Pip
17th April 2007, 05:13 PM
and a bit of a mix of emotions..!
on the positive side..
Our holiday home that we rented unseen from the UK is great and we've managed to stay for an extra month as the people after us had to cancel due to ill health. Our cat arrived safely with Golden Arrow and was completely unscathed by her experience! - in fact, she actually seems better for it and has gone from nervy UK rescue cat to rough and tumble kiwi cat! Also our main container arrived in dock today, so no more branscome beach nightmares..:laugh.
Phone cards to the UK are very cheap and I can talk to my friends and family whenever I want for 3 cents a minute.. Everyone we've met is really friendly (there is a good set of forumites here!), Stu really likes his new job and the company seems to be made up of very like minded people to him. They have a drinks get together for employees and partners later this week, so that should be good.
fingers crossed, we've managed to buy a house, four bed detached with double garage on just under four acres about 25 mins out of Christchurch (which even on our london salaries was never going to happen at home).
Scenery is amazing, fish and chips are fresh and cheap, beaches are wonderful and if you finish work at 5, no one thinks that you are a slacker - just that you have a life and things to do!
We've met a few people and have pretty much had at least one invite to something every weekend since we've been here... although mainly from english people than Kiwis..
On the negative side...
fun and games with MAF fees/admin charges are about to commence..and the container with the car is somewhere around Sydney, currently delayed by about ten days - info seems a little sketchy!
Finding a job has proved a little harder than I expected, but then again I only started looking just before Easter, and it all went quiet during the holidays. I have a couple of things bubbling, but I guess this is the first time ever that I've job hunted without being in a job - so having time on my hands is a little weird. Every day not being at work, seems like an age. Its like being a student, plenty of time but trying not to spend money.. ! I've started watching Dr Phil..:uhoh
wages... no matter how much you read about it, the reality is a bit of a shock!, that said, our UK tenant pulled out at the last minute, and as I don't have a job yet, we are living off a single NZ salary and having to use savings to pay a sizeable UK mortgage. In fairness, its a pretty good NZ salary by all accounts and more than many people have, and at the moment, we are incurring a lot of one off costs from arriving and buying a house e.g car insurance, building, contents, storage for the container, admin fees, property valuation fees, building inspection fees, which hopefully won't continue. That said, when you are used to not really having to think about spending money, its a bit of a shock! and to realise how much is left over at the end of each month...:wah
so the verdict at this point..
optimistically cautious! We have a lot more time together than in the UK, we should hopefully have an amazing house and a much healthier outdoor lifestyle than four hours a day commuting on a train... . There's also a sad bit of me that is getting a kick out of budgeting. Somehow things seem to mean more when you have to save up/plan for them.. and actually some stuff has become special again. Going out to dinner is a fun/special thing again rather than something we are doing because the trains were delayed, its 9pm and neither of us had time to get to the supermarket. and we're too tired to cook.:no
Will let you know how the land lies after three months!
on the positive side..
Our holiday home that we rented unseen from the UK is great and we've managed to stay for an extra month as the people after us had to cancel due to ill health. Our cat arrived safely with Golden Arrow and was completely unscathed by her experience! - in fact, she actually seems better for it and has gone from nervy UK rescue cat to rough and tumble kiwi cat! Also our main container arrived in dock today, so no more branscome beach nightmares..:laugh.
Phone cards to the UK are very cheap and I can talk to my friends and family whenever I want for 3 cents a minute.. Everyone we've met is really friendly (there is a good set of forumites here!), Stu really likes his new job and the company seems to be made up of very like minded people to him. They have a drinks get together for employees and partners later this week, so that should be good.
fingers crossed, we've managed to buy a house, four bed detached with double garage on just under four acres about 25 mins out of Christchurch (which even on our london salaries was never going to happen at home).
Scenery is amazing, fish and chips are fresh and cheap, beaches are wonderful and if you finish work at 5, no one thinks that you are a slacker - just that you have a life and things to do!
We've met a few people and have pretty much had at least one invite to something every weekend since we've been here... although mainly from english people than Kiwis..
On the negative side...
fun and games with MAF fees/admin charges are about to commence..and the container with the car is somewhere around Sydney, currently delayed by about ten days - info seems a little sketchy!
Finding a job has proved a little harder than I expected, but then again I only started looking just before Easter, and it all went quiet during the holidays. I have a couple of things bubbling, but I guess this is the first time ever that I've job hunted without being in a job - so having time on my hands is a little weird. Every day not being at work, seems like an age. Its like being a student, plenty of time but trying not to spend money.. ! I've started watching Dr Phil..:uhoh
wages... no matter how much you read about it, the reality is a bit of a shock!, that said, our UK tenant pulled out at the last minute, and as I don't have a job yet, we are living off a single NZ salary and having to use savings to pay a sizeable UK mortgage. In fairness, its a pretty good NZ salary by all accounts and more than many people have, and at the moment, we are incurring a lot of one off costs from arriving and buying a house e.g car insurance, building, contents, storage for the container, admin fees, property valuation fees, building inspection fees, which hopefully won't continue. That said, when you are used to not really having to think about spending money, its a bit of a shock! and to realise how much is left over at the end of each month...:wah
so the verdict at this point..
optimistically cautious! We have a lot more time together than in the UK, we should hopefully have an amazing house and a much healthier outdoor lifestyle than four hours a day commuting on a train... . There's also a sad bit of me that is getting a kick out of budgeting. Somehow things seem to mean more when you have to save up/plan for them.. and actually some stuff has become special again. Going out to dinner is a fun/special thing again rather than something we are doing because the trains were delayed, its 9pm and neither of us had time to get to the supermarket. and we're too tired to cook.:no
Will let you know how the land lies after three months!