Back over to Sydney...

So I got offered the job I attended that interview for in Sydney! It was a pretty quick turnaround because a week later, I was on the same Monday morning flight to Sydney en route to start my first week of work beginning with five days of training in the city. So glad it was longer than a day trip this time!

I took advantage of being over in Sydney for the week by meeting up with a couple of Sydneysider friends who like me, made the move to Oz from the UK, but some time before me. At the start of the week, I met up with my friend Mel who is an old work colleague from London. Mel suggested we go to the Summit Restaurant & Bar; a revolving one located in the heart of the city in Australia Square, 47 floors high above the city with 360 degree views. What a great way to  start my week; absorbing endless views of Sydney by night with a cocktail in hand after the first day on the new job.

 

 

 

 

Sydney really has an energetic vibe. It's a fair bit bigger than Perth and you can feel it. It has a real buzz which I particularly experienced on my walks to from my hotel in Wynyard to the offices on Pitt Street each morning. The buildings are grander and you almost forget for a moment that you’re in Australia and feel like you’re in a European city. Although I didn’t have time to visit many shops, I was pleasantly surprised to see a familiar sight when I spotted one of my favourite shops from back home!!

 

 

 

Wynyard Square - view from my hotel room

 

I was excited to also meet an old secondary school friend dinner and drinks  who has lived in Sydney for the last few years and who I hadn’t seen in at least 10 years. It was a fun reunion, catching up on all that we had done since our school years; from university and to life in our twenties and our moves to Australia and experiences. We both agreed that neither the other had changed and enjoyed gossiping about old school friends and laughing about silly high school behaviour! We started at The Russell Wine Bar and then Jennie took me around The Rocks to take in the nocturnal views of the Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney skyline before going for a night cap at a great newly opened bar on George St called The Morrison.

 

Drinks at The Russell Wine Bar



Wondering around "The Rocks"

 

 

Oh, and I managed a much closer, more illuminated view of the bridge this time!

 

Focus on Fitness

It’s true what they say about the Aussies, they are a nation of sporty, exercise-loving, endorphin-chasing, fitness fanatics and this is one thing I have come to admire about Australia and the active lifestyle here.

When I first arrived in Perth back in March, I was stunned by their sheer dedication to working out in the furious heat. In excess of 40 degrees, I’d see joggers, runners and cyclists on a mission in their stretch-lycra sports gear parading their toned, tanned bodies in Perth’s parks, along riversides, beachfronts and on cycle paths clearly visible from my balcony at varying times of the day (including those powerful peak hours of 10-3pm)! In more recent weeks, I’ve witnessed women on dark, chilly mornings strutting along the streets with their yoga mats tucked under their arms at 7am on a Sunday morning. That’s commitment for you! And it’s not just the young taking to the outdoors to get their fitness fix. I’m seeing lots of the senior citizens of Perth jogging, cycling, kayaking, dog-running, even mummys (but surprisingly more daddys), jogging whilst pushing a pram with one arm and pulling their dog’s lead with the other - talk about multi-tasking!

 In awe of the Aussie attitude to exercise and my original goal to get fitter in Oz, I registered myself and Micky for Perth’s annual City to Surf run taking place at the end of August. Last year 42,000 people took part. The race starts from the city area and ends at City Beach. Also, I researched some exercise classes and enrolled in my first Pilates and Yoga classes at LivPilates in nearby Maylands, just a 5 min drive from home.  All I can say is that after a mix of six or so classes of both, I still have aching muscles I never knew I had. This must be good, activating these sleeping muscles of mine.  Where Yoga I’m told is all about balancing the mind and body through a series of poses, exercises and relaxation techniques, Pilates is more to do with conditioning the body by building flexibility, muscle, strength and endurance through the core and limbs. The classes so far have been challengingly fun; stretching this and pulsing that, squeezing here and clenching there and trying to maintain a number of tricky poses in beginners’ Yoga.

Anyway, I am feeling good about my new fitness regime and with the spring and the long summer months soon approaching; this requires us to spend more time outdoors in fewer clothes. So with this in mind, I am preparing myself for my first Australian summer with an Aussie-inspired approach.

Warm Winter

We are enjoying a warm winter here in Perth! Hope that doesn’t make my family and friends back home in the UK too envious as I’ve recently been hearing moans about the drizzly weather there. What a difference a dose of vitamin D makes over the winter season though!

Now July is here, we’re in the height of “winter” and yet we are absorbing temperatures of 21- 22 degrees and are surrounded by clear blue skies mostly every day. I’ve discovered that a prescription of warm winter sun helps to lift my mood when I’m feeling a little low or missing home. I often take myself for a brisk walk along the river and just five minutes away, I feel like I am enveloped in the country surrounded by lots of different species of birds, it’s lovely and you wouldn't think the city is just 20 minutes away. I have decided that we have to buy some bicycles in the near future and follow many others along the cycle path. There are cycle tracks all around us and I often see individuals, couples and families taking leisurely cycle trips along the river.

However not all of Australia is relishing in a mildly warm winter. Over east (Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra), temperatures are mostly in the teens and it sounds pretty chilly from what relatives/friends say. The weather in Western Australia is one of the highlights of living here which sets itself apart from other states in the country.

I haven’t been up to an awful lot recently which sounds pretty boring. Work continues to be pretty full-on and stressful and in all honestly, I feel like it's taking over my life which isn’t a great because firstly, I’m actually not enjoying it very much now  and secondly, I didn’t come to Australia to be get bogged down with work, work, work the whole time! So I need to reshuffle my work/life balance and also look into improving and/or changing my work situation in the near future.

Anyway, here are some personal things I am looking forward to in the next week or so:

- Dinner with new friends Roland and Kate

- Attending my first Pilates class

- Attending my first Yoga class

- Meeting a new friend in Fremantle for a wonder around the town and its vintage shops

- Catching up with loved ones on Skype

- Continuing to enjoy the winter sun for as long as possible!

Unpacking, done. Settling in, getting there…

When you relocate to a new country and move into a new home, right up there on the to-do list is unpacking your belongings into your new home. For me, things happened in a slightly different order. I never thought I would start a new job here before unpacking my belongings, that’s for sure. Three months after moving to Oz and I have just about finished most of my unpacking, my new job has been keeping my very busy. It took a good month after arriving in Perth for our shipping boxes to arrive from the UK and when they did I was so happy. To be reunited with all of my clothes, shoes, bags, my huge box of make-up and lotions and potions, books and even just little things like photo frames and scrap books after three months apart was a joyous occasion. Unwrapping items individually from their bubble wrap or tissue paper felt like Christmas had come early especially when I’d also forgotten that I’d bought things back in London that I knew I wouldn’t find out here. Micky was equally excited to receive his new Jamie Oliver kitchen knives. With the exception of a broken bottle of nail varnish, everything was delivered early and undamaged. We were very happy with the service provided by Freedom Shipping. It’s good to say that all 19 boxes (except two) have been emptied.

As for our home, we’re living in a suburb called Ascot in the Ascot Waters area just a stone’s throw from the Ascot Race Course. Our apartment (or “unit” as the Aussies choose to call them here), sits beside a little Marina and faces the Swan River. It’s one of the newer suburbs to the east of central Perth with gorgeous newly built houses surrounding us. It’s a peaceful area with lots of species of birds circling the estate. We’re in a two bedroomed open-plan apartment with two bathrooms - I could get really used to having his and hers separate bathrooms! Very different to our last two small flats in London.

The flat is still a work in progress but we have been so fortunate to take it over from Micky’s sister who generously left most of her furniture for us before relocating to Canberra in April. The timing was perfect for all of us. We’ve only made a couple of trips to Ikea for some essential furniture; new chest of drawers, book case... I am settling into my new home and we are exploring our new neighbourhood. It’s taken a couple of months for me to feel settled but I am getting there… Putting our stamp on the place and finding “homes” for my belongings at home has helped. Now I need to get back to the bigger task and adventure of settling into Aussie life. 

Ascot Waters marina

First family wedding in Perth

Went to my first West Aussie wedding last weekend. A cousin of Mickys got married in a big church ceremony in Fremantle in front of a hundred or so guests. The ceremony was probably the most religious I’ve witnessed but very lovely from the bride and groom saying their vows from memory, to the readings (including one from on Micky’s mum), to the funny Irish priests’ humour throughout the ceremony and the cute little flower girls in tutus who walked down the aisle by the grooms' six year old son. I had a tear in my eye during the vows which is funny as I hardly know the couple - I have only met the groom a few times. The bride Anna wore a gorgeous vintage-looking tiered lace dress, a style I haven't seen before and she looked elegant and relaxed. The bridesmaids wore a light pink satin strapless floor length dresses.

The weather was quite typical for the time of year, around 20 degrees but a little cloudy and some rain later in the afternoon, it is officially winter in Australia now. After the service, strawberry cream and sponge cake was served outside the church on the lawn which was a lovely and different idea to serve cake at this time I thought.

The wedding reception was held at the Cottesloe Beach Hotel facing the Indian Ocean right on the seafront, a prime location for a wedding. After drinks on arrival in the cocktail lounge, dinner was served in the next door dining room with three long rows of tables seating and feeding around 120 guests with a seafood starter, salmon or pork main and a sticky toffee pudding dessert - all very good. There were lots of speeches, five or six if I remember correctly presented in between courses. I have attended two Australian weddings now and at both the brides have made speeches. Apparently it's common for Aussie brides to do a speech. The brides’ speech was incredibly heartfelt and not scripted even if it was long. The Aussies know how to party just like us and there was lots of dancing and drinking with some break-dancing later on from younger cousins which commanded the attention from everyone, even grandparents were throwing shapes! I seem to notice a pattern in the number of Micky’s relatives asking “you two must be next...?” which is met with an awkward ummm silence or I did actually enquire to one cousin that there are 100 cousins in the family, surely there must be another cousin in the family due to get married next? Moving on swiftly, the day was a lot of fun and the bride and groom looked chuffed to bits.

Weekend in Mandurah

We spent last weekend in a new city called Mandurah with our friends Youngey and Ali and their one year old daughter Lacey. Our friends enjoy getting away every so often and taking weekend trips down here so I was eager to check it out. We shared a huge spacious two bedroomed apartment at The Sebel situated on the Mandurah Estuary with spectacular waterfront views over the marina.  I was stunned at the views from our own very wide balcony. Although the weather has cooled down lately, it was perfect for this weekend at 25 degrees.

On Saturday morning we took a semi-circular stroll along the boardwalk around the marina passing all species of birds including pelicans and shags. Unfortunately, we didn’t spot dolphins although it is a frequent dolphin spotting (and whale watching) area. We took Lacey to the park and stopped for coffee and just enjoyed strolling around in the sun.  We conveniently ended up at some market shops and I found a couple of small things to for our new home (another French style clock and some flowers!) Our friends are getting married here in October so Ali was excited to show me the exact spot where they had chosen to tie the knot in a very low-key ceremony which we are very happy to be part of.

The highlight of the day was hiring some bicycles from just outside of our hotel and going on a sunny cycling tour around the estuary with Micky. The area certainly has a relaxed holiday atmosphere to it as we took in the coastal features.  It was only when Micky and I were cycling around and stopped to check out a pretty rustic-looking hut standing at the end of a small jetty in a secluded area near some big trees and grassland that it dawned on me that this could also be a contending spot for our friends to tie the knot later this year… I was so excited to find it and tell Ali and the next day I showed her the spot and she fell in love with it – this was now the spot for their wedding!! 

We also cycled beyond the marina and around parts of the town. The city has experienced a large population boom over the last 10-15 years and is one of the fastest growing regional cities in Western Australia. We cycled past lots of newly built unusually modern houses (Perth is also full of them) - everything from the roads to the houses and Venetian-like bridges looked newly built. Mandurah is also fast becoming very popular with tourist and it clear to see why. We had Cicerellos for dinner that night, "WA's best fish and chips" apparently, it was pretty good but in my opinion not as tasty as good old-fashioned English fish and chips back home. My obligatory gherkin and pickled onion were missing for starters!! Youngey brought along a new board game called Balderdash so the four of us spent spent the evening playing this extremely hilarious board game in our apartment and laughing for hours. A great weekend, it was so needed. We'll be coming back for the wedding weekend and I think I'll also bring my mum here when she visits in December...

The Hut!

My week in Margaret River

My week away in Margaret River was a mini adventure, just with lots of work! Driving down there was long and challenging; almost four hours south of Perth by car with part of the route covering roads set in bush land, lucky I had Micky on board to coach and direct me on the way down! As well as being very rusty and not the most confident person behind the wheel, I was most worried about encounters with kangaroos on the journey down as I had been warned by colleagues that it isn’t uncommon for kangaroos to hop out onto the roads in front of passing cars and the Margaret River region is full of them. We made it down in one piece though and I can now say that that was the longest journey I have ever driven (270 kilometres) and fastest too, hitting 110k per hour a lot the way.

Over the course of the week, I met with lots of SCOOP Traveller  clients - mostly wineries this week. Some of the estates I visited were beautiful set in the most stunning natural scenery, many with acres upon acres of neatly lined vineyards and gardens. I also visited a chocolate factory/shop and a giant hedge maze. My accommodation was arranged at some serviced apartments in central Margaret River called Darby Park which were nice and spacious and just a two minute walk from the main high street on Bussell Highway so Micky and I would take a tour around the charming little shops on the main street after work. The weather was still cheerful  as we approach winter (mid twenties) with a little rain at times.

Amongst the clients I met with were a couple of fellow Brits who had emigrated to Perth/WA years ago and it was really interesting to hear their stories of when they emigrated and what it was like and their Australian journeys since. The English lady from Woody Nook Wines had even invited Micky and I to go cycling with them in Perth! I managed to get at least one out of two clients renewed into the next edition of the magazine which was a good result as the market is tough right now and the industry is in its quieter season.

A funny tale of drama to tell you from my meeting with Marri Wood Park: I met with Lisa, the owner of this organic winery who was a friendly, chatty lady. We had our meeting outside on her lawn and we were discussing the magazine when a gaggle of geese wander on over approaching our table and walking under it close to my feet wedged in my open-toed shoes – ewww! It just so happened that they also farm their own organic produce too! So up I jumped from my seat! People who know me, know that me and animals, (ALL animals) don’t mix! Then two of her dogs come barking over too and then she picks two of the geese up from the ground and sits them on her lap like they’re two adorable little twin babies – OMG! I’m trying to keep a professional demeanour and remain seated continuing to talk business whilst these farm animals surround me. I know Aussies are renowned for their laid-back nature, but this is taking their behaviour to another level! Anyway, an hour later I’m still there sipping on a peppermint tea and talking about living in various places around the world so I suppose I accomplished something else this week too! I don’t think I’ve quite had a business meeting like this before. All in all, an interesting week in a lovely part of Western Australia...

Woody Nook

Voyager Estate

The Geese

Queen of Spades

New job at SCOOP Publishing.

The last few weeks have been crazy as I started a new job, hooray! I was amazed to find myself in full-time work just two weeks after arriving in Australia - no time off for the POM! It all happened pretty quickly from having an interview lined up the week after I arrived, to being offered the job, to starting the following week…

I’ve managed to stay within the magazine publishing industry so that’s good. The company is called SCOOP Publishing and they publish eight premium magazines within lifestyle, design and travel in Western Australia and are renowned for their high quality and style. SCOOP is the flagship and the main title I’ll be working on although I’ll be working on the entire lifestyle series including SCOOP Traveller and SCOOP Functions & Venues. SCOOP is a quarterly lifestyle mag with an editorial content focus on the very best in fashion, food and wine, health & beauty and events and entertainment for the coming season in WA. The advertising reflects that by profiling the best brand names and businesses in WA so my clients will fall into all of these categories. I’ve had two weeks of training and job shadowing and the last week or so has seen the real work begin. There are 50 or so members of staff within the company. It’s so refreshing that the editorial, production and advertising teams sit near each other and interact with each other – this is the first time I have experienced this and it’s so much better. For example, I can go and have a conversation with the Style Editor before a meeting with a fashion client and talk to the Entertainment Writer about an upcoming meeting I had with a Perth theatre with complete ease.

The SCOOP offices are based in the western suburb of Subiaco, right in the centre. It’s about a half hour drive or a twenty minute train journey from the nearest station which is a five minute drive away. Subiaco is a quaint little suburb with elegant buildings and beautiful houses. It has a cosmopolitan feel with lots of boutiquey shops, cafes and restaurants along its tidy tree-lined streets and it’s just a few kilometres from the city centre so the location is perfect for me as I like to feel like I have lots going on around me. It’s not quite Oxford Circus by all means, which was a five minute walk from my London offices, but it’s great in Australia standards.

My new working day starts quite a bit earlier at 8am (I was used to a late 9:30 start in London) but with the good weather (so far), rising a little after 6am isn’t as bad as it sounds. Today was a great day as I won my first new client: a beauty clinic for Scoop for the full year! So all in all, a busy but good start on the work front…

Next week I’m travelling down to the Margaret River region (about four hours south of Perth) for a week of meetings for Scoop Traveller magazine. Very nervous about driving around a huge wine region and on country roads but I’ll let you know how I go….

How you going, mate?

It’s been almost a month since I arrived in Perth and there are several cultural differences between Australia and England that have quickly jumped to my attention.

The one I want to share with you today is the Aussie way of asking “How are you?” versus ours. The Aussies and the English speak the same language but have different ways of expressing themselves with language. I've learnt in a short space of time that the majority of Australians here in Perth will ask me the exact phrase “How you going?” Just those three words. Sometimes the word ‘mate’ is added on the end for a friendly effect. The verb “going” is always mentioned which I find strange, as to me, it comes across as a question asking how I am travelling from one place to another.

Early example:

Australian person: “How you going?” (pronounced: Ow ya gown?)

Me: “Where am I goin? Urrrh well, I’m not goin anywhere right now… But later I’ll be going food shopping by car.”

To me, this isn’t really asking me how I am but instead, where am I off to, hence my initial reactions. My most used greeting is either a “How are you?” or a “How you doing?” or in most cases, my familiar south London one; “You alright?” which since I arrived in Oz has occasionally been responded to with a confused “I’m okay, I’m fine”, or “nothing’s wrong”, as some Aussies sseem to think I am asking them if they are physically okay – funny!

I’ve learnt that “How you going?” is the most common greeting down under but it might take some time to get used to…. And I’ll definitely be keeping my English greetings for as long as I can!

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Hello Sunshine!

I’ve been in Perth for over a week already and what a week it's been!

The jet-lag took a good few days to overcome but it hasn’t taken me much time at all to acclimatise to the weather (on average 35°C).

Apart from the obvious reunion with Mr W, the sunshine, hot weather, warm nights and breakfasts on our sunny balcony overlooking the calm Swan River, have put an instant smile on my face. Perth is the sunniest capital city in the world after all. In between settling into our new temporary home and assigning myself with the initial tasks on my emigration to-do list; (new Oz bank account, new Aussie phone number, Medicare and  job hunting), we’ve packed in a few trips to the beach including one to Yanchep Lagoon which is close by to where a friend lives. It’s a beautiful stretch of white sandy beach north of Perth city. And with the exception of the lifeguard, not a soul in sight…

Farewell family and friends...

My final week in the UK has been full of goodbyes, finishing work, and packing; in fact, lots of packing, unpacking and repacking!

Going back to the goodbyes…. There have been many, every day for the last couple of weeks and some haven’t been easy, but I knew that was coming. I feel very lucky to have such incredible people in my life who care a great deal and have been so supportive in my decision.

Leaving my job after almost four years felt surreal. We’d organised some leaving drinks at a local Latin bar the evening of my penultimate day which was fun. I was given a great send off on my last day with cards and presents and a farewell speech.

After finishing work, I had just two and a half days to organise myself and pack before I flew out to Oz. I was lucky to have my mum on hand to help. Y’know a 30kg luggage allowance is really not enough when you’re emigrating, even if you have already shipped two dozen boxes two months earlier! Mum had bought some weighing scales to measure my case to ensure we’d keep within the allowance. If only we’d known that at check-in at Heathrow I would be so fortunate to encounter a very friendly (and chatty) Singapore Airlines member of staff who not only gave me complimentary Priority tickets for my luggage and overlooked the 1.5 kg I went over by, but also offered me 10kg extra for free! Off mum went back to the car park to pick up my ‘emergency’ suitcase which was originally brought along for the unlikely scenario that my case was underweight so I could add my ‘reserves’ or, in case the old worn-out suitcase I used exploded, so this was a bonus.

Having said goodbye to close family and friends earlier today and having just bid a long farewell to mum at the airport terminal, I am waiting to board my 22:05 flight to Perth via Singapore. Excited, nervous, happy, sad, scared and energised sums up all of the mixed emotions I am feeling. Relieved and exhausted also as I had trekked to gate 18 for 20 minutes laden with my three heavy pieces of hand luggage having looked up the wrong flight with the same departure time, only to retrace my heavy steps to the correct gate number 3 with tears rolling down my cheeks thinking that there could be a possibility that I would miss my own flight having looked at the flight information screen to see red texting flashing Flight Closing and also thinking of the life I am leaving behind...

I am very much looking forward to being reunited with Mr W in Australia and starting our new Aussie lives together. And now I am literally off! I'll be in touch from the other side of the globe when I eventually get there - it's a loooong flight!

Surprise!

After a busy week finalising work duties, getting through my ‘Emigration to-do list’ and seeing various friends and family members, I was looking forward to some chill-out quality time with my sister before I leave.  She’d told me that she wanted to take me out for a meal to a recently opened French restaurant in her neck of the woods, coincidentally called Sister (I should have cottoned on then) and stay over at her place for the night.

Little did I know that on arrival at her place, my close friends and sisters’ friends were huddled together in her living room like excited little koala bears waiting to explode on me with a firework of surprises!!! Aussie flags, Aussie signs, balloons, a blow-up kangaroo and Aussie snacks decorated her living room!

 Wow, what a surprise!  An Aussie inspired leaving party just for me – I felt so touched.

Thank you to all of the girls and especially my sister, who made the night a fun and memorable one. I will miss you all…. x