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Our reccie; The baines family
Topic Started: 26 Nov 2008, 06:05 AM (553 Views)
tam_n_brett	26 Nov 2008, 06:05 AM Post #1
A phenomenon Posts: 1,017 Group: Members Member #902 Joined: 9 September 2006 Migration Status Permanent Resident My Mood always got a smile :0) My Location Briar Hill, Melbourne	Well here goes…….. The Baines family – Brett, Tammy, Jordan (16) and Curtis (11) Thurs 23rd Oct Left Lichfield Staffs at 5am to catch midday flight from Heathrow. We used Courtland’s to park the car which we found to be a good service, it cost us Ł79 and was easy with them taking and picking you up from the Airport. We flew with Malaysian Airlines via Kuala Lumpur with a 3 hour stop. The flight was really good and I can’t fault Malaysian I thought they were helpful, friendly and couldn’t do enough for you. It doesn’t take away the fact that it’s one hell of a long way but we slept for the best part of the 2nd leg so arrived feeling OK. Fri 24th Oct Arrived Mel Airport at about 8.45pm and had no problems, went through passport control and got the all important stamp in the passport which of course means we have validated our visas. David and Lisa Lewis were there to meet us; we had met them through Britvic’s originally when David had answered a thread about Bricklayers. They don’t post on Britvic’s much and our contact with them over the past 18 months has been through email, face book and phone. Meeting them in person was great and they really were our absolute rock throughout the trip. We picked up our hire car which had been upgraded free of charge and we were given a Nissan Murano 4x4 which was a nice surprise. We followed David to our 1st night accommodation which was Hume Villa Motor Inn in Fawkner. Can’t really say I’d recommend it although it did for the 1st night and wasn’t too far away from the airport. Don’t think we would have found it without David though! Sat 25th Oct Lisa came to get us and guided us to our next accommodation, Crystal Brook Holiday Park part of Beston Parks very close to Warrandyte. We had a superior family cabin and I was well impressed with it. We loved this place it was beautiful and fab for families, nice pool, jumping pillow, internet cabin and really friendly staff. I think it’s worth mentioning that the guy that runs this place came over with his parents in the 60’s as Ł10 poms. He had real empathy with people emigrating and the sight had lots of them!!! I would recommend it as a beautiful base to stay. We got unpacked and sorted and Lisa came back to take us into Warrandyte for some lunch. Loved this whole area, very pretty and leafy. Warrandyte has a lovely main street with cafes, park, river etc. David came to get us early evening to take us to their house for a BBQ, they live in Diamond creek which again I thought was a beautiful place. We had a lovely night and our kids played happily in their pool with their boys Ronan and Ethan. We met another expat family Gary and Paula who have been living in D.Creek for 8 years. Really pleased we met them as they were lovely people too. We had a bit of a boozy night so got a taxi back to our cabin about 2am. The taxi driver got lost and I became quite scared thinking we were never gonna get back, Brett was out cold so didn’t even know we were lost! It all came good in the end. Sun 26th Oct Woke up at 1.15pm couldn’t believe the time but put it down to jetlag. Lisa and Dave came to meet us again and we followed them to Smith Street to all the factory outlets. Jordan was so pleased that he will still be able to get his designer labels as this is very important you know!!! We went on to have a drive back seeing the City skyline and thinking wow! Amazing! We went through a few suburbs and went to Doreen and had a look in a couple of show homes. I’ve got to say at this point that I am not a lover of new builds and never really have been. I can see the appeal and it’s such a good deal of no stamp duty and being able to claim $26000 it’s not to be sniffed at. So I can say that we wouldn’t ever rule out having a new built house but would hope to be in an established area. Doreen is nice and not to huge which again was very appealing but it’s not on the train line, I don’t know if there are plans for it to be in the future. We went back to Diamond Creek and went to the local pub for tea, lovely wooden building and buzzing inside. A band was playing and there was a real good atmosphere in there and nice food too. Mon 27th Oct Had a relaxed morning and then ventured out alone to East Doncaster shopping centre which was huge. It had everything you’d need and was quite impressive but I got the hump thinking I could do this at home and didn’t come all the way across the world to be inside a shopping centre. We did manage to get sim cards from the Voda phone shop and paid $40 for $150 of credit so that was a great deal. We drove to Lisa’s later and went to Di Botteli Winery which was a lovely place and lovely drive to the Yarra Valleys. Had a taste of a few and bought a couple of bottles. Tues 28th Oct Got up early and drove to Eltham where we parked our car free of charge to catch the train into the City. Cheap day return tickets about $25 for all of us so good value I thought. It’s good to get on a train and go into the city as you go through loads of suburbs so can have a look at quite a lot of places. I had heard about the graffiti so wasn’t shocked when I started to see that the closer you got to the City the less unpainted bricks you saw. Curtis is into street dance and hip hop so he thought it was great and was taking loads of photos and I must say I do see some of it as really good art work. Melbourne was just vibrant and quite spectacular and the buildings and trams etc was a wonderful sight. We walked from Federation Square to the M.C.G. and did a tour there. Jordan is massively into any sport but loves cricket so he was in his element. Surprisingly I too enjoyed the tour I’m not into cricket at all and think it’s like watching paint dry, but it was interesting and the old guy who took us round was a star. We got a tram from there and went back into the city and walked around a few souvenir shops and then to Hungry Jacks for tea before getting the train back. Had a drive around Eltham when we got back there and thought that was a lovely, charming, character filled place too. Wed 29th Oct Went to St Kilda and had a lovely breakfast on the main street and a walk along all the shops. We went into Tandy and ended up coming out with a Tom Tom sat nav which we decided would be a good investment and stop us from getting lost on our days out to come. We went a walk along the sea front which was lovely although not the cleanest beach….. lots of broken glass etc. I have heard though that St. Kilda is a very different place by night and not very family orientated. We left early afternoon and went back guided by our new sat nav to let the kids have a swim in the pool at our holiday site. Later we went to Paula and Gary’s house who we had met on our 2nd night for pizza in Gary’s newly built pizza oven. They live in a lovely weather board house in D.Creek. Jordan got to chat with their daughter Robyn who is a little younger than him but could give him an insight into teenage life in Aus. Had a lovely evening and left very well fed. Thurs 30th Oct Today we left our little cabin and set the sat nav to go to the Peninsula. We drove to Dromana where we had booked another cabin Dromana Holiday and Lifestyle Village. Arrived and got booked in but was a bit disappointed with the place and didn’t find Gloria in reception to be very friendly at all unfortunately. Our cabin was Ok but we had no furniture to sit out on the deck and it was also permanently in the shade so felt cold and dark inside. We had booked it through the net and the picture they show on their site is of a family sitting out having a BBQ. I went to see Gloria and asked if it would be possible to get a couple of plastic chairs but she wasn’t very helpful and just said to use the dining chairs…… cheers Gloria!!! Felt quite deflated really and was wishing myself back at our first cabin. We went a drive into Dromana and had a walk down the beach which was lovely. Fri 31st Oct Just had a day driving around the area to see what was around us and ended up having the most gorgeous fish and chips in Rye. Driving down the coast road the scenery is breathtaking and has a real holiday feel about it. It really didn’t take me as being somewhere I would want to live though. I think it would be too quiet for us and seemed 50/50 holiday homes and residential. I think this area and further down, Rosebud, Rye and all the way to Sorrento very beautiful to have a weekend retreat if you could afford one. Sat 1st Nov The kids wanted to have a lazy morning and go to the indoor pool on the site so I took a magazine and thought I’d sit out by the pool. I couldn’t sit on the outdoor furniture because it was filthy! I’m really not liking this place at all! We went to Mount Martha in the afternoon and had a look around there which I must say is very pretty and very liveable if being by the coast is important to you. Sun 2nd Nov We had arranged a mini meet with a few people off Britvic’s in Mornington park so had a really lovely afternoon with Kim and Steve (koala Kim), Pauline and Gill (Alex grace) and Deb and Steve (Debbie with the Nemo fish bowl) Sat chatting in the very warm sunshine and then went on to the beach. It is lovely to actually meet the people who have been answering your questions and giving good advise over the past 2 years, so was really pleased we were able to catch up with a few of you……. thanks!!! We had met Deb and Steve before they emigrated at a pub down the road from us so it was lovely to see someone that we had met in the UK. They also come from our neck of the woods and we have been in touch through email too. Mon 3rd Nov We drove to Frankston where we met Lisa, Dave and kids it was a bit of an awful day- weather wise, drizzle and quite grey, so not sure I saw Frankston at its best. We had a walk round a few shops and then went and had some lunch. Lovely of David and Lisa to come down and visit us who I must add had been texting backwards and forwards checking we were ok. On the way back we called into Pauline and Gills house (Alex grace) at Mt. Eliza. They have the most beautiful place high on a hill with fantastic views. Can’t believe how quickly they’ve got sorted and bought a house. Pauline commented that they’ve been haemorrhaging money since arrival! They have 2 lovely kids and Curtis enjoyed getting back on a play station with Alex. Tues 4th Nov We went to Pakenham to Deb and Steve’s house with the aid of our tom tom. Took around an hour and again was a nice drive through lots of country and very horsey areas. Deb took us on a drive around Packenham and Berwick and we went to all the new housing estates like Lakeside and many others. I couldn’t get over how huge these estates are. I really don’t mean to offend anyone but I didn’t feel any character or soul and maybe that’s because as I said before I’m not a lover of new builds. I think maybe because there was lots of building going on and quite a few areas look unfinished and I think it needs more greenery and trees. You can definitely get a lot of house for your money and as I’ve said before it just comes down to personal preference and whether you get a feel for the place. After looking around the housing estates we drove up to Mount Dandenong which was stunning!! We fed the birds and couldn’t believe we had parrots feeding from our hands. We carried on to Sky High which again is well worth a visit and gives great views over the whole of Melbourne. We ended the day at Debs house where Steve did us a BBQ and we tried Kangaroo… very strange really don’t think I could get passed what it was. We had a really lovely day thanks to Deb, Steve and their little boy Harvey. Wed 5th Nov We went back to our first little cabin park near Warrandyte to finish off our stay. I’m really glad we decided to go back there as this wasn’t the plan at the beginning. We had a nice day relaxing by the pool and went into Warrandyte to eat. Coming back there I knew this was the area I’d fell in love with. Thurs 6th Nov We went to Vic market and had a great time walking round all the stalls, the place is huge. There’s loads of the usual souvenir stuff and very cheap too! The fruit and veg stalls are all there in abundance and all looked really fresh and colourful. We didn’t go round it all but got we needed. We ended our stay at David and Lisa’s house in Diamond Creek where Lisa had cooked our tea. We will be eternally grateful to them for making us feel so welcome and helping us so many times. We have no family in Aus so making special friends is a huge bonus. Massive thanks to Lisa, David, Ronan and Ethan Lewis. Fri 7th Nov What an awful day!! Not just because we were leaving but the weather it was truly vile. I think I now understand the 4 seasons in 1 day term. We drove to the airport and dropped off the car and flew back at 12 noon. We were sad to be going back but glad we had done the reccie as we don’t think it will be half as daunting now when we come for good. The success for me was my eldest lad who I have really worried about because he’s old enough to say he’s not coming, he really loved it and definitely wants to give it a go. I know this is really long and written more like a diary probably than a reccie report but i wanted to share our findings and hope it may help someone, someday. I will also add some pics at some point too. Tammy, Brett, Jordan and Curtis



Bordy	26 Nov 2008, 06:57 AM Post #2
Administrator Posts: 4,604 Group: Admin Member #3 Joined: 8 September 2004 Migration Status Citizen My Location Ferntree Gully	Great post Tammy & so good to hear Britvics played a big part in your reccie, thats exactly why the site was set up in the first place. Good luck with selling the house & moving on to your new life in Aus. :mate:



koalakim	26 Nov 2008, 07:48 AM Post #3
Legend Posts: 4,245 Group: Members Member #889 Joined: 1 September 2006 Migration Status Permanent Resident My Location Mornington	Hi Tammy Great to read about your adventure! Lovely to see that your eldest has changed his mind now and willing to give it a go. At least now having done the recci you all know what you'll going to be coming to, you can now keep that vision in your minds whilst trying to sell the house! It will keep you going through the fun of trying to sell! Take care and hope to see you again out here very soon! Kim x



dave1972	26 Nov 2008, 04:18 PM Post #4
Member Posts: 75 Group: Members Member #1,088 Joined: 10 January 2007	that dave sounds like a great bloke!!! :mate:



tam_n_brett	26 Nov 2008, 05:47 PM Post #5
A phenomenon Posts: 1,017 Group: Members Member #902 Joined: 9 September 2006 Migration Status Permanent Resident My Mood always got a smile :0) My Location Briar Hill, Melbourne	He's alright........ needs a bit of practice on the old BBQ though :whistle:



Petals	27 Nov 2008, 06:33 AM Post #6
A phenomenon Posts: 1,254 Group: Members Member #2,324 Joined: 22 June 2008 Migration Status Citizen My Location Somerville My Mood Contented	Lovely report and glad you found an area you feel comfortable with. I think we all know where its right you just get the feeling about it. Sorry about the miserable lot in Dromana some of these people just do not make an effort and I wonder why they buy a business like a holiday park. :crazy:



Gail.C	20 Jan 2009, 10:04 PM Post #7
A phenomenon Posts: 1,069 Group: Members Member #1,062 Joined: 30 December 2006 Migration Status Permanent Resident My Location Port Melbourne	Great reccie post. Reading between the lines did you decide on Warrandyte to live in? It's a lovely spot along with Diamond Creek and Eltham. The only downside we found is there's no trains to the city so it's not ideal for us. Good luck with the move. Gail



tam_n_brett	21 Jan 2009, 02:53 AM Post #8
A phenomenon Posts: 1,017 Group: Members Member #902 Joined: 9 September 2006 Migration Status Permanent Resident My Mood always got a smile :0) My Location Briar Hill, Melbourne	Hi Gail :waving: I would live anywhere around the D.Creek area and will have a good look round when we get out. We stayed in Warrandyte and found it easy to drive to Eltham to get a train, Diamond Creek is on the train line, Doreen isn't but not too far from a station. For me all these areas are what i imagined Aus to be and have lots of carachter and carachter buildings and houses. 25 mins to City and beach and very pretty, leafy places i just loved.



julieandstewtaylor	21 Jan 2009, 09:09 AM Post #9
Member Posts: 12 Group: Members Member #2,648 Joined: 16 January 2009 My Location Gloucestershire, UK	tam_n_brett 21 Jan 2009, 02:53 AM Hi Gail :waving: I would live anywhere around the D.Creek area and will have a good look round when we get out. We stayed in Warrandyte and found it easy to drive to Eltham to get a train, Diamond Creek is on the train line, Doreen isn't but not too far from a station. For me all these areas are what i imagined Aus to be and have lots of carachter and carachter buildings and houses. 25 mins to City and beach and very pretty, leafy places i just loved. Such a great post of the rekkie, and your comments about the areas. Just joined Britvics and hoping to go to Vic sometime.. Julie x


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