pluto Posted June 18, 2011 Share Posted June 18, 2011 Hi All :v_SPIN: Well we have been in WA for a couple of months now and thought I would post how we have got on. We left from France after a very hard last 8 months there, leaving was a manic time and we had so much to do from the final selling of the house to getting on the plane within a day ! We flew with Singapore airlines from Paris, they were brilliant and we booked a 10 day stop over there so we could try and unstress before we hit Oz. Singapore was fantastic, the kids loved every minute. After some frantic emailing I finally secured a holiday rental NOR in WA. We stayed in Mindarie which was nice and as the rental was on a bus route and walking distance to the shops we decided not to rent a car but to search for one to buy asap. Found a car on our second day and arranged to buy it, that afternoon we went into NAB bank in Perth on the train and collected our cards and arranged a cheque for the car. Perth was lovely and looking forward to a trip back soon. Well now we had a car the search was on for a rental and wow did we search, looking at all the areas we had researched on the internet North and South. We did try to break it up for the kids by calling in at various fun places while house hunting. We were getting a bit fed up by the 3rd week of looking as every rental we applied for we did not get I was starting to worry that we would never be successful but then a call came from an agent to say we had got one of the rentals we had applied for in Rockingham. WooHoo at last, we called in at the office to finalise the paperwork and then enjoyed a coffee at the Foreshore. My kids ran in the sea with their clothes on !! I think we were all so relieved to have found somewhere. We did not bring a container as we sold all our furniture in France ( we only have sent 10 boxes) So now the hunt was on for beds etc after calling at a few places we ended up at ikea and just got everything we needed from there. We moved in here on a Monday morning and the ikea delivery arrived Monday after lunch, we had a great time putting together all that furniture and of course the parts were missing for our bed, typical ikea. Tuesday we called in at the schools for the kids and had a tour and filled in all the paperwork, the kids all started on the Thursday. They have all settled really well, the only one to have struggled is my youngest age 7 as France is the only education she has known and the freedom of choice at her new school has thrown her a bit, she is still waiting to be told what to do, bless her but she is really enjoying the art and choir. I am amazed at how well they have taken to Australia and the amount of friends they have made so quickly. Once the kids were at School we did all the medicare, tax numbers, driving licence etc all were so easy and straight forward. My OH found his first casual job through a friend who I made on PIO and then he received a reply for an interview for shop fitting and got the job, hurray ! He is out early as he has to travel to Perth but he is really enjoying the work. I have had a couple of moments of tears, had one in Coles while buying a mop ! not even sure why ???? I think possibly just the relief of being out of the France stress and everyone being happy here Well that's about it, all I can say is that everyone has been so friendly and helpful and a big thank you to Janet who went to the trouble of buying me a 40th birthday present and calling round with it and a card, I was really touched Sam :wubclub: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SUZY Posted June 18, 2011 Share Posted June 18, 2011 Hi All :v_SPIN: Well we have been in WA for a couple of months now and thought I would post how we have got on. We left from France after a very hard last 8 months there, leaving was a manic time and we had so much to do from the final selling of the house to getting on the plane within a day ! We flew with Singapore airlines from Paris, they were brilliant and we booked a 10 day stop over there so we could try and unstress before we hit Oz. Singapore was fantastic, the kids loved every minute. After some frantic emailing I finally secured a holiday rental NOR in WA. We stayed in Mindarie which was nice and as the rental was on a bus route and walking distance to the shops we decided not to rent a car but to search for one to buy asap. Found a car on our second day and arranged to buy it, that afternoon we went into NAB bank in Perth on the train and collected our cards and arranged a cheque for the car. Perth was lovely and looking forward to a trip back soon. Well now we had a car the search was on for a rental and wow did we search, looking at all the areas we had researched on the internet North and South. We did try to break it up for the kids by calling in at various fun places while house hunting. We were getting a bit fed up by the 3rd week of looking as every rental we applied for we did not get I was starting to worry that we would never be successful but then a call came from an agent to say we had got one of the rentals we had applied for in Rockingham. WooHoo at last, we called in at the office to finalise the paperwork and then enjoyed a coffee at the Foreshore. My kids ran in the sea with their clothes on !! I think we were all so relieved to have found somewhere. We did not bring a container as we sold all our furniture in France ( we only have sent 10 boxes) So now the hunt was on for beds etc after calling at a few places we ended up at ikea and just got everything we needed from there. We moved in here on a Monday morning and the ikea delivery arrived Monday after lunch, we had a great time putting together all that furniture and of course the parts were missing for our bed, typical ikea. Tuesday we called in at the schools for the kids and had a tour and filled in all the paperwork, the kids all started on the Thursday. They have all settled really well, the only one to have struggled is my youngest age 7 as France is the only education she has known and the freedom of choice at her new school has thrown her a bit, she is still waiting to be told what to do, bless her but she is really enjoying the art and choir. I am amazed at how well they have taken to Australia and the amount of friends they have made so quickly. Once the kids were at School we did all the medicare, tax numbers, driving licence etc all were so easy and straight forward. My OH found his first casual job through a friend who I made on PIO and then he received a reply for an interview for shop fitting and got the job, hurray ! He is out early as he has to travel to Perth but he is really enjoying the work. I have had a couple of moments of tears, had one in Coles while buying a mop ! not even sure why ???? I think possibly just the relief of being out of the France stress and everyone being happy here Well that's about it, all I can say is that everyone has been so friendly and helpful and a big thank you to Janet who went to the trouble of buying me a 40th birthday present and calling round with it and a card, I was really touched Sam :wubclub: What a lovely story you have here its great to hear from people who have made the move and u and your family sound as if oz life is treating you well , and you can now forget France its all behind you :wubclub:. We are hoping to make the move over in june next year well i have just had my pc come bk and they had june 15th so i guess that could be my date to be there but still have meds and visa to get :eek: x Well sam please keep in touch as its always nice to find someone who will give us valuble info for when we do the move .. many wishes for the future susan x :biggrin: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest The Ropey HOFF Posted June 18, 2011 Share Posted June 18, 2011 Best of luck with everything, perth is a beautiful place the beaches and sea are incredible, keep us updated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulswin Posted June 18, 2011 Share Posted June 18, 2011 Wow glad you're settling!! My hubby does shop fitting over here to fill in the gaps he has from his flooring jobs!!! Did he find it hard to get the shop fitting job?? We're coming over in Jan/Feb staying in a holiday rental and then look for a long term rental but you have got me worried now is it really hard to try and get one?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Natty T Posted June 18, 2011 Share Posted June 18, 2011 Hi Sam, Great post, sounds like you have been really busy. I'm glad your settled and the children are happy.I remember you from Kellys WA thread, My hubby is a carpenter and has done a lot of shop fitting, we are moving over in jan 2012 with 4 children, it would be great if we could stay in contact with you and find out how things are going for you all. Good luck with your new life in Perth. Natalie X Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluto Posted June 18, 2011 Author Share Posted June 18, 2011 Hi Susan Thank you and if I can help you I will try Hi Jim How is Dewsbury ? WA is wet and windy at the moment but we are still out and about looking windswept and interesting Hi Paulswin My hubby did apply for every job he could find and joined all the agencies, it did take a while for anyone to get back and was a bit of a worry but all of a sudden it just seems to fall into place, the same with the rental situation. You just have to keep looking and applying. Not sure if it was us coming at a bad time over easter hols or if some other reason but we did find at a viewing that there was alot of people there and applying. Hi Natalie I remember you too, that seems like ages ago now ! I have sent you a PM with some contact details so we can keep in touch :wubclub: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taz2008 Posted June 18, 2011 Share Posted June 18, 2011 Hi Sam:tongue: I can't believe I have not been on PIO for ages, and had a quick look tonight and saw your post! Its great to have a catch up on how you are getting on! Sounds like everything has fallen into place now and you can start to relax. I am so glad to hear the kids are getting on well at school. Its interesting to hear that your youngest struggled a little with school. I worry that both of mine will have the same problems! Ella is reading English a little now, but Tia is still learning to read french so don't really want to confuse her yet with English too! Oh well, we still have a little time before we get out there, so will have to start some English work with them again. You are not missing much here in France, the weather where we are is rubbish at the moment. Lots of rain this month! We are off to Rennes on Wednesday to get our meds done again and then its out of our hands and up to the CO! So I don't think we will have to wait much longer now before we get our visa (fingers crossed!). I think we are the oldest Cat 2 going now... its been 3 1/2 years waiting!!!:swoon: We were hoping to come out this summer to WA, but have now decided to wait until early next year. Not sure if we will fly out of Paris or go back to the UK and fly from there. Depends on the costs I suppose! Great to hear from you and will catch up with you again soon. Cheers Tasha x :hug: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluto Posted June 20, 2011 Author Share Posted June 20, 2011 Hi Tasha :tongue: Good to hear from you, we must arrange a time and I will give you a call :yes: I think the main thing Evie has had problems with is not the English after French reading, writing but the learning style and the fun elements of the classroom. After the strict French classroom it is a real change for the kids. Dont worry too much on the English, I let mine have a little bit of time off from France school near the end and just did English at home, the school here has been very understanding of the children and their needs. Now I have them in a French club here where they can play with French kids, just once a week playing games but hopefully they will keep up with their French. Good Luck with your Meds on Wednesday and I am sure you will all have your visas soon Flying from either worked out about the same, Paris a tiny bit cheaper but then we did not have the extra expense of the trip to the UK just a train ride to Paris. Hope to speak soon Sam xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taz2008 Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Hi Sam The kids french club sounds great, I was looking into these for when we come as I would hate for the girls to lose their french. I am around most of the time, so call whenever you like. Have you got a skype account or MSN messenger? That way I can see when you are online which might be easier! Where did you settle in the end North or South? Which school are your kiddies going to? Is it near your rental? Do you think you will move them from school when you purchase a house, or will you stay in the area? Ohh, so many questions I have for you LOL!!! Great to hear from you, and speak to you soon xxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JR56 Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Hi Sam, Not been on here for a while, it was "no worries" about your 40th! It was so nice to meet you and Paul. Pleased to hear your settling in although it's hard isn't it! Great that your up the road and we've become mates! Tasha, not seen you on here for ages, hope all is well in Brittany and you get your meds and visa's soon. It'll be worth it. We don't regret leaving France for a minute but miss the countryside and openess, although probably our fault for buying on a housing estate! Australia has it's faults but i'd rather stay here than put up with the french system anyday! Cheers Janet x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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