Van Der Westhuizen's Posted February 24, 2009 Report Share Posted February 24, 2009 Hi thereI'm very glad to be joining you on the forum. Just a bit of history on us: I'm a vet, and Heinrich is in the IT industry, but he has an agricultural degree (dont ask, long story). We got married in November last year. This January we had a serious discussion, also about the future of our kids one day(which we dont have yet), and decided to emigrate. Since then everything happened in a whirlwind!We allready did our IELTS exams, police clearance etc. and is about to lodge our 175 application. In the meantime I started sending my CV out to vets in queensland. Our original plan was to go about the middle of the year, if I can get a sponsored 457. Now suddenly, there is 4 different options of where to go, and they can apparantly make it happen in only 6weeks! Our options are Bowen, Bundaberg, Rockhampton and Cairns. Do any of you live there, or know what the different places is like? I dont think we'll have the time (or money) to do a 'look and see' beforehand, and it's very difficult to make such a decision from Pretoria. Does anyone know what the agricultural industry is like around Cairns?Look forward to hearing from youHenriette Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simpsons Posted February 24, 2009 Report Share Posted February 24, 2009 Welcome!unfortunatley don't have any info on those places, but sure someone will be able to advise you. I wish you the best of luck making your decision decision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zorba Posted February 24, 2009 Report Share Posted February 24, 2009 Welcome to the forum, Henriette and Heinrich!Best of luck with your plans - how exciting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polly Posted February 25, 2009 Report Share Posted February 25, 2009 All the best. We are in Melbourne, so unfortunately I cannot give you any advice on where to go. We also took the 'b lind leap of faith' route. Rushed around like crazy, but got here in record time. We used to stay in Centurion. Loving Melbourne. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyn Posted February 25, 2009 Report Share Posted February 25, 2009 A big welcome to the forum - cant offer any advice on those towns - but you're so lucky to be able to choose from so many. All the best with your plans, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordy Posted February 25, 2009 Report Share Posted February 25, 2009 Hi and welcome,Plenty of fourmites are from Rockhampton. Try use the search button on top of the forum for the place names. Just a word of caution - thee have been recent changes to the processing times of the 175. You would be better off exploring a 176. Also be cautious of coming to soon a 457 - its just toooooo temporary in the current economic climate. rather get your employer to sponsor you for the 119 or 121. Both are PR and more reliable.Jordy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicki G Posted February 25, 2009 Report Share Posted February 25, 2009 Hi ThereI am from Rockhampton. It is a nice town, close to the beach - about 30 minutes. It is not a huge place but it has all you need, shopping centres and the like. The people are friendly and it is a nice climate. It is very hot in summer - but this is also due to high humidity and the rain is typical of the tropics - pours and next thing you look there is not a cloud in the sky. The winters are good - only experienced 1 though. It was not a cold JHB winter, it was pleasant - cool morning, hot days, cold nights. It is an interesting place to say the least, with lots of heritage. Rentals are not bizarre, depending on what you are looking for. There are good areas and not so good areas.There are hoons, but you find them all over. The kids are quite assertive and very confident. Many kids here have kids themselves, and that has taken some getting used to as well. As it is a smallish town, you live in close promximity to all classes, so you see it that much more. In JHB it is not always as obvious as it was so huge. Our baby sitter was saying, last year in her school between grade 8 and 12 there were 23 pregnancies!!!Jobs are here, but not easy to find at the moment, but that depends on what you do. Admin is not easy to find as belts are being fastened. There are a number of vets around and I know some were looking. There is also the department of parks and industry that make use of vets. IT is also big here, quite a few companies around.Well that is a nutshell, we are happy here and so are our kids. It is a great place to raise a family.Nicki Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle Therese Posted February 25, 2009 Report Share Posted February 25, 2009 Hi ThereMy sister in law lives in Cairns. It is very tropical and humid, reminds me of ST LUcia, or Mozambique. It is very beautiful, weather can be unpredictalble, prone to cyclones. There are not as many jobs there as in Brisbane, it is realy geared for the tourist trade, but maybe in you field you wont have a problem.quote name='Van Der Westhuizen's' date='Feb 25 2009, 07:10 AM' post='191930']Hi thereI'm very glad to be joining you on the forum. Just a bit of history on us: I'm a vet, and Heinrich is in the IT industry, but he has an agricultural degree (dont ask, long story). We got married in November last year. This January we had a serious discussion, also about the future of our kids one day(which we dont have yet), and decided to emigrate. Since then everything happened in a whirlwind!We allready did our IELTS exams, police clearance etc. and is about to lodge our 175 application. In the meantime I started sending my CV out to vets in queensland. Our original plan was to go about the middle of the year, if I can get a sponsored 457. Now suddenly, there is 4 different options of where to go, and they can apparantly make it happen in only 6weeks! Our options are Bowen, Bundaberg, Rockhampton and Cairns. Do any of you live there, or know what the different places is like? I dont think we'll have the time (or money) to do a 'look and see' beforehand, and it's very difficult to make such a decision from Pretoria. Does anyone know what the agricultural industry is like around Cairns?Look forward to hearing from youHenriette Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rover Posted February 25, 2009 Report Share Posted February 25, 2009 Hi thereWe allready did our IELTS exams, police clearance etc. and is about to lodge our 175 application.Welcome guys,Just a note, I would not frontload the police clearance or medical reports before asked by your case officer. 175's are not flying at a rate of knots the moment, thus if it should drag on a bit you may end up with validation date issues. If you're on the CSL or the like, you may be ok though, but even those are not really flying off the shelves right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diveup Posted February 25, 2009 Report Share Posted February 25, 2009 Welcome,I live in Cairns and it is beautiful. Lots of South Africans and you have the great barrier reef, outback and tropical rainforest on your doorstep. PM me if you want any further information.Diveup Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Van Der Westhuizen's Posted February 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2009 Thanx a million to everyone for the warm welcome!All the input regarding the places, visas etc is very valuable to us. I don't know how anyone can emigrate without the help of this forum. Heinrich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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