To think the families on Wanted Down Under are a bit spoilt/delusional?

[Hatchinganegg]

Almost every episode involves a family with pretty average jobs living in your average 3 bedroom semi detached. They go to Australia and turn their noses up at massive houses because they don't have pools and walk in wardrobes. Or they're 10 minutes from the beach rather than right across the road

They never seem to want to start off a few rungs down from their eventual goal, it all has to happen right away.

They all want identikit houses too- those shiny kitchens and acres of cream carpet. I'd like to see one where the family was after something a little different personally!

[ThumbWitchesAbroad]

Wisteria - I guess that depends on whether she was looking to buy or rent. You can't change too much in terms of permanent fixtures in rentals without running the risk of problems later (and carpet and wallpaper both count).

i don't think that families who are split over the decision should emigrate - it makes it so much harder to deal with the initial hardships of the situation when someone is constantly whinging in the background about how they never wanted to come anyway and their life has been ruined.

If I'd had free choice after marrying DH, whether to come here or stay in the UK, I'd have stayed in the UK. But someone recently asked me to complete a questionnaire on my emigration experience, and after I broke everything down, I came to the conclusion that, on balance, we made the right choice to come over here. I still get dreadful heartwrenching over not being in the UK, and being away from my Dad, and having to fly back if I want to see any of my family ever again (too many reason why they can't visit here) - but on balance, it was the right decision to come over when we did. The only other option would have been not to come at all and I don't think DH could have coped with that.

[Sweetpea55]

I watched yesterday's programme and you couldn't Knock the mum for trying to make things better for her kiss. She seemed to want them to spend more time together. Does it take moving to the other side of the world to do this.
It irritated me that every other word was ' basically'

[wisterialanes]

Just saw the one from last week? on catchup, the woman who wanted to "get over her traumatic divorce". Again, I think some counselling is in order rather than a move across the world.
Do Australian children not have access to tech? I have heard 3 saying recently that they wanted to go to Aus so that their DC would be off the X box

[LadyinCement]

I saw one last week in which he couple had already emigrated to New Zealand, but had fallen out over the fact that the wife was working at the dh was being the SAHP, so had returned to the UK and divorced.

Now they had reunited and wanted to emigrate again, this time to Sydney so they could go surfing (mainly the dh). There was the slight issue of the fact that during the time they had been divorced, the dh had tried to emigrate with another woman...

It was the same old story of them looking askance at the size of properties they could afford in Sydney (when they were moving from somewhere in South Wales) but with the added problem of the couple sniping at each other. It was not looking good!

[wisterialanes]

Oh lady that sounds interesting, can you link?

[LadyinCement]

I don't think so but it was on last Friday I think, at about 7pm or so...

[ThumbWitchesAbroad]

Wisteria - while I'm fairly sure your question re. the tech was tongue in cheek, I can assure you that, yes, the kids here have full access to the full range of tech/electronics that other western world kids do.
And yes, we have the same problems here with keeping them off it.
And yes, there is a burgeoning obesity problem in Australia as well, although there may be some dispute as to whether the two are linked.

[wisterialanes]

Thumb I gathered as much, but why then do these people think that once they land on Aussie tarmac that their DC will be playing outside constantly? It does seem rather naive that they all expect to be working about 3 hours a day and then heading for the beach.

[losingmymindiam]

Of course they have tech (and we have actually had to purchase an iPad for one child for school use and a laptop for the other, as they use them for work in school. But if you are a parent that struggles to get your kids off in the UK then you will here. I guess here there is more opportunity to get outside as an alternative because it rains a lot less. I do think it is naive that people think they will work less and spend all the time at the beach, however, having said that my husband went in for a 7.30 start yesterday and came home at three and we then all went to the beach

[ThumbWitchesAbroad]

I don't know why they have that expectation, to be honest.
We went to a zoo here and there was a child of about 8 walking around the zoo with his head buried in a tablet - his grandparents kept saying "look, look there's an echidna/wallaby/other amazing creature" but he only had eyes for his tablet. No idea if he had any SEN of course, he might have, but when they took the tech off him he just rolled his eyes and looked utterly BORED.

I suppose there's this all-hallowed "outdoor lifestyle" shtick that makes people in the UK imagine that all Aussie kids spend all their time outdoors playing street or beach cricket with their friends (a la Neighbours) but, certainly in my area, it's just NOT like that.

[cantthinkofasinglegoodusername]

@CaraBosse1

Doctor appointments are covered mostly by Medicare. There will be a gap payment but it isn't huge/depends on the surgery. If you're a pensioner or single parent etc you'll have a concession card and your gap will be minimal.
Some places bulk bill, so you pay no gap at all. Then you receive the Medicare cheque in the mail and pass it on to the gp.

Children do in fact get free dental care. If you receive Family Tax Benefit Part A (which you qualify for if you earn under around $100K), then you qualify for up to $1000 a year in dental costs.

If you go to a public hospital you pay nothing.

You can pay for private health cover, with either Extras Only or Hospital/Ambulance or both. A lot of people just pay for extras, which would cover dental/physio/orthodontics/podiatry/chiropractics/hearing tests/optometrists etc etc. If you earn over a certain amount then you should be paying for full private health as otherwise you pay an extra percentage in tax.

Health care here is brilliant. I've been a single struggling parent and wealthy and in the higher income bracket. As a single parent my concession allowed me to see a doctor anytime it was needed. My son had minor surgery as a baby in a public hospital and the wait time was very short. He's been in public hospitals as an older child and received fantastic care. Even our private specialists have gone out of their way to reduce our out of pocket costs in regards to him. One time we had to go to another city to see a specialist there and it was paid for by our local hospital, including taxi transfers.

As my income has increased and I now have top health insurance I have had access to private hospitals. The care I have received has been incredible.

HTH

[cantthinkofasinglegoodusername]

Also I would say the most expense I pay now is on prescriptions. Some pharmacies charge a lot more than others. Better to go to a discount pharmacy.

On concession card prescriptions are cheap.

[expatmatt38]

I have only seen small parts of this show - the one I saw the Mum who originally wanted to go voted in the end not too but by then had persuaded her partner and daughter to vote to stay (sorry if wrong show here but clearly same premise!) but what's the situation with the visas etc? It's all very well to want to emigrate but in the show do they even know they can go and work ? I say this as someone who emigrated and knowing they've tightened the rules now and there's also significant financial output just for that!
Also cost of living is high in Australia I have many high earning friends who have to live far outside the city and still rent as can't afford to buy there !!

[ThumbWitchesAbroad]

Holy fuckeroony - I just went to check the price estimate for a partner visa on the website and was really really shocked to discover it's AU$7k!! Didn't cost me anything like that much 9 years ago!

Wow. Things might have been different if it had been that expensive then!

[CheapSausagesAndSpam]

It is indeed hideously expensive Thumb. Thank God for my inlaws.

[CheapSausagesAndSpam]

Thumb, re the kid with the tablet...it's anecdotal. WHere I live in S.A ..semi rural, the kids are extremely outdoorsy and active.

Always outside, in the creek, on the beach...running and climbing.

Saying that, it's probably where we live. I know S.A is the state with the biggest obesity problem.

[SavoyCabbage]

In Victoria, a lot of children have to have an ipad for school. So children are used to having a tablet of their own which they are taking with them to school and back every day. Then they are going on them in the playground before school starts and on the way to basketball etc. It’s madness.

[Mumto2two]

Yes I agree, very delusional. I know many who tried it and came back. Very expensive, lacks so much that we take for granted here, and sydney has more rainfall than London. DH grew up in oz and his family are still there. They are the least outdoorsy people I know. Real couch potatoes. In fact they watch more TV than anyone I've ever met! I've been many times now, and I just don't get it I'm afraid.

[losingmymindiam]

I don’t think you can really make sweeping generalisations. We lived in Sydney and it didn’t ‘lack’ anything. In fact it was a beautiful, exciting place to live. Yes it was expensive but so is living in a nice suburb of London. When it rains it absolutely pours but it doesn’t really rain for days and days with grey skies. Never seen so much blue sky to be honest. Don’t know why people need to put Oz down so much. It’s a lovely place, as is UK. Everybody’s circumstances are different but I do think the WDU people can be ridiculous.

[losingmymindiam]

I also feel that I need to add that one of the reasons we have cited for moving to Oz from the U.K. was the opportunities for a better life for our children. To see that belittled by people is upsetting because it was no easy decision. We were not running away from issues. We have left grandparents behind and we are guilt ridden and sad about that. But on the other hand my youngest has escaped a school system that expects unquestioning obedience and a totally uninspiring way of learning due to the pressures put on teachers. He is now a changed child who loves the inquiry, project based learning that schools here have the freedom to do. They get to swim, surf and play in the ocean that is a 15 minute walk from our house, a lot because the sun shines a lot. And hopefully we will be here long enough to get citizenship to give them more choices when they are older.

[CaraBosse1]

@cantthinkofasinglegoodusername and @losingmymindiam

Thanks for your explanations of OZ health care.
God how I wish the UK govt would bin this ruinous Brexit and concentrate on restructuring our NHS and sorting out funding. I believe it's what the majority of Brits want.

[juliesaway]

I just don’t know why some UK people think that in Aus you hardly have to work, and kids play outside / you go to the beach every day. Yes if you make certain choices to live I’m certain places and organise your life without a care maybe you can. Most people however have to work commute and do everything you do in uk or any other country to put food on the table. The laid back lifestyle thing is a bit of a myth unless you deliberately choose that you will leave that way. Many Aussies choose to be in the rat race, be ambitious, keep up with he Jones, to buy big properties with big mortgages and buy big cars with big car loans. Hamsters on the wheel just like the UK. Where has this perception come from that you basically can piss about and do no work yet live in an exclusive suburb in Aus come from? These deluded WDU people are dreaming.

[derxa]

they all have the most amazing delusions of grandeur - wanting 'the wow factor' and turning their noses up at almost everything - then you see the dump they live in now How true. Especially on ETTC. And where do they find such dull people? They always seem to want to be 'part of the community' but I'm guessing they're the kind of people like the ones here on MN who never answer their doorbells.

[wisterialanes]

I think Ramsey Street in Neighbours has a major role in the 'Aussie dream' fantasy. Did Madge work? She had a massive house, pool parties, street BBQ's etc. Poor Pippa from Home and Away drew the short straw; she had about 20 kids and only a 2 seater sofa!

[ThumbWitchesAbroad]

I think Madge worked in a café, didn't she? With Harold? Was it a café or was it a convenience store? Something like that anyway.