Advice about the Gold Coast

[SophieBobs]

Hi Im Sophie and I am currently 9 years old. My family are moving to the Gold Coast in 2 years time and I am trying to learn all about the Gold Coast.

 

How easy is it to make friends? I will be 11 years old.

 

Im scared about moving and leaving my friends and family behind, can you give me any advice? :unsure:

 

What activities are there for children my age to do?

 

Is it nice place to go?

 

If you had a choice would you live in the UK or in Australia?

 

What has been the best thing about moving to Australia?

[Tulip]

Hi Sophie.

 

I'm sure it'll be a great adventure for you, and there'll be a lot to do with new friends in the Gold Coast as there's loads of theme parks and water parks, and zoos and wildlife to see. You'll be having far too much fun to be worrying about friends and family at home, so don't you worry about it.

I've been to the Gold Coast, and I'm moving there soon too. It's very hot there, and very sunny, with lots of public BBQ areas and new shops to see, and new foods to try.

I think the best thing about Australia is how lovely and warm it is!

[Goingbackagain]

Hi Sophie, we moved back here to the Gold Coast last year when my daughter was 12. She has made lots of friends and she keeps in touch with her old friends in the UK on Facetime and Skype, and instant messaging. She does still miss her old friends (of course) but she has lots of fun with her new friends too. The Gold Coast is a popular place for people to move to so you will most likely find that you are not the only new person in your class, and you probably won't be the only British person either! It is always sad leaving friends and family behind but you do get over that sad feeling and quickly adapt to your new life. Facetime and Skype and instant messaging really do help. There is heaps to do here on the Gold Coast, especially if you like sport. There is a good choice of sports clubs on the coast. My daughter isn't sport mad, but some of her friends do 'Nippers' which is beach surf lifesaving, and that is very social for the kids and their parents. Since she came here she has learned to surf. There are some big shopping malls here which have cinemas attached, and she often meets her friends there to watch movies. Someone mentioned the theme parks-my daughter and her friends saved their piggy bank money and bought a years pass to Dreamworld and often go there for the day. Some of her friends live near the beach so they pack up lunch and go and spend a couple of hours there sometimes on the weekends or holidays. There are plenty of public swimming pools here to go to, although usually you will know someone who has a swimming pool at home, if you enjoy swimming. If you like spending time with your family, and have the time, there are lots of picnic areas around the Gold Coast, and plenty places to go for the day. There is the Broadwater in Southport which is fun and has a swimming area, and Currumbin where people do all sorts of water sports from surfing to kayaking. The train to Brisbane takes about an hour and if you get off at Southbank there is an artificial beach beside the river, and tropical swimming pools to cool off in, and cafes, pubs and restaurants to eat at, as well as picnic areas. The pools there are free to use. It is near to the museum and other tourist attractions. That's a fun day out for everyone. The Gold Coast is very pretty and has rainforests in the mountains behind the Gold Coast where you can go bushwalking and you will see lots of wildlife. Where we live we see lots of wildlife in our garden-possums, wallabies, lizards and even some marsupials we don't recognise. We see lots of pretty parrots too. So that's the fun part. She said the best thing about Australia is the weather because you can plan to do things like picnics or going to the beach and mostly the weather stays good. (We lived in Scotland where it was often very cold and wet, even in summer) The worst thing for her, she says, is that she can't just go round to her friends house wherever she wants. People here live a bit more spread out and the bus network is not great, so she needs to get driven to friends houses. We lived in a city before and the Gold Coast, although they call it a city, it isn't really, and people need to have a car to get about easily, unless they live near Surfers Paradise. I hope this message helps you feel positive about your move to the Gold Coast because it is a great place to live.