Guest gracey Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Hi there, im 38 and im from Liverpool England. l have three children and we have been living over here for the past year. I thought it was about time i made some friends as i don't know many people yet and thought its about time i did. I would like to hear from anyone who wants to meet up or just have a chat. I live in Sydney, a hour and a half from the city. Hope to hear from you soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mutikonka Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Hi Gracey There's a couple of social events on over the next few weeks with PIO people in Sydney. I came to Australia after five years livig in Liverpool - must say I prefer the Manly ferry to the Mersey one. cheers Michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Itsonlyme Posted May 1, 2009 Share Posted May 1, 2009 Hi there, im 38 and im from Liverpool England. l have three children and we have been living over here for the past year. I thought it was about time i made some friends as i don't know many people yet and thought its about time i did. I would like to hear from anyone who wants to meet up or just have a chat. I live in Sydney, a hour and a half from the city. Hope to hear from you soon Hi Gracey good to meet you!... I live near Liverpool, Sydney :biggrin: whereabouts are you? I dont have any children but would love to chat. x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gracey Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Hi itsonlyme. thanks for your message. i live near fairfield in sydney. how long have you been here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gracey Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Hi Michael, thanks for the reply. yes i suppose your right about the ferry, anything would be better than the liverpool one!. where in liverpool did you live? i come from Huyton but moved to st helens which was a bad mistake. so what do you think of it over here since you have been here for five years? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Itsonlyme Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Hi itsonlyme. thanks for your message. i live near fairfield in sydney. how long have you been here? Hi Gracey Not that far from each other then. I've been here a year now. Came over with hubby (he's australian) on spouses permanent visa. We have since split up so hence the need for me to find some new friends :smile: itsonlyme x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mutikonka Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Hi Gracey I was a student in Liverpool, living out around Sefton Park - and even on Penny Lane at one time - then I worked at Whiston Hospital for a while and with a doctors deputising service visiting some of the nicer parts of Speke and Skem on call at night! I came straight form Liverpool to Sydney and was able to use my Liverpool Uni ID to think people I was at uni in Liverpool NSW and get discounts ... We like it here now but miss the Liverpool sense of humour - and the music. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rosiejulia Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Hi gracie! I too have been in sydney for a year and have only just found this wonderful forum. I am living in the hills district and similarily to you I don`t know many people at all. I also have 3 children, 14,12 and 9. It would be great to chat to others as my OH is the main worker (I have done casual PT WK.) and by the time they have put a hard day in at work.....it`s hard to sqeeze a conversation out of them! Does anyone else find this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gracey Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 hi itsonlyme. did coming out here cause the split with your hubby? hope you dont mind me asking. it can cause alot of pressure starting in a new country. have you heard from anyone else from England over here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gracey Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 Hi Rosiejulia, thanks for your reply. yes it will be good to chat with another English person over here. where is the Hills were you live? i'm still finding out different places all the time. i do casual work too to fit in with the kids school times. what do you think of it over here so far? i'm still up and down about it and i think where we are living doesn't help, alot of chinese and italians. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gracey Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 Hi Mutikonka, good for you for using your uni id for discounts, i don't blame you. if you can get away with it then why not! Yes i agree, liverpool people are very good for there sense of humour. have you been on any of these get togethers for us poms? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mutikonka Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 I've been to a couple of PIO meet ups (in fact I organised one of them). Met some great people, but the meetings are so infrequent that we lose touch. I'm hoping there'll be some more happening soon - I think the next is June 6, when of course I will be out of town! Did you say you were in Fairfield? Not far from us, we're in Strathfield. How old are your kids? We have 9 and 11 year old boys keeping us busy. cheers Michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rosiejulia Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 :cool: Hi Rosiejulia, thanks for your reply. yes it will be good to chat with another English person over here. where is the Hills were you live? i'm still finding out different places all the time. i do casual work too to fit in with the kids school times. what do you think of it over here so far? i'm still up and down about it and i think where we are living doesn't help, alot of chinese and italians. Hi Gracie! I live in cherrybrook (hills district) which was a massive culture shock from where I come from in England. Cherrybrook is very Asian dominated, a culture that very much keep to themselves. My OH came 2mths b4 myself and the children and so picked the house rental as the schools in CB have a good rep; also it is within walking distance to his work. To be honest when I arrived here I could have took the first plane back.......or choked the OH!!! I wondered, after 15yrs of marriage if he really knew anything about me at all.....if so what part of CB or the hills district did he think I would fall in love with. It`s been very difficult to say the least to have stuck it out this far (13mths).......and remain married!!!!!.....but we are still here! My OH`s contract finishes Dec09` and I plan to return with the children in time for new school yr, Sep. We had the shipping Co. rep come around RE: return shipping this week and interestingly after our call she was off to quote 4 other brits returning to the UK. As I know we are on our homeward run I am fine and making the most of our time here. My children 14,12,9,....all girls are really looking forward to returning home. As the lovely Shipping rep said `we would`ent die wondering`.....we won`t! and we will also appreciate all the things England has to offer. Australia is a beautiful country......but not for everyone! For me the distance is too great.x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gracey Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 Hi Michael, I live in bossley park not far from fairfield. I have two boys too age 11 and 13 and a daughter age 15. So the next meeting is in june. do many poms turn up for it, and were do they normally meet? are you going somewhere nice out of town? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gracey Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 Hi Rosiejulia, so your going back then. will you have somewhere to live when you return and will you be going back to Liverpool? yes you want to make the most of your time here while you can, the time will soon fly. Was your hubby not happy with things over here or just yourself? it sounds exactly like here were you live and they all keep to themselves. quite alot of brits are going back aren't they? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rosiejulia Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 Hi Gracey! I`m not from Liverpool....from warwickshire! I think the men adjust more easily because of work ect. For a family to stay it has to be a unanimous decision! I think OH is happy to have tried it...has always been obsessed with the grass being greener here! What about you guys ..have you decided to stay indefinitely...how are your kids enjoying it? Do you think the schools are as good as back home? What work do you do? I am a hairdresser and have found although plenty of work, I earn a third of earnings back in the UK. We rented our house out back home so no problem there although the cost of the whole adventure has left a very big hole. It feels like it will take forever to recover. How have you found the cost and what area are you in?x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gracey Posted May 9, 2009 Share Posted May 9, 2009 Hi Rosiejulia, you are so lucky to have a home to return to. i wish i was in youe shoes. my kids have settled in good and the schools are just a bit different with what they teach but they seem happy. its been me who as wanted to return even thou it was me who couldn't wait to get out here. i think we will return but god knows what back to. i dont have anyone to stay with and when i told my so called mother that i wasn't happy out here she said i was mental. so im all alone and dont know which way to turn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rosiejulia Posted May 10, 2009 Share Posted May 10, 2009 Gracey! It is so hard!....and in defence of your mum people from back home do tend to say `are you crazy ! why would you want to come back here`! People who live in Britain tend to live in a perpetual state of the grass is greener. Only moving as we have done makes you realise that actually Britain is not so bad after all ! I have met a few people from the Uk who have said that they find that its them that has to do all the `staying in touch`thing with F&F....almost as if you are the one who chose to move and therefore have to make all the effort. I too tried to have a talk with my sister on how difficult I was finding it and she very quickly cut the conversation with `oh well you have done it now`!I totally understand that terrible feeling of being stuck here indefinitely! It`s awful and I know that since it has become definite that we are returning I am actually more relaxed and enjoying my time here. There was a time when returning looked unaffordable for us as my OH company had not said anything about a re-patriation package. It was only a month ago that they actually said they would so flights and shipping covered thank goodness! I don`t know about you Gracey but we have found the School fees (as weare on a 457visa) a real problem and despite my kids schools being rated high on gov sch listing I would hand on heart say that the state school they left back home were much better in terms of academics. That said my girls have had a wonderful experience and have all learnt a valuable skill of `Public Speaking` a big focus in their schools. Anyway Gracie don`t despair-things have a way of working themselves out (like our re-pat package) You haven`t said how your OH feels!....How long have you been here now?....and having nowhere to go back to doesen`t have to be a problem....you called always rent somewhere small to start. Being happy is far more important than material things! Feel free to chat to me gracie on here anytime....I`m not sure how far you are from me but a coffee and a chat would be good...it`s great to actually tell someone how you feel.....I totally understand how you feel as do a lot of other PIO members so use this site Gracey for support! Chat soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rudi Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 :cool: Hi Gracie! I live in cherrybrook (hills district) which was a massive culture shock from where I come from in England. Cherrybrook is very Asian dominated, a culture that very much keep to themselves. My OH came 2mths b4 myself and the children and so picked the house rental as the schools in CB have a good rep; also it is within walking distance to his work. To be honest when I arrived here I could have took the first plane back.......or choked the OH!!! I wondered, after 15yrs of marriage if he really knew anything about me at all.....if so what part of CB or the hills district did he think I would fall in love with. It`s been very difficult to say the least to have stuck it out this far (13mths).......and remain married!!!!!.....but we are still here! My OH`s contract finishes Dec09` and I plan to return with the children in time for new school yr, Sep. We had the shipping Co. rep come around RE: return shipping this week and interestingly after our call she was off to quote 4 other brits returning to the UK. As I know we are on our homeward run I am fine and making the most of our time here. My children 14,12,9,....all girls are really looking forward to returning home. As the lovely Shipping rep said `we would`ent die wondering`.....we won`t! and we will also appreciate all the things England has to offer. Australia is a beautiful country......but not for everyone! For me the distance is too great.x Hi Sorry to hear things aren't working out, but I am suprised at what you say about Cherrybrook. It's a lovely area. Yes, there are many Chinese people there and there is nothing wrong with that.....as a result the schools are excellent, but it's still predominantly a Caucasian area. Have you looked at living at any other areas in the Hills? How about Glenhaven or Dural - they are both beautiful, and if you are looking for an area with very little diversity in terms of race then these two suburbs would be suitable. I hope you find what you are looking for. Rudi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gracey Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 Hi rosiejulia thanks for your message. thats good that you dont have to pay to get your stuff back home, that will save you abit. i have been here 12 mths now. oh doesn't want to go back and says there nothing back there to return too, meaning no home and we came here for a new life. i dont know what is the right thing to do. i feel totally at a lost and have no family support whatsoever. i do know that if we do return soon or one day we won't be returning to the same place we left, it will be down south or scotland somewhere like that. i couldn't bear to see the same faces and having to explain why were back to people i couldn't stand. The school fees are very high and something we aren't use to. shouldn't have to pay for the kids education unless you want to go private. i miss the nhs for free sight test for the kids, free dental care and free prescriptions! isn't the nhs a good thing in britain? i know we will have to rent somewhere or even stay in a b+b til we get sorted out. i live near fairfield, not sure how far that is from you. Anyway keep in touch. Gracey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sydney Poms Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 Have you looked at the group called Sydney Poms, it's an information & social group for poms living in Sydney. There is a monthly meet up which is posted on the Events & Meetups page on this website or you can get more information at www.sydneypoms.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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