Life in the land of Oz!

[BriD]

And here we are...finally in Melbourne, Australia...

The last days before our departure were terribly difficult...saying goodbye to family is by far the worst part of this process ever. The not knowing when you will see them again is hard. It has been a long time since I have cried so many tears in such a short time.

My IL's dropped us off at the airport. We had a coffee with them...and then the last of the goodbyes...lots of tears and we walked off towards passport control...waving at each gap behind the check in counters until we lost sight of them. A poignant moment...the moment we walked off into our new life.

The flight to Sydney was ok...there were some turbulent sections where even the air hostesses were told to go to their seats. Imagine me gripping the arm rests with the nails while the rest of the family slumbered through the bumpiness. The joys of being a light sleeper lol! Finish that off with a delayed arrival into a misty windy Sydney with the prayers renewed as we came into land. As we taxi'd to the parking I was chatting to the lady behind me and the air hostess...the lady had immigrated from SA 25 yrs ago...the air hostess was the child of a couple from Greece who had immigrated before she was born. We all ended up in tears together...

Once in the airport we had to rush rush rush...through customs, get our 8 giant bags, along with our 7 pieces of hand luggage and 2 whiney children...try and get through baggage check...was not stopped thank goodness...rush to the domestic transfer terminal...drop bags off again...drag whiney children through another baggage check and into the area where you wait for the bus to take you to domestic terminal. Get there...go to gate and practically go straight onto the plane...eish! Cutting it fine!

Arriving in Melbourne, there was a bit of confusion with the taxi we booked. The people obviously underestimated how much space 8 big bags would take and we had to find another taxi to take us to our hotel. No worries, we were sorted pretty quick. Went to Waverly International Hotel in SE Melbourne. Took a walk down the street at 8h30pm to find somewhere for dinner. Found a lot of Asian and Vietnamese restaurants...lovely vibe and good (expensive) food. Was good...walked back in the dark (such a foreign concept to be ok with this) and went to bed. At 2am...3/4 of us were wide awake...took a good 2 hours to fall back to sleep...Jet-lag bah humbug!

In the morning, hubby popped to the bank, bought a sim card for our tablet, we took a taxi to our apartment. Met the agent, got the keys.

Our apartment is awesome! Just the perfect size for us to start off...easy to clean and in a lovely area. 50 metres down the road is a mini park and it is a quiet and peaceful neighbourhood.

We finally decided to call a car rental company and had them deliver to us a car which we will rent for a week. Cost $50 to have it delivered...but saved us in sanity and time. As soon as it was delivered we went off to The Good Guys with our list of appliances we needed. The assistant was great, really knew his products well and gave good advice. The only problem with that outing was the kids...hells bells!!!! I am sorry to say that they were terribly badly behaved. Using all their pent up and energy and boredom to completely ignore their parents and any bribery of any kind and were complete hooligans!! Running and screaming and going on despite urgent whispers from us (especially me...I got Laryngitis 2 days before we left SA and it still has not cleared...think about how effective a mother with a hoarse tiny voice is...puhlease )

Anyways...seems the shop staff were not perturbed...even gave them each a free toy at the end of the shopping trip...sheesh.

We then braved the bed shop...fell in love with an EXPENSIVE bed....but figured...hell, we gonna sleep on this thing for 10 years, it needs to last and be comfy. So we bought it, origionally the guy said they could only deliver on Saturday...but quickly changed his tune when I asked for his card saying we would think about it after popping past Harvey Norman. Suddenly we could have it the next day. Signed and sealed.

Last stop was to another bedding shop, we bought 4 pillows and 2 airbeds. Again very friendly and helpful staff. I swear every store builds in a discount automatically to their products because discounts were given at every store we went to!

We returned home to our apartment to face the chaos of unpacking 8 bags with little to no cupboard space for the huge amount of clothes we brought...omw. I never realised how many clothes I had until I was faced with the tiny cupboard space... Anyhoo...we managed to find place for everything. All worked out in the end.

Yesterday we received all our appliances at the exact time they said they would arrive! Shock horror! And then our bed arrived on time aswell...only problem was that they could not get the base up the narrow stairwell.... Delivery dudes reckoned that we would need to exchange it for a split base. My hubby told them to just leave it in the foyer downstairs and he would think about it. Anyways in true engineer form...he formulated a plan. We bought some rope and together we pulled the base up to our 3rd floor balcony and installed in successfully in our bedroom! Whoop whoop! Wonder what our neighbours thought when they saw the base going past their window!! LOL!

Hubby went to VIC roads in Camberwell to apply to convert his licence. Seems you have to make an appointment and the earliest he could get was for the 18/02. I phoned the call centre and managed to get us both earlier appointments for the 14/02. So a word of advice...as soon as you get here...specially I would imagine in the bigger centres, phone the central call centre and book the appointment so you don't waste any time. You need a driver's license to organise Telstra Internet and TV bundles etc.

Yesterday afternoon, we went to Amy's new school. Really loved the look of it...got a good feeling We will need to go buy her uniform on Saturday and she will start school on Monday. Also popped past the Town Hall. Got a lot of useful and informative pamphlets there. One of them parking rules and another a booklet of anything child related etc...especially kindy's...gonna be looking for one for my son. Seems they are in super high demand and it is hard to find a place. So hold thumbs I find one for him!

Finally after dinner at about 6ish we took the kids down the road to a little mini park 50 metres from our apartment to play. They had such a ball...then we took a walk around a couple of blocks. Was exactly what they needed... Was nice to relax a bit too.

Today we went on a proper grocery shop at Coles...took a while but we sorted now. Then hubby went off to the bank to sort a few things and went to Telstra to buy a portable pay as you go router thingy...until we have our Aussie drivers licences we cannot get any contracts. Earliest we could get an appointment was for the 14 Feb!!

This arvie we started the looking for a car process. Decided to try Toyota first. Like the look of a run around like a Yaris. They were having a sale on 2013 Yaris's. They really went above and beyond the call of a sales person...cos the only one they could get for us will arrive beginning March. And we cannot rent a car for a month!!! So the manager offered us a loan car at no charge until our new car arrives!!! Feel so blessed and gobsmacked at the lengths people go to here to help you. We fetch the loan car tomorrow morning, and will drop the rental off early! YAY!!

Lastly...a rather funny or not funny situation depending on how you look at it. When we arrived at our flat...there seemed to be a hang of a lot of flies...lying on the floor buzzing around etc. I thought...well people said there were flies in Aus...maybe this is normal! Had my daughter sweeping up dead flies into a pan every 10 minutes...thought...shoo whee this is a bit extreme. A day or so later my cousin contacted me saying his MIL had been to the flat the day before we arrived and had expressed concern about a pest problem...were there flies? So then I realised maybe it wasn't normal. Anyways...they organised a pest dude to come out. Seems a rat died a while back in the roof...though no smell..the presence of blowflies indicated maggots...so he sprayed the roof and said it would all be sorted by tomorrow. We found it funny...I guess because we actually thought it might be normal...not knowing the fly situation in Aus personally. LOL!

So far...been too busy to contemplate what we have left behind. Feeling really happy and relaxed at the moment...feels like we have been here weeks already...but it's only days. Love it here...was the best decision for us!!

Hubby hard at work looking at Seek and will be going hard at the job search now that we are here. Hoping it does not take too long!

Anyways...that's all from me for now folks.

[BriD]

OOPS! Sorry it's so long!

[McCabes]

I have been wondering how you all are and how everything went, I'm sorry the goodbyes took such a toll on you Bri, but I'm so VERY VERY happy that everything has worked out!

Wishing you only good things, and all the best for Amy's first day of school on Monday - put up a pic if you can.

Hugs!

[HansaPlease]

Love reading posts from new arrivals.

Welcome!

[Tazzn]

Glad you arrived save and sound Hope the settlign in is seamless

Love Tazz

(BD/SW forum buddy)

[Eliza]

Wow you guys seems so organised!! I was wandering....are you renting if so, did you manege to rent it from SA?

How much did the rental car cost you per day? We are going to Perth in April and we have so much stuff to sort

out still. We don't know anyone in Perth so it is a bit stressful. we will appreciate all the advise we can get!

have a nice evening

Riaan

[Toitjie]

Welcome to Australia Bri, it's good to hear you sorted stuff so quickly. Enjoy every minute, its good to keep a journal because the first few weeks are such a blur that a week later you cant remember what you did every day, you just know you were very busy!

Enjoy and good luck with the job hunting

[followmylead]

Welcome here enjoyed your story and laughed at the fly things. Gross!

[Crossedover]

May you settle well.... I definitely think you can't say good bye at the airport.... Ironically just confirming our plans with my brother and good friends today had me sobbing..... But I think once you get there you can refocus... I do hope things prove to be welcoming and that you are constantly reassured of the fantastic future you are ensuring for your family....x

[21yearsoutofrsa]

Your passports should be good for identification,try them instead of your currently non existent drivers license

[Garrick]

Hey Bri. Look forward to seeing you guys soon and helping any way we can.

-G

[Maktub]

Hi BriD!

Welcome to Melbourne!

If you are near Camberwell you HAVE to go to the Camberwell Markets on Sundays! From 7am...just across the road from Camberwell VicRoads, in the parking lot behind Prospect Espresso (the cafe across the road). Gold coin donation to get in, but it really is worth it! People selling all sorts of things for really cheap (I have bought so many dresses there for under $5!). All sorts of furniture, kids toys and clothes, generally anything you can think of! Also will give you a real sense of community.

Also, I do almost all of my shopping at the Queen Vic Markets (I know its a bit of a trek into the city, but early mornings over weekends are good)...I find it to be much cheaper than Coles, especially for fruit and veg! I paid 65cents this morning for a bag of onions...could not believe that I paid for something in cents! And things like apples and pears are 99cents per kg when in season, currently $1.50. Love it!

Haha, as you can tell...I love markets and bargains...but I am on a student budget after all! :-)

Enjoy Melbs!

[BriD]

Wow you guys seems so organised!! I was wandering....are you renting if so, did you manege to rent it from SA?

How much did the rental car cost you per day? We are going to Perth in April and we have so much stuff to sort

out still. We don't know anyone in Perth so it is a bit stressful. we will appreciate all the advise we can get!

have a nice evening

Riaan

Hiya Riaan

Thanks! I do try to be as organised as possible wherever possible...makes me feel more in control. Call me a control freak lol!

We were very fortunate, my cousin offered me his place to rent while his family went on a working 2 yr holiday in the UK. It happened to be in the exact area we were looking in...so I attribute it purely to God answering a prayer.

Car rental...it depends on the car rental company and the car etc. We paid $321.00 for the lowest category car (it was a Mitsubishi Mirage), we had it delivered (which is $50 included in the total I mentioned) on Wednesday afternoon, and we dropped it off on Saturday morning. We also had to hire 2 booster seats for our kids at an additional charge. We made finding a car a priority...with the kids public transport everywhere would have been tricky.

Everything kind of falls into place in the end...try not to stress too much about it...it does not help anything.

Your passports should be good for identification,try them instead of your currently non existent drivers license

I only wish that were true! To get Telstra contract and packages you need Australian Identification...so a driver's licence is what we need before we can do anything...sigh

Hey Bri. Look forward to seeing you guys soon and helping any way we can.

-G

Looking forward to seeing you guys again too!! Hopefully next weekend

Hi BriD!

Welcome to Melbourne!

If you are near Camberwell you HAVE to go to the Camberwell Markets on Sundays! From 7am...just across the road from Camberwell VicRoads, in the parking lot behind Prospect Espresso (the cafe across the road). Gold coin donation to get in, but it really is worth it! People selling all sorts of things for really cheap (I have bought so many dresses there for under $5!). All sorts of furniture, kids toys and clothes, generally anything you can think of! Also will give you a real sense of community.

Also, I do almost all of my shopping at the Queen Vic Markets (I know its a bit of a trek into the city, but early mornings over weekends are good)...I find it to be much cheaper than Coles, especially for fruit and veg! I paid 65cents this morning for a bag of onions...could not believe that I paid for something in cents! And things like apples and pears are 99cents per kg when in season, currently $1.50. Love it!

Haha, as you can tell...I love markets and bargains...but I am on a student budget after all! :-)

Enjoy Melbs!

Thanks for the tips!! Will def make a plan to have a look see! We staying in Glen Iris...so Camberwell def in the area for us!

We are already enjoying Melbs...was the right choice

[Garrick]

Don't rush into a Telstra contract. There are almost always better deals with other ISPs like IINET or even Optus.

We are with Telstra only because we got a large rebate due to Eynesbury being a Smart Community before the NBN. Once that contract is up we'll move to another ISP.

-G

[rozellem]

I second IINET (and my husband is a anal IT nerd).

[189inprocess]

Hi BriD,

Sounds like you have had a good start in Melbourne. Lovely to hear your news and hope to hear from you soon,

Good Luck with your daughter starting school

[Bronwyn&Co]

What a great post! I would have loved to watch that bed base being hoisted up to the third floor, lol. Way to make a plan!

[BriD]

Today my little girl started big school. She looked so cute in her school uniform, and when the teacher took her hand she willingly went with her. I had such a proud moment watching her walk off into this new phase of her life. As for the school, it was the first time I had seen the classroom and I am SO impressed...man alive...a public school in SA would not be able to compete with this. When we came to fetch her later, we had a little chat with the teacher. Amy had been fine most of the day, but when recess came she became overwhelmed by the large amount of children and started crying. Her teacher was on playground duty so she saw her and comforted her. I have also spent a lot of time with her today talking to her about it. She is a talker like her mom...needs to go over it again and again to work through it. She also said it was too long....and yes 9am -3h30 does seem very long...but it is an adjustment for us all I guess. She has not said she hates it...but I think we may have a bit tougher time tomorrow when we leave. Will have to let the teacher know she needs a lot of reassurance. She cannot get to sleep tonight, keeps calling me in tearfully saying she is worried that she will miss mommy and daddy cos the day is too long

On the other side of the spectrum is my son Dan, who was devastated that he could not join Amy in prep. Not because he is attached to being by her side...but because it looked like so much fun. He was dragged out of her school kicking and screaming...so delightful. Anyways...on that topic. I have been trying to find him a kinder. A lot of them have no space. One I called kept saying they would come back to me and didn't. So I called them, and then went to have a look. Before I got there I was sure I would take the space they had. But then we got there...and you know when you get that uneasy feeling...and you try and push it down. He was happy enough, running off to play. But the owner/manager seemed very disorganised and could not even tell us the price!! I filled out the form to enrol him...but when we left there I called another nursery school I had seen and asked to visit. What a polar opposite...clean, orderly, structured. They focus on teaching them not only normal work but also good behaviour in appropriate place...eg the library etc. The time and place for things etc. I really really loved it there. MUCH more expensive, but I feel better about this place. So then I had the hard task of calling the other woman and telling her Dan would not be coming to her school...argh...I hate doing that, but it had to be done.

Otherwise, we registered for Tax, we did our Medicare today, we bought Myki cards for Melbourne public transport, did some more "seek"ing. Did some more grocery shopping, did washing and drying and cleaning etc. I feel like we have achieved a huge amount of things in a very short space of time and I am proud of that, but also am feeling very much exhausted and washed out now.

I really am starting to pine for our stuff now...I feel like I am nesting in our rental...but without our stuff my nesting is stunted! Container tracker says it is due to arrive on the 18/02. Can anyone give me any indication on how long it normally take from arriving in port to being on my doorstep? I seriously want my stuff now...sigh.

On the weekend we went to the beach in St Kilda. We of course would choose the St Kilda festival weekend to do that...so it was hectically busy...but the kids had a ball and we all had a good relaxing time there. Beach is perfect for children! No major waves, just gentle ripples...perfect! Then on the Sunday we were invited to have a breakfast bbq at Albert Park. I had not met either of the couples there before, was introduced by my cousin over FB. But they were kind enough to include us and we had a lovely morning with them. In the afternoon we went to an aquatic centre just down the road, again kids had a blast. Was a good weekend.

Shame...my Amy has called me crying again, saying she is too worried to sleep...cos she will miss mommy and daddy...breaks my heart man!!!

[Sunnyskies]

BriD

Try the kindies in Balwyn and Kew. About a five to ten minute drive from Glen Iris. I was talking to a friend over the weekend that says that a number of the kindies in those suburbs are struggling to fill spots due to the decrease of young families as a result of rising house prices.

[BriD]

It feels like we have been here sooo much longer than we have. In a good way though...I feel like we are settling in quite quickly which is great. Maybe it is because we have been in limbo so long that settling down somewhere is just great.

This last week was pretty rough, specifically because of the whole situation with Amy and prep. Ultimately we took her out of prep because she was not coping socially and emotionally...too many kids too long a day. She did not have to start this year (as we found out on Wednesday) and I felt terrible for not having known that. But it worked out anyways...she only needs to start next year...which gives us a bit more leeway with regards to moving if it became necessary - ie. if hubby found a job in a different area. I cried a lot of tears over all this...but it all worked out. Yesterday we went to visit a pre-school about 200m from our house, it is perfect for Amy and they had 1 spot left. The days she will be there correspond exactly with the day's Dan is in his kinder, so it just seems to have worked out perfectly.

Today we went to the South Melbourne Market to look for good deals on meat, what a selection!! In the end, we bought 3 weeks worth of meat for $150, so quite happy with that. I would love the chance to wander around that market more slowly...and without the kids...lol. So will have to make a plan sometime to do that.

This afternoon we went on an exploratory drive down the Mornington Peninsula...really beautiful areas there. We really enjoyed it, but decided that next time we go we need to spend a whole day down there.

On the way back we popped into Bunnings (aka Aussie Builders Warehouse) and bought some pots and some veggies to grow and some flower boxes for our balcony. Spent the last part of the afternoon beautifying our space

We have heard from the removals company on this side about our container. It is due to be in port 17 Feb...and the whole quarantine thing will take another 10-14 days. We have to pay $520.00 for quarantine...and then because we are on the 2nd floor an additional $450.00 for the removal company...sigh. But I will be soooo happy to see our stuff...especially our lounge suite and desk for the laptops....camping chairs and a card table good for temporary stuff...but its getting old now lol. Also, a more comprehensive kitchen would be great!!

So far, we are really loving it here. I feel calmer and more at peace than ever before. We starting to settle into a routine. Only big thing left is for hubby to find a job. Holding thumbs that one or more of the many cv's he has sent out is successful. In the meantime, he is also looking into the franchise "Hire a Hubby"...sort of a handyman type of thing. He is very good with that kind of stuff, so may be a good thing to do in the interim even...I don't know. He is going to the information evening next week.

Tomorrow we head off to North West of Melbourne to friends of ours staying there. Should be a lovely day with some familiar faces

[189inprocess]

You sound like you've done so much already BriD. Well done and it cant be easy. x x

[McCabes]

Well done Bri, I think once the container is there you will feel - if not 100%, then 99%

Glad everything worked out, funny how things do

Take care

[BriD]

Today was "Take 2" for Amy and her Aussie school career...another rough start. Again overwhelmed by the children and the unfamiliar surroundings. I stayed with her the first hour, during which she got into painting a picture and then doing a collage...so she was having fun while mommy was there. Then it came time to leave...so many tears...oh my heart The teacher is very good though, took her hand and took her under her wing (Amy is a teacher's pet kind of child...so guess she has found her person there). I called about an hour later, happy to hear she was fine and had settled down. Stuck to teacher's hip...but all good. So hopefully she has a good day. I will fetch her at 3pm.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is Daniel, who cannot wait to get to school. Every day he asks if he is going...if I say yes his face lights up and he charges across to me and gives me a huge squeezy hug...like the joy just cannot be contained. Cute little dude!!! So glad that it is an easy transition for at least one of them...makes my heart sing when I see how he loves it there.

Was definitely the best decision to send them to 2 different kinders...Amy was much too reliant on Daniel and it will do her good to find herself this year and grow confidence independently of him.

Hubby and I are both starting to feel a bit at a loss...we have done all we can do for now...TFN, Medicare, Driver's...we have the car, kids schools sorted, the container should come soon. The big thing now is for hubby to find a job. He is feeling a little deflated...2 weeks since we arrived, a ton of CV's sent out. I think even when you are prepared that you may need to wait a while for the right thing to come along...you never really are prepared prepared. Trying to encourage him and keep him positive about things...still early days. We have enough of a nest egg to go for a while before we need to freak out...but I think it is the inactivity...the feeling that you have done all you can and don't know what more you can do. And as you spend the dollars and the bank balance goes down slowly but steadily...it is a bit scary.

Otherwise, we are still loving it here. Weather has been good to us since we arrived...a couple of hot days...but mostly lovely sunny days. I know Melbourne's weather is changeable...so we enjoying it as it comes. In the evenings we sit on our balcony and watch the possums come through the trees...they seem to do it like clockwork every day just after the sun has set. Lovely to watch these little creatures. Enjoying driving around with less stress. Enjoyed testing the amazing public transport network...complete mind shift to get used to having the option of public transport!!

Anyways...I guess I should get on with something constructive...like cleaning perhaps...or some sleeping...since I find myself for the first time in ages with 2 children at school and some time for me....wooooah....really weird!

[McCabes]

Hugs Bri, I think it's great Dan is so happy, and also that you have done the right thing with Amy going to a different school, she will probably take a while to find her balance without him, but then just soar

I really hope a job is on the horizon soon - what about volunteering? And I think that handyman kind of thing could be good for a while

What about joining the library, maybe they have notes up of groups that meet that you could possibly join?

Thinking of you

[Sunnyskies]

Hi Bri

I think the "Hire a Hubby" franchise is definitely worth thinking about. Although Australia is full of tradies, people who aren't tradies are generally not very good at the handyman thing (my observation). Melbournians are also quite happy to pay someone else to do something that they are not good at. Point in case is a friend of ours who is a painter. He quoted us to paint a bedroom and one wall in our lounge and the quote came in at $2000. Needless to say we decided to paint ourselves. He was not fussed and basically said that he is so busy he doesn't need to give us "mate's rates".

Point really is that people who are handy can earn a decent living here, and you may find that he can earn better working for himself (getting all the tax deductions etc) than by being a manager in someone else's business.

Just a thought ....