NSW/Woollongong?!

[meerkate]

Hi girls, am posting from the UK because we're thinking (again!) of returning to Oz, where we've lived before...initially for a sabbatical, IF we can get DH's work to agree to that, that is (minor detail!!). We've previously lived in Brisbane and Perth, and Dunedin in NZ, each for a year. We came back to the UK 5 years ago, as I was homesick, the kids were small & one of them in particular pretty challenging, and we were missing our networks accordingly.

However - time moves on, and we feel rested and refreshed and up to trying our luck Down Under one more time! This time we are keen to explore NSW - with a view to staying on this time, if it feels right. Can anyone advise me on NSW, for instance the Woollongong area, or Gosford?

We're medical, so we're restricted in where we can work - Sydney itself would be out, in other words (and is probably too expensive for us anyway, especially with the exchange rate the way it is right now!). I've obviously looked into the above-mentioned areas on the net, but it's hard to get a true feel for what everyday life would feel like, I haven't been to either in the past.
They appeal bcs of proximity to a bustling, multi-cultural city, but with more affordable housing and beaches and parks and schools that look good etc.

We're looking for somewhere (with a hospital, obviously) that has a good community feel, is near some great beaches, has good parks and sports clubs/facilities for the kids (they're 10 and 8) and is not too far by train from the attractions of a big city. I'm one of these people who is continually torn between the UK and Australia - I love both for different reasons, and miss one when I am in the other, but the balance is tipping towards Oz in particular when I think of the kids and their future - and also bcs we love a bit of sunshine and the great outdoors

Any advice welcome - thanks so much

I have patient experience rather than work experience but can't hurt to chip in with some feedback from that pov.

During trip to Sydney with one (and only) small child and DH back in 2007, had an unexpected mc and ended up in a hosp in Manly... but a few days later we were due to travel south to Huskisson and the coast, and en route I had an 'odd' feeling that I needed to keep an eye out for hospitals as we drove. I made a note of this one - Shoalhaven District Memorial Hospital in Nowra - as we travelled south, and sure enough found myself checking in two days later for some follow-up treatment.

Even though I was only in for half a day, I cannot explain the depth of compassion and loveliness with which I was treated, the speed, empathy, efficiency, ALL of it. If you want to work in a big hospital in NSW you could find far, far worse places than this.

Go for it! Good luck, and send it my love.

I lived in Sydney for 3 years. The bit of coast south of Sydney is beautiful, it is multicultural, though the cultures are a different mix to here, a large greek community for example. The weather is not as fantastic as Brissie, you can still get dose of the wet if the rains come that far south, but obviously not the unremitting wet summer you can get further north. There are 4 seasons rather than the 2, so more like perth, though not as hot (and not as isolated). Winter can be nippy, you will need coats. In Sydney central heating was not that common, but you definitely needed it some days, and further south I suppose more so. Have you considered Cronulla? It's on the end of the trainline direct to Sydney Central, so maybe further north than you had thought of, it's far enough out to not actually be sydney, it's truly beautiful and the surf is great.

i assume you have already checked on hospitals, though if either of you are dental or optical I might be able to offer some pointers.... Though there are public hospitals in Australia, there is also a lot of private health care, and depending on specialities you might find yourself working in ways you never considered. I did.

It sounds to me that you've had enough experience to know whether you can manage without the networks you have at home. I found it very, very lonely at times, but that might be as much a reflection of Sydney itself, me and the fact that I didn't yet have children. Maybe it's easier finding a crowd to hang out with when you have the common ground of children and their school and extra curricular activities.

Try Newcastle, NSW. Very large hospital (John Hunter) and the best lifestyle in the world!

Good luck

i lived in Gladesville and then moved to Lane Cove, both less than 30 mins to Royal North Shore hospital!

I lived there for 3 years and will be going back as have PR, but i too experienced time in Royal North Shore hospital, i had a missed miscarriage which resulted me being hospilised for 2 weeks due to the amount of blood i lost and i was very very ill, i later develped a sore arm which turned out to be a 16cm brachial vein DVT in my upper right arm, so clexane for 6 months after and still have to take now when i fly. Hospital was amazing(although prob the cause of my DVT as left a catheter in said arm for over 8 days not using it when i already had another 3 in being used)

This is very close to sydney main city though and i was paying $540 per week just rent for a small 2 bed apartment!

My friend lived out further out and worked as a nurse at a medical centre and rent was much cheaper (name elludes me right now)

I know for me i liked the city and hub feel too much too be further away from city (oh and i have a 7year old, so she was in school out there) i would rather pay more in rent and be close to city than pay less and be further away.

Both areas are gorgeous, don't think you could make a wrong decision. Commute from Gosford if heading to Sydney can be hell but people do it. (gives you city work options if no jobs locally)
Good luck

Oooh - thanks so much everyone, you've been a huge help already. I am touched at the personal medical details you've shared - good to know that overall your experiences were positive (small detail of the catheter-caused DVT aside - eek!!!). (I'm a GP by background, but recently transferred to hospice care, which I am loving, so I would be looking to continue to work part-time in palliative care ideally; DH works in ITU/anaesthetics.)

In an ideal world I too would prefer to be in the city, but from experience the only cities we could work IN rather than NEAR (because of Aussie overseas doctoring rules) are some areas of Brisbane, and Perth (which I loved, but found too isolated for the longer term). The humidity of Brissie nearly killed me over the summer and also we have good friends in Sydney, hence our current interest in NSW!

I had the loneliest year of my entire life in NZ 5 years ago, and used to wander around Dunedin sobbing with homesickness some of the time(!), much as I loved the country itself, so I am very familiar with how bad that can be; Perth, on the other hand, had a really lively ex-pat scene and I also met some lovely Aussie mums through Kindie, so that was easier by far. But yes, I do often think, hmmm...is it worth giving up a life full of friends and two good jobs here for the uncertainties of another go at life Down Under? Then I think, oh, go on...just one more time;-) Welcome to my inner world - a world of restlessness and indecision

Anyway thanks again girls, I'll continue my research and will definitely keep the places you mentioned in mind. One thing I would happily consider is living on the fringes of Sydney and forcing DH to commute out to an outlying hospital - funnily enough, he is less keen

I second mimmie re Newcastle/Lake Macquarie. Two hours max from Sydney, fantastic beaches, beautiful lake and watersports, numerous bushland reserves, some really lovely places to live and sooo much more affordable housing-wise than Sydney. We live in a small town on east side of Lake Mac, 30 mins from Newcastle but lots of lake beaches, other towns, parks and walks on our doorstep. Very large John Hunter hospital there, plus other smaller and private ones around. I'm not medical but since moving here have met mostly medical friends! I'm very happy with our choice (would have gone for inner Sydney if money no object!).

PS Newcastle's a great little city with good community feel once you get to know it, but it's not as 'buzzy' as similarly sized cities in the UK - the centre has problems attracting shoppers/investment but there are some museums, galleries, harbourside developments, plus the fantastic beaches and lake and outdoor life on its doorstep.

Mimmie/Cornish - brilliant, I will look into Newcastle immediately - the bloke we're trying to contact in Woollongong isn't answering his emails anyway, so we're not getting too far on that front ...the good news is that DH's work seem perfectly relaxed about the sabbatical proposition, so we can get cracking on the search now! I love walking, so decent scenery/bush walks which are accessible with ease is really important to me. And obviously beaches are essential ... thanks again!!

www.visitlakemac.com.au/
www.visitnewcastle.com.au/