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It was a day in July 2004 when our lives changed….Jon walked in the door from work, telling me about a radio interview he’d heard about South Australia wanting skilled workers to come to their state, and chefs were right up there on the wanted list!
So after weeks of research, weighing up all the pros and cons, we decided to go for it…..15 months or so from the day that Jon first mentioned it, we were in Adelaide. At the time, the process of going through the TRA, nomination by the SA government and then the Visa itself, seemed to go on forever, but thinking back now as we are getting near to being here 2 years….time has flown by…
We sold our house in the UK…needed the money!....said goodbye to friends and family.... arrived in Adelaide on 2/11/05, 4 kids in tow, 11 suitcases and a bit of money in the bank.
We spent the next 2 weeks living in a 3 room cabin next to Brighton Beach. As we had never been to Adelaide before (or even been to Australia before!), we had absolutely no idea where we wanted to settle, but that wasn’t so much the priority…we needed to get the kids into school, secure a decent rental, buy cars etc…We achieved all this within the first 2/3 weeks…Jon got work quite easy, and I have found getting part-time work as and when I want, not a problem. I am also studying part-time at college.
The kids all settled well…although our eldest daughter struggled for the first year. She was 15 when we arrived and found the transition from the UK to Australia very difficult…it’s not an easy age to move children…
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In June 2006, we bought a house in Happy Valley and made the hard decision of changing the kid’s school. It was difficult at first, as they had settled so well at the previous school…but didn’t take them long to adjust!They are thriving in the Australian education system, it’s a great all round education over here. They enjoy all the sport they can get involved in…..Our eldest is pursuing her career as a hairdresser and is driving her own car…Our youngest is a ‘little aussie’….he is only 4 and has now spent almost half of his life in Australia….
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As a family we are enjoying everything about being in Australia…..the beautiful weather, the wildlife (even the nasties aren’t that bad), the beaches, the BBQ’s, the outdoor life etc.. As parents, we can’t believe how our kids have adapted to life over here and how they are thriving as individuals and developing strong interests and hobbies….far more than in the UK.
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But, it has not been easy, it has been 20 months or so of lots of ups and downs…….Jon & I as adults have find it harder…we have questioned at times ‘did we do the right thing?’ when times have been very hard…the conclusion is always. ‘Yes we did’…at the end of the day, we did it for our kids….and we look at all 4 of them now, and know it was the right decision.
Lorraine
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