One year on…

Ok…you asked for it…so here it goes..

I have to say I can’t quite believe what we have achieved in a year….but its not been easy…

Don’t under estimate how hard it is putting all the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle together…

We arrived and Brian of aussie car rentals picked us up. At the time we just felt shell-shocked….our first impressions of what we saw as we left the airport…well…we did think OMG what have we done!!! He took us through Glenelg and said ‘this is the posh bit’…thought OMG if this is the posh bit…what on earth is the rest like!

Remember, we had never been to Adelaide or even Australia before…so we really had no idea what to expect.


We rented in Hallett Cove for 7 months, …but always knew we weren’t going to settle there…..and then bought a house in Happy Valley in June. To be quite honest we got a bit desperate…we spent 2 weeks looking at dodgy rentals plus got turned down on a really good one, so the one in Hallett Cove came up and we took it. With hindsight we should have stayed at brighton caravan park a bit longer, made sure we got a rental where we really wanted to be…but 6 of us in basically a 3 room cabin was getting really fraught.

Jobs

Jon didn’t start looking properly till we had house, car, kids etc sorted. He began to realize that the jobs available in his type of catering (contract catering i.e. running staff restaurants etc)…were not that common. Most of the jobs were hotels etc….where the hours were crap! But he fortunately got a mon-fri job working for a contract catering company. The first job was awful but they recognized what a good chef he is and moved him to another contract. He currently works at ETSA on the Anzac, cooking for the staff in that huge office building!

He can’t believe how hard the aussie’s work….don’t be fooled…it’s a myth that the aussie’s work as little as possible, and spend most of their time drinking beer and down the beach! Far from it!....It seems that most of the employers want blood, sweat & tears on top of normal working hours!!!!

I have been contracting….would like to settle down into a permanent role.. I am currently working for Husqvarna Construction Products Australia where I am selling surplus stock on Ebay. Yes… I have job 4 days a week where all I do is Ebay!!! I do work from the office, but it’s a job I also keep ticking over at home especially if one of the kids is sick. I really like it there, the people are great to me and very friendly. Can’t say that about the last place I worked at. I don’t know if was anti-pom feelings, but some of the people wouldn’t even speak to me.

Schools & kids

So far, give me Australian education over the UK any day!!!.... I think they have a more rounded education here….its not just about sitting at a desk and learning. Abbie & chris have adapted to school extremely well. They are both well at the top of their classess….which I ought to congratulate the UK system for, it certainly shows how much they have been taught. They are streaks ahead of some of the aussie kids. BUT….I am very happy that they are continuing their schooling here…I was talking to Chris’s teacher yesterday and she was horrified when I told her about the tests they put the kids through for league tables etc,…and at such a young age as well! She said she also doesn’t like the system in the UK where everyday is already mapped out….Ok yes they have structure here, but it can be deviated from. E.g. a child will come in to school in the morning with an item or story of something that has happened…she said she would then quite happily let the ‘education’ day stem from that..

They started out in Hallett Cove East and now go to reynella east primary school.

Abbie is thriving as a member of Cove Netball Club. She plays every Friday evening in a tournament, winter & summer. Has made some lovely friends both in Hallett Cove and at her new school.. Chris also is loving life here. They have taken to aussie life like ducks to water. Really pleased that they will have the opportunity to grow up here… and of course as well I’m glad for Matthew. He attends day care 4 days a week and is thriving! The day care facilities here are excellent!

My eldest Hannah struggled…she was 15 when we arrived and did a couple of weeks in Yr 10 before finishing for the summer. Went back in Yr 11….just couldn’t do it. Really didn’t settle well, find the transition from GCSE level to SACE over here extremely hard. She dropped out of school a few months ago, works at Foodland, and is hoping to start TAFE on February full-time to study hairdressing and beauty.

She also found it very hard for the first couple of months. We seriously thought that we had done the wrong thing for her coming here. Those of you who met us in the first couple of months will remember!...Please don’t underestimate how had it is to bring children of that age. I so wish we had done it years ago when she was a lot younger.

BUT a year on…she now understands why we came here and is much more settled. Has a group of friends, a job, is learning to drive etc….


Housing/suburbs

Finding a rental is a horrible job! We saw some awful ones, but finally got one in Hallett Cove. As I mentioned earlier, difficult decision as we knew that Hallett Cove was not where we would be settling. Many reasons…just wasn’t the suburb for us plus to be quite honest with you, and this is my personal opinion, the houses are well over priced. If you are prepared to move just a little further in land, like Happy Valley, you will get so much more for your money. Don’t get me wrong, Hallett Cove is lovely, the views of the sea etc…and I know lots of you have settled there and like it….but I still can’t quite get my head round what it is about Hallett Cove…why do the Brits seem to head there?....,,


Adelaide’s suburbs are so varied…each offering their own thing…try to look as much as possible….don’t just go by what is said on this forum….


Money

If you are fortunate enough to come here and be able to buy a house with no mortgage…then I believe you will find it pretty easy to manage financially. If however, you are like us, with a large family, and have a mortgage, it is very hard!!! It is not cheap here at all….when you look at the wages and what has to be paid out…..it is not easy. I have to say I am quite shocked as to how expensive everyday living expenses are … No wonder there is a big rental culture over here…I honestly can’t see how normal Australians can afford to buy a house, unless they have a huge deposit or are on really good wages. And Jon’s salary is considered a good average wage for Adelaide!!!!

Yes, I am lucky, being on a STNI visa, I get family assistance and child care benefit which is a huge help and I am really grateful we get that….if we didn’t get this we honestly wouldn’t manage, even with both of us working.


....But before we came, we had a good idea what Jon would be earning (had no idea about me at the time) plus knew we would be entitled to the benefits….so we knew what to expect. Just wasn’t quite prepared for how much we would be paying out in dollars!!!!


When we first decided to come to OZ…we thought we’d be financially much better of. We then sold our house in England for a lot less than we had hoped…meaning we came out with $70K less…..that didn’t help! But we always knew we’d need a mortgage…but obviously with the short fall needed a bigger one!...

So….really life is much the same as England on this score…..debt! But hey I’d much rather struggle here than back in the UK… At least if you have ‘skint’ moment, and the sun is shining, just get in the car and spend the day on the beach!..




Lifestyle

Love it all really….the beach, the weather, BBQ’s….etc….My kids love the beach, they happily spend all day there…playing with the sharks! ROLL IN THE SUMMER!!!!

We still have so much we want to see….its just getting the time! I think the furthest we have driven out of Adelaide since we got here is Victor Harbour!! How sad is that! We just have been so busy setting up our lives. Normal life kicks in pretty quick. It has to.

Spend most weekends, taking Hannah to and form work…oh…and most evenings as well… running the others to their sports etc…. can’t wait till Hannah is driving and can get herself about!!!!



Its been a year of many ups and downs…… looking forward to the next one!!!

What an excellent post, so glad you decided to do it, (with a little pressure.) :P

You seemed to have settled really well, so glad to hear everything is great for the kids too.

Really enjoyed reading it, very informative. It really is great for us still back in the UK to read the "one year on posts"

So thanks again and good luck for all the years to come.

Carol :)

Great post Lorraine ;)

One thing I wanted to suggest was for Hannah to go to the local new apprenticeship centre and see if there are any apprenticeships available as at least then she would be working (earning a bit of cash) as well as learning. I'm sure it will work out for her with you supporting her.

Sasha :)

Thanks...

I just worried about doing one....felt like i'm on here so much that i'd probably be repeating myself on so much of it....bore everyone to tears!!!!

Spent 2 hours this morning putting this together.....so hope its been worthwhile.




One thing I wanted to suggest was for Hannah to go to the local new apprenticeship centre and see if there are any apprenticeships available as at least then she would be working (earning a bit of cash) as well as learning. I'm sure it will work out for her with you supporting her.Sasha

hi sasha...thanks for that....that will be the next stage. She is adamant she wants to attend TAFE..having already done a short course there....before getting an apprenticeship...plus she is earning pretty well at foodland!...sometimes she has more in her bank account than me!


thanks
lorraine

Hi Lorraine
Excellent....... :P Made Great reading, and thanx for taking the time (2 hrs) for a well informed 1 year on post.

Keith........... :chuckle: :D :chuckle:

Hi lorraine, that was a great post, thanks for bowing to pressure and noting it all down - it's really good to hear both the highs and lows of peoples first years

CAroline :D

Fantastic post Lorraine, thank you!

Agree with you on most counts there!

Nikki
xx

'Spent 2 hours this morning putting this together.....so hope its been worthwhile.'


Thanks for taking the time Lorraine - much appreciated.

Jayne :)

What a great post Lorraine. I can relate to so many points you made.

:cool shake: :loopy:

Fab post Lorraine, thanks for taking the time to write it. I think it gives the 'newbies' an insight to how hard it is at the beginning & how we all struggle to find a decent rental ;)

Looking forward to your 2 yr one :D :dance: :bouncy:

Great post Lorraine, I'm so glad things are turning out good for you. I've starred your post for moving to the FAQ on experiences here as it's a great reference for others in the future.

Thanks for taking the time Lorraine, great post.

Really glad thing are starting to come together for you all.

:cool shake:

Congratulations on your first year Lorraine :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

Thanks for a great,honest and well balanced post.

Would - be migrants should all read it and take note ;)

Lorraine

That was a really well written post - so many 'newbies' will glean so much from that. Thanks for taking the time to write it.

I was particularly interested in your reference about the schools - it is so different here, more like the schooling we received when we were kids (all those years ago :D ) - and we turned out okay :loopy:

Here's to many happy years in SA for you all!

Heather x

Many thanks for this! I think that these posts are so valuable to us all as they are "real life" stories.

I too was disappointed with your first post with no details about your first year! :lol: I have such a cluttered mind, I can't keep up with peoples lives on here, in bits & pieces. So thank you and all the best for your next year :D

Hi Lorraine

Thanks so much for taking the time to put your experience down for us all to read.

It was very well written and a great read with loads of info on what we can expect. Sounds like you now have your life sorted and you are all settled - enjoy the rest of your new life in Adelaide :P

Lisa :D

Hi Lorraine

Found this really helpful and honest. Thanks for taking the time and trouble to put it together.

Really helps to put everything into perspective a bit more rather than the 'rose tinted specs' yoh put on when you first decide to migrate to Aus.

Lea :sign60:

I always enjoy reading people's updates and can appreciate how long they can take.

Cheers Lorraine and glad to hear you and your family are now settled.

Jo

Thanks so much for such a well balanced 'from the heart' post - it is great to hear the ups and downs from someone who has 'done it' so recently. Hope all continues to go well.

Thanks lorraine for an enjoyable read........just what I needed.

sarahx

GREAT READ LORRAINE

:bouncy: :bouncy: :bouncy:

Well done Lorraine!

Very interesting and well-written post, describing both the good and the bad, but in a constructive way.

Glad it's all working for you.

Jen

Ah...thanks...

Has what i said been that helpful??? i'm really surprised! According to my nearest and dearest...i talk :sign53: most of the time!!!! :lol2:

But also thanks to everyone who has read it and replied. I feel really glad i did it now...

There is other things that have happened that i think are worth noting and might be useful..

English credit cards - if like us, you plan to use one when you first arrive till you are set up with an aussie one...make sure you notify them you will be using it in australia. We used it and it wouldn't work...phoned them up and its because it was not normal usage for the card. Its a security thing...


Kids English school work
- i packed lots of their work, reports etc...the schools really weren't that interested. Had a quick flick through and that was it...when i think how much weight that added to our luggage!!!..so i really wouldn't bother! maybe just bring their latest report.

Rental references - If you have sold a house in the UK, get your estate agent to do a reference for you, saying how well kept your house was etc. Its normal to have the usual reference..i.e. bank, mortgage etc...but we had a couple of agents ask if they could have some idea of how we actually looked after a house!!!!

car Insurance - try to bring a copy of your NCD...you can use it here.

Ambulance Cover - I know i go on about this...but please, please make this one of your first priorities!!!!....remember calling an ambulance is not free!....some of you will remember our experience with matthew back in January....we didn't have cover and it cost us $700!...cover is only around $100 per annum. You may never have had to call an ambulance in your life (we hadn't) so you might not even think of this.

Just some things that have come to mind whilst thinking over the past year.

lorraine

Thanks Lorraine, I really enjoyed that read, I know that I am dreading the initial rental and eventually moving again as I don't enjoy the disruption at all!! At least I am expecting it to be bad, won't be too much of a shocker??!! :rolleyes: hopefully.
But yes it is good to read the real ups and downs of the process.
Claire

Thanks for all you hard work putting together this post. It makes us realise that we aren't alone with alot of the things you have said.

I have now been here 15 months and must do a similar post.....when I can find the time!

Thanks again

Ann

I don't think you can ever over-emphasise the importance of ambulance cover, Lorraine. Keep mentioning it. It'll keep on jogging our memories to do something about it.
Thanks for making the time to share so much with us all.
:)

Nice one Lorraine. :yeehah:

:happy03: excellent post Lorraine....

Thanks for reminder Lorraine - had forgotten that one and just added it to the list of things to do once we get over there :D

Lisa

Thats a brilliant post, really imformative.
Thanks,
Good luck for the future, :)
Kat xxx

Hi Lorraine

Massive congrats to you and your family on your 1st aussie anniversary :yeehah: :yeehah:

Hope there are many more to come :bouncy:

Babs :D

Glad everything is going well Lorraine, I can't believe the year has gone so quickly, doesnt seem five minutes ago we used to chat on the phone moaning how long things were taking!! :lol: :bouncy:

Bridie x

What a lovely, honest post, and well done Lorraine, for making the things that have been difficult not sound like an almighty whinge! That was really well balanced and although we have only been properly living here for four weeks, I'd say you were spot on with everything you've said. I hope things keep getting better for you, you deserve it!

All the Best

Nessa

Well done Lorraine, you`ve had your ups and downs but your still here, Look forward to the years ahead, it will get better and better


All the best

Sheila and Fred