Ping Pongers

[Dan Not Dale]

14 hours ago, HappyHeart said:

You need to try another state or another region of Vic. You don't want to go home. You just need them to send you crisps or go find a good pommy shop. 

Had 2 crisp care packages in last 12 months from home thankfully. Now working through the last of the sweets, chocolate and angel delight (yes I’m 12).

[Dan Not Dale]

13 hours ago, Cup Final 1973 said:

Hi Dan,

We have just returned to the UK after 15 years in Australia.  I know there will be times when I’ll be “homesick” for Oz just as I missed England when I was in Australia.  We lived in Bendigo and if you’re looking to move out of Melbourne I can thoroughly recommend it. You’ll find house prices much more affordable, and it actually has history, being one of the gold towns.  We made lots of friends there even though we were in our fifties when we migrated.

Where abouts in England are you from? Are bendigo like towns in any way comparable to a typical UK town? 

[Dan Not Dale]

2 hours ago, rammygirl said:

I’m not a fan of soulless suburbs and there are a lot of them in Aus. I live in a lovely historic town in SA with tree lined streets and old buildings. My son lives in a lovely suburb in Canberra with many deciduous trees so looks lovely in Autumn. My other son lives in a similar area in SA.  Not all Australia is soulless. 

I’m sure there are many nice places and that’s good to know. 

[Bulya]

6 minutes ago, Dan Not Dale said:

Where abouts in England are you from? Are bendigo like towns in any way comparable to a typical UK town? 

If you need to pretend you’re in England move to the Southern Highlands.  Exeter, Bowral, Robertson, Moss Vale, etc. 

[Tulip1]

19 hours ago, Cup Final 1973 said:

Hi Dan,

We have just returned to the UK after 15 years in Australia.  I know there will be times when I’ll be “homesick” for Oz just as I missed England when I was in Australia.  We lived in Bendigo and if you’re looking to move out of Melbourne I can thoroughly recommend it. You’ll find house prices much more affordable, and it actually has history, being one of the gold towns.  We made lots of friends there even though we were in our fifties when we migrated.

I have heard Bendigo is nice. 

[Tulip1]

12 hours ago, Bulya said:

 

I’ll have a look at the market today.  Not that interested really as they’re an an unhealthy item.  

Yes we can buy most varieties in multipacks of single packets whether it’s say a 12 pack of quavers etc or a 12/24 pack of mixed.  It’s something my sons out there have noticed, you get family packs but not the small individual packs. 
 

Edited June 17, 2021 by Tulip1

[Marisawright]

7 hours ago, rammygirl said:

I’m not a fan of soulless suburbs and there are a lot of them in Aus.

That's what I was trying to say.  It's impossible to have large cities like Sydney, Melbourne, Vienna, Manchester, Paris, Madrid, you name it, without having soulless suburbs.  They're inevitable. Anything over about a million people and you'll start to see them (yes, Perth has them too!).  

Most migrants to Australlia arrive in those large cities and due to lack of funds, they often end up in the soulless burbs.  It can give a very distorted view of Australia.

[Marisawright]

5 hours ago, Dan Not Dale said:

Where abouts in England are you from? Are bendigo like towns in any way comparable to a typical UK town? 

Have you ever visited?  That would be the first step if not.  Book some weekends away.

[rammygirl]

I would never want to live anywhere I couldn’t walk to a high street with a range of shops, cafes and restaurants (I never have). I also need countryside for walking and cycling and a reasonable drive to a big town/city or beach. That is my criteria and is more important than the perfect house in an area that doesn’t have this.

Unfortunately with COVID this seems to have become more important to more people and vibrant suburbs and towns are seeing big price hikes now.  I don’t like the many suburbs, even the leafy expensive ones that have no centre or high street, but they seem to appeal to lots of people with money…..

[Ken]

5 hours ago, Dan Not Dale said:

I may have worded it badly. I didnt mean treatment wise, rather what experiences have people had living in Australian towns. 

And yes I probably do think a little too small town wise. I could be far from correct, but geelongs and bendigos strike me as pretty similar to living in outer suburbs of Melbourne. Happy to be proven wrong. 

Thanks for the suggestions. It’s nice to have things pitched to me, as I don’t discuss it with anyone here, through fear of an aggressive  protection of Melbourne. My instinctive reactions to your suggestions do, as you say, reveal how I’m feeling about the place. 

 

Geelong is practically a suburb of Melbourne (it's more accurate to call Geelong part of Melbourne than it is to call the Central Coast part of Sydney) and indeed the countryside between Melbourne and Geelong is all being built up so fast that the distinction will soon disappear.

Bendigo on the other hand is 150km or a 2 hour train journey away (not much less by car) so it's a bit different from the outer suburbs of Melbourne - although I do remember people who commuted from Norwich to London daily so it's possible.

[Marisawright]

27 minutes ago, Ken said:

Geelong is practically a suburb of Melbourne (it's more accurate to call Geelong part of Melbourne than it is to call the Central Coast part of Sydney) and indeed the countryside between Melbourne and Geelong is all being built up so fast that the distinction will soon disappear.

Bendigo on the other hand is 150km or a 2 hour train journey away (not much less by car) so it's a bit different from the outer suburbs of Melbourne - although I do remember people who commuted from Norwich to London daily so it's possible.

Yes, I'm not suggesting they move to the country and commute to Melbourne.  I was suggesting, work permitting, that they look at a smaller city to live AND work in.  The OP then replied that they'd want to stay close to Melbourne to be close to family, hence the suggestion of Geelong, Bendigo or Ballarat.

The area between Melbourne and Geelong is getting very built up but it was founded as a separate city and still has its own identity and its own city centre.  To me, that's the difference between a satellite city like Geelong and a suburb:  a suburb still looks to the main city centre for many of its amenities, whereas a satellite city has its own identity and its own amenities in its own city centre.

To be honest, I always saw Geelong as a dirty, working-class town and have been very surprised by the number of people who have moved there (mainly young families) and are loving it. They like the fact that unlike Melbourne, you can live in suburbs which have both the beach and suburb within easy reach.

[rammygirl]

We stayed in Geelong a while back, people who remembered it like you asked why. Well it has, like many places changed. We stayed just outside the centre in a lively suburb with its own vibrant high street. The only thing I didn’t like was the road system. 

[Bulya]

Everywhere in Australia is changing.  One only has to look at the remarkable transformation of so many once dead NSW country towns.  Yass, Goulburn, Marulan, Bowning and Crookwell come to mind, with Jugiong as the standout.  When you can go to a wine bar in Yass and realise it’s made it into the top 50 wine experiences in the world, you know things have changed.  Sadly most poms won’t discover any of this, because they just won’t travel… 

[Dan Not Dale]

2 hours ago, Marisawright said:

That's what I was trying to say.  It's impossible to have large cities like Sydney, Melbourne, Vienna, Manchester, Paris, Madrid, you name it, without having soulless suburbs.  They're inevitable. Anything over about a million people and you'll start to see them (yes, Perth has them too!).  

Most migrants to Australlia arrive in those large cities and due to lack of funds, they often end up in the soulless burbs.  It can give a very distorted view of Australia.

Yep I agree. I have been told that one giant soulless suburb would be a good description of Perth. Is that unfair? I’ve been twice but barely left the same suburb both times, seems nice. Trip and living always different tho.

and yes I think we could have a phenomenal life in Brighton, South Yarra or similar suburbs. Better than UK. A lot of debt needed tho so yes, we’ve ended up in a soulless one

[Dan Not Dale]

3 hours ago, Marisawright said:

Have you ever visited?  That would be the first step if not.  Book some weekends away.

Drove to and from Bendigo for work once, looked tiny, nice enough, but yes I should visit.

 

[HappyHeart]

10 minutes ago, Dan Not Dale said:

Yep I agree. I have been told that one giant soulless suburb would be a good description of Perth. Is that unfair? I’ve been twice but barely left the same suburb both times, seems nice. Trip and living always different tho.

and yes I think we could have a phenomenal life in Brighton, South Yarra or similar suburbs. Better than UK. A lot of debt needed tho so yes, we’ve ended up in a soulless one

Is it unfair? Absolutely. The more.people who believe it though the better. We like it quiet. 

[Dan Not Dale]

2 hours ago, rammygirl said:

I would never want to live anywhere I couldn’t walk to a high street with a range of shops, cafes and restaurants (I never have). I also need countryside for walking and cycling and a reasonable drive to a big town/city or beach. That is my criteria and is more important than the perfect house in an area that doesn’t have this.

Unfortunately with COVID this seems to have become more important to more people and vibrant suburbs and towns are seeing big price hikes now.  I don’t like the many suburbs, even the leafy expensive ones that have no centre or high street, but they seem to appeal to lots of people with money…..

Yep I’m with you on the reasonable drive to a city, I’d feel isolated too far from one. Although I could gladly never go to a beach again (I didn’t mention this just to get a disagreement in there, more to paint a picture of how I might not be cut out for Aussie life).

yeah I think the vibrant suburbs will continue to thrive, but I do tip and exedous from Melbourne at some point when it becomes even more unliveable, especially if a few businesses move out and jobs become available more regionally. Any exedous of population would be replaced by immigration. 

[Dan Not Dale]

2 hours ago, Marisawright said:

Yes, I'm not suggesting they move to the country and commute to Melbourne.  I was suggesting, work permitting, that they look at a smaller city to live AND work in.  The OP then replied that they'd want to stay close to Melbourne to be close to family, hence the suggestion of Geelong, Bendigo or Ballarat.

The area between Melbourne and Geelong is getting very built up but it was founded as a separate city and still has its own identity and its own city centre.  To me, that's the difference between a satellite city like Geelong and a suburb:  a suburb still looks to the main city centre for many of its amenities, whereas a satellite city has its own identity and its own amenities in its own city centre.

To be honest, I always saw Geelong as a dirty, working-class town and have been very surprised by the number of people who have moved there (mainly young families) and are loving it. They like the fact that unlike Melbourne, you can live in suburbs which have both the beach and suburb within easy reach.

Yep partners uncle lives in Geelong. In a great spot too. I can see positives and negatives to the place. 

[Dan Not Dale]

14 minutes ago, HappyHeart said:

Is it unfair? Absolutely. The more.people who believe it though the better. We like it quiet. 

I’ve often said to partner can we just try Perth. What’s it a actually like? Am I still looking at 1 million plus for a house which gives a 45 mins commute or less for job in or near the city.

Are the roads always busy? Does rush hour last from 2.30 to 6.30 like Melbourne. Will people do anything to get one car ahead of me in traffic?

Has infrastructure proceeded suburban sprawl? Or is it playing catch up?

do you know Melbourne, would you have enough knowledge to compare the two?

Sorry to ask so much. 

[ali]

43 minutes ago, Dan Not Dale said:

Yep I agree. I have been told that one giant soulless suburb would be a good description of Perth. Is that unfair? I’ve been twice but barely left the same suburb both times, seems nice. Trip and living always different tho.

and yes I think we could have a phenomenal life in Brighton, South Yarra or similar suburbs. Better than UK. A lot of debt needed tho so yes, we’ve ended up in a soulless one

I think it's unfair but then I really enjoy living in Perth

[HappyHeart]

12 minutes ago, Dan Not Dale said:

I’ve often said to partner can we just try Perth. What’s it a actually like? Am I still looking at 1 million plus for a house which gives a 45 mins commute or less for job in or near the city.

Are the roads always busy? Does rush hour last from 2.30 to 6.30 like Melbourne. Will people do anything to get one car ahead of me in traffic?

Has infrastructure proceeded suburban sprawl? Or is it playing catch up?

do you know Melbourne, would you have enough knowledge to compare the two?

Sorry to ask so much. 

I’ve only ever visited Melbourne twice and not seen beyond the CBD. That didn’t thrill me tbh. 
 

House prices very much depend on your needs and where you want to live. We live 35 mins from the city and house prices are average 500k in our suburb. 
 

Rush hour is a pain. If I’m driving back from the office after 4pm it’ll take me an hour to get home. If I get on the road before that 45 mins. 30 outside of rush hour. Same in the morning and it’s worst from say 7 till 8.30am. The train is a good option. A lot of people park at train station and commute in that way. 
 

Infrastructure not too bad. Freeway goes up to Butler which is about 50 mins out from City with extensions planned to start soon. My husband works at the airport and recent works have shaved a good 10 mins off his commute. 
 

Id recommend Perth but I’m biased. What’s your lifestyle like? What are you looking for?

I’d describe Perth as a clean, modern, pretty city with stunning coastline and bush in equal measure. If you like the outdoor lifestyle it’s perfect. It’s very quiet in comparison to Melbourne. 
It’s diverse with the coastal burbs having a very different feel to the hills and the outer burbs respectively. 
 

Edited June 17, 2021 by HappyHeart

[HappyHeart]

56 minutes ago, Dan Not Dale said:

Yep I agree. I have been told that one giant soulless suburb would be a good description of Perth. Is that unfair? I’ve been twice but barely left the same suburb both times, seems nice. Trip and living always different tho.

and yes I think we could have a phenomenal life in Brighton, South Yarra or similar suburbs. Better than UK. A lot of debt needed tho so yes, we’ve ended up in a soulless one

Where did you stay when you came?

[Dan Not Dale]

2 minutes ago, HappyHeart said:

Where did you stay when you came?

Leeming, stayed with my dads best mate who moved to Australia 30+years ago. Did Christmas in 2005 and then I visited them for a week in 2011 and 2015. I lied, it’s 3 times

[Marisawright]

41 minutes ago, Dan Not Dale said:

Yep partners uncle lives in Geelong. In a great spot too. I can see positives and negatives to the place. 

What about the rest of Victoria? 

[HappyHeart]

2 minutes ago, Dan Not Dale said:

Leeming, stayed with my dads best mate who moved to Australia 30+years ago. Did Christmas in 2005 and then I visited them for a week in 2011 and 2015. I lied, it’s 3 times

I don’t know Leeming well but there’s another PIO member who does. I’d call Leeming a ‘typical’ pleasant older suburb though. A very different feel in other areas, dependent on your needs.