Lanky Lad Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 It was October 28th 2008 - 5 years after our first ever trip to Aussie. December 30th 2008, Manchester Airport - With the long sought after and expensive Contributory Parent visa safe in the boss ladies bottomless handbag - she , me, daughter and then boyfriend - now husband , - are waiting for a late flight to London Airport which will deposit us at Bangkok and then on to Sydney. Coming up to nine years in Oz.... the Kids are doing great and my wife and I have a 4 year old grandson - who speaks without a trace of Aussie accent. So what it like - is the usual question from those planning the big move...OK..well those "reccie's" ie the vacation in Aussie to see if you can deal with the heat... are not adequate to give you a taste of REAL life downunder... 6 months or a year may be about enough to give you an idea. Like dealing with council officials who take 9 months to get to your file....I kid you not. That smiling young lady you chatted with, conceived the night before and does not intend to do anything to tax her strength until after the birth! Same for the guys without the screaming and mess to deal with later! If you are lucky you will buy or rent a place next door to geriatrics, who do not have BBQs where everybody gets rat legged before driving their ute home at 3 times the speed limit - while playing some crap rapper at disco strength audio. A lot don't get home early because their ute is likely stuck in some poor sods bedroom and if they are lucky.. the occupants were not in bed! Now the fave sport here for the led heads...is the saloon car racing.... souped up engines and a saloon body shell wrapped around a super strength roll cage. Snag is your local hoon tries to emulate their hero in a well used third hand car that was over driven before they bought it...... never the less... it travels fast enough to smack into your house - having ploughed through a tree, your fence and if it avoids your pool... it will end up next to the ute but in your living room...sorry rumpus room! Its a dogs life .... honest... talking of which, your local council in the UK (before we left the UK) will usually act fairly fast if you complain about loud music , dogs left outdoors day and night who get so traumatized from lack of love and at interaction with their owners - so they bark at every noise, bird, cloud that passes over and just for the hell of making a noise to here somebody scream SHUT THE F__K UP. Over here.... complain to the Rangers.. you will be expected to negotiate with your neighbour - who is adamant his dog never barks at all...well being out all day and drunk by night.. they don't hear it. The good news is you get to live in a different house...because yours will mysteriously get burned out... or somebody breaks in and and trashes every wall ( no bricks inside the shell...just a wooden frame with plasterboard tacked on) And now every neighbour with a dog...totally ignores you! The police are seldom seen in your area... unless they live nearby.... so kids roaring about on semi skeletal scooters or motorbikes without a decent exhaust pipe to brag about... are a common sight! WE have a house about 100 meters away... their 14 year old arrives home from school about 3.30pm - mom and dad are out at work..and HE is wannabe drummer..... you can use your imagination for the rest. Now all those police not serving the local community can be found at the local station...going off the amount of police cars we see parked. Neighbour disputes in the UK and the offenders can expect a visit from the police to read the riot act, not the aussie police... they tell you to take the offending miscreants to court! ...Do so and sure as hell your house is in jeopardy - so there are no disputes with neighbours...ever! Now those police sitting in the local cop shop.... that is those not tasked to hide behind bushes with speed camera, or park up on the motorway to catch speeders...( we know where all their spots are and slow down! ) --- are making sure they have time to attend to Bikies gatherings or hoons racing about in make believe super cars so the y can chase them until inevitably they stop after seeing the hoons becoming embedded in a tree up the road. That hoon now stuck in a bedroom or a tree depending on luck...suddenly gets the attention of at least 5 or 6 police cars and a guaranteed spot on 7 news! I think they get attendance money for some jobs. Sadly an older guy living near us, died in the night... three police cars and two ambulances arrived. We thought everybody in the house was dead. So if you want to check out what its like living in in Aussie... just imagine you are moving to WestWorld..... but in truth for all the s**t that goes on.... we would NOT move back to the UK 2 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest241083 Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 ........where do you live...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanky Lad Posted September 21, 2017 Author Share Posted September 21, 2017 Central Coast, NSW 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest241083 Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 ........it's a shame your area is so loud...! ........it's a beautiful part of NSW ........can you move ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottieGirl Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 2 minutes ago, Tink said: ........it's a shame your area is so loud...! ........it's a beautiful part of NSW ........can you move ? It wouldn't make any difference. Lived in Sydney for 17 years and it was always noisy. High density living, poorly insulated houses and hot weather mean that with the windows open you can always here someone. I moved fom an inner city area with lots of younger folk having parties to a family burb with lots of kids screaming and playing outside. Didn't have to be your next door neighbours, sound carries. Not necessarily arguments either people could be having fun, not necessarily late at night. My neighbours had their poolside wired with a stereo. You have to get used to it like the Aussies do. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest241083 Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 ........I don't know lived all over australia ........and you can find quieter areas ........you need to visit day and night before you move ime ........I agree sound carries ........but hoons and barking dogs shouldn't be acceptable imo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottieGirl Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 The biggest problem is the housing density, in Sydney you need a to live a long way out to get more distance between. It drove me nuts when people asked if my dogs were outside dogs,. There is no such thing, they are pack animals and need to be with their pack. Indoors. If you want an outside dog get a cat. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanky Lad Posted September 21, 2017 Author Share Posted September 21, 2017 3 minutes ago, ScottieGirl said: It wouldn't make any difference. Lived in Sydney for 17 years and it was always noisy. High density living, poorly insulated houses and hot weather mean that with the windows open you can always here someone. I moved fom an inner city area with lots of younger folk having parties to a family burb with lots of kids screaming and playing outside. Didn't have to be your next door neighbours, sound carries. Not necessarily arguments either people could be having fun, not necessarily late at night. My neighbours had their poolside wired with a stereo. You have to get used to it like the Aussies do. Spot on.... I expect folk will not understand ..IF they have only been on vacation trips and not strayed in out of town area where few tourist tread. Our kidz ( mid 30s) do not have any issues about things like I write about - so obviously my older outlook is .... just that! My generation was likely the last where we were taught to respect others and be considerate! I once mentioned to the guy behind us that two young doctors had moved into the next door.... and worked early shifts.... ie they need to sleep. Water off a ducks back! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest241083 Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 ........lived in Sydney in the 60's ........perhaps we were just lucky .......people were more considerate ........agree about dogs .......they should be in especially at night 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottieGirl Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 Just now, Tink said: ........lived in Sydney in the 60's ........perhaps we were just lucky .......people were more considerate ........agree about dogs .......they should be in especially at night Sound systems were much less powerful back then Tink 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest241083 Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 2 minutes ago, ScottieGirl said: Sound systems were much less powerful back then Tink ........lol...... ........still having my wireless I forget the .........loudness that can now be achieved 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 We moved to SE Queensland. A wonderful neighbourhood, we are very lucky. Parties are rare and do not go on late. One neighbour in the next street (which we back onto) even delivered flyers giving advance notice of a special celebration and apologising for any noise. We slept in the spare bedroom at the front that night just in case and didn't hear a thing. The main impediment to sleep are the birds. They are so beautiful though I can't resent them for it. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramot Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 (edited) Well OP you certainly chose a neighbourhood that bears absolutely no comparison in any way to where I have lived on the Sunshine Coast for the last 14 years. So although this is your experience, it is important for potential new arrivals to know other posters have not experienced anything like the above post. Edited September 21, 2017 by ramot 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainR Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 Also 100% polar opposite experience to our suburb, absolutely quiet by 9pm (I fear we are the only ones who have the occasional late night BBQ), however it's the Kookaburra in the mornings that wakes us up nice and early (if I've had a few extra glasses of wine, those are the times that I miss double glazing). I have taken the odd wrong turn in Sydney before and thought it looked dodgy, but seems to be exception rather than the rule. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toots Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 We lived in Sydney for nigh on 27 years. North Ryde for 24 years then Dulwich Hill. We were quite lucky as both times we lived in fairly quiet streets. In North Ryde there was a rental down the street which could get noisy as it was occupied by real bogans for about a year but after that it was fine. We backed onto a reserve which was nice and quiet. All the playing fields and parks were further up the street so didn't get shrieking kids nearby. When we moved to Dulwich Hill we had double glazing so fairly quiet but more traffic than North Ryde. Got to say some areas of the Central Coast are pure bogan-ville. You have to pick your place to live very carefully there. Where we live now in Tassie it is lovely and peaceful - no hoons or bogans in our vicinity and decent well mannered neighbours. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lambethlad Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 Bloody hell - I hope you haven't had to put up with that for the whole nine years. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toots Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 We looked at the Central Coast when we were retiring but we didn't like the feel of many of the towns. Loads of bogans. We also looked down the coast from Sydney and found Nowra to be much the same. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottieGirl Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 I found Sydney much noisier than the UK due to the infrastructure. The last place I lived was the worst house on a very des res street. Neighbours either side and at the back had pools. They were very considerate never had late parties and I could hardly complain about them having a barbie and using the pool at 7pm on Saturday but I could hear them. It is noisier you just have to get used to it 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toots Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 (edited) 7 minutes ago, ScottieGirl said: I found Sydney much noisier than the UK due to the infrastructure. The last place I lived was the worst house on a very des res street. Neighbours either side and at the back had pools. They were very considerate never had late parties and I could hardly complain about them having a barbie and using the pool at 7pm on Saturday but I could hear them. It is noisier you just have to get used to it Depends where you live I suppose. My sister's first flat in London was so noisy. Low flying planes overhead and the rumbling of the nearby tube practically under her building and heavy traffic in the street outside. Her next place was so much quieter. I've stayed with friends in Glasgow and it was really noisy there too. My Mum lived outside a wee village in Scotland and was unlucky enough to have neighbours about 50 metres away whose sons were forever tinkering with their motor bikes - revving them up etc. Drove Mum nuts. I also like Lanky Lad's sense of humour in spite of all the sh*t he has to put up with. Edited September 21, 2017 by Toots Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benj1980 Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 Love the post, nothing like my experience but find it hilarious! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanky Lad Posted September 21, 2017 Author Share Posted September 21, 2017 14 hours ago, Gbye grey sky said: We moved to SE Queensland. A wonderful neighbourhood, we are very lucky. Parties are rare and do not go on late. One neighbour in the next street (which we back onto) even delivered flyers giving advance notice of a special celebration and apologising for any noise. We slept in the spare bedroom at the front that night just in case and didn't hear a thing. The main impediment to sleep are the birds. They are so beautiful though I can't resent them for it. Where we are - was almost 9 years a go a small new development...which had slowed down on building due to international banking crisis at that time. BUT on Google maps..we could see the area/streets outlined and knew it would eventually get bigger. BUT the house behind ours is 6 years older...so we just thought the area would not grow to fast..and until around two years back..it did'nt - but then house building issues and banks seem to have cleare3d up and the speed up happened. On what was what we thought to be an interconnecting road strip of land...suddenly became a house lot In six weeks the shell and roof are in place and the inside plumbers and electricans and house fitters are swarming all over it - so it will not be too long before another BBQ is in operation! Birds.... in the UK at the back of us was a woodland valley - which prevented any house building and we had lost of birds in our garden I got the count up to 15 or 16 if I counted the heron that dropped down almost vertical from tree height into my tiny 4foot x 20 foot pond.. and cleaned out all my goldfish! Here we get the Mynah which is another failed import and swarms almost like starlings at tghis time we get rainbow lorrikeets and out front Galahs... but all the tree felling has taken the birds habitat away and we see less of the native colourful birds. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perthbum Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 Aussies are noisy people who shout a lot...you have to get used to it, you are an immigrant in their country as they will tell you time after time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 35 minutes ago, Perthbum said: Aussies are noisy people who shout a lot...you have to get used to it, you are an immigrant in their country as they will tell you time after time. Nobody has ever told me that....but then I am an immigrant in Australia and you are not. 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s713 Posted September 21, 2017 Share Posted September 21, 2017 Yeah no-one's ever told me I'm an immigrant either, in 10 years. We have had no experiences like the OP but I know it goes on. We have extended family here and a couple of them have had neighborhood issues. And clearly, when it comes to issues like alcohol, drink-driving, speeding etc. it's clear that stuff is rife here, whether it's on your doorstop or not. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calNgary Posted September 22, 2017 Share Posted September 22, 2017 Great little update that made me chuckle, but LankyLad ,honestly, MOVE ...lol Cal x 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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