what where your expectations of oz,and what did you receive

[MARYROSE02]

I passed all the stupid security checks and references so im just waiting on the shifts to come in. All this just for 3weeks work!

 

I spent an hour filling out forms yesterday and it's six weeks since I first contacted them. The 'Xmas Pressure' does not actually start in earnest until the beginning of December anyway.

[Guest Mattinoz]

I thought I would have a better work life balance but found myself jumping through more hoops to try and get a job similar to the one I left in the U.K but ultimately de-skilling. I also went looking to settle down in life having lived in London and enjoyed my 20's however it was a huge culture shock to move from London to Oz and we found it to be boring. And my thoughts of some sort of suburban dream were totally unrealistic, property prices are very expensive especially given the quality of the buildings and despite living thee for four years we ended up living an ex-pat kind of lifestyle with British people as friends, and that is genuinely not out of a narrow minded approach, we tried really hard to put ourselves out to make new friends when we got there. If you think that you will be drinking beer around your neighbours pool in a borrowed pair of their budgie smugglers then I hope you have better luck than we did, (oooh nasty!) We have been back in the U.K for nine months and still love being back.

[Harpodom]

I thought I would have a better work life balance but found myself jumping through more hoops to try and get a job similar to the one I left in the U.K but ultimately de-skilling. I also went looking to settle down in life having lived in London and enjoyed my 20's however it was a huge culture shock to move from London to Oz and we found it to be boring. And my thoughts of some sort of suburban dream were totally unrealistic, property prices are very expensive especially given the quality of the buildings and despite living thee for four years we ended up living an ex-pat kind of lifestyle with British people as friends, and that is genuinely not out of a narrow minded approach, we tried really hard to put ourselves out to make new friends when we got there. If you think that you will be drinking beer around your neighbours pool in a borrowed pair of their budgie smugglers then I hope you have better luck than we did, (oooh nasty!) We have been back in the U.K for nine months and still love being back.

 

HI mate I can really relate to the highlighted part. Have quite a few Aus friends who I have known for 2-3 years but we still haven't managed to scratch beneath the surface of getting to know each other, whereas I have a couple of English friends (from PIO) who I'd regard as real mates, having known them less than a year.

I do think there is a difference in the way the English and Aussie socialise and make friends, in my experience anyway.

[Chris in Bris]

I thought I would have a better work life balance but found myself jumping through more hoops to try and get a job similar to the one I left in the U.K but ultimately de-skilling. I also went looking to settle down in life having lived in London and enjoyed my 20's however it was a huge culture shock to move from London to Oz and we found it to be boring. And my thoughts of some sort of suburban dream were totally unrealistic, property prices are very expensive especially given the quality of the buildings and despite living thee for four years we ended up living an ex-pat kind of lifestyle with British people as friends, and that is genuinely not out of a narrow minded approach, we tried really hard to put ourselves out to make new friends when we got there. If you think that you will be drinking beer around your neighbours pool in a borrowed pair of their budgie smugglers then I hope you have better luck than we did, (oooh nasty!) We have been back in the U.K for nine months and still love being back.

 

I can relate to this completely. Found it difficult to find work when I first arrived and ended up having to start at the very bottom of the ladder. After 4 years of trying to get a better job only now has it happened and it still is 'below' what I was doing in the UK - albeit less stressful. Coming from London to Brisbane it is a culture shock - used to it now - but if you're not really interested in going to the beach and doing outdoor lifestyle activities all the time, the Brisbane/Queensland isn't probably the best place to come. People forget that just because you leave England for a better life, there is no guarantee that you'll get it anywhere. Certainly with hindsight, in our case, the grass isn't always greener. You still have to find work, pay bills, deal with traffic jams, delays, the HEAT and HUMIDITY. It's not going to be that continuous holiday that everyone things it is going to be.

[Perthbum]

HI mate I can really relate to the highlighted part. Have quite a few Aus friends who I have known for 2-3 years but we still haven't managed to scratch beneath the surface of getting to know each other, whereas I have a couple of English friends (from PIO) who I'd regard as real mates, having known them less than a year.

I do think there is a difference in the way the English and Aussie socialise and make friends, in my experience anyway.

 

I found that was defiantly the case, where you can really get to know a fellow Brit and really trust him with your life knowing he would back you up no matter what I found that the aussies I befriended were really hard to get inside (stop them dirty thoughts):mad:

Aussies I knew would be really nice on the outside but I could never trust them 100%, a couple of times so called mates went behind my back to repeat what I had said about the firm I worked for which led to me almost getting the sack, not saying it is a bad thing but they are defiantly different to brits in humor and outlook on life and the way we interact with each other, they work really hard which is to be commended but there is just not tyhe fun and laughs I have with my English mates...might just be me though.

[janieco]

I was 10 years old when we moved to Oz, that was in 1974 !!

i thought we had landed in the wrong country.....driving through Melbourne city was so devastating, what a dreary bleak place it was. Where were all the laughing sunny people splashing about in the crystal clear water of the non stop fun place ''the beach'' and occasionally taking shade under swaying palm trees.....well thats what I had seen on the film at Manchester House. School was horrible in our little hick suburb and the neighbourhood kids would walk up and down our street chanting "go home pommie bastards''. We only had other Pommie kids as mates and still do.Oh and not a sodding Kangeroo in sight !!!!

I am now 47 and finally going home for good in June 2012, its been a life of longing and waiting and its nearly over :biggrin::biggrin:

[Chris in Bris]

I was 10 years old when we moved to Oz, that was in 1974 !!

i thought we had landed in the wrong country.....driving through Melbourne city was so devastating, what a dreary bleak place it was. Where were all the laughing sunny people splashing about in the crystal clear water of the non stop fun place ''the beach'' and occasionally taking shade under swaying palm trees.....well thats what I had seen on the film at Manchester House. School was horrible in our little hick suburb and the neighbourhood kids would walk up and down our street chanting "go home pommie bastards''. We only had other Pommie kids as mates and still do.Oh and not a sodding Kangeroo in sight !!!!

I am now 47 and finally going home for good in June 2012, its been a life of longing and waiting and its nearly over :biggrin::biggrin:

 

Good luck to you Janieco in the UK. I hope the UK lives up to your expectations. Hopefully I'll be back there soon.

[Chris in Bris]

Are these lazy people pommy migrants? Is it something in the water? too much sun? Why brisbane? Go on then..............I give up :goofy:

 

Mixture, not just the migrants. Reckon some people are just too laid back. Don't get me wrong, there are many who work every hour god sends but for some reason it would appear that for as long as I've been in Brisbane I've met, seen and been told about some of the most work-shy people I've ever been graced with. State politicians and some public servants for a start. Whether I was immune to it in the UK I'm unsure, but after working for a company previously that was heavily goverend and operated under QLD government juristiction, I met and heard about too many of the most laziest people around.

[Johndoe]

Mixture, not just the migrants. Reckon some people are just too laid back. Don't get me wrong, there are many who work every hour god sends but for some reason it would appear that for as long as I've been in Brisbane I've met, seen and been told about some of the most work-shy people I've ever been graced with. State politicians and some public servants for a start. Whether I was immune to it in the UK I'm unsure, but after working for a company previously that was heavily goverend and operated under QLD government juristiction, I met and heard about too many of the most laziest people around.

 

 

Well there ya go then! On the one hand we've got your post, and on the other, Perthbum saying that Aussies are hard workers and umpteen other posters saying how hard the work is here..............longer hours etc ..................there must be an element of truth somewhere? :goofy:

[Guest]

What is it you want to change? theres a few things i want to change too, nothing drastic. Just going to try be a bit more outgoing and less shy and maybe try be a bit more sporty, although im definitely not the beach volleyball type :laugh:

i heard the tellys crap unless you buy foxtel so we'll just need to stay away from that lol.

 

Stacey

in VIC the tv is nearly all British.. Though we haven't watched to much yet!

Sarah x:laugh:

[Guest]

Well been here only 8 days, but came with no expectations! As I see it, wherever you live, life goes on pretty much the same, work, school, washing, housework and the dreaded ironing!

Expect making friends will be tough, but chatted to a few people I've met so far.

 

my DH says it's nice that I am no longer stressed all the time though, so something has changed!

 

Things are different already though, my DH is home from work in 10 mins, and we do do things together in the evenings with the children. fingers crossed it's all going well!

 

Sarah

[MARYROSE02]

Well been here only 8 days, but came with no expectations! As I see it, wherever you live, life goes on pretty much the same, work, school, washing, housework and the dreaded ironing!

Expect making friends will be tough, but chatted to a few people I've met so far.

 

my DH says it's nice that I am no longer stressed all the time though, so something has changed!

 

Things are different already though, my DH is home from work in 10 mins, and we do do things together in the evenings with the children. fingers crossed it's all going well!

 

Sarah

 

You are going to love it here, I can tell, you are positive right from the start!

[Guest]

Thanks Mary Rose, I really hope so!

S

[pominengland]

That was pretty much my experience.

[pominengland]

That was a reply to whichway on page 1, but it has appeared out of sequence.