Batsie Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 Great level of organisation Matt, inspiring. We are a couple of months away from our one way ticket Down Under. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyTimeNow Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 Wow, that's awesome! Glad you had a great flight. You've been talking so much about this journey, it's a bit surreal that you're there! You definitely have a lot sorted out - I have only planned to go to the bank on my first day - scared I won't be able to manage much more. Keep us posted on how your first days go. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AFreshStart Posted November 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Whew!Feeling knackered! Insomnia hit me like a ton of bricks, found myself getting 2 short hours of sleep, but made use of the time taking care of more admin.This morning I headed off to our realtors, collected the keys and stopped by our new home before dashing off to the bike shop to have some mods done on my new bicycle before (pedal power is my current mode of transport) before heading off to Bondi Junction to register for my NSW drivers license, stopping for a quick snack and much needed coffee.Now back home catching up on more admin and planning my game plan for next week, which includes a trip to Ikea on Monday and trying to stay awake to beat this yet lag.CheersMatt 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RosFam Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Mat, how did you manage to arrange mobiles and utilities before you even landed ? Amazed at how much you have have done in only one day It took me a week to even remember who I was Keep us updated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rozellem Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Hi Matt, if you want to rent a cheap van for the day to pick up stuff from Ikea, try these guys. http://balmainrentals.rtrk.com.au/?scid=2145&kw=3646959. They are 12 mins by car from the centre of Surrey Hills, but you can of course go there by bike or bus too. They are around the $60 mark per day for a rough but ready van. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neels Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Yeah Matt, that body clock takes time to wind up to the new time zone.. ... Just get Sun on your face and body as early as you can the first 2 or 3 days. (sounds like bull, but try it, it resets your body clock) When I'm there I go for a walk just after sunrise, even if I'm too tired to put one leg in front of the other... Keep well! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AFreshStart Posted November 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Mat, how did you manage to arrange mobiles and utilities before you even landed ? Amazed at how much you have have done in only one day It took me a week to even remember who I was Keep us updatedI was easy once we had our rental sorted, signed up for Optus for mobile, broadband and Fetch TV on-line via their chat system, all I needed was an address and go through a basic credit check. Origin gas & elec was the same, filled in a short form, made an error or 2, but was quickly remedied with the staff over the phone. Banking was easy as well, cards were waiting for me, just had to call and activate them on arrival, didn't even need to go into a branch and have already made several purchases with the card, including my drivers license.Hi Matt, if you want to rent a cheap van for the day to pick up stuff from Ikea, try these guys. http://balmainrentals.rtrk.com.au/?scid=2145&kw=3646959. They are 12 mins by car from the centre of Surrey Hills, but you can of course go there by bike or bus too. They are around the $60 mark per day for a rough but ready van.Thanks Rozellem, I've actually opted to use their home delivery service. It's $40 to pick the order (which I could do, but time is valuable) and then $89 for next day home delivery, they unpacked it all to surface level for you and there is a bunch of stuff so well worth having someone else bring it in, the 3 seater sofa bed weights over 35kgs!Thankfully my brother has also put me on his insurance to drive his Hilux, so have access to an Ute if needed for smaller items.CheersMattYeah Matt, that body clock takes time to wind up to the new time zone.. ... Just get Sun on your face and body as early as you can the first 2 or 3 days. (sounds like bull, but try it, it resets your body clock) When I'm there I go for a walk just after sunrise, even if I'm too tired to put one leg in front of the other... Keep well!Feeling much better today, pushed on through till 9pm last night took a sleeping tablet and had 7 straight hours of blissful sleep. Starting the day early by getting down to Bondi Junction, will grab a coffee, have a look around and then head on over to Glebe to collect my bicycle and then hit the road and explore the city. Much sun will be had today!CheersMatt 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AFreshStart Posted November 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 8, 2014 Exhausted! Caught my first bus from Bondi Junction to Central Station then walked down Parramatta Road to Glebe to collect my new bicycle, which ended up being over 16,500 steps and 12kms of walking according to my pedometer, then rode another 4kms around town and loved every minute of it! Explored my neighbourhood, grabbed a bite to eat and then headed back to meet family and watched the sun set over Watsons Bay.Tomorrow I'm going to take the day off from admin and walk from Bondi to Bronte and take in sculpture by the sea.CheersMatt 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AFreshStart Posted November 12, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2014 Been off-line here for a couple days, super busy with more admin.I made my first trip to Ikea Monday, walked away with 160kgs of stuff and even with my 5-page shopping list I still managed to add things that weren't on it, as well as forgetting one or 2!I spent yesterday at the rental, building said Ikea furniture, finishing off some items today and the house is looking a bit more like a home. We got a mail to say that customs has released our container and it's scheduled for delivery on Friday, which will make things feel even more like home.This morning I walked my niece to school and then walked along the Rose Bay coastline, gazing across at the harbour bridge and opera house, beautiful! Now I didn't leave SA because of the crime, at least not our motivating factor, but it did strike me, here I was, alone, on a secluded beach, but I had no fear, adventure abounds here, whereas in CPT I'd be far too nervous or afraid to venture out there alone.I stopped in at our local grocery store, bought some lunch and found a park bench to enjoy it on, not a care in the world, walked 10-minutes from our home to Coles, bought the basics, explored the neighbourhood more and just fall more in love each day, I'm thankful, so thankful.I joined the library, and what blew me away is that I can take out 30 items! Not just books, but kids toys, DVD's, music, magazines etc. Speaking of magazines, you go on-line, register and then have access to over 150 magazine titles on your Zinio e-reader, for FREE, blown away!Those are just a couple of the highlights, I'm sure many more will follow.CheersMatt 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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