# Americans that have moved to Australia - Any advice?



## Brangela (Aug 3, 2012)

Hi,
I am new to this forum and looking for practical advice from Americans who have moved from the US to Australia. We are an American couple who will be relocating from Washington DC to Melbourne in December 2012. While we've traveled abroad before, we've never lived outside the U.S., so we have some very practical questions. We would appreciate advice from those who have done this move from the US!

We are in the process of collecting quotes from international moving companies (the cost of which will be reimbursed by my husband's new employer in Melbourne). Can anyone recommend (or not recommend) the company you used to move from the US to Australia? Any advice on handling this big move? Things to watch out for, or that you wished you'd done differently in retrospect?

This one may be a stupid question, but is it worth bringing any of our more expensive electrical appliances with us? Such as a flat screen tv and computers? Is it practical to use them daily with a converter? While we will be reimbursed for shipping, we obviously won't be reimbursed for buying new appliances when we arrive!

Has anyone moved from the US to Australia with a pet? We are undergoing the arduous process of import paperwork now for our cat. Did you use a pet relocation company? What airline did you fly your pet on? Any thing you recommend doing/not doing? How are the quarantine facilities in Melbourne?

I'm sure we'll have more questions soon. But if anyone has advice on any of the above that will get us started here!

Many thanks!
Angela


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## pcrial (Sep 27, 2010)

Brangela said:


> Hi,
> I am new to this forum and looking for practical advice from Americans who have moved from the US to Australia. We are an American couple who will be relocating from Washington DC to Melbourne in December 2012. While we've traveled abroad before, we've never lived outside the U.S., so we have some very practical questions. We would appreciate advice from those who have done this move from the US!
> 
> We are in the process of collecting quotes from international moving companies (the cost of which will be reimbursed by my husband's new employer in Melbourne). Can anyone recommend (or not recommend) the company you used to move from the US to Australia? Any advice on handling this big move? Things to watch out for, or that you wished you'd done differently in retrospect?
> ...


Hello Angela,

I understand how intimidating it is to navigate the unknown. With a few exceptions like driving on the other side of the road, you really will not find life in Australia that different than the USA. Jeff Foxworthy says ******** are everywhere, and you will find them here also, except they are called bogans.

I didn't come here with a pet, one of my adult daughters and her family have adopted Crooner, my male cat. Crooner has feline immunodeficiency virus. When I lived in Texas an FIV infected cat bit Crooner. Unfortunately, FIV infected cats can't be brought here. Crooner is fine, and most FIV cats live a good quality life, and Crooner seems to have settled very well with my daughter's family.

You can read about the requirements for bringing your pet to Austrailia here,
Bringing Cats and Dogs (and other pets) to Australia - Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

I brought a 40 foot cargo container, it had a Chevrolet truck, and lots of my personal belongings, including lots of tools. A nearly new chainsaw, three night vision video cameras, and a few other things of lesser value were missing when I went to the Brisbane shipping to receive my things. 

Unfortunately, the packers in California on contract to Schumacher, Schumacher Cargo Logistics, the actual ship the goods were transported on, The Australian authority that fumigates for pest control, customs, the cargo receiving agent here in Australia, had all handled my goods, before I was able to inspect them. The problem is, that my inventories were not checked off by each of those groups handling, therefore, it was impossible to determine where in the transit the goods dropped off my inventory.

Shipping insurance companies have many ways written right into their policies to escape paying for your lost/stolen goods. My understanding is that others who have used other cargo transporters have realized similar results to mine. Therefore, I would not assume that Schumacher Cargo Logistics is any less or more reliable than the competitors. I made my selection based on price. If you are shipping a car, you will likely find Schumacher the best price also. Further, you can expect to loose some of your items. It isn't clear, but I assume that since so many different groups of people handle your goods, some might be on a secret shopping mission, grabbing the items they believe they need more than you do.

I moved here from Texas, but found shipping from California to be substantially cheaper than shipping from Houston, even though the Houston port is perhaps busier.

Here you will find rules for importing your personal goods,
http://www.daff.gov.au/aqis/travel/entering-australia/moving-emigrating

Cheers,


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## pcrial (Sep 27, 2010)

pcrial said:


> Hello Angela,
> 
> I understand how intimidating it is to navigate the unknown. With a few exceptions like driving on the other side of the road, you really will not find life in Australia that different than the USA. Jeff Foxworthy says ******** are everywhere, and you will find them here also, except they are called bogans.
> 
> ...


I forgot to mention that electrical appliances are a mixed bag. I brought all my rechargable battery power tools, and use them here with no problems. Some of them I changed the transformer, while others would run on 120 or 240 (what they have here). 

Universal motors can often be used here, although some require retapping the connections.

Almost any USA device that already runs on 240, like your kitchen oven etc... will work here with a different plug installed. 

Some USA devices are 120 only, like one power drill, and one belt sander I had. Other items, like my Norelco electric razor, and my Water Pik worked fine on 240 VAC. NOTE: These two items said they worked on 120 or 240 volts right on the appliance.

Use caution here, I'm an electrical engineer and I might make it sound easier than it is. You see, I did check out each item to be sure what the score was. I've heard of people "smoke testing", and the theory is, either you get lots of smoke, or it works. I wouldn't recommend smoke testing, since that is very dangerous and could result in a fire.

Cheers,


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## stormgal (Sep 30, 2009)

pcrial said:


> I brought a 40 foot cargo container, it had a Chevrolet truck, and lots of my personal belongings, including lots of tools. A nearly new chainsaw, three night vision video cameras, and a few other things of lesser value were missing when I went to the Brisbane shipping to receive my things.



Can I ask you - how much did you pay for the 40 foot container (if you don't mind my asking), and second, how come you bought the truck - isn't it useless in Australia (because of the left hand steering?) Also, if you drove the truck around, would they stop you and give you a summons? I'm just curious, because if not, then it would be a lot cheaper to bring a car than to buy one in oz.


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## pcrial (Sep 27, 2010)

stormgal said:


> Can I ask you - how much did you pay for the 40 foot container (if you don't mind my asking), and second, how come you bought the truck - isn't it useless in Australia (because of the left hand steering?) Also, if you drove the truck around, would they stop you and give you a summons? I'm just curious, because if not, then it would be a lot cheaper to bring a car than to buy one in oz.


Hi Stormgal, 

The 40 foot container was $3800. Once it arrives here, you have another $1200 to $2000 in charges. Fumigation, customs, and the inspections each have fees. Plus you have to pay GST.

My Chevrolet truck is a beautiful restored antique, and a classic over 30 years old does not have to be converted to RHD.

The following video is my truck. The video was made by the company I bought the truck from more than two years ago. BTW: The truck gets big smiles and thumbs up, whenever I drive it. 





Cheers,


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## forlorn79 (Jun 10, 2011)

pcrial said:


> Hi Stormgal,
> 
> The 40 foot container was $3800. Once it arrives here, you have another $1200 to $2000 in charges. Fumigation, customs, and the inspections each have fees. Plus you have to pay GST.
> 
> ...


Beautiful truck. If i own one i probably bring it over too


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## stormgal (Sep 30, 2009)

pcrial said:


> Hi Stormgal,
> 
> The 40 foot container was $3800. Once it arrives here, you have another $1200 to $2000 in charges. Fumigation, customs, and the inspections each have fees. Plus you have to pay GST.
> 
> ...


Wow, that's really nice. No wonder you're taking it with you! You can't leave that behind lol. 

Well, seems to me containers are a lot of money. Hopefully, a lot of us won't need to take that many items


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## CA to OZ (Jul 26, 2012)

*California to Perth*



Brangela said:


> Hi,
> I am new to this forum and looking for practical advice from Americans who have moved from the US to Australia. We are an American couple who will be relocating from Washington DC to Melbourne in December 2012. While we've traveled abroad before, we've never lived outside the U.S., so we have some very practical questions. We would appreciate advice from those who have done this move from the US!
> 
> We are in the process of collecting quotes from international moving companies (the cost of which will be reimbursed by my husband's new employer in Melbourne). Can anyone recommend (or not recommend) the company you used to move from the US to Australia? Any advice on handling this big move? Things to watch out for, or that you wished you'd done differently in retrospect?
> ...


Hi Angela,
We should keep in touch! My family will be moving from California to Perth in the first week of January. I have an advantage of extended family on the other side to help us a bit, but it is still a daunting task. We are using the opportunity to really refine our belongings to as few as possible, and we are selling both cars here. Where will you be in Melbourne? If you are near the city, you may not need a car for a while, their public transit is quite good. Regarding shipping companies, I was just trying to look for the name of an international accreditation organization that supposedly does extensive checks before awarding approval to a company. When I find it I will post the name. Re: electronics like TVs, do your research regardimg compatability. We realized our web capable TV is not likely going to work there and the cost of the insurance to ship will likely be more than the value of the TV. We are planning to get one good transformer for the small number if appliances we decide to ship. 
Timing is another issue. If you can drive your goods directly to thr shipyard it may be cheaper, faster, and reduces the number of hands on your stuff. With customs I think there may be different regulations for if you fill an entire container vs. Only part that may be shared with another party.
Good luck and keep us posted on your progress!
-Anne


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## pcrial (Sep 27, 2010)

CA to OZ said:


> Hi Angela,
> We should keep in touch! My family will be moving from California to Perth in the first week of January. I have an advantage of extended family on the other side to help us a bit, but it is still a daunting task. We are using the opportunity to really refine our belongings to as few as possible, and we are selling both cars here. Where will you be in Melbourne? If you are near the city, you may not need a car for a while, their public transit is quite good. Regarding shipping companies, I was just trying to look for the name of an international accreditation organization that supposedly does extensive checks before awarding approval to a company. When I find it I will post the name. Re: electronics like TVs, do your research regardimg compatability. We realized our web capable TV is not likely going to work there and the cost of the insurance to ship will likely be more than the value of the TV. We are planning to get one good transformer for the small number if appliances we decide to ship.
> Timing is another issue. If you can drive your goods directly to thr shipyard it may be cheaper, faster, and reduces the number of hands on your stuff. With customs I think there may be different regulations for if you fill an entire container vs. Only part that may be shared with another party.
> Good luck and keep us posted on your progress!
> -Anne


Hello Anne,

Frankly, there isn't a lot you can do about how many people handle your goods. The scenario goes like this. You most likely need to gather your goods in a storage area, near the shipper. In my case I had things to transport to Port Hueneme, California, where Schumacher Cargo Logistics is located. On two different trips to the USA, I brought things there. When everything was there, I gave Schumacher the OK to book shipping on a ship carrier.

By now I'm back in Australia. Schumacher couldn't tell me a schedule for shipping, since they actually must have contract in hand from the ship carrier. When they got the contract, I only had a couple of days, so Schumacher contracted a company to move my goods from storage to the loading area. The people who load the containers are "pool" workers, meaning Schumacher has no idea who these people are. So when it was time to load the containers the pool workers put my goods in the container and sealed it. I was not present, and no one from Schumacher was present. You see, no one can go into the loading area, except those with a special TWIC card. This is managed by homeland security because a container with a bomb in it could potentially level a large coastal area.

You will not be allowed near either loading, or unloading. This is true whether you have a portion of a container, a full one, or a crate.

Interestingly, I have a TWIC card. I still couldn't get near it, because you need a TWIC card, and a local dock card.

Here in Australia, it is about the same. When the cargo container is opened, no one can go near it except AQIS (Australian Quarantine Inspection Service). That includes a lot more handling, because the AQIS actually picks up each item, looks into the cracks and crevices to make sure there are no living organisms.

After AQIS gets done, no one is allowed near it, until Australian Customs gets done. Of course what this is about is money. They want to charge GST taxes, and import taxes on everything that can possibly be taxed.

Then the container is turned over to your shipping agent. I used Cargo Clear here. You still can't go near it, because they move and transport your goods to their company unloading area, and you do not have the necessary security credentials to go on the the dock area.

Door to door, you will have at least 6 different groups of people handle your goods. You will get some items broken, some ruined, some stolen. Just the facts surrounding shipping. I was told, there just isn't anything that can be done about it, that is just the way it is because of security, and the threat that someone might hide pests, drugs, or illegal items, or worse yet blow something up. I was told terrorism has changed everything.

One suggestion, I did see that some people hire these shrink wrapper companies to shrink wrap valuable goods. I'm not 100% sure how this works, but I did see shrink wrapped goods (even a large boat) arrive in Brisbane without being unwrapped. It is possible this might provide some security, for example, I'm sure the large boat could have had some tools, batteries, and other goods that could be stolen.

Cheers


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## CA to OZ (Jul 26, 2012)

pcrial said:


> Hello Anne,
> 
> Frankly, there isn't a lot you can do about how many people handle your goods. The scenario goes like this. You most likely need to gather your goods in a storage area, near the shipper. In my case I had things to transport to Port Hueneme, California, where Schumacher Cargo Logistics is located. On two different trips to the USA, I brought things there. When everything was there, I gave Schumacher the OK to book shipping on a ship carrier.
> 
> ...


Thanks the detailed description. I have seen posts with a few variations on the process. Your description also further confirms our plans to move with as little as possible and leave irreplaceable valuables, like boxes of old photos, in storage with family here in the US until we know for sure whether we are staying in Aus. permanently or coming back. No sense in shipping valuables twice!


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## oks (Jan 23, 2013)

*So glad I found this thread*

I'm so glad I found ya'll! Me and my family are moving to Melbourne from Arkansas. 
So I found this thread very helpful. I guess we'll sell all our belongings before moving to Australia as it is very expensive to ship them. One thing we absolutely have to take is our dogie  any of you travel with a pet? how much did it cost you, total amount? I'm just now looking into it. Originally we were going to bring him in cabin with us, he is a small bread of dog - a pug, less than 20 lbs - apparently you can't bring him in flight, so we are looking at shipping options. We could have him boarded on a plane in Little Rock, Dallas, LAX or Hawaii (as our trip will be a multi city one and we'll stop at each place for a couple of days). If you took your pets did u just do it your self or used a shipping company? 
Thanks so much guys, I truly appreciate you answers, so does our dogie  

P.S. the DC couple, how do you like Melbourne? We've been to DC many times and loved it there but we've never been to Melbourne


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## pcrial (Sep 27, 2010)

oks said:


> I'm so glad I found ya'll! Me and my family are moving to Melbourne from Arkansas.
> So I found this thread very helpful. I guess we'll sell all our belongings before moving to Australia as it is very expensive to ship them. One thing we absolutely have to take is our dogie  any of you travel with a pet? how much did it cost you, total amount? I'm just now looking into it. Originally we were going to bring him in cabin with us, he is a small bread of dog - a pug, less than 20 lbs - apparently you can't bring him in flight, so we are looking at shipping options. We could have him boarded on a plane in Little Rock, Dallas, LAX or Hawaii (as our trip will be a multi city one and we'll stop at each place for a couple of days). If you took your pets did u just do it your self or used a shipping company?
> Thanks so much guys, I truly appreciate you answers, so does our dogie
> 
> P.S. the DC couple, how do you like Melbourne? We've been to DC many times and loved it there but we've never been to Melbourne


I grew up between Helena and Marianna Arkansas on a cotton farm. 

I've been in Australia since 2010, I retired in 2008 at the beginning of the global financial crisis. I live near Brisbane, but have been to Melbourne, Adelaide and many other places in Australia, and have enjoyed my travels here.

Since I grew up in cotton growing area of Arkansas, in the 1950s several families from my area came to Australia to teach cotton growing technology to the Aussie farmers. I was just a boy and knew some of them whose families are still here. So there is a very strong Arkansas-Australia connection.

Also during the war of 1812, a male member of my family was captured in the USA by the British, and they tried to impress him into the British Navy. He didn't cooperate, and was a few years later sent here to Australia as a convict. His descendants live here, so my surname is very common.

Cheers,


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## oks (Jan 23, 2013)

*wow*

 Wow talk about coincidences  we live in Stuttgart, AR. I can't believe it. 

Can you please give me a comparison between the USA and Australia. Some told me that Australia sort of looks like Florida  

Wow I still can't believe it. We went to Marianna in 2011, they have a beach on the lake in the National Forest-can't remember the name of it- but the town itself unfortunately was not in a good condition :/ Lots of empty and burned down houses, empty businesses etc.

Thank you!



pcrial said:


> I grew up between Helena and Marianna Arkansas on a cotton farm.
> 
> I've been in Australia since 2010, I retired in 2008 at the beginning of the global financial crisis. I live near Brisbane, but have been to Melbourne, Adelaide and many other places in Australia, and have enjoyed my travels here.
> 
> ...


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## pcrial (Sep 27, 2010)

oks said:


> Wow talk about coincidences  we live in Stuttgart, AR. I can't believe it.
> 
> Can you please give me a comparison between the USA and Australia. Some told me that Australia sort of looks like Florida
> 
> ...


I find the culture pretty much the same. The cost of housing in Australia is completely stupid, for example I pay $550 per week. Pretty much everything else is about the same, except for driving on the left hand side of the road.

I retired from the USA auto industry, and many of the autos here in Australia have been banned from the USA because they can't pass the NTSB safety regulations, so be careful what kind of car you buy. Some of these banned cars have been banned in the USA for many years, but are still sold here in Australia.

Driving in Australia is a bit different, whereas in the USA most travel is on improved superhighways, but Australia has mostly roads that would be classified as secondary roads in the USA. Further, many times where you need to go is not far from where you are, but there is just no way to get there from where you are. 

We were in Dayboro Queensland and wanted to drive to Toowoomba for the flower festival. If you look at a map it appears close, but there are no roads going in the correct direction. It ended up being a 2.5 hour drive, but as the crow flies, about an hour.

So there are a few notable differences, but none you will have trouble adapting to. 

Marianna was the site of probably the worst race riot in US history in the 1970's. The rioters turned in false alarms to the fire department, and the police department, and descended on downtown and set all the buildings on fire.

The burned out area has been cleaned out and is now Town Square. It is quite nice, but so many left Marianna during the rioting that it will never be the same. I graduated from high school there, but it is nothing like it was in the 1960s.
Marianna - Marianna Arkansas - Marianna AR

The beach and swimming area is Bear Creek Lake. About 20 miles further South, on the way to West Helena, Ar there is another lake called Storm Creek Lake. Both are very nice camping swimming and fishing areas. I've camped at both in an RV.


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## pcrial (Sep 27, 2010)

pcrial said:


> I find the culture pretty much the same. The cost of housing in Australia is completely stupid, for example I pay $550 per week. Pretty much everything else is about the same, except for driving on the left hand side of the road.
> 
> I retired from the USA auto industry, and many of the autos here in Australia have been banned from the USA because they can't pass the NTSB safety regulations, so be careful what kind of car you buy. Some of these banned cars have been banned in the USA for many years, but are still sold here in Australia.
> 
> ...


Australia has scenery that looks like just about any place in the USA you might want to match. For example, where I live Dayboro, QLD the lay of the land (hills, and terrain) reminds me of the foothills of the Ozark Mountains in Northern Arkansas, all the way up to Cape Girardeau, Missouri. The vegetation is a bit different in that the trees are more sub-tropical, but with the farms and pastures with cows, green grass etc... I could imagine I'm on Kings Highway (Route 61 going toward Saint Louis) North of Cape Girardeau.

I've been in areas that remind me of the area around Pampa, Texas and areas that look a bit like New Mexico and Arizona. So take your pick. The low lands around Bundaberg look a bit like Stuttgart, Arkansas. You will even see the Lotus growing in the water's edge.

Cheers,


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## 457holder (Nov 21, 2011)

Hi,

Another American chiming in on what Australia is like and on bringing your computer and valuables.

(1) Bringing computer.
Usually all that's required is changing the power cord, a $3 expense at a local computer or office shop. I'd recommend taking it/them with you on the plane, though (that's how I got mine over) *AND* pulling the hard disks out and hand carrying ALL hard disks from door to door. Computer monitors can be handled similarly, but I didn't bother. I bought new ones here. American TV's are not always equipped for Australian use, because the digital TV standard used here is different than the one in America. Not to mention that not all TV's do both PAL (Australia, 50hz) and NTSC (America, 60hz) video formats. I know several people who moved here. NONE brought their TV's, although one guy did obtain his TV from Amazon Germany who was offering a free shipping deal, once he got here. None brought their monitors or printers. All brought their computers. One shipped his receiver for something insane like $500 via USPS international because even paying shipping he was still ahead of the price he'd have to pay for a similar one here. Audio and computer gear packs a price premium in Australia, so that stuff is better to bring with you if you can. Other things, not so much.

(2) Bringing valuables (small ones).
Hand carry, along with your hard disks, unless you really, really, really, REALLY trust the people back in the US that you're leaving them with. I lost some irreplaceable paperwork because people decided they'd held onto it for 3 years and that was long enough. No, they didn't bother to ask me before they tossed it. It may be worth it to you for one of your party to fly business class, to grab a bit more carry-on space. Every year when I fly back to the US, I bring more stuff with me to Oz.

(3) Shipping large valuables.
Insurance is your friend. Get replacement value coverage if you can, with whatever deductible you're willing to eat; you'll use it. If you can't replace it with money, and you'd be distraught if you lost it, DON'T put it in the container. NOBODY I know who's gone the container route from the US to Australia has had their stuff survive unscathed. *NOBODY*. No matter who they used.

That abysmal record was enough for me to decide to leave the things to which I was emotionally attached in storage in the US and sell the rest for cash, rather than spend $10K to ship it all over. $10K will get you a *LOT* of stuff in nearly new condition in major cities in Australia, if you haunt gumtree.com.au for a few weeks, and you have the fun of "new-to-you stuff". You see, people are ALWAYS arriving and departing the major cities in Australia, many after being here less than 2 years. Unless you've got really, really flash appliances, you're probably going to find better ones here -- the European brands like miehle, bosch and smeg are like "normal" brands here! My haul includes a Zojirushi rice cooker for $10, a 27" 2K hi-def monitor for $300, new-in-box $80 electric frying pan for $15, professional synth keyboard for $1000 ($200 less than an identical one recently sold for on ebay in the US), etc. If you have something super-expensive like a KitchenAid mixer, check with KitchenAid as to its portability. In general, things with motors often require more than a simple adapter on a plug, and even then, sometimes the results are flaky.

How I moved, my first trip over: $800 suitjackets and Jimmy Choo shoes travelled in 3 "hong kong shopper" plastic dollar store zippered shopping bags that I stuffed to the 23kg weight limit with clothing and accessories and brought along with me for the princely fee of $150 per piece. Yes, I really had $10-15K of clothing, at least, in each of 3 stupid plaid plastic bags. Risky? No! Everything was sealed in extra-large ziplock bags (see: amazon.com) against moisture, labels were not obviously visible, and what nefarious airport employee is gonna bother with the contents of some lower middle class person's (crappy looking) PLAID BAG when they can instead use their TSA key on a big Tumi case that looks like it could contain actual valuables? Yes, I hid my expensive clothes in plain sight! I was so into saving kg for what was most important to me that I came over with only one actual suitcase, half of which contained food from the US that I knew I couldn't get in Australia, and the other half of which contained gadget chargers (all gadgets came with me in carry-on with the disks -- you'd be surprised how HUGE a laptop bag you can bring, and it still counts as a laptop bag, not as your main carry-on). The rest was checked in plaid bags reinforced with clear shipping tape and in a computer box (into which was stuffed more stuff, anywhere there wasn't styrofoam or computer).

(4) What Australia looks like.
As others have said, what Australia looks like depends on where in Australia you are. It's a big country, and scenery is about as varied as it is in the US.

I find Northern Qld coast to resemble Hawaii (tropical fruit, sugar cane, pretty flowers and birds, generally warm temperatures), Sydney to feel a bit like Atlanta weatherwise (but not as cold in winter) and San Francisco or Vancouver BC city-wise, and Melbourne to be a bit more extreme temperature-wise than Sydney and it kinda had a Portland-y or Seattle-y feel to it, city-wise. Tasmania, with its rolling hills and tall trees reminds me of the Pacific northwest countryside.

(I've lived in something like 7 states in the US, and visited 47 of them. I pretty much used it up, so now I'm exploring Australia.)

I've lived in Sydney for a year, and before that was in tropical far north Queensland for 3 years.

One thing that you get used to is the local critter population. Queensland has snakes (on your porch, in your garage), geckos (everywhere, including on your bed - this is apparently similar to Florida, but I think QLD has more of them), marine stingers and jellyfish in the water at certain times of the year, and spiders (including large ones that resemble non-fuzzy tarantulas). So far in NSW, living in a Sydney suburb relatively close in to town, I've seen a variety of spiders, but no snakes or geckos. And everywhere along the East Coast has "good" birds. I mean, birds that make interesting noise, and look unusual (light pink, bright green/yellow/red, pale yellow, etc.). No, kangaroos don't roam the city streets. 5km outside the town centre in many north QLD cities you're likely to find them, though.

Do watch out for the drop bears when you're walking under trees out bush, of course. They look like koalas, just like poisonous water snakes look like harmless ones, but....


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## pcrial (Sep 27, 2010)

457holder said:


> Hi,
> 
> Another American chiming in on what Australia is like and on bringing your computer and valuables.
> 
> ...


I've seen a lot of critters here. On the other hand, I grew up along the Big Creek Swamp and the Saint Francis National Forest in Southeast Arkansas. We had a plethora of snakes, I even captured a baby eastern diamondback rattler and put it in a glass jar. My intention was to take it to school the following day for show and tell. When my father came in he asked, "who put this snake on the TV?" I explained what I intended to do with it the following morning, and he explained it was a baby diamondback. He had me take it outside and release it.

When living North of Houston, Texas, we had Australian geckos everywhere. I think several were nesting behind my sofa in the house. I would often see them on the back of the sofa sunning themselves or running up the curtains.

Shortly after coming to Queensland, I made a snake catcher (a piece of pipe with a rope loop, and a pull ring on the operator end). 
How To Catch A Snake : How To Make A Snake Catcher

We used to make these when I was a boy and they work quite well. 

I've seen and used all the other types, but when you don't have one, the simple one is quite safe to use, and easy to make (do it yourself). Be sure to use a piece of pipe long enough to keep a safe distance from the snake. Also pull the noose just enough to keep the snake from being able to get loose. Too tight and it makes the snake very angry and you will be left with no choice but to kill it. I usually carry them a safe distance from the house and release them. It is better if they are not angry.

Eastern browns would rather go the opposite direction from where you are, provided they are not angry or threatened. They can become quite aggressive if you upset them.
Cheers,


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## aussieyank (Feb 26, 2012)

Wow! Thanks a million for your insightful post. The idea in using those "plastic dollar store zippered shopping bags." That's Brilliant! Really appreciate your insistence on not using the shippers/containers if possible. Your message has now convinced us to take as little as possible and buy stuff over there (gumtree is an excellent source). Relative to spiders and snakes, it's going to be quite different for me there as I love to hike in the bush here in Northern California. I imagine I'll just have to put on my "tracker" hat and stay really alert at all times and probably limit the places I go to. 

My wife is an Aussie. I met her in Brisbane QLD while traveling there in 1999. We've been living in San Francisco Bay Area California for the last 15 years and not ready to move to Oz to join her family there. Will arrive in Sydney, but we eventually want to live up in QLD somewhere South of Brissy.

Cheers and Happy Trails!
Michael




457holder said:


> Hi,
> 
> Another American chiming in on what Australia is like and on bringing your computer and valuables.
> 
> ...


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## 457holder (Nov 21, 2011)

Enjoy your adventure! No longer a 457 holder , I'm looking forward to voting for the first time later this month. BTW, if you stay long enough to qualify for permanent residency and citizenship, get it. Australia and the US let you have dual citizenship.


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## aussieyank (Feb 26, 2012)

For some reason, I thought you couldn't have dual citizenship with Australia. That's good to know. How long did it take you and what are the benefits? We'll most likely be there a very long time - maybe the rest of our lives as my wife wants to be close to her siblings and cousins as we age! 

BTW, what part of Oz are you now located?

Cheers,
Michael


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## Michellejimb (Nov 13, 2012)

We are moving to Brisbane and are looking for a good relocation agent to help us transition. I would love some recommendations and why you went with them.
Thanks


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