Shall the Aussie Mumsnetters have a thread to chat a bit?

[HennyPennyHorror]

I suppose AIBU to put this here...but it IS the busiest area. I just thought...I'd see if there were any other MNrs in Oz who'd like a little chat thread together?

Yes, henny, I agree about the tea. DD2 gets the proper Yorkshire stuff from the market, but she says the only stock they have there at the moment is short dated, so she’s trying online. These things are important 😂.
However, having just been in the UK, I’m very glad to be back in Melbs for decent chai - I tried one in Pret (didn’t see it anywhere else, but appreciate I might not have been looking v hard) and it was undrinkable. Swings and roundabouts...

@JustMoved123 I can recommend a hairdresser NOR if that's any good for you? Probably on the pricier end of the spectrum but she is good...Is the only hairdresser I've been back to more than once!

Can I join? We were in Melbourne for 6years, and became citizens, but moved back to Manchester a few years back.

Funny reading about buying British foodstuffs. My husband found an Aussie coffee shop in the city the other week and bought an extortionate packet of TimTams 😅

That’s fine, I’ll travel and pay for someone good! Please send the details.

Just place marking all the way from Sydney. I've found my people

is anyone else not watching the Grand Final? I'm not interested in sport bar the Tour so have spent the afternoon pottering and reading, keeping up with the tendency of the match by the hoarse screams coming from a neighbour's house. I live in a street that's 70/30 retirees/ younger families, so a bit sedate.

I'm in Sydney too! And welsh, so looking forward to the rugby tomorrow!

echt, I’m not watching, or interested, but I can hear our neighbours tv from here!
DD3 was at the MCG earlier handing out free KFC to people - very excited that she saw Guy Sebastian there 😂.
We’ve been house hunting, shopping and dog walking - everywhere is pretty quiet!

Can I join? I have my 192 visa and DP and I are flying out to Melbourne on the 27th April next year. One way ticket!!!!!!

I got my 192 as an Early Years Educator so will be looking for jobs around that field. Bit nervous about swapping to the Australian education system but hoping I can do some reading to prepare me and then get going ASAP once we arrive.

No kids (infertility sucks) and we're both a bit worried about making friends without the help of the school run. I have some distant family in rural Victoria and some more in WA, so not totally on our own in real emergencies but good enough, it'll just be the 2 of us.

We’ve been house hunting, shopping and dog walking - everywhere is pretty quiet

Isn't it quite? Like Christmas Day. I've done more or less that too. House hunting was really sticky-beaking into a house across the road that I've only seen inside once ( I already have a house), shopping was food and curtains and dog-walking was what I do twice day every day. I must say as a fervent preserver of older buildings, the house I looked at would need a champion architect to preserve its 70s essence and still make it liveable. Almost every inch of the exterior was poured concrete. Jesus.

Welcome on board, CrazylazyJane

I'm a teacher who qualified and taught in the UK, so you'll have no problem. It's all systems, and they're not so different. I'd get on to VIT now to see how to get your qualifications recognised beforehand to save you time later.

I see what you mean about the friends-making capacity of the school run while not having that way in. I was school run for five months and no-one spoke to me. After that in full-time work, so end of. Non-child friends were made through work. Dogs are good too. I found, and find Australians friendly but not easy to make friends with IYSWIM.

Poms were first port of call, though not on purpose, just more in common for early chats and so -on.

All the best.

Looking back at my post, I see it looks as if I discounted CLJ's concerns about not having the school run route to friendships because I found them hard any way, even with a child. Not my intention at all.

My DC were on the cusp of being too old for playground chatter...but I've made a few friends through joining art classes. I also began attending openings of local art shows and you see the same faces. One woman was very friendly and through her, I met others.

I think you just have to get out there a bit. I was thinking of volunteering at a local charity shop...though the others are older than me, I wouldn't care. I like older women...they're fun too.

Also, the National Trust here is almost entirely run by volunteers and they're always in need.

I'm actually Australian but living in UK. Can I play?

Crazy, it’s not that easy even with children. Mine were very little when we first moved 20 years ago, but breaking into the established friendship groups was difficult (we were in Perth and found that everyone had been to school together and now their kids were at school together. They weren’t unfriendly, they just didn’t need anyone else!).
I’ve just joined a women’s group here, mostly women in our 50’s, but there are so many different social groups out there who are very welcoming to new people. Have a look here www.meetup.com/. It might give you some idea. Hope the link worked...
Good luck to everyone with your moves. It’s stressful, scary and exciting all at the same time!

echt, we’re getting really fed up with it all. We’ve seen about 150 houses now! We’re not that hard to please, but we’ve had some ‘experiences’ this time!!

You lot are scaring me about the house hunting! We are just about to start, and some of the houses I’ve looked at online are bloodyawful, so many that look like the haven’t been decorated since they were built in the 70s! And they are asking the same prices as the newly renovated houses!

I spotted this thread earlier in the week and have been plucking up the courage to say hello.
Our son is currently spending a year studying at the University of Adelaide and I notice several of you are from that area.

His aunt and uncle are holidaying in Australia in early November and plan to spend a couple of days in Adelaide.
He'd like to take them out for a nice meal but isn't sure where to start. As a student it's not something he's had to think about so far.
My son and BiL don't eat meat but eat fish. My SiL doesn't have any specific dietary requirements.
Any recommendations would be really appreciated.

Late December Adelaide has many wonderful restaurants. Let me have a think...
I landed at Melbourne airport this afternoon. Very very quiet!

Thank you, that would be really helpful.
I'll WhatsApp him to say the mumsnetters are on the case. 🙂

Crashing it's true! People don't redecorate and replace fittings as often as they do in the UK.

My houseproud MIL thinks her breezeblock 3 bed house is WONDERFUL and it's full of cracked 1970s tiling!

The decor is BAD here. You get used to it somehow.

LateDecember has he got accomodation sorted? He'll love it...HOT as heck mind you.

My FIL loves this place. It's been around since the 1940s which is WELL established for Adelaide.

www.paulsongouger.com.au/

Just had a quick look at the menu and that looks ideal, HennyPennyHorror. I'll be passing it onto him.
DS is living in Halls at the University and the pictures we've had of his room and the campus in general look nice.
He arrived on the 19th of July and in the first week or so he had people commiserating with him that he'd arrived in the depth of winter. He explained that he was doing fine with acclimatising as some days you had it as warm or warmer than we had for our summer.

December Oh he's here already! Is he enjoying it?

Yes, he seemed to settle in very quickly. He gets on well with his flatmates in his accomodation and is enjoying his course.
He's conscious of how quickly the year will fly by and wants to make the most of his time. He's found everyone very welcoming and friendly.
DH and I have been to the travel agent this morning to start to plan a trip out to see him as he'll be 21 in March 2020. His long break is between late November and late February so we're thinking the 1st 3 weeks in February. That will allow him time to do some independent exploring on his own or with friends.then we can see him prior to him going into the 2nd half of his studies.