drive to get out more than ever before. I have worn sandals once in Scotland this year. It’s almost mid July. Everyone is tearing their hair out with the weather!! I might end up feeling the same about Aus. But at least the sun will shine some of the time and I can always move again! Also just to add that all of the things I have stated at the end are factual, about the economy, the doctor/dentist, the salaries etc. These are not my opinion.