Guest Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 So we have been in OZ for 2 weeks now Kotara newcastle to be exact. What are my impressions. Well when I first stepped out of the car onto grass I looked down expecting a frost as the grass was "crunchy" lol. Here in Kotara it is so clean! Ok so theres a lack of paths in the burbs and no one seems to walk anywhere so me and mine stick out like a sore thumb but apart from the fact its VERY hilly its a lovely place to walk around. The beaches too are exceptionaly clean. Newie itself does seem to have a graffiti problem but no worse than many towns and cities in the uk. Its also very quiet. I love it right now but will it be too quiet in the future? Who knows. The beer takes some getting used to but If i stick to carlton and tooheys its not too bad. The wine is amazingly cheap and so far no complaints. Takeaways here are shockingly cheap but then I am used to London prices. The supermarkets seem ok although as we are with my inlaws I havnt done a proper shop yet. No complaints on the range of shops or the prices to be fair like anywhere shop around and great deals are to be had. Ive just bought all my kitchen equipment apart from the fridge for under $300. The weathers been a bit crap but hey im still in shorts. We set up a bank sorted medicare and centrelink all in one morning and I was amazed at how helpful and polite everyone was. We have secured a rental and move in next week. Some of the ones we looked at where shocking and the competion for each is fierce. Still we are happy with what we have found now. The boys start school on monday. The uniform was shockingly cheap. The school we have chossen seems wonderful and kids cannot wait to start. I have been hit by bouts of homesickness but I was expecting it and a quick phone call to my mum made everything better. My kids love it. They have more space and freedom than they could ever want and that is why we did it. At the moment I am happy here and more relaxed than I have been in years. People actually stop and chat with you here which is great. My only gripe is the bugs. Sodding christmas bugs are annoying and pointless and keep hitching a ride into the house in my hair:arghh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PommyPaul Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 nice post! i know what you mean about the freindly people, it takes some getting used too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Pom Queen Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 Glad your enjoying your new life. You are lucky with the uniform, it is really expensive down here. Hoepfully the weather will pick up soon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Andy Chapman Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 A good read, nice to hear some of the stories about how members are getting on with their new lives down under. Do the bugs bite, i know there are sprays you can get to stop the biting especially the mozzies. Glad your enjoying life there, and i hope it continues for years to come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Que Sera Sera Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 How fantastic that you have managed to do all that in just two weeks! I am surprised you have had time to fell homesick! How did you manage to secure the rental when the competiton is fearce, did you have to pay upfront? and what paperwork did you need to have for the bank account, centrlink etc? Good luck with the move!:yes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 How fantastic that you have managed to do all that in just two weeks! I am surprised you have had time to fell homesick!How did you manage to secure the rental when the competiton is fearce, did you have to pay upfront? and what paperwork did you need to have for the bank account, centrlink etc? Good luck with the move!:yes: We secured the rental by offering 2 months rent up front. Only thing we needed for bank account was passport centrelink require passport birth certs ect and you to have a tax file number which can take 28 days to come through. Luckily mine was here in 4 days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 25, 2008 Share Posted November 25, 2008 Well the kids are now in school for the second day and boy do they love it. My eldest has been signed up for the "soccer" team already. My 5 year old son however has been biten. The doctors suspect a white a tail. He has a nasty puss filled blister although the pain was short lived. He was seen at a medical acsess centre by a lovely doctor and given a course of medicine. I cannot fault the centre for clenliness or speed. Nor can I complain about the cost of medicine around same as a uk perscription charge! I have found a short cut to school but its still up a bloody great hill so I am going to have to bite the bullet and learn to drive! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JoanneHattersley Posted November 25, 2008 Share Posted November 25, 2008 homesickness will get ya at some stage! Cant get away from that! LOL! Great post and glad to hear that everything has slotted into place for you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sheena Posted November 25, 2008 Share Posted November 25, 2008 hey cj, glad things are going well for you!! sheena :wubclub: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest WARDStoOZ Posted November 25, 2008 Share Posted November 25, 2008 Hi there! Glad to hear things are going well for you...! Good Luck for the future!!! Regards, Dan xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stockies Posted November 25, 2008 Share Posted November 25, 2008 Hills in OZ.........nobody mentioned there were hills, I can only run on the flat........:biglaugh: Great to hear you are settling in Cj....... Please tell me that there isnt too many hills in Brisbane !!!!!!!! Claire. XX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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