Guest Squem Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 Samfire Have a good flight & let me know when you've arrived as I'm now in Canberra been here 2 weeks so it'll be great to meet up. JacquiB Hey Jacqui, How are you getting on!? Still loving it? My parents leave in 27 days eeek!! Scary stuff!! Emma x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest siamsusie Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 Sqemy, wonderful to hear your news, I am back from Asia and loving being back in Tasmania. Have written to the other 2 Amigos and hopefully will see you in chat (this evening your time) All good news I hear at your end, well done delighted for you. Hopefully we can get the other Amigo to come east instead of west lol. SS xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JacquiB Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 Hey Jacqui, How are you getting on!? Still loving it? My parents leave in 27 days eeek!! Scary stuff!! Emma x Hi Emma Still loving Canberra, things all sorting themselves out this week had got new car, found a lovely house and got a good job, just started today after doing 4 days temp work there. I'm positive your Mum & Dad will love it, if they need anything tell them to give me a shout. Hope to meet you soon as well! Jacqui Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Squem Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 Hi Emma Still loving Canberra, things all sorting themselves out this week had got new car, found a lovely house and got a good job, just started today after doing 4 days temp work there. I'm positive your Mum & Dad will love it, if they need anything tell them to give me a shout. Hope to meet you soon as well! Jacqui Oh wow... congrats on the house and getting a car And an even bigger congrats on getting a job!! I will let them know... i'm sure once they have settled they will be ordering me to organise some UK peeps meet ups in Canberra! Speak to you soon Emma x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Samfire Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 That's great news jacqui - well done!! It's Saturday morning and we've been here since Tuesday am. Just about coming round from the horrendous journey and the time zone difference. Have been up at 6am every morning and in bed by 8/9pm!!! Starting to gradually stretch it out now. We've done a bit of exploring in Woden, Civic and the Fyshwick Markets (which is across the road from where we live). So far, we're impressed - it's so relaxed compared to back home, and people are very friendly. We're staying in Canberra Holiday and short-term accommodation in McMillan Crescent, Griffith. This is just for two weeks when we move next door for 12 weeks. Our apartment is a studio, so not ideal at present, but it's spotless, well-equiped and the proprietors are extremely helpful and nice. The schools are on holidays at present, but there's still a scarcity of kids roaming the streets in the local area, and my 12 year old is bored!!! He likes it here, but could do with more friends. So far, we've activated our bank accounts, hubby has visited work (ahead of his official start date), signed up for our Tax File Numbers and medicare. Centrelink are a waste of space - threw a load of forms at us and sent us away! Still have to get time to fill these in (online being my preferred option). Just set up on broadband 36 hrs ago, so lots of catching up to do. Quoll, got your email - sorry haven't replied yet, it's just been hectic. Will catch you for that coffee soon, I promise!!! Still haven't rented the damn house back home - it's driving me mad! Can't plan anything financially at the moment, so fingers crossed that it will get sorted in the next few weeks!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest boothy Posted October 4, 2009 Share Posted October 4, 2009 That's great news jacqui - well done!! It's Saturday morning and we've been here since Tuesday am. Just about coming round from the horrendous journey and the time zone difference. Have been up at 6am every morning and in bed by 8/9pm!!! Starting to gradually stretch it out now. We've done a bit of exploring in Woden, Civic and the Fyshwick Markets (which is across the road from where we live). So far, we're impressed - it's so relaxed compared to back home, and people are very friendly. We're staying in Canberra Holiday and short-term accommodation in McMillan Crescent, Griffith. This is just for two weeks when we move next door for 12 weeks. Our apartment is a studio, so not ideal at present, but it's spotless, well-equiped and the proprietors are extremely helpful and nice. The schools are on holidays at present, but there's still a scarcity of kids roaming the streets in the local area, and my 12 year old is bored!!! He likes it here, but could do with more friends. So far, we've activated our bank accounts, hubby has visited work (ahead of his official start date), signed up for our Tax File Numbers and medicare. Centrelink are a waste of space - threw a load of forms at us and sent us away! Still have to get time to fill these in (online being my preferred option). Just set up on broadband 36 hrs ago, so lots of catching up to do. Quoll, got your email - sorry haven't replied yet, it's just been hectic. Will catch you for that coffee soon, I promise!!! Still haven't rented the damn house back home - it's driving me mad! Can't plan anything financially at the moment, so fingers crossed that it will get sorted in the next few weeks!! Hiya Fantastic to hear from you. Keep posting! Sam x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JacquiB Posted October 5, 2009 Share Posted October 5, 2009 That's great news jacqui - well done!! It's Saturday morning and we've been here since Tuesday am. Just about coming round from the horrendous journey and the time zone difference. Have been up at 6am every morning and in bed by 8/9pm!!! Starting to gradually stretch it out now. We've done a bit of exploring in Woden, Civic and the Fyshwick Markets (which is across the road from where we live). So far, we're impressed - it's so relaxed compared to back home, and people are very friendly. We're staying in Canberra Holiday and short-term accommodation in McMillan Crescent, Griffith. This is just for two weeks when we move next door for 12 weeks. Our apartment is a studio, so not ideal at present, but it's spotless, well-equiped and the proprietors are extremely helpful and nice. The schools are on holidays at present, but there's still a scarcity of kids roaming the streets in the local area, and my 12 year old is bored!!! He likes it here, but could do with more friends. So far, we've activated our bank accounts, hubby has visited work (ahead of his official start date), signed up for our Tax File Numbers and medicare. Centrelink are a waste of space - threw a load of forms at us and sent us away! Still have to get time to fill these in (online being my preferred option). Just set up on broadband 36 hrs ago, so lots of catching up to do. Quoll, got your email - sorry haven't replied yet, it's just been hectic. Will catch you for that coffee soon, I promise!!! Still haven't rented the damn house back home - it's driving me mad! Can't plan anything financially at the moment, so fingers crossed that it will get sorted in the next few weeks!! Hi Samfire Glad to hear you got here ok. We've been here 3 weeks now and have found the same as you everything is so much more relaxed and everyone has been really friendly. We're due to move to our main house next week so have just spent this weekend buying furniture etc. It's a totally different experience from UK, everyone is really helpful most know about the products they sell & all are open to a bit of price negotiation especially if your paying cash & even more so if your buyng several items from them the deals can be really good. Keep us informed how your doing & let me know if you need anything even a coffee or something. Jacqui Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mistyjane Posted October 11, 2009 Share Posted October 11, 2009 Hi all, just wanted to say hello. We are a family of 5. Fingers crossed going to Canberra next year. Sounds an amazing place. Cant imagine what it will be like really. Which websites are the best for looking at rental property? jane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Samfire Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Hi there Mistyjane - without a doubt, Allhomes.com.au is the best website for searching for property. You could also try domain.com.au. Happy surfing!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Samfire Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Okay - here goes my pointers so far! Just my experience, not intended to be an attempt at being a know-all!!! 1. Temporary accommodation Pros and Cons: So far, it's worked out really well in terms of having everything laid on i.e. furnished, so you're ready to go straight away and don't have to worry about picking up stuff first while awaiting arrival of shipping container. Also, a comprehensive price, so you'll know what you're paying for the duration of your stay - no overheads or heating bills etc. to worry about. On the down side - absolutely clastraphobic!!! Too cramped and has now started to do my head in - we usually visit friends!!!! Moving to a bigger apartment in 2 days so that will be a welcome change. 2. Cars!!! Found the dealers to be rather helpful contrary to what seems to be the general view of "stay away"! We bought our car and got a great deal on it - 3.7k which wasn't bad for those of us who haven't a big cash-flow budget. Check out Fyshwick. 3. Centrelink etc. A joke!!! If you have kids of school-going age and you need to claim for benefits like childcare while you work or family assistance benefit, then be prepared to fill out the overly-complicated forms on your own - you won't really get any help doing them. 4. Bus Service - we found it good during the week, but they only run on the hour on bank holidays (labour days here) and weekends. The strange thing was, we found the price varied depending on the bus driver !!!! Don't ask how that happended - it just did. Don't plan on using the buses long-term. Plan to get a car - you'll need one in Canberra. 5. The city is compact, pretty with some nice buildings and has a great shopping centre with a huge food court. Great parks too, which are easily accessible. Other than that, it's also kinda clinical and stark in it's own way. 6. People - everybody is extremely friendly and helpful. Drivers being the exception, as we've found them to be a little less obliging - especially when seeking to change lanes - they don't really want to let you in!!! Also, everything is well sign posted, but we bought a sat nav in Harvey Norman's which has proved to be invaluable when you don't know your way around the city. Would definitely recommend investing in one. 7. Neighbourhoods - they tend to vary to be honest. Definitely a North/South divide. We're living in the inner south coz it's near to where hubby works, but personally I hate it!!!! I found Gungahlin to be a very nice place (even though I would never have thought I'd say that prior to arriving here) - we've met lovely friends - the housing is a little "up-on-top-of-one-another", but the homes are beautiful and there's a lot more going on with kids! In the inner south, you'd never see children out playing after school or on the school holidays, which we find very strange. Seems to be more common up north (mind you - we haven't seen much of Belconnen yet, so can't say what it's like - we made a brief trip down to Tuggeranong and didn't like it!). 8. Schools: Mind-boggling! Didn't know what to do when we arrived, because a lot depends on where you live (if considering public schools, which we are). Coz we hadn't decided where we'd be living in the long-term, it's been difficult to choose a high school for my son for 2010 - but now that we're heading north most likely, we'll check out Gold Creek school in Nicholls. He'll go to Forrest Primary for the remainder of the school year, which is in our catchment area. Playschool's a bummer, as my son alex who's four won't be eligible to attend until next year, so unless you can afford to pay for private childcare, you're stuck with the little ones all day!!!! (i don't work, but for those who are working, you can claim financial assistance towards placing them in care while you work). 9. Work: Seems to be plenty work going for anybody who's looking for it - only thing is, it's not that well paid. Being a government city, the security clearance thing is an issue for a lot of the well-paid jobs, so unless you're a citizen, the job market is not immediately opened up to everybody. Depends on the type of work I suppose. I've been offered 2 jobs already. 10. Cost of Living: This varies quite a lot - lots of things are cheap and other things are extortionate!!!! Fyshwick market is brilliant!!! Open Thursday through Sunday, would recommend buying fruit, veg and red meat/sea food at the markets. Do other grocery shopping in Coles/Woolworths. Compare prices, because they do vary. Big W is great for clothing if you need to watch the pennies. There are great shopping outlets for household furniture etc. and they apparantly do great deals when you are buying for cash or buying multiple items. Contrary to popular belief - eating out is expensive!!! Take aways cost the same as if you were eating in the restaurant, so be prepared!!! That's about all I can think of for now! Hope it helps and if you find things are to the contrary, please feel free to share your experiences, coz I'd love to hear them - I'm still learning and finding my way!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest toops Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Hi there, My name is Julia and my hubby is Adrian, we are at the easrly stages for moving to ACT (hopefully), just finishing my commitment statement for SS so that will be on its way V soon and then sit and wait for good news we hope! Love reading all your comment, it makes us feel far mroe confident in the move. Thanks to all who contribute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest toops Posted October 12, 2009 Share Posted October 12, 2009 Can anyone give me some average figures on monthly living expenditure re food and gas/elec/rates etc. Thank you!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Samfire Posted October 13, 2009 Share Posted October 13, 2009 Hi Toops - Haven't yet headed down the road of itemised bills, as we're renting furnished, which is an all-over monthly fee with overheads included. As far as shopping is concerned - we haven't found it very cheap by any means (contrary to what we'd been told). Things are comparable with home if you want to spend your time converting AUD$ to GBP£ all the time, but this is a pointless exercise, and when you stop doing that, you'll find that you'll have to shop wisely to make your aussie dollar go further! We got 3 bags of shopping in Coles the other day for $80. Three days previous we grabbed another few bits and paid $53. I haven't yet really begun to compare prices between stores, but my gut feeling is that I would probably think Woolworths gives more value for money than Coles. Will let you know when I get time to do price comparisons. They have Aldi here by the way, so it's cheaper if you shop there for some things, go to the markets for red meat, fruit and veg, and Coles/Woollies for specific brands you'd be used to back home. All-in-all, I would say we spend at least $250 for a family of four per week. It is early days though, and we are stocking our presses from scratch, so I'm hoping this will reduce with time. Petrol is cheaper than back home. Have a 2.0ltr engine and spend about $30-$40 per week on petrol/gas. Not bad!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest toops Posted October 14, 2009 Share Posted October 14, 2009 Thank you for you reply, it was very helpful. The info is to help me put a budget on the sponsorship application, I am the same as you in that we wont be making comparisons when we (hopefully) get to ACT - you pay what it costs and thats it! Too may people fall into the price comparison trap, which is disastrous in my book as it wont change anything, so get on with it instead. I hope we have contact again soon. I wish you the very, very best with your new life in Canberra. :biggrin: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 101126 Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 Okay - here goes my pointers so far! Just my experience, not intended to be an attempt at being a know-all!!! 1. Temporary accommodation Pros and Cons: So far, it's worked out really well in terms of having everything laid on i.e. furnished, so you're ready to go straight away and don't have to worry about picking up stuff first while awaiting arrival of shipping container. Also, a comprehensive price, so you'll know what you're paying for the duration of your stay - no overheads or heating bills etc. to worry about. On the down side - absolutely clastraphobic!!! Too cramped and has now started to do my head in - we usually visit friends!!!! Moving to a bigger apartment in 2 days so that will be a welcome change. 2. Cars!!! Found the dealers to be rather helpful contrary to what seems to be the general view of "stay away"! We bought our car and got a great deal on it - 3.7k which wasn't bad for those of us who haven't a big cash-flow budget. Check out Fyshwick. 3. Centrelink etc. A joke!!! If you have kids of school-going age and you need to claim for benefits like childcare while you work or family assistance benefit, then be prepared to fill out the overly-complicated forms on your own - you won't really get any help doing them. 4. Bus Service - we found it good during the week, but they only run on the hour on bank holidays (labour days here) and weekends. The strange thing was, we found the price varied depending on the bus driver !!!! Don't ask how that happended - it just did. Don't plan on using the buses long-term. Plan to get a car - you'll need one in Canberra. 5. The city is compact, pretty with some nice buildings and has a great shopping centre with a huge food court. Great parks too, which are easily accessible. Other than that, it's also kinda clinical and stark in it's own way. 6. People - everybody is extremely friendly and helpful. Drivers being the exception, as we've found them to be a little less obliging - especially when seeking to change lanes - they don't really want to let you in!!! Also, everything is well sign posted, but we bought a sat nav in Harvey Norman's which has proved to be invaluable when you don't know your way around the city. Would definitely recommend investing in one. 7. Neighbourhoods - they tend to vary to be honest. Definitely a North/South divide. We're living in the inner south coz it's near to where hubby works, but personally I hate it!!!! I found Gungahlin to be a very nice place (even though I would never have thought I'd say that prior to arriving here) - we've met lovely friends - the housing is a little "up-on-top-of-one-another", but the homes are beautiful and there's a lot more going on with kids! In the inner south, you'd never see children out playing after school or on the school holidays, which we find very strange. Seems to be more common up north (mind you - we haven't seen much of Belconnen yet, so can't say what it's like - we made a brief trip down to Tuggeranong and didn't like it!). 8. Schools: Mind-boggling! Didn't know what to do when we arrived, because a lot depends on where you live (if considering public schools, which we are). Coz we hadn't decided where we'd be living in the long-term, it's been difficult to choose a high school for my son for 2010 - but now that we're heading north most likely, we'll check out Gold Creek school in Nicholls. He'll go to Forrest Primary for the remainder of the school year, which is in our catchment area. Playschool's a bummer, as my son alex who's four won't be eligible to attend until next year, so unless you can afford to pay for private childcare, you're stuck with the little ones all day!!!! (i don't work, but for those who are working, you can claim financial assistance towards placing them in care while you work). 9. Work: Seems to be plenty work going for anybody who's looking for it - only thing is, it's not that well paid. Being a government city, the security clearance thing is an issue for a lot of the well-paid jobs, so unless you're a citizen, the job market is not immediately opened up to everybody. Depends on the type of work I suppose. I've been offered 2 jobs already. 10. Cost of Living: This varies quite a lot - lots of things are cheap and other things are extortionate!!!! Fyshwick market is brilliant!!! Open Thursday through Sunday, would recommend buying fruit, veg and red meat/sea food at the markets. Do other grocery shopping in Coles/Woolworths. Compare prices, because they do vary. Big W is great for clothing if you need to watch the pennies. There are great shopping outlets for household furniture etc. and they apparantly do great deals when you are buying for cash or buying multiple items. Contrary to popular belief - eating out is expensive!!! Take aways cost the same as if you were eating in the restaurant, so be prepared!!! That's about all I can think of for now! Hope it helps and if you find things are to the contrary, please feel free to share your experiences, coz I'd love to hear them - I'm still learning and finding my way!!!! Hi Samfire Some useful information. As we are staying at the same appartments as you, we will also be heading over to Fyshwick market to stock up on arrival. Also going to invest in an Iphone and load sat-nav software and intend travelling around when we arrive to reccie different areas as I am sure that our perceptions will change as we look around. Good luck and maybe we will all see you at the Harcourt on 31st. Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Samfire Posted October 18, 2009 Share Posted October 18, 2009 Hi Peter - give us a shout when you arrive!!! Will help out in any way I can. Be prepared when it comes to technology over here - it's not as advanced over here (imho) as it is where we've come from. Things are very much laid back here too, so it takes more time to get things done, generally speaking of course! We had terrible trouble just getting a vodafone sim card for our phones. Had to sign forms and have proof of address etc. Make sure you get something with your new temporary address printed off (if they've invoiced you already, for example), and have it to hand when you arrive. Broadband packages are expensive here too compared to back home. Well, considering we're on a tight budget at present, that was a biggy, but if may not be the same for everybody. We've managed to get back onto the world-wide-web anyway, so we're skyping back home etc. We used an expensive, but quick option called Crazy Johns wireless broadband. Download limit sucks though for what we spent! We bought a sat nav in Harvey Norman's when we arrived, and it's been a life-saver!!! Good luck with the trip and hope to see you all when you arrive - if not, on the 31st is a definite!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 101126 Posted October 18, 2009 Share Posted October 18, 2009 Thanks Samfire, looking forward to catch up with everyone when we get there, sadly without Squem :-( Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest destinationoz Posted October 20, 2009 Share Posted October 20, 2009 thanks for the info Samfire - really insightful ... keep them coming! HOWEVER - with our delays I don't come onto this site very much so if I don't reply quickly to posts/threads - I'm not being ignorant - I'm just avoiding thinking of Oz on a daily basis!!! ENJOY all you that's there - esp those recently arriving/arrived !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Squem Posted October 25, 2009 Share Posted October 25, 2009 Hi Folks! I'm back from holiday and catching up on my Poms! How is everyone? Samfire/JacquiB > how's Oz? Desty > What's the latest with your plans? We are sat in our living room on conservatory furniture and little else ha ha it's quite funny! 3 days until my parents and sisters jet off... lucky s*ds! x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Samfire Posted October 25, 2009 Share Posted October 25, 2009 Hi Squem! Great to hear from you! We're finding it tough at the moment to be honest. Didn't have our funds with us coming over, so we're struggling financially - sure it will get better as time goes on. Canberra is great though. You will definitely enjoy it. Can't wait to catch up with your family next week. Take care and talk soon, Shirley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Squem Posted October 25, 2009 Share Posted October 25, 2009 Hi Squem! Great to hear from you! We're finding it tough at the moment to be honest. Didn't have our funds with us coming over, so we're struggling financially - sure it will get better as time goes on. Canberra is great though. You will definitely enjoy it. Can't wait to catch up with your family next week. Take care and talk soon, Shirley Ahh I'm glad you are liking Canberra.... sorry to hear that you are struggling.... i'm sure everyone goes through it! It's hard to cut back when you have had so much throughout life... it's like going back to basics and building it all up again!! Fingers crossed it picks up soon for you! Uh oh... you are going to meet my parents .... good luck ;-) ha ha! Nah they are fine really! Just throw some sarccy remarks at my dad for me Speak to you soon! xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JacquiB Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 Hi Folks! I'm back from holiday and catching up on my Poms! How is everyone? Samfire/JacquiB > how's Oz? Desty > What's the latest with your plans? We are sat in our living room on conservatory furniture and little else ha ha it's quite funny! 3 days until my parents and sisters jet off... lucky s*ds! x Hi Squem Hope your holiday was fun. I'm still loving Canberra and we're in our new place now so are really settling in. Looking forward to meeting everyone on Saturday. Jacqui Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Squem Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 Hey everyone, So I just dropped my parents and sisters off at the airport - definately one of the hardest things i've had to do!! Driving across the M25 whilst crying wasn't the best idea!! I'm already counting down the days until I see them and our dog JacquiB - Glad you are still liking it! Please let me know how Saturday goes! Such a shame I can't be there!! Xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Magnetic6 Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 Awwww Squem....you poor thing! Not too long before you're all back together again:hug: Nat x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest siamsusie Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 Hey everyone, So I just dropped my parents and sisters off at the airport - definately one of the hardest things i've had to do!! Driving across the M25 whilst crying wasn't the best idea!! I'm already counting down the days until I see them and our dog JacquiB - Glad you are still liking it! Please let me know how Saturday goes! Such a shame I can't be there!! Xx ooooooooooh Sqemy, you will be over at Christmas time. You will miss them for sure:wubclub: meanwhile you have your extended family here lol... sending you a huge huge hug:hug: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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