Guest Nelson Posted June 8, 2006 Share Posted June 8, 2006 I'd love to hear experiences (good and bad) from people who have never visited (or don't intend to visit) Australia before emigrating. I know many people make fact finding visits beforehand but if anyone has any really good tips, once again, answers on a postcard, please :?: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sean Posted June 8, 2006 Share Posted June 8, 2006 hi krista,we have never been to aus before, but are due to leave here in two months(aprox) . personaly i think a fact finding mission would have proved fruitless for us (and expencive) for many reasons, :shock: ..it is just such a big place and we would'nt have known where to start,or had time to see every where so would have come back, and still not realy been any the wiser, at the end of the day we just tell our self's it's got to be better than here,if not now then in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ABCDiamond Posted June 8, 2006 Share Posted June 8, 2006 Before I migrated, I came here twice in the 12 months before I actually moved, both times for about 4 weeks. Those 8 weeks were not long enough to get a real impresssion of everyday living. They did however impress upon me the need to move here. Sometimes, I feel that those who do NOT visit first find it easier, as they haven't had that earlier "holiday" experience to live up to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wfourie Posted June 9, 2006 Share Posted June 9, 2006 I have never been so am going completely into the unknown although my hubby went in feb for 2 weeks. Becca Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scott&lisa Posted June 9, 2006 Share Posted June 9, 2006 We are expecting to be in Oz in the next couple of months and we have never visited before - as sean says it would have been an expensive trip, money saved to pay for the actual move, and going across for 2-3 weeks isn't long enough to appreciate actually living there. When we tell people we are moving to the other side of the world where we have never been before, they look at us like we are slighty nuts!!!! However, being on this forum, it has put our minds at ease to know we aren't the only nutters doing it!!!!!!!! You only live once! Lisa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stuckinblighty Posted June 9, 2006 Share Posted June 9, 2006 Another nutter here We've never visited either but hey ho in for a penny..... regards,Lee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest choobs Posted June 9, 2006 Share Posted June 9, 2006 Another nutter here We've never visited either but hey ho in for a penny..... regards,Lee We've also never visited, but we do have family there who are sponsoring us, and who we've spoken to on Skype on many occasions. They were over here for a wedding last weekend and we got to spend a few days with them, grilling them about all things Oz To be honest, every place has its problems and life is what you make of it. We're not naive enough to think we're moving to paradise, but hell - it can't be any worse than here, right? The main thing is, there are opportunities for our children that don't exist here as well as a more child-centered culture. Cheers Choobs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dee Posted June 9, 2006 Share Posted June 9, 2006 Hi there we went to Oz without visiting and it was great - few ups and downs and unfortunately we have returned finding it was not for us right now - my husbands job offer was in Brisbane CBD and the areas we wante dto live in once there were way too far out for our liking and very rural - which is not good as I have 3 kids and we are only in our twenties. We loved the city in Brisbane and wanted to live nearer but only affordable and nice places to rent there were apartments! Sydney was not all is was cracked up to be for us - very similar to LOndon. However anywhere in Queensland was lovely and easy to settle. We feel it would suit our lifestyle to go back in about 10 years time as the kids will be early teens and we will possibly be laid back a bit more. However Oz is great and very liveable!!!! Good Luck :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Beki Posted June 9, 2006 Share Posted June 9, 2006 I've never, Rich has, I do however, have faith in his and all the other people who recommend Oz s judgement. As Aunty Mable says, "time to fly!" :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nelson Posted June 9, 2006 Share Posted June 9, 2006 Very interesting... I'm gutted at the moment as our purchaser has pulled out of our house sale saying she THINKS a modern house would be better.. This is 3 months down the line and our house is Victorian.. so why did she view it and go to all the trouble in the first place??? Back in limbo.............. :cry: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scoop Posted June 9, 2006 Share Posted June 9, 2006 Krista Bless ya hun Not what ya needing. Hope you get another buyer asap hun. Good luck with it. SCoop x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calNgary Posted June 9, 2006 Share Posted June 9, 2006 Krista What a prick ,i would have wanted to batter her,,keep smiling someone with a brain will come along soon im sure ,i dont know about where you live but things seem to be selling quite quickly round here,,fingers crossed for you ,, Take Care Cal x SO NEAR AND YET SO FAR x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skippy Posted June 10, 2006 Share Posted June 10, 2006 Krista, been there done that, remember [Hard int it] in the welcome part of this forum. Life is like a game of snakes & ladders with it's up's & down's, shake the dice and carry on as planned, things like what is happening to you only make you stronger in the long run, you will be able to smile about these things in years to come & probably be able to help others that find themselves in the same situations that you have encountered along the way. Looking forward to reading your book, Ha Ha. Happy Future Skippy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest spray21 Posted June 10, 2006 Share Posted June 10, 2006 I'm going to Oz next year and have never been. I don't think a holiday visit would let me decide whether I wanted to live there or not - got to just give it a proper go and find out! Like others have said, I trust the opinions of boyf and family/friends/colleagues who know me well and say I will love it. Not one person has said "Ooooh, is that really a good idea? Have you thought about x/y/z?" - everyone is green with envy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mark'n'Ju Posted June 11, 2006 Share Posted June 11, 2006 Hey Krissa, We left England with our house not exchanged and not a pot to pee in. People told us we were insane to take such a risk,but we had made the decision and had to do it,as all our stuff was allready shipped and plane tickets paid for.It did however give me an ulcer an rather a lot of grey stuff. In the end we exchange in Singapore and completed in Aus a week later!!!! My wife also had never been to Aus but hasn't looked back and loves it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nelson Posted June 12, 2006 Share Posted June 12, 2006 Hey Krissa' date='We left England with our house not exchanged and not a pot to pee in. People told us we were insane to take such a risk,but we had made the decision and had to do it,as all our stuff was allready shipped and plane tickets paid for.It did however give me an ulcer an rather a lot of grey stuff. In the end we exchange in Singapore and completed in Aus a week later!!!! My wife also had never been to Aus but hasn't looked back and loves it[/quote'] Wow! You've inspired me! I've always been a bit of a risk taker but this stupid woman who pulled out of the house sale really knocked me for six. I will give it til September and then consider letting the house..... Thanks to all who replied.. it's good! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest choobs Posted June 12, 2006 Share Posted June 12, 2006 Hey Krissa' date='We left England with our house not exchanged and not a pot to pee in. People told us we were insane to take such a risk,but we had made the decision and had to do it,as all our stuff was allready shipped and plane tickets paid for.It did however give me an ulcer an rather a lot of grey stuff. In the end we exchange in Singapore and completed in Aus a week later!!!! My wife also had never been to Aus but hasn't looked back and loves it[/quote'] Wow! You've inspired me! I've always been a bit of a risk taker but this stupid woman who pulled out of the house sale really knocked me for six. I will give it til September and then consider letting the house..... Thanks to all who replied.. it's good! It's not just you We agreed to sell our house in February to someone who has turned out to be a bit of a wiseguy. It's now June and looking like we have a firm entry date of 30th July, but still no missives signed. It's really really frustrating because we can no longer tell the difference between the truth and his "stories", but if we go back on the market it'll add months to our leaving date. Our trouble is we're too trusting and too willing to give people the benefit of the doubt. Choobs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest spray21 Posted June 12, 2006 Share Posted June 12, 2006 we're planning to get to oz next year but we've decided to try and sell our house this autumn and rent somewhere so that when we're ready to leave we can just give our notice and move out without hassle. (That's the plan anyway!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nelson Posted June 12, 2006 Share Posted June 12, 2006 With hind sight, I wish I had done that as well. We even said when we applied for the visa that if we weren't successful, we were going to have a big life change anyway and move elsewhere in Britain or Europe. I have suddenly heard of so many people who didn't make it to Oz because of not selling their house. Thankfully, we've got until next April, so I'm not desparate yet, but I do hate this country's stupid laws... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ABCDiamond Posted June 12, 2006 Share Posted June 12, 2006 I moved without selling the house. Just gave it to the agent to sell, and let my solicitior have power of attorney, so they could sign everything. Fortunately though, we didn't need the capital immediately. Everything went OK in the end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mark'n'Ju Posted June 16, 2006 Share Posted June 16, 2006 Hi spray 21 We also gave ourselves about 18 months to sell our house and rent until we left. Best laid plans and all that! My 1 bit of advice would be to use a solicter that yiou can walk through the door and gee up and not a corperate lawer firm like us where the only people you talk to are goons in a call centre :evil: But hey we're here now and thats what really counts. :mrgreen: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nelson Posted June 17, 2006 Share Posted June 17, 2006 Fortunately, my solicitor is one of my best mates!!! So, when we get the green light, it will be GO GO GO!!! :wink: Any who, we're having a massive yard sale today and I feel as if we're doing something really positive. It takes my mind off 'Sticky Beaks'! (Do you know what they are in Oz?? ... People who view your house with no intention of buying!!! hee hee!!!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest spray21 Posted June 18, 2006 Share Posted June 18, 2006 Our solicitor is just around the corner, so that's no prob. The nightmare will begin when we're in a chain with call-centre mongs messing the whole thing up. I can't wait! Lots of work to be doing first though to keep us busy. On a separate note, does anyone know how much furniture/electronics are over there compared to here? I'm considering buying a few bits here - like a king sized bed, and a giant fridge-freezer - then shipping them out with all the rest of our stuff. Only I don't know if it would be better to go with as little as possible and then do all the buying out there? If anyone has any experience of this then advice would be very welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ABCDiamond Posted June 18, 2006 Share Posted June 18, 2006 Check out the prices of fridge freezers here: http://www.infosync.com.au/thegoodguys/newv2/images/3887551306406Fridges2.gif But this company allows about 12.5% discount for cash, or even just for having membership of the RACQ, which you can get by swapping your UK AA or RAC membership. Therefore the Westinghouse 610 litre side by side will be down from $1,499 to $1,311 If you import one, the warranty may be of no use ? Regarding beds, these vary in price a lot, depending on type. But we also have different sizes. Australian Bed sizes Double 138 X 188cm Queen 153 X 204cm King 183 X 204cm UK Bed Sizes Double 135x 190 cm King Size 150 x 200 cm Super King Size 183 x 200 cm An Australian Queen is near enough a UK King, so when comparing prices, be aware of the difference. A couple of prices from a Domayne catalogue I have here: Sleepmaker Double ensemble $2,699 or Not major brand Queen Bed ensemble $599 (Double $549) Super Amart probably have even cheaper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jo Posted June 23, 2006 Share Posted June 23, 2006 A school friend of mine migrated to Adelaide from South Wales without ever having been there and has never looked back. She tells me she just looks at the webcams back at home if she feels homesick and then realises they're better off in Adelaide. She also likes the fact there are no fat people walking around in tracksuit bottoms in Adelaide! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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