# My Experience so far in Adelaide



## rdee26 (Feb 16, 2016)

Since there are not many experiences based on Adelaide, I thought of laying down my experience in Adelaide for the past 6 months, so that anyone moving or hoping to move to Adelaide may have an understanding on what they are tumbling in to!!! Sorry for the long post guys!!!

Well, It all began in September 2015, I started my PR process and granted my VISA in April 2016.. It was a breeze. It was my luck I think.. I applied for State Sponsorship on one fine day night and within few hours, the occupation category was moved to SPECIAL CONDITIONS. I think I was the last one apply for that Occupation code for that financial year!! Phew, got the invitation within couple of weeks.. VISA stage, every step of the process went smoothly. Got the grant after few weeks!!

Then began the difficult phase of resigning from the long established job and leaving family and other all other dilemmas of leaving the comfortable life in my home country.

I have a daughter of 2.5yrs and so, my wife & I decided that, I alone will make the first move in August 2016, find a job, rent a house and get settled then bringing the family down in January (before the IED). So I had 5+ months to decently settle down in this unknown territory before my family moves in. 

Booked the tickets all at once in June, as I recall, for the entire family, August for myself and January- 17’ for wife and daughter. 

I had my school mate who applied PR on the same time line as me, and decided to join with me on the same flight and even his family is moving in with mine.

Now to the interesting part; Bought the clothes, winter wear, office wear and all other basic necessities. My mom packed all the food and spices she could dream of and chucked in to a separate luggage. I had to learn cooking from my mom since I was clueless about cooking. One thing to remember, all the food was cooked and spices were packed and sealed properly and all of them were stuffed in the same luggage. Bought all the medicine I required. Please remember to declare all the food items and medicine and there will NOT BE any issue. I just had to open only a single luggage and that was it. Easy!! If you don’t declare then the dog sniffing starts.

I landed in Adelaide in August 2016 and It was a Sunday and in winter. It was COLD. We were picked up by one of our school mates here and he has already arranged shared rental room for us. The landlord was from our own country, but oh boy, we had a terrible time with the landlord at the end. House was shared by two Indian Guys and all of them were employed and so, basically we had the entire house at our disposal. Since our friend offered to spend his valuable time with us for the whole day with his vehicle of course, we bought all the basic items we required such as pillows, quilts, pots and pans, basic grocery items, etc.. The feeling that I am in Australia has not fully sunk in. 

*Next Day
*
Next day, we slept till noon and jet lag was dusted. There was a shopping mall near to our house which had banks, Vodafone stall, Services SA and COLES and Woolworths. Got a phone connection from Vodafone. Opened a bank account at COMMONWEALTH BANK and applied for a PROOF OF AGE card at the SERVICES SA. Mind you, take your passport, visa grant notice with you to open the bank account and to get the phone connection. We got the phone connection first as you can link your phone number during your bank account activation (you can do it later too). If you were using an international Credit Card such as HSBC, AMEX, etc, remember to take it with you when you are applying for PROOF OF AGE card. Also request for a letter from the bank stating that you have an account with them and this letter carries your address (important). Your passport, Visa grant notice, Credit Card and bank letter will give you the necessary 100 point ID check required to apply for the Proof of age card.

Another friend of ours offered his Metro Cards (this card can be used to travel in Adelaide public transportation) and so we navigate through GOOGLE MAPS, found the bus number required to go to the City, with in about 15-20 mins, We were in Adelaide city. Then we had to navigate our way around to find a Centrelink. Opened a Medicare account for myself. You cannot open Medicare accounts for your family until they are physically present in Australia. We did not open Centrelink accounts since we were told that there will not be any benefit until the family comes to Australia. So hoping to get that done once the family arrived on January. Recharge the Metro card and came back home…

*The Story continues… *

I bought a decent car in the next week, which I had to spend around AUD 3.5K for the car, $500 for the insurance and $190 for 3 months registration. On my understanding, having a vehicle is an essential here. Rules are strict and had to drive a couple of days to familiarize with the driving system. Mind you, fines are hefty here and according to one of my friends, South Australia has highest rate of fines in entire Australian continent. 

*Australian License*

As a PR, I am permitted to drive with my Sri Lankan license for 3 months in Australia and within these 3 months I was determined to get the full Australian license. I applied for the driving exams at Services SA and had to pay around $34 and got a date in the following week. Needed to practice for the test since if you incorrectly answered even one question from first 8 give-way questions, you are failed and need to re do the test (paying again). You can only continue if you answer the first 8 correctly and then you get about 40 odd questions which you need to answer. Then were the practicals…. I had to go for several lessons with an instructor since I was required to learn all the road rules, give-ways, and speed limits. I had to pay around $70 per hour. Passed the driving practical successfully and again you have to sit for a computer based exam. Passed the test and was finally able to get the full license. Mind you, there is random selection and if you are selected, you will again have to do a practical test with a government instructor. If you fail on that, YOU HAVE TO AGAIN GO FOR LESSONS AND PASS THE PRACTICAL TEST WITH A PRIVATE INSTRUCTOR. It is a wonderful system….

*Job Hunting*

From the 3rd day onwards in Australia, SEEK.COM was the most visited web site from my laptop. Since I was from a manufacturing/QA background, there were no much vacancies as for IT jobs. IT jobs were in abundant. I changed my CV and Cover letter appropriately for each job ad. Our house mates thought that I am a computer engineer as I was spending so much time on the computer. My friend got an offer as a Sales Manager at a firm belongs to a Sri Lankan on the first week itself. But I was not that lucky and there were no phone calls or mails for the first 2 weeks. On the 3rd week, I got a call for a phone interview. It went well and after that nothing happened. Then got another 2 phone interviews but there was no progress. 

However, I found some part time work which I never thought I would do in my home country. But here, no one care on what you do for a living and they mind their own business. Important thing is you have to keep your EGO back home. You may be a Manager back home, but here it really does not matter. I was earning about $1.1K per fortnight and it was enough for me to pay my rentals, phone bills, groceries, etc and the best thing was I did not had to spend much money I brought from SL. 

While doing my part time work, I kept applying for jobs and on the second month, I was continuously getting calls for interviews. Then I thought my luck is about to get changed. But all interviews were not fruitful since employers went on to select the person with AUSTRALIAN experience. For a field like manufacturing which deals with people, local experience was the biggest hurdle for me. I was depressed, lonely and frightened that I might never get an opportunity. But I was kept applying. 

In October, I got a mail for an interview at South Australian government for a Managerial role. I had to make a presentation on the details that they have provided. I prepared a presentation and delivered in front their management. It was tough. But after 2 days, I got the job offer. Yeah!!!! Funniest thing was, the company that I had the first ever phone interview in Australia, also has offered a contract. Hi Hi…. It was a no brainer to select the government offer and the pay was not bad for a start. 

*Hunting for a rental property next!!*


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## rdee26 (Feb 16, 2016)

*Hunting for a rental property*

As I mentioned in the beginning of my story, my family is moving down in January and so I had to set up everything for them so that they could settle easily. First item on the agenda after securing the job, was the house hunting. Looked on websites lines such as realesate.com, etc… Mainly I was looking in Eastern Suburbs such as Magill, Norwood, Kensington, mainly due to friendly and top neighbourhoods and top public schools. Only downside is High Rental. After careful hunting for almost 1 month, I was managed to find reasonably new unit with 2 bedrooms. You need reference for everything, previous landlords, employer contacts, friends, etc, and agents had called all of them to verify my details. Within 2 days, my application was successful and I was asked to pay 6 weeks rent as the bond and 2 weeks rent in advance. Paid the agent on the next day and got the keys to the unit. 

All I got was an empty house and next was to purchase required house hold items. Since I did not want to buy all white goods brand new, my first choice was GUM TREE. There were few of things I bought brand new, such as washing machine, microwave, mattresses, toaster, rice cooker, cutlery due to hygienic reasons. All the other items including, fridge, sofa, dining table, bed frame were bought through GUM TREE. Gum tree is quite famous here. When I am moving in to my own place (don’t know when) I will buy all the items brand new, for now, this is more than sufficient. 

By the way, I bought a TV brand new, during the BOXING DAY SALE and hoping to use for quite a number of years!!

Waiting for the family to arrive in this weekend!!


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## anuapply (Aug 21, 2016)

Thanks for sharing your experience...


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## rhassan (May 24, 2016)

Great post bro, very inspiring.


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## mumbaica3456 (Jan 8, 2017)

Thanks for sharing. Your post was very helpful.


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## sultan_azam (Sep 9, 2015)

thanks for sharing your journey...


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## Upendraa (May 19, 2016)

rdee26 said:


> Since there are not many experiences based on Adelaide, I thought of laying down my experience in Adelaide for the past 6 months, so that anyone moving or hoping to move to Adelaide may have an understanding on what they are tumbling in to!!! Sorry for the long post guys!!!
> 
> Well, It all began in September 2015, I started my PR process and granted my VISA in April 2016.. It was a breeze. It was my luck I think.. I applied for State Sponsorship on one fine day night and within few hours, the occupation category was moved to SPECIAL CONDITIONS. I think I was the last one apply for that Occupation code for that financial year!! Phew, got the invitation within couple of weeks.. VISA stage, every step of the process went smoothly. Got the grant after few weeks!!
> 
> ...


Nice one. Motivation for all of us.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk


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## Sammani (Oct 31, 2016)

rdee26 said:


> *Hunting for a rental property*
> 
> As I mentioned in the beginning of my story, my family is moving down in January and so I had to set up everything for them so that they could settle easily. First item on the agenda after securing the job, was the house hunting. Looked on websites lines such as realesate.com, etc… Mainly I was looking in Eastern Suburbs such as Magill, Norwood, Kensington, mainly due to friendly and top neighbourhoods and top public schools. Only downside is High Rental. After careful hunting for almost 1 month, I was managed to find reasonably new unit with 2 bedrooms. You need reference for everything, previous landlords, employer contacts, friends, etc, and agents had called all of them to verify my details. Within 2 days, my application was successful and I was asked to pay 6 weeks rent as the bond and 2 weeks rent in advance. Paid the agent on the next day and got the keys to the unit.
> 
> ...



wow... very inspiring... waiting to hear next post


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## commie_rick (Dec 15, 2012)

subscribing


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## gonnabeexpat (Jun 28, 2015)

Thanks for sharing your experience

Sent from my Redmi Note 3 using Tapatalk


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## Shailz (Aug 3, 2016)

Great thread. 
keep posting!


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## sk804 (Mar 16, 2014)

Thanks for sharing the details.

Sent from my GT-I9082 using Tapatalk


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## myogeesh (Oct 15, 2016)

Have u received your PR visa.


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## rdee26 (Feb 16, 2016)

One thing I must add!!!!

Getting through PR was significantly easier than finding a JOB in your field. I remember some days, I even thought of going back when I am not getting any calls or replies, but ultimately everything worked out... So far..

So be prepared financially, more importantly mentally. Be mentally strong to do any part time job, until you hit jack pot of your dream job!!

It's a one hell of ride, guys!!


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## NZ Lover (Aug 25, 2014)

Enjoyed reading your journey. Would like to know more details like work-life balance, friendliness of the people/neighbours, income/expense ratio too if you have time to write. I'm also a Sri Lankan currently living in New Zealand.


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## myogeesh (Oct 15, 2016)

If i consider my wife for visa under 189, if PR is stamped does she also need to entry with me for first time, or can she join me after i get job and settle.


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## rdee26 (Feb 16, 2016)

NZ Lover said:


> Enjoyed reading your journey. Would like to know more details like work-life balance, friendliness of the people/neighbours, income/expense ratio too if you have time to write. I'm also a Sri Lankan currently living in New Zealand.


I would say, I have more free time here in Australia. In Sri Lanka, as a QA Manager, I used to work on Saturdays. On top of that being given an official phone, I even got calls in the midnight. But here, it’s just from 8am to 4pm, 5 days a week. No calls after hours or on holidays & less stress. I don’t know is it because I am currently enrolled in a government job. But overall I tend to get more free time.

People are really friendly and so far I have not come across in racist incidents. The Suburb where I live in is one of the top in Adelaide due to top school. It depends on the suburb you live in as well>>

I am getting a decent TAKE HOME salary comparing with my colleagues and friends here in Adelaide and as a beginner in the Australian job market. With this salary, I was able to save a portion as well, after dining out most of the time, since I am so lazy to cook and wash pots/pans. Cooking part will be solved after my wife comes this weekend. 

If the sole purpose of migration is NOT SAVING, then Australia is your ideal country!!!
Hope this helps…let me know if you have more queries!!!

Cheers>>


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## rdee26 (Feb 16, 2016)

myogeesh said:


> If i consider my wife for visa under 189, if PR is stamped does she also need to entry with me for first time, or can she join me after i get job and settle.


There is no requirement as such whom should enter first. Either of you could enter at anytime for your initial entry, before the IED stipulated in the GRANT NOTICE. (IF THERE IS NO SPECIAL CONDITIONS AS SUCH IN YOUR VISA GRANT)


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## rashmiaro (Jan 9, 2017)

Thanks for sharing


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## sounddonor (May 1, 2013)

All the best bro!!!!


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## rdee26 (Feb 16, 2016)

Thanks guys!!!


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## myogeesh (Oct 15, 2016)

thank you very much for your reply.


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## myogeesh (Oct 15, 2016)

My wife is BE electronics and communication and having around 6 years of experience in software testing. can I avail partner points(5).


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## sandrolinav (Jan 20, 2017)

Looking forward to read more about your experience of Adelaide! 
Thanks for sharing...


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## myogeesh (Oct 15, 2016)

Can some one please reply to my previous post and help me to understand where I stand in PR points.


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## sk804 (Mar 16, 2014)

myogeesh said:


> My wife is BE electronics and communication and having around 6 years of experience in software testing. can I avail partner points(5).


Most probably yes. ....

Coz in my case my wife's occupation is non IT with 5 year's of experience and education is B.Arts.
So vetassess gave +ve assessment . And claimed 5 points too.

Best wishes. 


Sent from my GT-I9082 using Tapatalk


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## rdee26 (Feb 16, 2016)

myogeesh said:


> My wife is BE electronics and communication and having around 6 years of experience in software testing. can I avail partner points(5).


As far as I know, If you are applying under 189 SOL list, your wife's occupation is also required to be in the SOL list in order to claim points!!

Cheers!!


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## rdee26 (Feb 16, 2016)

*Quick Update!!!*

Quick Update!!!

Daughter and wife made the permanent move 21/01, after a terrible wait at Changi ariport for 15 hrs!!

We have completed all the formalities for both wife and kid, such as Phone connection, Bank account, Medicare, Centerlink, TFN, etc.. Wife received the Bank Card yesterday. Still waiting for the TFN letter!!

Also, inquired about the immunization requirements from the Council by sending the local records from Sri Lanka and waiting for their feedback..


Cheers!!


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## pahwashish (May 19, 2014)

Love your story. I am sure your struggle is known to only you, but it's nice to read that in the end it paid off.
And i am sure, to start with if you were able to find a government job in Australia, there is a long way to go for you.
Good Luck!
Ashish




QUOTE=rdee26;11770993]Since there are not many experiences based on Adelaide, I thought of laying down my experience in Adelaide for the past 6 months, so that anyone moving or hoping to move to Adelaide may have an understanding on what they are tumbling in to!!! Sorry for the long post guys!!!

Well, It all began in September 2015, I started my PR process and granted my VISA in April 2016.. It was a breeze. It was my luck I think.. I applied for State Sponsorship on one fine day night and within few hours, the occupation category was moved to SPECIAL CONDITIONS. I think I was the last one apply for that Occupation code for that financial year!! Phew, got the invitation within couple of weeks.. VISA stage, every step of the process went smoothly. Got the grant after few weeks!!

Then began the difficult phase of resigning from the long established job and leaving family and other all other dilemmas of leaving the comfortable life in my home country.

I have a daughter of 2.5yrs and so, my wife & I decided that, I alone will make the first move in August 2016, find a job, rent a house and get settled then bringing the family down in January (before the IED). So I had 5+ months to decently settle down in this unknown territory before my family moves in. 

Booked the tickets all at once in June, as I recall, for the entire family, August for myself and January- 17’ for wife and daughter. 

I had my school mate who applied PR on the same time line as me, and decided to join with me on the same flight and even his family is moving in with mine.

Now to the interesting part; Bought the clothes, winter wear, office wear and all other basic necessities. My mom packed all the food and spices she could dream of and chucked in to a separate luggage. I had to learn cooking from my mom since I was clueless about cooking. One thing to remember, all the food was cooked and spices were packed and sealed properly and all of them were stuffed in the same luggage. Bought all the medicine I required. Please remember to declare all the food items and medicine and there will NOT BE any issue. I just had to open only a single luggage and that was it. Easy!! If you don’t declare then the dog sniffing starts.

I landed in Adelaide in August 2016 and It was a Sunday and in winter. It was COLD. We were picked up by one of our school mates here and he has already arranged shared rental room for us. The landlord was from our own country, but oh boy, we had a terrible time with the landlord at the end. House was shared by two Indian Guys and all of them were employed and so, basically we had the entire house at our disposal. Since our friend offered to spend his valuable time with us for the whole day with his vehicle of course, we bought all the basic items we required such as pillows, quilts, pots and pans, basic grocery items, etc.. The feeling that I am in Australia has not fully sunk in. 

*Next Day
*
Next day, we slept till noon and jet lag was dusted. There was a shopping mall near to our house which had banks, Vodafone stall, Services SA and COLES and Woolworths. Got a phone connection from Vodafone. Opened a bank account at COMMONWEALTH BANK and applied for a PROOF OF AGE card at the SERVICES SA. Mind you, take your passport, visa grant notice with you to open the bank account and to get the phone connection. We got the phone connection first as you can link your phone number during your bank account activation (you can do it later too). If you were using an international Credit Card such as HSBC, AMEX, etc, remember to take it with you when you are applying for PROOF OF AGE card. Also request for a letter from the bank stating that you have an account with them and this letter carries your address (important). Your passport, Visa grant notice, Credit Card and bank letter will give you the necessary 100 point ID check required to apply for the Proof of age card.

Another friend of ours offered his Metro Cards (this card can be used to travel in Adelaide public transportation) and so we navigate through GOOGLE MAPS, found the bus number required to go to the City, with in about 15-20 mins, We were in Adelaide city. Then we had to navigate our way around to find a Centrelink. Opened a Medicare account for myself. You cannot open Medicare accounts for your family until they are physically present in Australia. We did not open Centrelink accounts since we were told that there will not be any benefit until the family comes to Australia. So hoping to get that done once the family arrived on January. Recharge the Metro card and came back home…

*The Story continues… *

I bought a decent car in the next week, which I had to spend around AUD 3.5K for the car, $500 for the insurance and $190 for 3 months registration. On my understanding, having a vehicle is an essential here. Rules are strict and had to drive a couple of days to familiarize with the driving system. Mind you, fines are hefty here and according to one of my friends, South Australia has highest rate of fines in entire Australian continent. 

*Australian License*

As a PR, I am permitted to drive with my Sri Lankan license for 3 months in Australia and within these 3 months I was determined to get the full Australian license. I applied for the driving exams at Services SA and had to pay around $34 and got a date in the following week. Needed to practice for the test since if you incorrectly answered even one question from first 8 give-way questions, you are failed and need to re do the test (paying again). You can only continue if you answer the first 8 correctly and then you get about 40 odd questions which you need to answer. Then were the practicals…. I had to go for several lessons with an instructor since I was required to learn all the road rules, give-ways, and speed limits. I had to pay around $70 per hour. Passed the driving practical successfully and again you have to sit for a computer based exam. Passed the test and was finally able to get the full license. Mind you, there is random selection and if you are selected, you will again have to do a practical test with a government instructor. If you fail on that, YOU HAVE TO AGAIN GO FOR LESSONS AND PASS THE PRACTICAL TEST WITH A PRIVATE INSTRUCTOR. It is a wonderful system….

*Job Hunting*

From the 3rd day onwards in Australia, SEEK.COM was the most visited web site from my laptop. Since I was from a manufacturing/QA background, there were no much vacancies as for IT jobs. IT jobs were in abundant. I changed my CV and Cover letter appropriately for each job ad. Our house mates thought that I am a computer engineer as I was spending so much time on the computer. My friend got an offer as a Sales Manager at a firm belongs to a Sri Lankan on the first week itself. But I was not that lucky and there were no phone calls or mails for the first 2 weeks. On the 3rd week, I got a call for a phone interview. It went well and after that nothing happened. Then got another 2 phone interviews but there was no progress. 

However, I found some part time work which I never thought I would do in my home country. But here, no one care on what you do for a living and they mind their own business. Important thing is you have to keep your EGO back home. You may be a Manager back home, but here it really does not matter. I was earning about $1.1K per fortnight and it was enough for me to pay my rentals, phone bills, groceries, etc and the best thing was I did not had to spend much money I brought from SL. 

While doing my part time work, I kept applying for jobs and on the second month, I was continuously getting calls for interviews. Then I thought my luck is about to get changed. But all interviews were not fruitful since employers went on to select the person with AUSTRALIAN experience. For a field like manufacturing which deals with people, local experience was the biggest hurdle for me. I was depressed, lonely and frightened that I might never get an opportunity. But I was kept applying. 

In October, I got a mail for an interview at South Australian government for a Managerial role. I had to make a presentation on the details that they have provided. I prepared a presentation and delivered in front their management. It was tough. But after 2 days, I got the job offer. Yeah!!!! Funniest thing was, the company that I had the first ever phone interview in Australia, also has offered a contract. Hi Hi…. It was a no brainer to select the government offer and the pay was not bad for a start. 

*Hunting for a rental property next!!*[/QUOTE]


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## chamil (Dec 25, 2017)

Thank u for sharing..


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## KasunTharaka (Jun 10, 2016)

Many Thanks for sharing valuable info mchn..


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