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Hey i'm Sam i moved to perth about a month or so ago!(i'm a dude btw) i just turned 16 yeterday haha but bit gutted as my only friends are my family atm (N) wouldnt mind meeting up with people in the near future, we're renting a place in joondalup and hoping to be moving in to a new place in kinross in the up coming month! but anyway just get back to me if anyones interested thanks! P.s i'm on facebook also >:] Seeya

Heyy everyone, I'm Becca and I'm 14.:biggrin: Moving to Australia on the 26th Dec, dead excited, not really worried but would be interested in talking to someone around my age, who has already moved there or is soon. We're going to Canberra, ACT. :cute: Thanks, from Becca xxxx

Hi We emigrated to Australia in September this year after a very long and anxious process. We had a very good network of friends in England that we have regrettably left at home. We lived in Portsmouth (south of england) So we are seeking friends in and around the area of Rockingham, Waikiki. I am 40 hubbie is 41. 3 kids, 21 year old daughter, that is still in england, coming over after she finishes her degreee. Two boys 14 and 13. We are very social just trying to adjust to the australian way of life. Any meet ups or get togethers we would be interested in. Cheers. Sharon and Carl.

In May 2006 I moved back to the UK after 3 years living and working in Melbourne. The main reason for the move was career-motivated but I also wanted to move back because, contrary to popular opinion, I actually prefer life in the UK. Let me start by saying I am in no way anti-Australia or anti-Australian. My girlfriend is Australian, some of my best friends are Australian, I had some very good times when I was in Australia. Having said that, every day I am grateful for my move home and am 100% happy with my decision. It really annoys me that every time someone speaks to me about Oz they say ‘Don’t you miss it?’ ‘Why’d you come back?’ ‘You’re mad for moving back to rainy old England’ The truth is that most people base their opinion of Australia on one of the following – a) the stunning views of Sydney harbour and the Opera House; b) pleasant memories of watching Crocodile Dundee and/or Neighbours on the telly whilst growing up or c) if they’re lucky, a year-out bumming around on Bondi or the beaches of Queensland. People are really comparing their life in the UK to a surfy, bush-tucker stereotype rather than reality – so its, say, Manchester versus the Gold Coast, Liverpool versus the Whitsundays. People equate sunshine to happiness and therefore the grass appears much greener on the other side (of the world). Suburbia Sure, some people go to Australia and live the stereotype for real but the reality for the majority is vastly different from the beachy ideal. Over 90% of the Australian population don’t live on the beaches of Queensland but in one of 5 cities (despite preconceptions, their population is actually far more urbanised than ours). Due to virtually everyone living in bungalows and the Aussie dream of owning a quarter acre plot, the housing is extremely low density. This means that the suburbs stretch and stretch. In Melbourne’s case, suburbia stretches 40 or 50 miles from the CBD in literally every direction. Even when there isn’t any traffic on the roads, the outer suburbs are often over an hour’s drive from the city. You might claim to live in Melbourne but very rarely venture into the city. Most of these suburbs have nothing. Literally nothing. For entertainment there may be a pub in the suburb - But not the charming local that most Brits are accustomed to. Because there aren’t many – often one pub per suburb – they are huge. They often aren’t just a pub like we know, but a tacky pub / casino / betting shop monstrosity featuring row upon row of fruit machines, locally known as ‘Pokies’. The only other ‘entertainment’ is often a nearby mall. These are usually generic enclosed shopping centres with foodcourts, situated just off the freeway and surrounded by massive tin-shed developments. Just like in the States, these places tend to become the focus for teenagers hanging out and skipping school. Because of their locations, they also help to fuel the car culture. People drive everywhere. Trapped People often say that Oz has the kind if laid back lifestyle they are after. The reason the lifestyle is ‘laidback’ is because very little actually happens in Australia. Perhaps compare life in Australia to being in a coma – sure enough its quite comfortable, but feck all happens. The local music scene is ordinary at best (even requiring a local content quota on Australian radio). International acts often tag on gigs in Australia to the end of their world tours and bands only ever do proper world tours after they have really hit the big time. Really good up-and-coming acts rarely hit Aussie shores. Big Day Out, the biggest music festival in Australia and New Zealand, is the antipathy of the what a proper festival is all about – free spirit, rebellion and having a kick ass time. The event is a one-day event finishing at the rather conservative time of midnight. Alcohol can only be consumed in specially designated areas. The event does draw some big names but typical of Australia it is safe, bland, boring. When the bands do come, they come for a couple of weeks in January to play the Big Day Out franchise and a gig in each of the state capitals and then head home. In any other month of the year it is extremely difficult to see world class musicians down under. The same goes for standup comedy. Granted, Melbourne has a comedy festival every April but outside of this, you will never get to see world class comics in Australia. Between April and October the cultural calendar in Melbourne is empty apart from the AFL season. Winter in Melbourne is nowhere near as harsh as a UK winter but it does get cold, and wet, and windy. Because the seasons are back-to-front, there is no Halloween, Bonfire night, Christmas or New Year to brighten up the darker months. Beyond the almost endless suburban sprawl, there is often nothing (bare the odd redneck town) for many, many hours drive. Melbourne and Sydney may look like next-door-neighbours on an atlas but they are roughly a 9-hour drive apart. It is a strange thing that in this sparsely populated country which should feel more open, this geographic isolation actually makes you feel slightly trapped. If you get bored of Melbourne, its not that easy to just pop over to Sydney. On a bigger scale, if you get bored of Australia or just want a holiday abroad even New Zealand is a four-hour flight away. Melbourne and all the other Australian cities are nice enough in their own right. But you have to view them in context: both in terms of their location within Australia and Australia’s position in relation to the rest of the world. Utopia? Far from the utopian image that is often portrayed, Australia is not free from social ills – there is widespread gambling addiction (including a quarter of the world’s ‘Pokies’), a high crime rate (violent crime is more prevalent than in any other OECD nation) and rampant drug abuse (including a much higher use of heroin than any European nation). The casino is seen as the evening of choice for many. Almost every night on the shock-docs or evening news, stories are run on gangland or outback murders. The only time I have ever seen someone injecting heroin into their arm was not in a parked car by the side of a city park in Glasgow, but in Australia. Despite our moaning, Australia have poorer healthcare and education systems than we do – most middle class Australians have gone private. Medicare, to be frank, is a bureaucratic mess. Student debt and university funding is also in poorer shape with fewer Australians being able to afford higher education. Excluding the outback (where you can literally get away with murder), Nannystateism is taken to a higher level in Oz than Mr Blair could ever imagine. The Alternative Whilst not perfect, I believe the UK is a better home for me at this particular point in my life. There is so much I want to achieve in my career, things I want to experience and interesting places I want to go that Australia just can’t offer. It might be a great place for retirees wanting the quiet life, but it wasn't for me. Simple things that I completely took for granted when I grew up in England I really began to miss on the other side of world – Sunday dinners, rolling green countryside, long summer evenings, trips to Europe whenever I wanted, cider, the buzz of discovering a cool new band, decent, thought-provoking TV that wasn’t peppered with adverts, driving through cute little villages, exploring historic towns, watching snow fall, conkers. Most of all, I missed those days in January when its freezing cold but there’s pure blue sky and everything is crisp and it tingles slightly when you breath. The best thing about England is that it isn’t bland. It isn’t beige. It isn’t flat and suburban and dull. There may be things that I hate, but there are far more things that I love. Sometimes it is miserable but more often than not it is glorious. It is the highs and the lows. The past and the future. Love it, hate it. It is life at 100 miles per hour…. And for now, it is my home.

We have a dilemma, I have been offered two possible job offers in SA however our VISA is a 176 for WA..... Can I legally move and take up employment in SA even though my Visa is WA sponsored? I have read and been informed that I am only morally obliged to reside and work in WA....and can live / work anywhere. Is this true? Many thanks in advance....

:sad:Hi Guys I just felt I should write a post and share my wisdom with you all. Hope you are sitting comfy and I will begin......... Around Feb 2008 I decided after a few glasses of wine to post hubbies CV around the world, OH is a scaffolder by trade and at the time we both had good jobs and owned our houses. I received a response from a company in NZ who after a few months flew OH out to Sydney. He was there around a week and subsequently offered a position in Australia. We were soo excited although quite apprehensive. As neither of us are on the most wanted list and do not possess a degree we were granted a 457 working visa. OH gave up his job in UK and flew out in Oct 2007. I was left behind to pack and sell furniture, the children and I even ended up a week with a near bare house. I joined OH in Jan 09 we gave up both houses as neither had any real equity in them anyway. When we arrived in Perth I fell in love it is absolutely beautiful we stayed in Port Kennedy and Warnbro and were looking to eventually move to Secret Harbour. Things started to change with OH job and the job he was promised Senior Technical Advisor was not really the job he was doing. He was sometimes expected to work weekends without pay and the recession started to hit OZ. We were in a furnished rental which we extended and at the last moment our permanent rental fell through, so we had no where to live and panicked with that, feeling really homesick and my mum constantly asking when we were coming home, we decided to return to the UK in March 08. A relative let us stay in their caravan a bit of a squash with three children but we had no furniture which I hasen to add did not arrive back until Oct and is still in storage costing a fortune. I think as soon as we landed at Heathrow in March I knew deep down we had made the biggest mistake of our lives and have continued feeling this way ever since. To make matters worse my sister moved out to Perth as a PR and is loving it her hubbie is a police officer. We managed to find a two bed cottage just before xmas to live in until Feb and hope to be offered Social Housing. We were lucky in the fact we left our car here with family who gave us it back when we returned only an old Volvo but so realiable, sadly someone drove into the side of me before xmas so it is written off and I am going to buy another one. I had a brand new car in OZ on finance, which I lost lots of money on when we left. We ended up spending all our savings and are starting from scratch. The lucky thing is hubby was offered his job back in the UK as soon they knew he was back. Would we do it all again the answer is simply "YES" we would. We had a fantastic experience and so wished we there now and would go back tomorrow if he could find a suitable sponsor. But sadly deep down I don't think it is ever going to happen although he has lots of experience in his trade and travelled around Australia working for the six months he was out there I don't think there are many companies sponsoring on 457 anymore in his field. We will continue to live in hope and pray. If you are considering going out go for it but please think really really carefully about returning too soon don't make the terrible mistake we did!! Good luck to everyone going out you will soo love it like we did!!!:biggrin:

Hi there, My partner and I have just moved to Albury from London, just thought I would say hi as I just found this site, and if anyone knows any good running clubs or running routes please let me know Also looking for pilates or yoga classes with some friendly folks :twitcy:

Hello all, My boyfriend (25) and I (24) moved to Brisbane from Edinburgh at the end of August and are looking to meet new people. We are used to having a big circle of friends, are very social and would love to get out and about in the Brisbane area. My boyfriend has already started work, while I am currently looking. Would be great to meet up with someone in a similar situation as job hunting sucks, :jiggy: Look forward to hearing from y'all. Mhairi and Stephen

Im in a bit of a dilemna and was wondering if anyone out there could help me. A bit of background - we have had our 175 PR visa now for 21 months, was due to go last year but eldest daughter (who wasnt coming with us anyway) fell pregnant. I wanted to be here for the birth of my first grandchild who is one in a couple of weeks. We did our reccie to Sydney 12 months ago and loved Oz. My dilemna is: I have 15 year old triplets who are about to start Year 11 here in the UK in September. We have always said that we will wait for them to finish their education (GCSEs) here in the UK and then look to move over. A few days ago my husband was contacted by his company in Oz (he met up with them on our reccie last year) and they have a number of vacancies but are desparate for him to move over now. What do we do because im worried that if we dont like it in oz or dont settle then what do my other children do about their education if we return to the UK. Just wondering if anyone has been in this situation and possibly returned, does the oz education have any resemblance over here or would they need to go onto further education back in england before trying to get into uni. I know I might sound like im negative, I really dont want to have to return to the UK but you do hear a lot of people doing this so im just being very cautious. Look forward to any views. Debbie xxx

Im Chris and I recently moved from the uk to Melbourne, Im 18. Just wondered if anybody was in the same situation as me, finding it hard to make friends as im not joiining a school or anything..? I live in Kurunjang in Melbourne.... How are people finding Aus so far?

Hi My DH and I and our two little girls (3 an 1) got our permanent residency in June and I have been dragging my heels about the move to Perth! We are living in Ireland and things are so bad here at the moment it just doesnt make sense to stay. We are lucky that we have jobs and a bit of savings but in a year or two it will be a different story. Have been to Perth before ten years ago on our trip around OZ so know it is nice. Anyway - for those of you who have made the move are you glad you did it? Is it a nice place to live and can you see yourself living there long term? I know it is the right thing to do in the long term, I am just nervous as anyone would be I suppose and looking for some encouragement!! Have no problem leaving family by the way as we live 3 hrs away from everyone right now so it wont be a big adjustment - they might even visit us more often! Any tips/advice or personal stories welcome! Thanks

Hi I have just moved to Cleveland in the Redlands with my husband and 4 yer old son. We moved here from Sydney (although originally from the uk) and am looking for similar people with same age children who would like to meet for playdates,coffee etc. My son doesn't start school until Jan and is desperate for some comany!!! Looking forward to hearing you!!!:biggrin:

Hello.... yeah I moved from England 3 days ago, looking for some people in the same area-ish and same-ish age. Also any aussies that might read this, could you tell me when the Football (soccer) season starts and finishes and any teams i could look at, I would be Under 18's Thanks , Chris.

Hi all, Please can the nurses moved to Oz in 2011 and in the process of moving sahre information about the type of visa (457 or PR) and also the time line as it will help us to decide the type of visa. The hospital is happy to sponsor my wife on 457 but not ready to wait for PR (advised by the ageny not directly by the hospital as applied using agency) and apply for PR once in Oz. So this is not sure when once u are in OZ. As we have school going son and we are moving to Sydney (NSW) the school education is not free if ur on 457 and also for as a spouse it will difficult to get the job as agencies do not conside ur if ur on 457. So would like to have more info from nurses who moved recently and also in the process of moving to decide whether we can proceed on 457. Appreciate any advice or info. ....Manish

Hi All, I'm a recently qualified primary school teacher moving to Perth within the next 6-8 months. I'm wondering if there are any other overseas teachers who have got jobs in Perth or elsewhere in Western Australia and did you find it difficult to obtain jobs in Australian schools? What kind of process is involved? I'm a bit worried about the job prospects because of my lack of experience, I'll have a year of relief teaching by the time I go. Any advice is appreciated, thanks!

Hello my name is Aisling I'm 21 ive just moved to bunbury with my family from london.. and well I didn't realise how scarey it would be.. I would like to meet new people that are in the same poision as me and also looking to met new people as its quite hard.. so don't be shy love to hear from people of all ages.. thanks

I just heard about it on JJJ. One of the 'Melbourneistas' just said that they 'are all on the same page' so they must all have their Blackberries and I Phones working. Where would a revolution be without Steve Jobs eh? I expect to see his photo replacing Che pretty soon!

I know migration is a massive step, but, has anyone on this forum gone through the pricey migration process, Visa's, etc, and moved to Oz without visiting the country first? :huh: I'm soooo very tempted to do this, rent out the house, and go for it. I do realise Visa's take time and that's if you're lucky enough to get one, have enough points, etc. Crazy or not?? :chatterbox:

Hi Everyone!! My name is Wesley and my partners name is Suzie and we have both been living in Sydney now for 2 weeks! Were both from the UK (obviously! lol!) and managed to get a work sponsorship visa! We are both around 26 years of age and would like to consider ourselves as quite outgoing! :biglaugh: We like to do the normal things - socialising, checking out new places, going out for meals, gym and partying! We are looking for like minded people (singles, couples, whatever) who enjoy a good laugh and fancy catching up! If your interested give us a shout! Wes & Suzie

How long did you book your holiday rental & did it work out a good amount of time? :wideeyed: I am booking mine now & am not sure that 1 month is long enough to find a furnished rental :confused:

Not planning to do this myself as am not brave enough but wondered if anyone else had???

Hi there, I may be repeating myself here, as I thought I had created this thread, hardly use this site, so not sure how it all works!! Anyway.... I have just moved to Glenelg from Melbourne (spent 2.5yrs in Mount Eliza) Mark my Australian husband, got a job promotion, so thats what brings us here. I met Mark in the UK (Bradford, W/Yorks) and then moved over, I have just got back after spending 3 months there. It would be great to meet some pommies in the area, iam not working so iam free for coffee if anyone would like to meet up.:chatterbox: Thanks Julie (aged 43yrs)

Hi, My family and I have recently moved from Warwick, to Mount Martha on the Mornington Peninsula. We have two teenage daughters who have settled into school and made friends. I am waiting to register as a nurse and would like to meet to socialise. Does anyone have any links to meet people?

Hi everyone! Just moved to Perth last week with my husband who will be working fifo from next Tuesday. Currently looking for an apartment in the city. Just wondered if there was any other fifo wives around Perth City? Or, if anyone else could suggest somewhere else for us to look for an apartment? I cant drive so I thought the city would be great as its in the middle of everything and we can get our shopping delivered. Thanks guys!! :smile:

My daughter will be 12 turning 13 when we move to Perth (I'm a mental health nurse) and was just wondering how was it for any parents who have moved to OZ with an only child? Any challenges faced? Are they any after school clubs/programs? Lucky for me and herself she is very outgoing and makes friends easily, I would find after school activities such as judo etc depending on my shift at work. It will just be the two of us as her dad is no longer with us. Also I was wondering if you could recommend any suburbs please as I'm looking for: *quality education *low crime rate *good cost of living *jobs/employment for nurses *family oriented/community spirit/feel *great transport links *multicutural