Blog

June 1st until June 7th 2004

The start of Migration to Australia

Tuesday 1st June 2004

Moving day! Flying Day!
Finally, we are going. No matter what status the house sale is in - we are going. We woke up at 7am, and I took the bed apart and started to unscrew everything that was screwed to the wall that we are taking. The removal men were meant to arrive at 8am or 9am, but did not turn up until past 10:30. We were not very impressed, but I was sure that they could get it all done before lunch. How wrong I was - they were very slow, and even when we tried to hurry them up, there seemed to be no improvement.
Ann and I had to go to the Solicitor to sign over power of attourney so that if the house sale fell through he could deal with the new sale. It is a pity that the house sale had not reached exchange before we left, but the delays are just too tedious and it would be too stressful to sit in England burning our savings at UK prices, where instead we could be in Australia making progress on jobhunting and getting all the necessities (tax, car, bank accounts, phones, medical etc.) sorted. If we were still in England, we would have to carry on paying bills and buying food at the higher UK cost, but by going to Adelaide, we can save money.
The packing was taking ages, because they were putting everything that I had already packed into new boxes, and even packing things like the chest of drawers into a cardboard box. It seemed like every glass and utensil was wrapped in it's own paper and packed into other boxes, secure - but took ages.
As requested, my parents turned up at 6pm to take us to the airport, but the packers had not yet finished. We had to make the decision to get the airplane and leave the packers in the house. Ann had to sign the paperwork, and my father Terry got quite agitated that it was 6:30 and Ann was still doing the paperwork.
I gave my mother Eleanor all the chemicals and food that we could not take to Australia, including some things that she had given us when we first moved in to the house. Eleanor was good enough to drive Ann's car from the airport, so that Terry can arrange for it to be sold.

Once we got on to the plane, we handed over the pushchair and carried Thomas' car seat and base to his seat. We were able to just strap it in, and then Thomas was in a seat that supported him and was comfortable. He enjoyed the takeoff, and because it was past 10pm, he shortly fell asleep. We never used the basinette that we had booked, because Thomas was completely comfortable in his car seat.
There were some good films on, which was a pity because the flight was in our night time and we could not really enjoy them. The flight flew (mmmm...) past and we were in Kuala Lumpur before we knew it. Thomas slept through the landing so we woke him up to give him a drink to clear his ears - but it was probably not needed.
In the airport, we had a quick look through the shops and decided that we did not need any designer clothes or jewels, and instead decided to find the Executive Lounge. It was better than the lounge at Heathrow that we had been in a few hours earlier. I made Ann a latte, got myself a free beer and a hot meal, and used the free Internet connection to look for and apply for jobs in Adelaide.
KL went quickly and after telling my parents that we were safe, we were queuing to get on to the plane for Adelaide. Again Thomas enjoyed the takeoff, but barely slept. Ann and I dozed, but the 6 hour flight seemed to be longer than the morning's 12 hour flight from London. Typically, the time we were awake was when there was no good films on the inflight entertainment - and all the cabin lights were off so I felt self-conscious about putting my reading light on, as other people in the cabin were trying to sleep.
Both flights (from London and to Adelaide) were nearly half empty, so there was plenty of space to spread out, and there was the ability to move if someone reclined their chair in front. As it was night, many people stretched out over several seats and were able to sleep flat. The service was very good, as the cabin crew were able to give us dedicated service. It may have been because we had a baby and they wanted to ensure that we were looked after.

Wednesday 2nd June 2004

This day did not exist.
Because of our flying from west to east, this day did not happen. Even though the flight was only 18 hours, 25 hours had passed, so the Wednesday didn't really happen at all. Well, it technically did, but it felt like it didn't.

Thursday 3rd June 2004

6:12 am, the plane landed at Adelaide. As the airport did not open until 6am due to a curfew to allow residents to sleep, the plane had to sit in a queue as all other planes that were in the area had to land and get off the runway. This had also delayed our takeoff from KL, because of the wind direction we could not arrive too early.
We decided to be the last to get off the plane, because we knew that it would be a while before the bags arrive, and did not want to hold everyone else up whilst we got ourselves organized. The ground crew saw that we had a baby, and took us past the huge queue of people going through immigration. We had to make sure that Ann was processed before I was, as that was a condition of my Visa entry. The quarantine officer was good to us, checking things like baby food and the mud on the pushchair tyres, and after a bit more queuing, we were finally through.
Once we came through the doors, Liam (Ann's father) and Shirley (my mother in law) were waiting for us, and took a photo as we came in the door. Not the thing we want after 18 hours of flying without a shower or even a comb. After squeezing all of our huge bags into two cars, Thomas was inserted into his new baby seat and was very comfortable.
Finally we are here. Seeing the beauty of this place and the space - all filled by warm sunshine from the cloudless sky - I can see why we were so keen to get here. Adelaide seems like the place to be.
The rest of the day is a bit of a blur. All I remember is trying to stay awake so that we can get over the jet-lag.

Friday 4th June 2004

Number one priority - get a bank account. We spent what seemed like hours in the Westpac bank, proving our identity and getting registered to have a bank account. Unlike the UK, once the account is opened, you get the account number and sort code (called a BSB number here) - but it is just written on a little bit of card. At least we will have the details to transfer some cash from the UK.
Ann's sister Linda took us into the small shopping mall that is in Salisbury Plain, and I went into the first mobile phone shop that I found and got a "PrePay" phone, which would be like a Pay-As-You-Go in England. It cost me $99, but that is only Ł39. It does not matter to me that I have got the most basic phone - all I want is to be able to make and receive calls. We tried to buy just a SIM for Ann's phone, but it did not work, so we will have to buy a phone for Ann.
Now I am contactible, so I can apply for jobs!

Thomas slept really well last night. Ann and I managed a few solid hours so were refreshed in the morning. Hopefully, Thomas will fall straight in to the new routine and we will not have to suffer sleepless nights with Thomas being awake when we are trying to sleep.
Cathy (Ann's old school friend) came over today. It is great to be in a place where we have instant friends. Cathy was so happy to see her Godson, and it was just like we had not been apart for nearly 3 years. Shortly after Cathy left, Linda brought over the family, and the girls (Marie and Victoria) played with Thomas' toys and gave Thomas a bit of a cuddle. Thomas reacted incredibly well considering that there were 5 new people in the room, and the three children were all loud - particularly Marie! Not a single cry or look of shock on Thomas' face - he just took it. For a 9 month old baby, Thomas is often a real joy, being cute and happy most of the time.

Saturday 5th June 2004

Last night Thomas would not sleep. He was crying nearly all night, so Ann and I did not get much sleep either. I tried to sleep through it, but Ann made sure that I did not. We kept on getting up throughout the night to check that Thomas was OK, that each time we got back in to bed, the layers of blankets and sheets became twisted and unravelled that I found it difficult to get warm. The Australian winter nights are really cold!
Ann and I took Liam's car in to central Adelaide (the CBD - Central Business District). We went past what looked like a huge park between North Adelaide (the old part) and central Adelaide. Ann tells me that it is parklands that run all around the city, roughly a city block wide. In the parklands you can't see any buildings and so you could be anywhere. Once we come out of the parklands, we can see the CBD with the tower blocks and some of the older historic buildings. Ann points out to me the Oval where the cricket is played, and Memorial Drive where the tennis is played, and St Peter's cathedral which could have come from any English city. The hospitals are apparently to be pointed out, but what was more interesting was the Convention Centre and the Torrens river - each surrounded by more parks.
Once in the CBD, Ann and I went straight to Rundle Mall, where all the large shops are. David Jones is like Selfridges, with a large food hall beneath. Harris Scarfe looked a little tired - a bit like an old BHS with lots of "value" items. Myer is a bit like John Lewis, and is Australia wide so has plenty of variety. Ann and I walked down to Rundle Street, where the trendy bars and restaurants are. Even though many people were wearing scarves, gloves and jackets (and some wearing just T-Shirts), there were quite a few people sitting outside at the streetside tables, enjoying their winter alfresco cappucino.
There were very few crowds for a Saturday, but even so, the most striking thing about Rundle Mall and Adelaide shops is that they are all huge and filled with a variety of stock and large quantity of stock - but there seems to be very few people out shopping. If only England was the same, instead of overcrowded shopping centres that run out of what you want - or never had it in the first place!

Sunday 6th June 2004

Last night Thomas did not want to sleep again. He was up from around 2am until 5am crying and making a fuss. This time Ann and I brought him in to the bedroom and slipped him between us. Now that we have the duvet on the bed, we are much more comfortable and warmer too. Thomas finally dropped off to sleep, but just a few hours later we had to force ourselves to get up so that we could shake off the jetlag.
Liam and Shirley took us to a shopping mall near to the house today. I found it strange to see that Woolworths is the name of the large general supermarket - like Tesco. The other large supermarkets are Bi-Lo (like Asda), Coles (like Sainsburys) and Foodland. There is so much available at these places that it is quite overwhelming. The shelves are all 8ft high and packed with so much variety in brands, some of which are the same in the UK. It just seems like a cross between England and America, with the size and space of America and the comfort of England.
I am getting to grips with the roads and traffic here now. Liam tells me that there is no such thing as the MOT test for roadworthyness, which explains why there are so many old cars on the road, and beaten up rusted polluters are driving alongside a new BMW or Lexus. The roads are all so wide it reminds me of America. The Main North Road (A1) goes close to the house, and it is six lanes wide and never full. Even side roads are 4 lanes wide, dropping to 2 lanes only when they get into residential areas. I love the way that they leave the gum trees and plane trees alongside the roads, often with a central reservation between the lanes that makes it look like you could be anywhere in the countryside.
Today we went over to Ann's sister's house. Linda was there, as was her husband Ashley. We talked about money and tax issues (Ashley works in the tax office). The children, Brendan (11), Victoria (12) and Marie (14) were still up and 'working' on the computer and on the phone to friends. It gave me a little insight into life with a young family in Australia - something I am going to learn about.

Monday 7th June 2004

Time to leap on the recruitment agencies. Monday morning is the best time to get in touch, because then they can think of opportunities for me all day, and hopefully all week. I have an interview with Hudson tomorrow, which was previously arranged when I was in the UK. It is good to have some interest at this stage so that I don't start to feel down.
There was a big thunderstorm last night. Thunder and lightning over head from 1am until about 4. Not much sleep last night for anyone - except Thomas. He just slept through it and was fine. Typical after last night, so Ann and I are still out of sync.
Another visit to a shopping mall today. Munno Parra has just been built slightly north of Elizabeth. Again, it is huge - with four large general supermarkets and lots of smaller stores in between. It's like a whole highstreet under one roof. Each shop that we saw had stock pouring out onto the mall, with the fruit and veg shops having piles of food of every colour and size in huge glistening heaps. The baking potatoes must have been stacked up to 5 feet high - and each potato was clean and shiny. The variety of everything was stunning - every colour and shape imaginable.

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Last edited 14^th June 2004

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