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Is Perth or Australia this bad ...


IamInACT

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I don't know the full story ... but People I know have returned to SA after 3 months, He had a job in the Gov. They have made statements like:

1. The Government is so corrupt.

2. Far too much drugs, they picked up many needles.

3. You are not encouraged to think out the box ... if you are a train driver that's all you will ever be...

I'm going to ACT but hell this does not impress my wife ... don't wanna go from hell to purgatory.... I was looking to be a little closer to heaven ...

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Hi to all just like to say I have lived inAustralia soince 1974 but as my wife and myself are the only family here from both sides, when you get older mid sixties you feel that maybe it would be better to move back to SA as there would be this support around, as we try and visit once every 4 years we have kept in touch and vie telephone and e-mail.

Feel the freedom here in Australia nand enjoy it, but am still debating on the issue, the ideal situation would be to move back and then return here for a couple of months maybe every second year, but don't know what is really best to do, having not had any children and just travelled every when we were younger and based in Australia it was great.

One thing is we both still have good jobs at our age and this could such a point that helps to make a decision, hopefully there are others out there that feel the same way as we feel we cannot be the only ones with these opinions and decisions for and against, think that in SA you just avoid certain areas just as you do in Australia,think both countries have problems with crime, it is just the big poverty to middle of the road people is more so in SA just for the fact of population size and easier access through the borders than Australia.

Cheers DeBeers

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We have been here 3.5 years and I still marvel everyday at the small things that make life such a pleasure in Australia.

One thing seldom mentioned is that kids at school get free dental from ages 5 to 17 (in WA not sure about the other states). Some schools even have a dental clinic on site which is shared with the other schools. A dentist will see your child at their school quite a few times during their first few years. Sadly the free care does not include orthodontics.

Michael

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Yes I do agree with you. After 4 years in Oz you can be so thankful you live in a country where really everything works. Get your drivers license, go to the council, medicare, schooling. I could go on and on but Oz just is so fantastically well run in all govt departments and this makes for a stable future for our kids. Yes SA deserves a lot of credit for other things such as beautiful scenery, less harsh climate, but when it comes to all things such govt such as home affairs, licensing etc do not get me started, absolute shocker. I am so happy theat when my kids are teenagers thay can get jobs, get their licenses and they can choose their future without being concerned about being the wrong colour. Yes crime comes into it as well. Oz is not squeeky clean I know but look at murder stats per 100000, correct me if I am wrong but I think it is about 2 or 3? Oz does not have the big 5 or cheap labour so more elbow grease of your own and the kangaroos, parrots and gum trees do grow on you. I have travelled far and wide in this great country and there is so much to see! It is not all gums and roos and red sand. You have snowfields, mountains, rain forests, barrier reef, deserts, tropics and beaches galore to name a few. I love it, I really do. So come here with that open mind. Remember it cannot and never will be Africa. Africa has its own unique personality and beauty and I agree make the move for many reasons. Crime should not be the only reason

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My 2 cents worth (MY OPINION)

I have only been in Australia (Sydney) 2 months - still an "Aussie Virgin"! :) Anyway, the last few weeks there have been what some would call, "Disturbing & Alarming" amounts of criminal activities in Sydney. Gang violence, random shootings, murders & bouncers beating a guy to death. I think I've counted 12 cases on the news about deaths releated to crime, gangs & drugs this year already, and we only mid Feb. So for those who are still on there way - there is crime in Australia, but we all knew that (right?).

So where am I going with this?

1) When I heard the reports about the murders, etc., I was "kinda" shocked but moved on quite quickly about it all - "Ya, so what - happens in SA all the time!". Yet those Australians living here were shocked & demanded something get done about the rising crime in Sydney (not that we don't in SA, but it falls on deaf ears). Police are all over the incidents here & treat every case as if it's their only case. So yes, crime happens here but things get done about it, police ensure those who commit are caught & locked up. What worried me was my attitude towards it, "Ya, so what....". That is what living with crime rate as high as it is in SA all these years has done, and I'm sure many many more living in SA feel the same. Only when it happens to you, do you decide it's not right & time to move. Thank goodness in my 32 years living in SA, I never once had anything happen to me or my family *touch wood*, so I class myself as one of the very few & lucky ones.

2) I find people who make the "Groot Trek" from SA to AUS purely based on crime, will have a hard time adjusting to life in AUS. They build these fantastic images in their heads that there is no crime, or very little crime in AUS. Honestly, I think the AUS government does a good job to ensure violent crime stats do not get out of AUS (want to keep that great image in tact). In fairness (MY OPINION), a lot of SAffers in AUS create this vision of utopia, becuase it makes them feel good about their move to AUS & leaving their families back in SA. Justifies their move in a more positive light for themselves (somewhat selfish if you ask me). Again, not ALL SAffers, but there are those who think & supply information this way. If you can get your head around this, you'll be fine. You'll soon realise it's in certain areas I wouldn't walk thru at night with a police escort & a loaded sub machine gun - but you get those areas in EVERY city in the world? Sure you do. So if you are going to make the move purely based on crime, understand & realise that you will hear of crime (at times violent) in Australia. But NOWHERE near as much as in SA.

3) Drug abuse - Sydney is drug capital of Australia, but I have not heard/read any cases where guys high on TIK are breaking into houses, killing people in their beds to only take a few items to pay for more drugs. The level of crime commited in Australia is far less violent than in SA.

4) I would have no worries about travelling back to SA (Cape Town) for a visit. Crime in SA is bad - sure, but you need to adjust & ensure you protect yourself.

5) I found living in SA that crime got worse the more north of the country you went. I LOVE Cape Town - will ALWAYS love Cape Town. The violence in CPT was move area spesific than JHB/PTA, like it is in Sydney - area spesific. We lived in Durbanville & my brothers & mom live in Fish Hoek. They had their fair share of crimes, but nothing like what I've heard of in JHB/PTA. So you'll find those who what to move away from SA based on crime, and have nothing good to say about SA, are generally from/lived in JHB/PTA.

6) I found it hard to move away from Cape Town. We had a good life & never had any issues there. But we now have a good life in Sydney to, and we are loving it. I did not make the move based on crime alone, as I had not experienced it to the extent as some of those who made the move based on crime. I made the move due to lack of leadership, education & opportunities. As much as I miss my family & friends, I know that long term my son (and future kids) will get a good education here & have opportunities based on merit/education/experience. I lost all faith in the current leadership, who would rather not keeps things at a level whereby those have to work harder to achieve, they make things easier so everyone can achieve things.....easily. Not how I was brought up, and not how I plan to bring up my kids either. My dad installed in me that ambition & hard work gets you things in life....not standing in the streets shouting, turning over bins & running amok. I find more & more people in SA feel they deserve things before they are prepared to work for it.

So, if you are/have left SA for "Greener Pastures", make sure you make the move for the right reasons for you & your family. Not purely on what you hear/read from others - do the research, investigations & spend the time making sure the move is right for you. Ask questions, many questions & build your own checklist for wanting to move. It'll make your adjustment to life in Australia far less stressful & in the end, you can only blame yourself for making the right/wrong choice in moving - not anyone else. Those who go back to SA after several months in AUS, woudln't make it in any country - and they would be bad mouthing that country too. Those who move for the right reasons, & get there head around how things are & work in AUS (any country) will find it quite easy to settle in & adjust to life in AUS.

YES - you can walk the city streets at night, but there are areas to stay away from.

YES - your kids can walk & play in the park - ALONE!!

YES - it's safe to catch a bus/train home at night & walk to your house from the station - ALONE!!

YES - the beaches are clean & gas braai's are generally free....AND CLEAN. The gas braai's & bottles never get touched.

YES - the are opportunities you'll only realise when you living here, for you & your children.

YES - the Aussie are as mad about sport & fitness as we are in SA.

YES - the Aussies are a proud nation, as we are in SA.

YES - I can't wait for the Bokke to beat the Aussies at the RWC (can dream, can't I)

I played golf last weekend at a public course in Mona Vale - no fencing. Water pumps open for anyone to steal, yet they remain there for years & years. How bad is this - I could not get my head around the golf trollies being left outside, not chained only meters from the street - AT NIGHT!! I had to laugh at myself.

Loving my new home away from home.....Sydney, my Cape Town in Australia. :)

Actually, there is something I hate about Australia......English Premier & European Football, Super 15 games played in SA, Formula 1 & Moto GP all take place at stupid godly hours of the morning. :) That is what I have had to get my head around. Hahahahah!

Again, this is my own opinion. Make the move for the right decisions and you'll love every minute here - anywhere in the world for that matter.

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My family survived an attempted hi-jacking in Somerset West yesterday at my folks' place, whilst we were visiting. A Sunday. 16h00 in the afternoon. A supposedly rustige area.

I am so out of here...........

Hi there Oryx!

I definitly agree with you! The crime and violence in this Country have def increased! Luckily I saw two incidents this weekend that alteast gave a glimmer of hope that the people are beginning to stand up to all the skelms out there! On Friday I saw an attempted smash and grab in front of Irene Village Mall, but luckily two men in a car behind the woman's car (who was being targeted) got out of their car and apprehended the man and tied his hands behind his back with cable ties and called the police! Absolutely great to have seen this! All damage the woman had suffered was two broken windows - Better than a stolen purse or car!

The second incident, was this morning on my way to work, police caught a man that had stolen a car, hand cuffed him and (I suspect they will be giving the car back to it's rightfull owner)

Seeing this makes me abit more positive about S.A's future, but unfortunatly I don't think this will be enough to make a difference! Because on the news you will hear atleast 5 stories of crime and violence that had happend!

But I'm happy to see that South Africans are finally taking a stand against the crime and helping each other out, where as in the past no one even looked at you if you were being smashed and grabbed / robbed or what ever situation you might be in!

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My personal opinion is if I ever feel unhappy in a place, I'll do some research and travelling because chances are there's a spot in Aus where I'll be able to settle in and be happy. It's difficult moving to a new country and chances are you might not be happy in the first city you settle in. But to move interstate is far easier, not to mention less traumatic. But if your heart and happiness lies in SA, then go for it. There is no point living somewhere that makes you miserable.

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I most certainly would not recommend going back to SA to live .... I think that you have been out the country Faaaaar tooooo loooooong to understand the violence....

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Only thing, Bassmanwa, is that the crime in SA is NOT limited to 'certain areas'. It might be more in some areas, but crime in SA has feet and it walks wherever it wants to, without restriction.

Totally agree. Crime tends to drive as well, usually in a car it stole from the last victim. In 2000 or so, I was convinced that if you kept out of certain areas and were careful, you could live a good life in SA and chances are, you wouldn't be a victim, but these days, it's nothing like that. You're not safe anywhere. It's still a numbers game and many people are able to escape it - but for most it's just a matter of time before your number comes up.

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My family survived an attempted hi-jacking in Somerset West yesterday at my folks' place, whilst we were visiting. A Sunday. 16h00 in the afternoon. A supposedly rustige area.

I am so out of here...........

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I have to agree with everything that Alida says, and then some.

Hubby and I are both 61, and there is absolutely no way that I would give up our lives in Australia to live in South Africa.

The last time I went to visit my family in RSA was around 4 years ago, and on my last day, I had, what Oprash likes to call, an "AHA moment". I asked myself what I was doing there, placing myself in danger, having to constantly look over my shoulder, something I do not do in Australia, jumping at the slightest unusual sound, locking my car doors, sitting on tenterhooks at a red traffic light, having to contend with the missing road rules, and I could go on and on and on. Then of course as you are getting older and need it more, medical care, the availability and cost of it.

No, I made up my mind that day, that I have seen in RSA what I wanted to see, I have done what I wanted to do, I made my decision to leave, I have no need or inspiration to change that, and finally, that this was my last visit to RSA. In future I would rather pay for those people I wish to see, to visit me. That is what I have done and it has been brilliant. I travel overseas once a year and arrange for them to meet me, where ever I am going, I see the world with company, and they have a great holiday. Sometimes, like this year, they come and visit me in Australia, and that is great.

I may add, the two people I care most about are my two sisters, and they are 74 and 68 respectively, they would give anything to be able to live in the safety of Australia.

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Hi to all just like to say I have lived inAustralia soince 1974 but as my wife and myself are the only family here from both sides, when you get older mid sixties you feel that maybe it would be better to move back to SA as there would be this support around, as we try and visit once every 4 years we have kept in touch and vie telephone and e-mail.

Feel the freedom here in Australia nand enjoy it, but am still debating on the issue, the ideal situation would be to move back and then return here for a couple of months maybe every second year, but don't know what is really best to do, having not had any children and just travelled every when we were younger and based in Australia it was great.

One thing is we both still have good jobs at our age and this could such a point that helps to make a decision, hopefully there are others out there that feel the same way as we feel we cannot be the only ones with these opinions and decisions for and against, think that in SA you just avoid certain areas just as you do in Australia,think both countries have problems with crime, it is just the big poverty to middle of the road people is more so in SA just for the fact of population size and easier access through the borders than Australia.

Cheers DeBeers

Only thing, Bassmanwa, is that the crime in SA is NOT limited to 'certain areas'. It might be more in some areas, but crime in SA has feet and it walks wherever it wants to, without restriction. And this crime factor has very, very little respect for old age. Crime sees it as a soft and easy target, sorry to say. I would encourage no senior people to live their last years in SA if they had an opportunity not to. Rather 'import' your emotional support for a few months a year to Oz, than to bring yourself to SA.

Only my thoughts.

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So glad this guy is back in SA, we don't need people like that in Aus. Just sad about the bad things he has to say about Aus.

We have been in Aus now for 18 months and must admit it's not been easy every day, especially if you take into consideration our age, me 49 and husband 54, but can really say we are very happy and wont by any change consider going back to SA.

Linda

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Good on ya Rosa as we say in Oz :-)

I only saw this now and I LOL-ed ;) by myself.....

Another guy, a friend from SA, could for the all the money in the world not understand this "Good on Ya" thing......they say it too quickly for his Safrican ear.

He thought they said "Good onion" and that is what he said to everyone.......good onion.

Now we all say good onion............mate. :ilikeit:

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Good on ya Rosa as we say in Oz :-)

We did that last year, we came with the mind set that we were commited to stay, becoming a citizen is kind of underlining that for me.

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Unfortunatly I do not life in Perth anymore, we had to relocate :blink: but I will never forget the start of my journey there.

My new home is just as great and friendly and I am glad for the opportunity to discover other parts of this wonderfull counrty.

I can only reiterate......SAfrica is fighting a losing battle and I want no part of it. In fact, I am doing the citizen thingy here shortly. :holy:

For me, home is where my safety and happiness is......oi oi oi! :hug:

Eish, die boeredogter in my kom deur.......is dit life of is dit live?

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Hi Rosa

We've been here 4 yrs in June and absolutely agree with you. I reckon Perth is a great place to raise children, also have never had even the smallest inclination to go back :-)

:blink:

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Deborah Visser

I live in Kenmore, west side of Brisbane, they call it mini SA. Every second person you meet is SA.

I know of 2 couples who went back to SA.

One couple lasted 6 weeks , and are now back in Brisbane. They were fortunate as the company he worked for re- employed him.

The other couple are still in SA and regret thier decision.

Believe me I would much rather live in Australia , than in SA worrying if I'm going to get shot or highjacked every time I drive out of my driveway!!

I do miss friends and family, but there's a better future for my children in Australia.

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I lived in Perth for three years and Perth is Perth. It doesn't remind me of any of the dirty cities of SAfrica. Perth is a clean city, some of the people are stupidly unfriendly, but the majority are either don't care or friendly. Nobody stares at you, nobody gives a damn if you have your lunch in the park under a tree on the grass or if you just sit on a bench and sip a coffee.

The women all wear black and strut along in sneakers with their work outfits. The men seems to favour black pants with blue shirts. Everybody carries a take away coffee in the mornings.

Parking is a problem but public transport are available. You catch the free bus, called the CAT, and get up or off when ever, where ever.

How good is that?

Nothing reminds me of SAfrica, nothing makes me pine for SAfrica, nothing compares...................everything is so much better, everything just WORKS. The system works, guys and girls. No worries about blackouts or dry-outs or lights out or lifes-outs (deaths) or any 'outs' or 'out of order'.

Perth is Perth......beautiful and wonderful and part of Australia and part of my life.

PS. The Swan river is one of the most beautiful rivers, the riversides well kept and maintained....a place to chillax. Do yourself a favour and go for a stroll through Kings Park...boy oh, boy! No, don't worry, nobody will mug or rape you, you will be A Okay.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

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I had to giggle reading your post Koos, I come from Cape Town, and to be honest, Perth couldn't be further from Cape Town if you tried, to me, it reminds me much more of Joburg! Lol, so guess in reality, it's somewhere in the middle.

But I agree with Koos, people are generally friendly and quite helpful if you ask. It's generally safe and it's great for kids.

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Hi all,

We've been in Perth for 18 month now and we love it. I have traveled a lot through Western Australia and it is a great state with diverse beauty, different to SA in the sense that it's flat, often dry and very desolate. Having said that, there are spots here that are truly amazing. Just go and look at this site: 101 WA

Anyway, Perth reminds me of Cape Town. People here are friendly and 10 times out of 10, when you smile and say hello to someone on the street, they will smile back and greet you. Aussies are different, like Mozambicans are different and like the Hungarians are different too. However, this is a great country and things work here, in fact they work very well. So when you come here, remind yourself of that fact before you criticize something. We do things differently in SA and that's fine, it doesn't mean that that's the only way to do it.

I have had friends who visit here that loved it, other who didn't. Everyone has different likes.

All I can say is that Perth is pretty safe, housing ain't cheap but to get a job is not that hard. Only advice I can give to new arrivals is that you will meet locals who despise foreigners. But you will also meet Aussies who will welcome you with open arms and have no judgments whatsoever.

I will always miss SA but this is my new home and country. I miss family but enjoy the freedom of having no ties here - it's very liberating indeed.

Try before you buy if you are unsure.

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Don't listen to other people all the time, understand their agendas in context. Do what you think in your heart is the right thing to do, do your homework yes, be well prepared for a big change, yes. But at he end of the day when you make that decision to leave back yourself and say to yourself that there is no back door!

Believe me it is very different here but in the BIG ticket agenda's, like safety, security, health, education, job prospects, protection for land ownership etc. you will not get much better anwhere else in the world.

People leave SA for their own, and often very complex reasons, and they return in the same way.....

Write down and be clear about your own reasons, and hen back yourself whichever way you go!

The Bug

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Just been on holiday in Sydney (bit of an LSD) so we looked at the place very critically with a view to maybe moving there in the not too distant future.

I agree with all the negatives that have been brought up in this thread - but I would move there tomorrow.

Ozzies can be rude, ignorant and narrow minded, (but funny and good sense of humour) safety is anal, shopping is a very different experience and yes you do have to put in your own petrol, obey the by-laws and get special permission to chop down trees in your own garden.

BUT people laughed at us every time we locked our house, car etc. We walked through the city at night and didn't fear for our lives, and they make the best coffee!!!

We saw people washing park benches and municipal bins, and looked really cheerful about it. We road safely in airconditioned buses and trains and swam at clean safe beaches that dispense purified water for free!!!

We stayed in the inner west suburbs and saw mothers out walking with their kids, and bicycles piled outside McDonalds with out chains and locks. Is it perfect? Hell no! Is it 100% crime free? Don't be silly.

Would I move there? In a heartbeat.

Hoping our opportunity will come around soon!!

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