Flights confirmed....January 26th!!!

[CherryAmeR]

Hi guys...very excited about this, we will be leaving England for Melbourne next month, very soon to be 'this' month actually!!!

My other half is transferring with his work so really everything is taken care of relocation wise...reading through the forum, I don't know how some of you are still sane with what needs doing! My head is truly bashed trying to close our life this end, very lucky to have the relocation organised for us.

Paul (OH) will be working in Williamstown, we have had a nosey at properties, mainly units (which seems to be an apartment?) and quite a few we like are popping up in Altona and Maribyrnong, is anyone familiar with these areas?

I won't be working straight away as Paul is so I will be the one to get everything set up for us...so I'm hoping to be able to meet up with some of you guys, share experiences and have a good old English bru ;-P!

Any advice from anyone would be appreciated, thanks :-)

Kashia and Paul x

[Guest Guest26012]

Hi don't know anything about Melbourne but exciting times ahead eh? We have lived in Perth for 5 years and life is good! I'm sure the melbournites will be along! Good luck!

[CherryAmeR]

Thanks Mad Cow ;-) xxx

[Ali B]

Hi Kaisha and Paul

Yay welcome to Melbourne. Its am amazing city. So much to do and the Moomba Festival is in March. Music is a big thing here.

williamstown is a suburb in the SW which used to be a separate town and got swallowed into Melbourne. Its very very lovely lots of cool bistros and a fab market on the foreshore. Fab views across the bay to the city. Its separated from Melbourne city centre by the Yarra River and Paul could commute from the other side but the Westgate Bridge is a killer in rush hour... People do go by train. We live in the eastern suburbs so i cant advise you on Altona for rentals or atmosphere. Williamstown will be expensive to rent. Id get Paul to ask around at work asap and just motor around at the weekend to get a feel of a few places.

Heres an estate agent to get you started but obviously NOT the only one!

http://www.sweeneyea.com.au/offices/property-for-sale-altona/sweeney-altona.php

Good luck

PS weathers great at the mo. About 25-30c but was a bit overcast today )

[Ali B]

PS i posted a new thread called "Reducing emigrating stress", might be useful to read!

[Ali B]

Btw

a unit = small bungalow often terraced in twos or threes with other units in a row side by side, almst no garden

a house = a normal detached bungalow on a slab of land

a townhouse = a two storey house often 3-4 bedrms small garden, often like Barratts type housing estates.

a flat = a flat in an appartment block

 

NB townhouses are being built everywhere now aspeople are knocking down houses and subdividing the land to build either three units or two townhouses

[CherryAmeR]

Hi Ali B,

Thanks for the housing descriptions :-) what we have seen are modern apartments....so definitely not units!

The weather sounds great...much better than the cold and rainy 7degrees here!

How long would you say it'd take to get from a western suburb to an eastern one? I have no idea yet on any of this! We're hoping to spend weekends and evenings exploring, site seeing and trying local cuisines :-) xxx

[Ali B]

Hi Cherry

Goodness - Melbourne is BIG and sprawls. One tourist site i saw said its about 90-100 km across give or take.

The Yarra River goes through the middle and is spanned by the Westgate Bridge. If youre lucky you can cross it quickly. It does get very jammed in rush hours tho. West to East?? Could be 1-2 hrs depending on time of day and traffic and which suburbs.