Paulkyville

Well, that was a long nap, what did I miss?  Are you still there patient reader? It's been a long time between drinks! I'm still here in wonderful Perth,  still working at the University of Western Australia (job number five! ) and still in the house we bought in 2011, though we've done a fair bit of work on it over the years. When I started this blog it was to document my journey to get here, but now I may occasionally post on my hobby, writing. I'm making plans to transition towards retirement (which is still a fair way off) and when I do, my intent is to just write full time. It may be nothing gets published,  but it's the fun of it that drives me. I may publish stuff here too, for your amusement.  Comment away, if you're still here!

Well, here I am almost, 13 months since I arrived in Australia, and I thought it might be time to give you and update! Firstly, I had an amazing time in the USA (which seems so long ago now!).  I visited my family in NJ and had a great time in NYC, before heading down to more family in Miami and then over to LA.  Then we took a brilliant two week coach trip through California, Utah, Nevada and Arizona where we saw the Grand Canyon (utterly spectacular), Yosemite (beautiful), Monument Valley (epic) and many, many other places.  The only place I didn't take to was Las Vegas, but mainly because we'd spent a week in the wilderness and then hit this incredible, sleazy, colourful city in the middle of the desert.  Plus it was unusually humid. And so after this wonderful trip full of happy memories, we arrived in Perth on 4th September 2010.  I had some work already lined up at the Perth Royal Show and was grateful for t...

Well, everything is now in place; contracts exchanged and a move date agreed (30th July) and flights booked. The Exit Strategy being previously planned (see earlier post!), we fly to New Jersey, then to Miami, then to Los Angeles before finally going on to Perth. When I started this blog I had envisioned a long, tortuous process beset by delays and disappointments; what I got was a relatively smooth ride and little in the way of hassle. Now admittedly I'm not out of the country yet, and I may be tempting fate here, but all seems to be going well. I think now is a good time to let sleeping blogs lie and I suspect this will be my final post for a long while. So to the patient reader (I think putting readers is tempting fate) out there, thank you for reading my drivel over the last year. Have a good life and enjoy. If anyone ever tells you something can't be done, laugh in their face and do it. TTFN...

Well, I have been most lax in keeping you informed of progress! Since my last post, not much has happened on the house front; still waiting for contracts to be exchanged, but that should be this week sometime, hopefully! Did manage to make my visa validation trip, so am now an official Australian Permanent Resident. The Icelandic volcano did scupper my plans to fly in April, however, so I had to put my trip back to May, but that went well and I got everything done that I needed to, including opening bank accounts and registering with recruitment agents. We are now entering the final phase, and once the contracts on the house are exchanged I have a feeling things will hurtle past very fast!

Much to our utter amazement, we accepted an offer on our house on Thursday! It took a couple of days for it to set in, and we do keep expecting the other shoe to drop at any moment, but so far things look good. If this plays out as we hope, it means we could be leaving the UK in June, much quicker than anticipated! So now the hard work begins, of sorting everything out; what to ship, what to sell and what to chuck. All this and I'm off to Oz in 11 days time. What a whirlwind this month has been so far!

Two posts in one month! Things must be hotting up! Our house (finally) went on the market yesterday. Though we do not yet have any photos or a sale board outside, someone has already requested a viewing tomorrow, so hopefully this will be the start of the flood! I have also successfully set up the bank accounts in Oz and just have to verify my ID when I get there. So things are moving along in the right direction!

Well, gentle and very patient reader, I notice I have not made a post in two months, which is very lax of me! To be honest, not much has happened; the house still waits to go on the market, mainly due to the lethargy the dreadful winter brought on us. Though we are now in the process of getting our worthless Home Information Pack (HIP) done, so that we can then put the house on the market. Even our solicitor thinks the HIP is a waste of time, but the Government, in its infinite wisdom, has spent much money on training people to do the job and are very unlikely to change it now, so we have to go through the rigmarole in order to sell the house. In less than four weeks I will be in Perth on my validation trip, and I can't wait! This in spite of the terrible storm they had yesterday, which has caused millions of dollars of damage. You can read more about it here . According to my mother-in-law, this is the worst storm she's ever seen, and she's nearly 84! I shall be packing a...

I am attending the Down Under Live exhibition on Saturday 30th January; it's an expo with seminars on migration and will have recruitment, studying and various other services on hand for those wishing to get out of the UK. I'm hoping I'll pick up some useful job contacts. If anyone else is going I'll see you there!

It's been awhile, faithful and patient reader, but I'm back on the blog! I hope you had a great Christmas and I wish you a very Happy New Year! This is the year it all happens; I have my visa trip in April and the house will be going on the market in the next month or so. From then on it's a waiting game for a buyer and then we're off! And whilst I have you attention for a moment, can you spare any money for the poor people of Haiti? I'm sure you've seen the devastation caused by the recent earthquake, and the millions of people this has affected. The Disasters Emergency Committee has set up an appeal, and you can donate by clicking HERE . Thanks.

With Christmas rapidly approaching I am coming up to the first of my UK lasts; the last UK Christmas! The last cold, wet, grim, sitting-in-front-of-the-telly-'cause-there's-nothing-else-to-do Christmas! Christmas 2010 will involve being on a beach at some point in the day! Mrs Paulky tells me she has never been on the beach at Christmas, so I think it's time to start a new tradition! I'm sure it will still involve copious amounts of food, only cooked on the ubiquitous BBQ! Just a little over four months until I make my visa validation visit and the house should go on the market next month, so things are starting to move in the right direction: i.e. southwards!

Much to my surprise I find that this month I am featured in the current issue of Australia and New Zealand Magazine . I did a bit of a blog post on their website a while back on how lucky I was to get my visa (I find out recently that the criteria for all migrant visas changed in September and mine would probably have slipped down the pile somewhat; some visas are not being looked at until 2012, and the world may have ended by then!). There was also some feedback from another poster there and my replies to her, all of which have ended up in the Mag! So anyone coming here after seeing that, welcome! There really isn't much to see here, but leave a comment and I'll try and help if I can. I'm not a migration agent, just someone who went through the Spousal visa process and came out the other side, victorious! No other news to report at the moment, just gearing up for my last UK Christmas!

Just a quick update on the previous post; I've now found that you can take a one day excursion from Port Lincoln in SA that costs about A$500. However, you still have to get to Adelaide, transfer to Port Lincoln and pay for accommodation, wetsuit etc. So I may still save up for my 50 th birthday and go on the four day cruise!

Following on a bit from my previous post, I did a bit of research into being able to get in a cage amongst the Great Whites. There are trips that can be made in South Australia with a company founded by Rodney Fox , himself a victim of a Great White attack (you can google him and find pictures; it's not for the squeamish). They take you on a boat out of Port Lincoln to a seal colony, where you can go in a cage on the side of the boat, or if you have scuba experience, in a cage that is lowered onto the ocean floor, where you apparently get even better views. I was quite pleased to hear of this , as I thought such trips were only available in South Africa, so I quickly scanned their website for pricing information and got a bit of a shock; it costs A$2,995 a trip, which is 4 nights aboard the boat. I've decided I'll start saving once I get to Oz and go on my 50 th birthday, by which time it will probably cost double! 2024 edit: I did, in fact do the four day trip for my 50...

I have a fascination and admiration for the Great White Shark, even before the film Jaws came out in 1975. There is something extraordinarily primeval about it; this perfect killing machine, built for speed and strength, that glides through the water with an apparent effortlessness, seeking out its next meal. It has always been an ambition of mine to dive with them (within the safety of a shark cage, I must add!!). Until I read this ; a Great White, 10 feet long, was the apparent victim of another Great White, twice its length . That is a big fish! Though in Australian waters, it's on the other side from Perth, off the coast of Queensland , near Brisbane. The largest ever specimen reliably recorded is 21 feet, but there are tales of even larger sharks out there. Much as I'd love to see one, I don't think I'd want to get that close to such a big, and potentially hungry, fish!

I've noticed a lot recently that when people talk to me about my move to Australia, they seem to follow it up with a moan about some aspect of their own life, be it job, house or relationship. It occurred to me yesterday that complaining about it solves nothing but to make you miserable. So today my advice to those people is to stop moaning and start doing! If you don't like something, change it! Don't like your job - get another one! Not easy in a recession, but they are out there. Register with a recruitment agency and bug them until you get an interview. Don't like your house - sell it! The property market is starting to recover so it's still a good time to buy and sell. Don't like your relationship - get a new one! I never understand people who have affairs or complain about their partner. How anyone can exist in a relationship where there is constant arguments and bickering is beyond me. So come on people; take control of your life and do what you wa...

A year ago I was in Perth, having the time of my life. Little did I know that one year later, I would have permanent residency and be starting the process to go and live there! Had you said to me that I would be at this stage a year ago I would most certainly laughed in your face. I wonder where I'll be one year from now... Hopefully already there and enjoying life! And to add a little colour and interest to your Friday, here's a little video clip from Down Under of Great White Sharks eating a humpback whale calf (I believe the whale had already been injured prior to the sharks eating it.). This took place just off Floreat beach, which is one beach along from my favourite City Beach. My mother -in-law also saw the sharks first hand, though not up close and personal! I have walked this beach myself and feel somewhat aggrieved to have missed it!

Well, let's be honest; this is all fauna, but adding the flora bit makes for a nicer title! Living in the UK, about the only animal you really have to worry about is being bitten by a dog or trampled by a cow or a horse. The only indigenous, venomous creature we have is the adder, which is very rare now. But once I move to Australia, I have to contend with some of the most venomous creatures known to man. Like this fella: This is a Tiger snake; according to Wikipedia , the fifth most venomous snake in the world. Apparently Mrs Paulky's cats once caught and killed one of these in her Mum's back yard. Which is where I have stayed and will be staying. I never saw any snakes whilst I was there, but... Next up is another snake, the Dugite , another deadly poisonous critter I hope never to become acquainted with! I'm starting to think I may never leave the house! But if I don't then there's always the chance I could run into one of these beasties: This is a red back ...

I have returned from my holiday in the Lake District, and very nice it was too; some fantastic scenery and lovely weather for the most part! The Calling did indeed kick in, as the apartment we were staying in was lovely, but as expected, by the end of the week I was ready to go home again; I am nothing if not predictable. It looks like house prices are starting to rise again, so am cautiously optimistic that when we come to sell the house we might actually get more than we paid for it. Now I just need to pray that the Aussie Dollar to Sterling exchange rate gets out of the gutter in time for us to actually make the most of what little money we'll get!

I'm sure you've been on holiday somewhere and said to yourself at some point "I could live here". For me, I usually do it every time, about three days in. However, by day seven, I usually say "I'm ready to go home now". It was exactly on the three day mark, as I stood on the beach pictured at the top of the page and took that sunset shot, that I had what I call The Calling; that moment when you feel completely at home somewhere and say those words "I could live here". However, unlike on all my previous journeys, this time I knew it would stick. Virtually the last thing I did before I got on the plane to head back to the UK was to walk again on that beach. I was thinking of everything I could do to avoid getting on the plane, including feigning illness! I realised that that would be silly, of course! But when I finally took off that evening, and looked back on the beautiful City of Lights before I sped across the immense black of the India...

Gentle and patient reader, apologies for not posting much recently, but work has been full-on and I just haven't had a moment to bring up you to speed on what's been going on. I have booked my flight to Perth for April next year. It was one of my visa requirements that I travel to Australia before July 7th 2010, so doing this gets it out of the way so I don't have to leave it all to the last minute (and I don't really want to go in the middle of the Southern Winter. I got a reasonably good deal on the price and am flying with Qantas, going via Singapore. Oddly, I believe I will be travelling on the very jet featured in the Exit Strategy post from a while back, the new Airbus A380, the largest passenger plane ever built. It actually looks too big to fly! Hopefully it isn't. In other news, Mrs Paulky and I have decided to put the house on the market after Christmas in the hope that the property market has picked up enough to get the price we want. I have a meeting ne...