Guest MNicola Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Hi Nic! Glad to hear you made it ok! Where are you staying? A drink would be great, PM me with a day that you're free - preferably not Wednesday as I have to do the lock up at work so wont be finishing til late. Alternately (or aswell!), I'm going to see Harry Potter on Friday with a girl friend if you're interested! Invite for both extends to anyone else that's interested too, let me know! Sarah x Drink sounds good. We could do a thursday? Either this one or next?! Sounds like others maybe interested in an after work beverage...or two! Cinema sounds like a plan too although I haven't seen all the Harry Potters so I might get completely lost trying to follow it. I'll pm you my number Nicola x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dferri2000 Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 I`m 34 (going on 21) and the other half is 30 (going on 41). Lol, sounds like us! Sent from my HTC Wildfire using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 You do not know how happy that's made me to know they'll be another red in Canberra! Jen, my girlfriend, hates football so I'd better keep this one from her......she's been hoping this move would be the end of football for good! It will be the end of "football" as you know it - if you start talking about the footie here, people will automatically assume you mean rugby league or possibly AFL if they are itinerant mexicans (Victorians). You will have to learn to call it soccer or you will get some very funny looks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nik_kershaw Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 It will be the end of "football" as you know it - if you start talking about the footie here, people will automatically assume you mean rugby league or possibly AFL if they are itinerant mexicans (Victorians). You will have to learn to call it soccer or you will get some very funny looks I just try and argue it with some Aussies, just with how can you call it football when you hold the ball for most of the game? Football should be a gam where you kick the ball for most of the game Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
n30nra1n Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Canberra will be full of us Mancs come february! I just hope some of them are Man U fans.....I don't fancy spending an entire season without anyone to moan to in the early ours of a sunday morning! Remember to give us all a shout come February! We'll leave a few cold ones in the fridge for you! Congrats on Callum too, can't think of a better place to raise a child! We are leaving the heartland 12Sep11and will be there 23Sep11 and will be happy to catch up over a Reds game any time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayandjen Posted August 9, 2011 Share Posted August 9, 2011 We are leaving the heartland 12Sep11and will be there 23Sep11 and will be happy to catch up over a Reds game any time Sounds very simliar to us! We leave on the 8th, then spend 2 weeks in New Zealand first to see Jen's sister, arriving in Canberra on the 25th September. So how's everything going? No last minute regrets? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest journeydownunder Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 Hi Guys, Alan my other half is a huge Man Utd fan. We are 34 and 31 so pretty similar in age. We've been here 5 weeks and have settled in really well so let us know when you arrive as we'd love to meet for a bevvy or 6! Emma Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
n30nra1n Posted August 13, 2011 Share Posted August 13, 2011 Nope no regrets at all, can't wait to get travelling although do have a weekend in Dublin on Fri with my son and best mate partly to celebrate my sons 18th (last Monday) so that should be fun. Very happy to catch up with all of you once we have all arrived will be good to swap stories and no doubt offer some support as I am sure there will be both good and bad days for a while 1st match of the season tomorrow, a good start so far with the first silverware already in the cabinet --- I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=53.439405,-2.062266 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayandjen Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Hi Guys, Alan my other half is a huge Man Utd fan. We are 34 and 31 so pretty similar in age. We've been here 5 weeks and have settled in really well so let us know when you arrive as we'd love to meet for a bevvy or 6! Emma Hi Emma (and Alan) How's is everything going 5 weeks in? Any hints and tips you can give us? Did Alan manage to watch the game yesterday? It would be on about 1 in the morning in Canberra! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bazinga Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Hi all, My husband is moving out to Canberra in a month or so, he's an Aussie (but from Central Coast) so no visa issues there & the rest of us (me & 2 smalls) will be out as soon as we get a visa. He is a HUGE Man U fan (former season ticket holder) so I'll show him this thread so hopefully he can make some ManU loving mates. & I hate footie so I'm happy to palm him off to another fans. We're 30 (me) & 32 (him) so similar ages. Hope the moves are going well guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest journeydownunder Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Hi Emma (and Alan) How's is everything going 5 weeks in? Any hints and tips you can give us? Did Alan manage to watch the game yesterday? It would be on about 1 in the morning in Canberra! Hey, we're really enjoying Canberra. The main tip I would give you is keep an open mind. Try not to judge on first appearances as Canberra really grows on you and its only as you discover different suburbs that you really begin to appreciate the quality of life you will have here. If you're lucky enough to arrive when it's sunny that first impression will be much nicer but even if its not, it won't be long before the sun does come out!! Get out and explore, drive around and get your bearings. Whereabouts are you going to be living? When do you actually arrive. Didn't watch the match, we don't have Foxtel yet! I'm sure when we move in to our new place next month we'll be getting all the sports channels which will be "sky +" to watch at a more reasonable hour (oh joy!!!) If you need anything when you get here or just want to grab a beer or coffee just drop us a line. I'll PM you my mobile number. Em & Al x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jjflash Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Be prepared Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayandjen Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Hi all, My husband is moving out to Canberra in a month or so, he's an Aussie (but from Central Coast) so no visa issues there & the rest of us (me & 2 smalls) will be out as soon as we get a visa. He is a HUGE Man U fan (former season ticket holder) so I'll show him this thread so hopefully he can make some ManU loving mates. & I hate footie so I'm happy to palm him off to another fans. We're 30 (me) & 32 (him) so similar ages. Hope the moves are going well guys! Jenny hates it too so she'll be all to happy to know that she's not alone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayandjen Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Hey, we're really enjoying Canberra. The main tip I would give you is keep an open mind. Try not to judge on first appearances as Canberra really grows on you and its only as you discover different suburbs that you really begin to appreciate the quality of life you will have here. If you're lucky enough to arrive when it's sunny that first impression will be much nicer but even if its not, it won't be long before the sun does come out!! Get out and explore, drive around and get your bearings. Whereabouts are you going to be living? When do you actually arrive. Didn't watch the match, we don't have Foxtel yet! I'm sure when we move in to our new place next month we'll be getting all the sports channels which will be "sky +" to watch at a more reasonable hour (oh joy!!!) If you need anything when you get here or just want to grab a beer or coffee just drop us a line. I'll PM you my mobile number. Em & Al x Thanks for the advice! So you do both have work yet? If so what line of work are you in? We'll be moving into monterey apartments near the civic for the first 5 weeks (we'll have to get a wriggle on and rent somewhere cheaper during this time). While we're not really apartment type people, the civic seemed the best place to start as it's so close to all the things we'll need to arrange (bank etc..) when we arrive. Thanks for the invite for a drink.....we'll be sure to take you up on the offer when we get there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bazinga Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 What areas do you guys like in Canberra? Husband will be working in Braddon I think but living in Queanbeyan until we move out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest journeydownunder Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Hi JayandJen, Yes we both have jobs. I was lucky enough to have one to start on arrival. I work at the Canberra Times running the advertising department. Alan is working for Hays recruitment in the IT division, which is totally new for him as his background is in B2B telecomms sales but he was finding that many of the jobs he was looking at required citizenship. So he's completely moved industries although it's pretty much still B2B sales so it's not totally different. It took him 4 weeks to find and start a job from arrival. That's good that you will be quite central to start with. We're in Braddon at the moment which is "inner north" so its less than 1km in to civic. We're moving to Kingston (inner south) in 3 weeks as we really like it there. It's a bit further from the city itself but is right near the lake and it has lots of nice cafes, retaurants and bars. There is a neighbouring suburb called Manuka which also has a lot of the above and is really nice and only a short walk away. For house hunting, we prepared a "renters pack" basically we got our previous landlord in the UK to write a really nice reference, had copies of job offers and backed that up with proof of home ownership in the UK (we rent a house out in the Midlands back home). We also put in a short cheesy cover note saying how lovely and reliable we were!!!! It just helps get approved by the agents. As there is a chance you won't have jobs when you come to rent in 5 weeks, any back up you can show to prove that you will be able to pay the rent even without jobs will be pretty important i.e. a bank statement showing savings or proof of income from the UK etc. Canberra really is a town of who you know. Everybody know's everybody or is connected in some way. They told me that when I arrived and I was like "yeah yeah" but it is so true and people want to help. So another good piece of advice is talk to people as much as you can. Alan landed his job by a chance meeting with the regional director who was sat on our table at a charity dinner. Last piece of advice - say yes to everything! (Well within reason!!) It's really rather strange starting from scratch knowing nobody and the more things you attend, the more people you contact the quicker you'll settle. If I think of anything else I'll let you know! Em x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest journeydownunder Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 What areas do you guys like in Canberra? Husband will be working in Braddon I think but living in Queanbeyan until we move out. We live in Braddon at the moment. Alan really likes it there as there is a neighouring suburb called Dickson where there are tons and tons of restaurants of every type and a bar there he insists we go to every weekend called Suburban! I really like inner south - Kingston (which is where we're moving to next month), Manuka and Griffith. They're lovely areas, quite pricey but Kingston and Manuka in particular have a really nice cafe culture, nice bars, boutiques etc and are green and leafy and well established. We haven't been to Queanbeyan yet so couldn't really advise you on that. I think a lot depends on if you have a family and the kinds of things you like to do as to where is best for you to live. Budget also comes in to it too of course! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bazinga Posted August 16, 2011 Share Posted August 16, 2011 Thanks That's really helpful. Just been looking at Karabar, Braddon & Bungendore. All 3 very different areas. Bungendore would mean at least an hours commute for my husband but it's in the countryside which I'm quite keen on. I live in London (half mile from riots) so looking for total change! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted August 16, 2011 Share Posted August 16, 2011 Thanks That's really helpful. Just been looking at Karabar, Braddon & Bungendore. All 3 very different areas. Bungendore would mean at least an hours commute for my husband but it's in the countryside which I'm quite keen on. I live in London (half mile from riots) so looking for total change! You might not want to have Karabar on your list, especially if you have kids. The countryside here is not like the countryside in UK - it is a different somewhat harsher life with tank water and cesspits. Bungendore is getting more expensive because of the new defence facility out there but it is a nice enough little place - I have friends who do the commute and sometimes it gets them down especially if they work on the other side of town. Getting past the airport in the morning can be a bit of a chore (less so now that the road works are almost done but still a bit of a pain) Central Canberra is about as different from Central London as can be - I live in Ainslie and we regularly have kangaroos in our front garden, especially when we were in drought - and it takes me a 5 minute drive to get into Civic for work (or a 40 minute walk) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bazinga Posted August 16, 2011 Share Posted August 16, 2011 Karabar is where the family are which is why we were looking there. They also had roos in their back garden during the drought, they got quite feisty. I'm used to tank water & cess pits, family have house in rural France. When we first had it we had a bucket, nothing else. I thought there must be something going on in Bungendore - Lots of land lots for sale, huge development planned. Ainslie is a little out of our price range unfortunately. Thanks for the help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayandjen Posted August 17, 2011 Share Posted August 17, 2011 Hi JayandJen, Yes we both have jobs. I was lucky enough to have one to start on arrival. I work at the Canberra Times running the advertising department. Alan is working for Hays recruitment in the IT division, which is totally new for him as his background is in B2B telecomms sales but he was finding that many of the jobs he was looking at required citizenship. So he's completely moved industries although it's pretty much still B2B sales so it's not totally different. It took him 4 weeks to find and start a job from arrival. That's good that you will be quite central to start with. We're in Braddon at the moment which is "inner north" so its less than 1km in to civic. We're moving to Kingston (inner south) in 3 weeks as we really like it there. It's a bit further from the city itself but is right near the lake and it has lots of nice cafes, retaurants and bars. There is a neighbouring suburb called Manuka which also has a lot of the above and is really nice and only a short walk away. For house hunting, we prepared a "renters pack" basically we got our previous landlord in the UK to write a really nice reference, had copies of job offers and backed that up with proof of home ownership in the UK (we rent a house out in the Midlands back home). We also put in a short cheesy cover note saying how lovely and reliable we were!!!! It just helps get approved by the agents. As there is a chance you won't have jobs when you come to rent in 5 weeks, any back up you can show to prove that you will be able to pay the rent even without jobs will be pretty important i.e. a bank statement showing savings or proof of income from the UK etc. Canberra really is a town of who you know. Everybody know's everybody or is connected in some way. They told me that when I arrived and I was like "yeah yeah" but it is so true and people want to help. So another good piece of advice is talk to people as much as you can. Alan landed his job by a chance meeting with the regional director who was sat on our table at a charity dinner. Last piece of advice - say yes to everything! (Well within reason!!) It's really rather strange starting from scratch knowing nobody and the more things you attend, the more people you contact the quicker you'll settle. If I think of anything else I'll let you know! Em x Thanks for all that useful information! We keep getting more and more excited each day! It's strange because we go to New Zealand for a short holiday before we arrive in Canberra, and because of all the excitment of moving to oz, I keep forgetting that we've got a holiday booked first! I don't think we'll be able to do much relaxing though! We've looked at living in Manuka and Kingston but I don't we could really afford their rental prices until we found work. Which is a shame becuase it looks so nice! Thanks also for the "renters pack" idea....we've already taken your advice onboard and started scanning letters, banks statements etc.. Could I ask a huge favour and ask if I could get a bit of advice from Alan? He may be in the position to help me find a job? I'm primarily a Graphic Designer, although i'm a bit of a jack of all trades when it comes to IT, being able to build websites, program and design multimedia, help businesses grow through social media and project manage IT work. It may be that he doesn't deal with this kind of stuff but if he knows anyone that I could speak to then that would be a great help! My employer currently wants to keep me on his books for 2 days a week so i'd really only be looking for 3 days work (unless of course I get a tempting offer!) Thanks again! Jay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest toops Posted August 18, 2011 Share Posted August 18, 2011 Hi there, I just found this thread and I have had contact with some but not others so thought I would introduce ourselves as you have to put yourselves out there in a new place. I'm 44 (going on 24) and hubby older but we aint old farts and still daft as a brush.... but then we are mancs so what can I say?? We are in our third week and have been staying in Hackett with some mates we met backpacking a few years ago. Within 10 days we had secured a rental (2 actually!), without jobs, they didn't even ring for refs, I think it's down to the way you present yourselves. If you want a copy of the intro letter I did and more infor then let me know and I can send it PM. From what we have seen to now we love it.. no regrets at all. We are going to stay in Hackett for the time being as its easy to get around, got Dickson (Dicko) on your doorstep, we will cycle there in Summer, get bladdered and cycle home.. is that legal here??? Anyway there are some great eateries in Dicko. In Hackett (within walking distance this time incase we get our bikes confiscated) there's a small place called Wilburs, nice, easy and good grub so lots about if you look. Tilly Devines in Lyneham is very lively and funky, you just have to get out there and talk to peope as has already been said on this forum. If anyone fancies a meet up in civic after work (for those that are working) or us still looking I'm willing to organise a date for us? Just let me know. I've copied in an email below that I sent to some friends about how we have found Canberra and it may be helpful for those on their way out here, or even if you are here and we have managed to get some inside info as we haev been staying with Australians. Of course, it's just our opinion so don't hold me to ransom! Bye for now, Toops. Here's the email:- Canberra itself and distances - love it! It's small, manageable, fairly easy to get around on public transport and although the Australians will tell you that places like Ngunnawal and Woden are far away it is nothing by what we are used to. We drove to Quenbeyan this morning for a nosey and it took 15 mins to get from there to Hackett (Inner North). Many buses have cycle racks at the front so you can part cycle/bus it everywhere. Good if you get knackered. Each suburb has a mini centre with grocery shops ranging in size from full on rows of restaurants (Dickson, affectionately known as Dicko) to trendy pavement cafes (Lyneham). Invest in a $20 road map book, well worth it. Houses - more expensive than what we are used to but that's the cost. You get bigger houses and marginally lower prices further out but a bit trickier to get into the city which is where the majority of work is closer to. We are staying in Hackett with Oz pals and got a rental yesterday also in Hackett for $390 pweek. It's small by Oz standards but affordable, easy to manage, don't need a car. After looking round we loved Nicholls, Gunghalin Pond, Isaacs and Quenbeyan but had to be practical for now and stay where we anticipate where work will be, close enough for places to go at night etc. On saying that we back on to a nature reserve and have roo's and parrots at our back door so certainly not built up. The Inner North has lots going on and it's still got traditional Oz houses whereas further out in the new builds it's like a moonscape in places. It's a good start and even though on a 12 months lease you can break it by paying 1 weeks rent extra as a get out so don't worry when you sign a 12 months contract which they all seemed to be. Getting a rental is a bit tricky, you have to present yourself very well and fight off the competition; I put together a pack with an introductory letter which seemed to work for us as we got offered both of the two properties we submitted an application for. Before we arrived we kept getting told how hard it was to get a rental but you have to put your best smile on and sell yourself basically. They didn't even ring to check references. Also register on www.allhomes.com.au to get updates. Doesn't really matter where you live to begin with, it's all driveable by what we have been used to. Mobile - simiar to UK, not had time to work it all out so using PAYG with Crazy John's who use vodafone's network. Vodafone also do a international deal where you can call the UK cheaply should you decide to do so! Buses - if you use buses (we have and I can't remember last time I used a bus in the UK!) go to Post (the post office) or any newsagent and but what's called a MyWay card. You top it up and get almost half price bus journeys. You swipe on and off the buses to record your journey and if you travel on two routes within 90 minutes you only get charged for one. Climate - it's warm in the sun in the day and very cold at night plus insulation in houses is crap! Bring warm clothes, by the end of Sept it should warm up. Rain is minimal, how cool is that?? Road User Licence - can drive on UK one for 3 months but if you buy a car need an Oz one to register the vehicle. Costs around $90 to get one from Dickson Motor Registry. http://www.rego.act.gov.au/licensing/licencemoveact.htm check out the website for details - we haven't sorted that yet. Medicare, Banking, Doctors, TFN - easy to sort out, even easier if you have a residential address you can use? Do you have an address? If you have a bank account get them to send a letter to your residential address for when you arrive. ID is calculated on a points basis, so proof of residential address, passport, birth cert gives you the points and evidence you need to apply for all these plus rentals. Doctors are hard to come by and you pay a levy to Medicare, i.e. you go to the Docs and pay a portion of the bill yourself. However... as we have Oz mates we have inside info! We went to a Doc's in a place called Charnwood, it's a co-operative and you pay $60 a year and that's all you ever pay unless it's specialised treatment. They do what's called 'bulk billing' meaning they put all the bills together and so all you pay is the membership. Sounds a bit like a con to me but it's legit and a very cheap way to be sick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
n30nra1n Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Hey all, Counting down the days now 20 till we leave the UK. All your posts are such a help to realising that everything is achievable if your prepared to accept the change and graft for it oh an two out of two for the season following a good solid performance last night Jo doesn't care much for football either so looks like there may be a fair split here on match days. --- I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=53.475231,-2.222435 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayandjen Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Hey all, Counting down the days now 20 till we leave the UK. All your posts are such a help to realising that everything is achievable if your prepared to accept the change and graft for it oh an two out of two for the season following a good solid performance last night Jo doesn't care much for football either so looks like there may be a fair split here on match days. --- I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=53.475231,-2.222435 We've just started the "this is the last time we'll do this" stage, and although we're really excited about it all, it feels like we're now sat on the edge of a very steep cliff just waiting to take that leap. Although time is moving quickly, it's really not moving quick enough.....we just can't wait to get on the plane and start necking the champagne! Was a fantastic performance last night and Fergie really has a problem now with all the regulars coming back from injury - time will tell but a great start to the season so far! Well better head off.....it's our leaving party this sunday (arrrgh!) and we've go so much to do before then! Speak to you soon! Jay and Jen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bazinga Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Is Tilly Devines an ex-pat run bar? She was an infamous Sydney madam in the 1920s but originally from the UK! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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