Australia - land of opportunity or dusty open air prison camp.

[BadFish]

I've always thought if i went there i'd feel constantly too hot. I struggled in South Africa so i dread to think what i'd be like in Oz.

come to Geelong, it's raining and cold today

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

haha Geelong is perfect for anyone who still needs a bit of Winter in their life.

Loving the rain though!

 

[alan partridge]

Sounds like it's a great place if you like a beer, want to live in a country that has a decent standard of living,decent weather, is at ease with it's identity( not full of wankers tying themselves in knots with colonial guilt) and want a less frantic lifestyle than here.

It doesn't matter what the thread is does it? you'll get something like that in there. Maybe if you stepped back for a minute, took a deep breath and read a lot of the stuff you wrote you'd realise how 'tied up in knots' you constantly are.

 

[Stumpy Tim]

not much for birds

Seriously?! Australia is amazing for birds. Roughly 100 times better than the UK

 

[rcf0712]

well I'm not going anywhere - been here nearly 16 years and wouldn't want to live anywhere else......

 

[rcf0712]

A holiday is one thing but living here is different, I think it depends on what state/part of the country you are in.
Here it is so overregulated (if that is a word), you need a permit to sneeze! most of the population are academically challenged, we are taxed to the hilt, employers think they own your soul.
Very expensive place to live, most household expenses have increased by up to 30% or more over the last 18 months and the average grocery bill is 40% higher than in the UK, whilst wages are not in step with these increases.
Apart from eating out there's not much to do and life stops at 9.30pm even at weekends.
It is pretty expensive to live here and If anyone else says 'but it's worth it for the weather and lifestyle' again I will floor them.
They don't like to hear it but there is a great deal of racism and nationalist feeling here, even against us.
Yes it is not the worst place in the world but don't believe all the hype.
I know how much things have changed in the UK from my recent last visit, but as mentioned on here in another post, having spent so many years with the English culture it is difficult to adapt to a cultural void.
I think that I may have made the right move for the kids, as they sem to have a head start on the evolutionary scale here, but as for myself that is another thing.
In too deep to change now so that's that.

but it's worth it for the weather and lifestyle

 

[User removed 4]

It doesn't matter what the thread is does it? you'll get something like that in there. Maybe if you stepped back for a minute, took a deep breath and read a lot of the stuff you wrote you'd realise how 'tied up in knots' you constantly are.

posting at 04:46 ? get a life you sad cvnt

 

[Sydney seasider]

Lived in Sydney for 5 years. Brighton fans few and far between but last week on way to work chased a car for two miles because it had a seagulls sticker on it, had a 30 second chat about Southhampton game at the lights...... made my day.

 

[Indurain's Lungs]

A lot of what you have said is because you live in Perth.

W.A is the most redneck part of Australia and in a lot of ways is 20 years behind the rest of the country.

Always will be because it doesn't get the influx of O/S immigrants like the eastern states does.

Though it did get quite a few coming from South Africa when apetheid fell...

I live in Melbourne and there's still plenty of that around here. There's a bumper sticker on a few cars with a map of Australia and "f*** off we're full" written in it! Racism is generally tolerated in mainstream media whilst many attempts at moving attitudes into the 21st century are not.

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

I live in Melbourne and there's still plenty of that around here. There's a bumper sticker on a few cars with a map of Australia and "f*** off we're full" written in it! Racism is generally tolerated in mainstream media whilst many attempts at moving attitudes into the 21st century are not.

A few bumper stickers is a long way removed from something the equivalent of the BNP existing.

I'd not deny there's not a bit of it around, but i'd refute there's plenty.

I'd bet $100 I could find more mixed race couples walking around the city on any given day than you could find of those stickers.

Which is a good sign a town is pretty accepting of people of all kinds.

 

[OzMike]

but it's worth it for the weather and lifestyle

You, outside NOW!

 

[bhaexpress]

If Australia is so great how come so many of them are over here ?

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

If Australia is so great how come so many of them are over here ?

A drunken holiday.

 

[Skaville]

I lived in Melbourne for a couple of years.

Positives
- The beer - James Boags and Cascade in particular
- Weather - even in Melbourne
- Access to sport - Easy to get tickets for virtually anything and loads of places to participate in sport
- The lifestyle - Outdoor culture
- Friendliness - The Aussies seemed to love the POM's (especially the women!)
- The price of eating out
- The surf
- The countryside and other cities - Sydney is great. Victoria is beautiful
- The similarities to home - This was an advantage for me. Made it very easy to settle

Negatives
- Definitely an underlying sense of racism. They seemed to be ten years behind the UK, but things were improving
- The cultural void, plus the Americanism in places like Sydney
- Media - It made me realise how much I love UK broadsheets and the BBC
- Distance from home
- Vegemite. I had to get Marmite shipped in.

It's a big thumbs up from me. Loved it.

 

[daveinprague]

If Australia is so great how come so many of them are over here ?

Criminals often return to the scene of the crime?

 

[Norman Potting]

Reading this thread reminds me of a joke told by George Melly when I saw him in concert once (possibly the only one he told that wouldn't have made a sailor blush). On going through immigration at an Australian airport a "lovely young man" checked his papers and enquired "Mr Melly, do you have a criminal record?" to which George replied, "my dear boy, I wasn't aware that I still needed one to get into your country"!

 

[sydney]

we are to busy bobbing around in our swimming pools drinking icy cold beer to give a f*** about the "CULTURAL DIVIDE" and as for inherent racism,well excuse the f*** out of me but where do you reckon that has precipitated from......?? jesus there are some MONGS on here.

 

[Indurain's Lungs]

we are to busy bobbing around in our swimming pools drinking icy cold beer to give a f*** about the "CULTURAL DIVIDE" and as for inherent racism,well excuse the f*** out of me but where do you reckon that has precipitated from......?? jesus there are some MONGS on here.

I didn't say it doesn't exist in Britain, just that most people have the decency to realise its not acceptable and to keep their thoughts to themselves (Marginal BNP type twats excluded). I went into hospital and the second thing the nurse said to me was, "I'm glad you're not one of the brown doctors, we much prefer your type over here"

 

[sydney]

I didn't say it doesn't exist in Britain, just that most people have the decency to realise its not acceptable and to keep their thoughts to themselves (Marginal BNP type twats excluded). I went into hospital and the second thing the nurse said to me was, "I'm glad you're not one of the brown doctors, we much prefer your type over here"

that is a worry isn't it..?

 

[Nigella's Cream Pie]

Reading this thread reminds me of a joke told by George Melly when I saw him in concert once (possibly the only one he told that wouldn't have made a sailor blush). On going through immigration at an Australian airport a "lovely young man" checked his papers and enquired "Mr Melly, do you have a criminal record?" to which George replied, "my dear boy, I wasn't aware that I still needed one to get into your country"!

Reminds me of seeing him in concert, at the end of the 1st set he said "It's the interval so you can go and enjoy your drinks at the bar", then fingered the collar of his loud double-breasted jacket and went on, "I'm going back to my dressing room to slip into something more comfortable - that's if she's still there" RIP George