Melbourne Photographer: Candice Ferreira

Brad and I had the pleasure of doing a maternity shoot with the lovely Candice last weekend.  We had a really great experience with her - she's very relaxed and easy going.  I loved that she was interested in our input and didn't just put us in poses that would make us feel uncomfortable.  I had sent her a few images that I'd found online just to give her an idea of what we did and didn't like and she really did a good job.  She captured us in a way that feels very 'us'.  We love the colourful graffiti images and the more chilled black and whites.

Candice has moved to Melbourne recently so as she's building up her Melbourne portfolio you'll find her prices are very reasonable.  So if you're looking for a maternity, newborn or family shoot then this is your girl!  She also does weddings and fashion photography!

Please visit her Facebook page and hit the 'like' button if you fancy what you see.

Here are a few of the pics from our maternity shoot, taken in Melbourne City.

The Sassy Sheilas: Ladies Night

There's a group of lovely ladies that get together in Melbourne once a month.  The group is made up of (mainly South African) women that have all made the big move to Melbourne.  Members of the Sassy Sheilas Group take it in turn to organise a dinner out somewhere in the city or surrounds.

It's a fabulous way to meet people and to socialise.  The girls have all been here for different lengths of time although surprisingly many of them had been here for less than six months.  All ages and marital status' are represented, from singles to moms and all those in between.

Chatting at dinner gave me a new appreciation for the saying 'six degrees of separation'.   Myself and the immediate girls around me were all connected in one way or another and I'm sure if we'd had more time we would have found the same with everyone else at the table.  And then once you become Facebook friends with people you realise just how many friends you have in common!

This month we went to the Seamstress Restaurant & Bar in the Chinatown.  What an amazing find, the restaurant is built within an old former textile factory and was once a Buddhist monastery!
Because we were a large group (twenty of us) we had the buffet menu which was deelish!!  We started with gorgeous tapas style rainbow trout pieces, seared scallops and a crunchy apple salad.  Mains included portions of tofu (not my usual but delicious) curry and to die for pork belly.  The rest of the menu looks really interesting so definitely give it a whirl if you're looking for a good restaurant with a great vibe.  We paid $50 a head so it's a little pricey but worth it.

Restaurant Review: Big Boy BBQ

We found ourselves in Caulfield South this week and needed a quick and easy place to eat before we had to be somewhere.  We happened across Big Boy BBQ on Glenhuntly Road and what a find!

It's a fast food place but great atmosphere if you want to eat in.  Super fast so if you want to take away then you wont wait long.   There motto is 'Slow food...fast' which is exactly what it is.  Amazing BBQ'd lamb, pork and chicken, 'rubbed with spices and smoked at low temperatures for up to 16 hours'.

They're famous for their ribs and aim to offer up the best in Melbourne.  I had a fresh bap (The Carolina) with pulled pork and coleslaw - AMAZING!!  So fresh and tasty - not greasy as fast food usually is.

Go there...Soon!  (There's also one on Hardware Lane in the city)

South Melbourne Market

I am Market Mad!  I love the hustle and bustle, the atmosphere and the array of goodies on offer.  Melbourne certainly has it’s fair share of markets and I’m checking them all off my list one at a time.

The first one I’m blogging about is my favourite so far - the South Melbourne Market.

Based in Coventry Street just ten minutes from the CBD, its easy to reach by tram or bus and there’s enough parking around if you’re going to drive.       

South Melbourne market has a variety of wares on offer including fresh fruit and veggies, butchers, fashion and footwear, homewares, books, fresh flowers and plants, jewellery, cakes and sweets.  There are some fabulous cafes and restaurants so definitely worth visiting for breakie or lunch.  

Best of all (in my opinion) is the Designer Market SO:ME Space.  A selection of super trendy stores that sell quirky homewares, jewellery and even bicycles.  They even have their own blog.

My fave is The Super Cool store which has been featured on The Block recently.  Their homewares are to die for.  I’m a cushion horder and theirs are a-mah-zing!!!  

The market also has it's own cooking school.  Small classes are taught by well known Melbourne Chefs.  Read more about the classes here.  

This weekend we're heading to Footscray Market so watch this space for more info.

Furniture Shopping on a Budget

Unless you ship everything you need from wherever you’ve come from, you can’t avoid furniture and appliance shopping.   And in Australia IT IS NOT CHEAP!  

We were advised to buy things like fridge, washer, bed etc from the UK and ship it over which is definitely cheaper if you’re after new items.  

But we didn’t know where we were coming to and what kind of apartment/house we’d have so didn’t want to buy a new fridge, for example, that might not fit in the space allocated for a fridge!   Also, as you know, I’m a thrifty type and I like the idea of upcycling my furniture.  Take a look at Loryn Loves to see what I've been up to; like my dining room table and side tables.  Obviously there are things that we’d rather buy new, like our bed and cot mattresses.  

There are various ways to go about furniture shopping and if you’ve got the time to look around then you’re going to be better off than if you buy the first thing you see.  Obviously if you have the cash to splash then go wild!  There are some amazing furniture stores here!

Good Old Ikea

I’m a fan of Ikea but I try not to buy too much from there, I don’t want my living room to look like I’ve ordered everything right out of the catalogue.  In saying that, their storage solutions are fantastic.  Don’t be surprised though, when you arrive at Ikea and find the prices are 20% higher than in the UK. And definitely don't forget to check out the Ikea bargain Corner. We got our cot for half price because there was a scratch on the underneath of it!  

Homemaker Hub at DFO, South Wharf

This centre is fantastic for new furniture with shops like Freedom, Provincial and Beacon Lighting.  They do have some good offers during sale time.  

Gumtree

As in London, Gumtree can be hit and miss.  But you can find some fabulous bargains, especially from people that are moving interstate or abroad for work.  Many of them have only been here for a short while and are being moved with short notice so will have newer goods at better prices.  Many appliances will still have their warranty in place.   Again, you need to be patient, new goods are uploaded every day so take a look each morning as the better bits get snapped up quickly!  I wouldn’t buy things like mattresses from Gumtree.  We found this great dining room table and chairs on Gumtree for just $50.  It was owned by a young IT geek who had probably never had a dinner party in his life.  You can of course go and check things out with no pressure to buy.   

Op Shops

Charity shops are a great place to find bargains.  Some stores, like Salvos and Vinnies, will sell larger furniture items like bed frames and dining room tables.  I’m a fan of wooden pieces that can be sanded and given a new lease on life.  Things like vases, platters and crockery can all be washed and if you find a style you love then why not.  I found these two lamps at a charity shop which I spray painted and recovered.  The lamps are all tested before they are put out for sale.  

Negotiating

Word on the street is that appliance stores expect you to negotiate on white goods.  You should be able to knock at least ten percent off the asking price.

Marked or Showroom pieces

We were able to do one better than negotiating on our fridge.  After going through the options with the salesman and deciding on our fridge, he mentioned that he had a ‘marked’ model in the back.  It was a brand new fridge but had a grey scratch mark on the top of it.  You can’t even see the scratch so we took it and paid 40% less than the retail price,including warranty. You will also find that some shops sell their showroom models at cheaper prices.

Sales

At the moment there are huge sales on in all stores because it’s the end of the financial year.  The stores want to get rid of their wares rather than have to stock take it for their tax return so you can find discounts up to 70%.

And that my dears is that.  If you’d like to see more of what we’ve been doing in our own home then take a look at Loryn Loves.

Happy Shopping!  

Shopping in Geelong

I've posted about Geelong before, we had a more cultural day down there when we first arrived in Melbourne.

This day was purely for shopping.  Dave and Jen were here for hols and Brad was at work so Dave was our driver and we shopped till we dropped.  The aim of our day was to visit as many Salvos stores and homeware/lifestyle boutiques as possible.   The Block is a very popular renovation/interiors show over here and we had seen that in the last season that they kept going down to Geelong to buy their decor.  So we had to see what all the fuss was about.

Amongst my research I came across the Oh Hello Geelong site.  A blog created by two young ladies that moved to Geelong and wanted to promote its full potential.  I found most of these quirky shops on their website.

We ventured into too many shops to write about each of them but I will put some info about my favourites.

Our first stop was the Geelong Vintage Market which is just on the main road heading into the city.  It's a massive warehouse filled to the brim with antique and vintage wares.  The prices do reflect this.  Unfortunately I don't appreciate the meaning of vintage and antique and the beauty of the pieces is lost on me.  I'm more of a sand and paint anything I can get my hands on kind of gal so I'm not going to pay a lot for the pieces I want.  But they had some amazing furniture so do make the journey down to Geelong if it's Vintage you're after.
They had a fab little coffee shop, called The Pickers Union, attached where we had our first (very good) cuppa of the day.

Salvos stores are charity shops that raise money for the Salvation Army.  They really are in every town of Melbourne and in Geelong there are at least eight of them scattered across the city.   I think we visited about seven of them, much to my brother's delight!  They vary from shop to shop as you can imagine and some are better than others.  I came away with a few vases, frames and a baby cot mobile (I'm pulling the dirty toys off and making my own, I just needed the 'stand').

  

After some serious op shop hopping we needed to feed our poor driver... he was going a bit dippy...

So we headed to the very cool and popular Packington Street, or as the locals refer to it - Pako.   There we found the absolutely divine (and award winning) Winter's Cafe.    The food was to die for.  Between us we had a roast chicken and stuffing roll, a rabbit ravioli and an all day breakfast which you could tell was made from the best of the best ingredients.   Even the fruit juice bottles were so pretty I had to bring them home with me. 

With full tummy's and a more sane Dave, we were ready to hit the shops again.  And we had saved the best for last.   We popped over to The Flower Dispensary on the same street, a smallish shop but we spent ages in it - so much to see!  As well as selling flowers, they had some beautiful homewares and gifts for sale.  These hanging plants were great and their window and shop displays were very creative.  Not to mention the gorgeous fresh and dried flowers.    

We then headed over to Garden Street where Frank & Dolly's are based.  What a fab little shop.  So much to look at, you just don't know where to start.  Beautiful clothing, gorgeous books, great jewellery and homewares.  I wanted everything!  I particularly loved these hanging plants.  The roots are covered in moss and wrapped in string to hold it all together.  All you have to do is dunk the ball in a bucket of water as needed.  Isn't that too clever?  I might try and make one of these in the summer.   I adore the wooden candle stick holders and pom pom flowers (definitely having some of these in our baby girl's nursery).  

Last stop was Goose, across the road from Frank & Dolly's.  Another great lifestyle/concept store with some great pieces.  Gorgeous cushions, fabulous bags and wallets, beautiful porcelain pieces and so much more.  

By then we were too pooped to carry on, even the most hardcore shoppers would have been ready to head home after such a long day.  But we came away with some goodies and enough creative inspiration to last us.  It's definitely worth a drive down to Geelong for some great shopping.   

Mornington Peninsula: Day Trip

Mornington Peninsula runs down the eastern side of the bay.  Great Ocean Road is over on the other side.   There is a lot of debate as to which one is the better to visit.  After much research it seems that Mornington is ideal for winter with its wineries, markets and cafes/restaurants.  Great Ocean Road is more of a summer destination with fabulous beaches, surf spots, amazing cliff faces and winding roads.

Although both are equally as beautiful in the opposite seasons, if you only have time for one of them then word on the street is that the above is the way to go!  

So with my brother and sisinlaw here last weekend, we decided a day trip to Mornington was in order.  We could have done with a night in a B&B as we didn't even make it to the wineries or the Hot Springs. 

We started our Mornington Peninsula adventure in the town of Mornington, of course!   This was our breakfast stop and we found a fabulous cafe called Blackbird Cafe where we had gigantic toasted sarnies and plenty of coffee.  The shopping on the high street looked fab but we were too early for Sunday trading hours and the boys were eager to get onto the next place... 

Little did they know that next on the list was a market in Rosebud.  The market is held on the first Sunday of every month by the Rosebud Lions Club.  They sell mainly crafts and second hand goods.   There are plenty of markets held throughout the peninsula but you need to research as they're not on every day or even every weekend.   The market is held on the Village Green, right on the beach so a quick walk and photo op before moving on...

Next stop was the view point at Arthur's Seat.  Many people walk up this 304 meter granite hill but the drive up the winding road was hairy enough for us.  The view from the top is spectacular, the beaches are stunning and usually you would be able to see the Melbourne City Skyline in the distance but it was a pretty cloudy day.  The gardens are gorgeous and would be fab for a summer picnic.  There's also an Enchanted Maze Garden and plenty of walks and hikes for enthusiasts.  You might even see koala's along the way.  We will definitely do this again next time as we didn't fully appreciate all there was on offer due to the howling and freezing cold winds!      All we wanted to do was get back in the car.   

Next stop was the beautiful seaside town of Sorrento, at the end of the peninsula, and where the bay joins the ocean.  We couldn't believe just how sheltered the bay is, it was absolutely flat and as soon as we crossed the peninsula onto the ocean side it was surfers paradise with enormous waves.   Sorrento is a beautiful town and ideal for a summer vacay.  With dolphin swims, fishing charters, golf, bayside cruises and stunning beaches, what more could you need?  If you want more there's wineries, spas, to-die-for shopping and plenty of restaurants and cafes.  Sorrento is an artist's paradise so if it's galleries you're after then you're in the right place.  

We left the boys in the pub and got stuck into the local shops - homeware and lifestyle boutiques like you've never seen, we were in our element!  After a good few hours of exploring, we joined the boys at the Continental Hotel and ended up eating lunch there.  The service wasn't amazing but the food was good.  After looking them up online I see they're a bit of a backpackers' place with a nightclub which figures. 

By then we were all sleepy and three of us a had a few winks in the car while poor Brad drove us home.  The good thing about the peninsula is that the Mornington Freeway shoots straight up the center to get you home pretty quickly.  Sorrento is just an hour and a half from Melbourne City. 

A really fab day out, I can highly recommend the day trip or even a night's stay down in Sorrento.  From there you can move further up the coast on the ocean side where there's even more to explore.  

Aussie Farmers Direct: Fruit and Veg To Your Door!

In my package of baby information booklets, samples and vouchers from the hospital, there was a voucher for a half price Couples Pack from Aussie Farmers Direct.   Never one to pass up a bargain, I decided to try them out...

Aussie Farmers Direct is a company that will deliver a box of fresh fruit, veggies and salad to your door once a week, fortnight or month depending on when you need.  The produce is direct from local farmers and always seasonal so changes as availability does.  

The Couples Pack usually costs $26 but with my voucher I got it for half price.  I usually do my grocery shopping at Coles or Woolworths and fruit and veg is really pricey.  I really think $26 for this box is very reasonable and will definitely continue to receive these weekly.  

It was like Christmas when my box of goodies arrived and it seemed never ending.  I’ve put the list below of what was inside so you can see just how much we received.

3 x Apples

3 x bananas

2 x oranges

2 x mandarins

1 x pack carrots

1 x pack potatoes

1 x huge bunch celery

1 x bunch coriander

2 x onions

1 x iceberg lettuce

½ a cauliflower

2 x large tomatoes

1 x punnet of grapes  

One of the good things about receiving what’s in season is that you are forced out of your weekly routine of buying the same old thing.  This week we received silver beet which I’d never even heard of before!   I had to search online for directions on how to cook it!  Turns out it’s just like spinach and can be used in the same way.  

So take a look, I believe there are plenty of options to choose from including Family Boxes and I think you can even add eggs and other things like smoothies to your order.

Anzac Day Parade - Geelong Style!

I'm sorry this is so late!   As you know, we've been without internet for a few weeks but, as of yesterday, we're back in business! 

"Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and suffering of all those who have served."^[1][2] Originally 25 April every year was to honour the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps(ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire during World War I."  (Wikipedia)

We had hired a car for the long weekend so decided to make full use of it for the bank holiday of Anzac day.  With another couple, we decided to head down to Geelong to see what they had on offer.  Geelong is the biggest city outside of Melbourne and is on the sea.  A lot of people that commute into Melbourne from Geelong for work - it's over an hour's drive or train but worth it for those craving a beach lifestyle. 

Being new Australian residents, it was only right that we got involved in the Anzac Day celebrations.  We found a parade that went through the main road of Geelong; what a special tradition to witness.  Veterans from various wars and from all parts of the Australian services marched through the town centre and onlookers were able to applaud them with thanks for their service. 

Thousands of Australian flags lined the street waving on the veterans, and relatives of veterans, all displaying their, or their relatives’, medals proudly.  Three marching bands played along men and women with walkers, some in wheelchairs and one gentleman was even wheeled in his hospital bed.

After that we had a walk around the pier which encloses a swimming area for bathers to be shark free! It’s a really beautiful beach front area with a park and gas BBQ’s for picnics.  We’ll definitely be back in the summer. 

We then headed further down the coast to the town of Torquay where we had a fabulous lunch at the Growlers restaurant.  Juicy home made burgers and yummy fish and chips before heading down even further to the famous Bells Beach.   Bells beach is where the Rip Curl Pro surfing competition is held every year.  Keen surfers were out in full force despite the cold wind and the ever lurking thought of sharks! 

A quick coffee to warm us up and just over an hour drive back to the city.  Next time we’ll venture further along the Great Ocean Road and hopefully spend a weekend exploring. 

The Joys of Internet

Finally!!!   We are back online and so excited!   I can't believe we lasted so long without it.   The only thing that kept us going was the 3G on our mobiles, but even that was chewed up so quickly we had to ration ourselves to one look at Facebook per day!

So while we're on the subject, I might as well let you know about the joy of setting up internet in Australia.  For those of you that are moving over here, consider this a priority and get researching as soon as you have a new home to move into.  I waited until we moved, thinking it wouldn't take more than a few days.  And Oh how wrong I was!

So the first thing to note is that Telstra is the BT of Australia.   They own the phone lines and all other providers go through them.   This does not mean that are the cheapest!

There are many service providers that you can go with and the best thing to do is just research what each has to offer to suit your needs.   Most of them will do phone/broadband/tv packages.  

The main providers I’ve heard of along the way are iiNet, Telstra, TPG, and Dodo.   The service has not been amazing from any of the providers so I wouldn't recommend one over the other for that reason.  All I can do is tell you what we went with.   

We chose to go with iiNet’s TV Combo.  For $119 a month you get the broadband, phone line and Fetch TV.  This includes the monthly rental of the super sleek modem and phone, 200GB of internet and all landline calls made within Australia.   Fetch TV is the usual free channels plus a few extras, but the best part is that we can pause, rewind and record!  The adverts here are a nightmare so this is almost as important as having internet!  We also have access to newly released movies that we can rent but get 30 free ones to start us off.

We can upgrade the TV to include more channels but with baby on the way we’re waiting to see if we need them - Brad will be far too busy to need the sports channels! 

Medicare: The Public Health System

It's only fitting that I write this post about doctors and Medicare from my bed, where I now sit feeling very sorry for myself with a throat that feels like it's been grated and a pesty coughing fit that arrives no less than every ten minutes!  And of course, being preggers there is nothing I can take!   So I'm not leaving the bed and have no intention of getting out of my pajamas today!  

To make things worse, Brad has had what can only be food poisoning all through the night.  He's had to drag himself into work but hopefully the worst of it has removed itself from one end or the other!  (Sorry, that's gross but I need you to get the full picture!)

So let's talk about Medicare!  This is the public health system across the country and something we are very lucky to have the benefit of.  Australia and Britain have a reciprocal agreement so because we have British Passports, we are entitled to use this service.  We do have to have private health care for the entirety of our visa but no private policy will cover maternity or childbirth within the first twelve months of arriving in the country.  I've ready many forums and reviews on the public health care and, Melbourne especially, is known for it's fantastic service so we're not worried!  In fact, I've spoken to people who have chosen to have their babies in a public hospital, rather than privately. 

So how it works...

The first thing to do is to sign up with Medicare, they have offices all over the city where you can just walk in and it took us less than five minutes to sign up.  We just needed to fill in a form and let them photocopy our passports, visa and drivers licences.  I think you can provide your NHS medical card instead of driver's licence if you don't drive.    This was a week day morning so might not be as quick on a Saturday.

Unlike the NHS, not everything is free on Medicare.   For most doctor visits, you will need to pay the doctor and then claim 85% of the cost back from Medicare.  However, there are some doctors that will do what is called Bulk Billing.  This means that they will not charge you anything and will bill medicare direct for the 85%.  Although they lose out on 15% of the fee, they do not have to worry with chasing patients for the money.  Some doctors will only Bulk Bill for the elderly and those on benefits.  Some will only bulk bill during certain hours.  And some will not bulk bill at all.

Also unlike the NHS, you may chose whatever doctor you would like, there are no rules about finding one within your borough.  This means you really can shop around and find the one you like best!   I did a lot of research and read some reviews on doctors and found a really great GP that I will take our baby to as well.  It really pays to research, research, research!   That's something I've learnt since we've been here.  Time is a luxury I've had over the past few weeks and the research has made a huge difference with everything from our doctor to our house and car.  

So because I'm pregnant, I had to see the doctor before being referred to a hospital.  Now the hospital does have to be in your area so I've been referred to the Monash Medical Centre.   I've been told its a teaching hospital and one of the best in Melbourne.  So far, so good.  I had two midwives at my booking in appointment.  They work in a way that all my appointments will be on the same day of the week so that I always see the same ladies.  They will hopefully be at the birth as well and then it will be them that visit me at home after Little Miss is born.

So all in all, a very good experience so far.  I feel much better now I know where we'll be having our baby and who will be looking after us along the way!  

Rental Application Accepted!

Finding a property in Melbourne is rumored to be a difficult process; we know this is true from our extensive research but somehow we got lucky!

Our very first application we put in was accepted.   We arrived on Monday and spent the week researching online, we picked the four best places and attended inspections on the Saturday.  After one cancelled inspection, one shocker and one average property, the fourth was what we'd been waiting for.

It's not a palace by any stretch of the imagination but it's big enough for two and a half people, has an outdoor space and the bath is white (we've seen bath tubs in every colour imaginable!).  It also looked the way it did in the pictures which was a surprise as most properties seem to be using photos taken ten years ago!

The reason we got lucky on this property was down to a few things... The place had just been listed so no one had been able to see it until that same day.  We arrived for the Inspection a few minutes early and the agent was already there.  We went straight in, showed our interest and got an application from her.  We got chatting to her about our situation and she seemed to take a shine to us.  We also showed interest in buying furniture off the current tenant which showed we meant business.  There was just one other couple there who also took an application form.   By now it was two minutes into the inspection time and the agent had done her job so off she went.  Lucky for us; not so lucky for anyone arriving to view the place after that.

So we knew that there was only one other applicant so we needn't offer a higher rent but had to be sure we provided as much ID and paperwork as possible.

It worked and the agent called Monday afternoon to say we'd been successful!  The agency we're dealing with is LJ Hooker and our contact, Cindy, has been a pleasure to work with.  Highly recommended!

So here's a few pics of our new home.  Moving day is 3rd May - can't wait!  The house is unfurnished so this will not be our furniture.

They call it a villa where its attached to other places - luckily we're on the end. 

Our lounge which is open plan into the dining/kitchen.  

Our kitchen/dining area opens to the courtyard 

The courtyard needs some attention but is a nice size and 

opens further onto communal gardens

Renting Property in Melbourne: The Search

Looking for somewhere to live in Melbourne was obviously the biggest task to tick off our list.  Luckily Brad came straight into a job so we thankfully didn't have to worry about that.  This is a long winded post but should give anyone in this situation all the info they need.  We would have loved to have all these details in one place when we arrived.

Knowing where Brad's office is made it easier to narrow down the areas we wanted to look at.  When we visited Melbourne in November 2012 we rented a car and spent a good few hours driving around various neighbourhoods.  Obviously you have to do your research as you can't tell just from driving through an area. One of the things we checked was where the South African shops are.  It sounds silly but it would mean that like minded people had picked that area and although we didn't end up near one, it gave us a starting point.   That and the fact that we did loads of town profile research online and of course spoke to locals about various areas.

Once you know what areas you're looking at, the next step is to hit the real estate websites.   The two we used the most were Domain and Real Estate.  Most of the estate agents advertise on these two but you'll find many of them have their own sites as well.  It's best to look in the morning and new properties will have red Just Added banners across them.  You'll see loads of places that have been listed for over a month, there's usually a reason for that.

When trawling these websites you will notice that most of them will advertise Inspection dates and times.  This is something we'd never experienced before.  Basically, the agent will unlock the house for 15 minutes only on the said Inspection date and everyone interested will rock up at the same time to check out the property.   I say that the agent will unlock the house because that is ALL they do.  They are not there to give you a guided tour or to answer any questions you have; they know as much about the property as you do.   We've learnt that rental agents don't get commission on properties they let so they don't go to too much trouble for you.

If you decide you'd like to apply for the house then you need to fill in the very detailed application form and provide plenty of evidence that you are who you say you are and that you can afford the rent etc.  If the property is great then there are likely to be many people applying.   This is why you need to try and gauge the situation during the Inspection.   If there are loads of people looking then it means you will have a lot of competition and offering a slightly higher rent might work in your favour.   Usually the good properties have Inspection times during the week so less people can visit.  Difficult or occupied properties will usually be shown on the weekends.

On the application form you will notice that you are signing your life away... you are agreeing to pay the bond within 48 hours of being accepted.   This means that you shouldn't be applying for more than one property at a time which of course makes house hunting even more difficult.  I'm sure there's ways around this and there's not much they could do if you refuse to take a property if you're accepted.  In Perth they avoid this by making you pay a weeks bond just to apply!

The application form and paperwork needed is quite detailed.  I've put the list below of what we had to provide.   Each piece of information you provide has a points value.  An application will not be looked at unless at least 100 points are reached.  However, if you don't provide bank statements or references then you have less of a chance than your opposition that does.

So the list below is the guideline from one of the agencies but they're all pretty much the same.  I figured that the more you provide, the better so I sent in every single thing!

 - Passport and Visa - 40 points
 - Last four rent receipts - 30 points
 - Photo ID - 20 points
 - Drivers Licence - 20 points
 - Medicare Card - 20 points (see more info here)
 - Copy of Birth Certificate - 20 points
 - Copy of a current phone/gas/water/other utility bills - 20 points
 - Current bank statements/payslips - 20 points
 - Written reference from previous landlord - 20 points

Obviously an agent would like to see that both of you are working however they're fine if one of you has a salary that is plenty to cover the rent.  In our case, Brad's salary is enough but I also provided my last three pay slips from London to show what kind of salary I will bring in when I do work.   We didn't advertise the fact that I was pregnant (big scarf)!

Something you will have to provide is two character references.   We used Brad's boss and a housemate/friend of mine from London.  We also put down the owner of our current temporary accommodation.  All three of these references were called so they are definitely thorough!  

Other advice we had was to take all paperwork with us and then fill in the application form during the Inspection.  Apparently some agents work on a first come, first served basis where they will do checks on the first good looking application they receive.

And then you wait...  the agent should call you either way but it takes a couple of days to find out if you've been accepted or not.

Another place to look for property is Gumtree where people will be trying to get out of their lease.   You need to really look every day for these and the good properties seem few and far between.  There seemed to be mainly house and room shares advertised on this site.

Getting Around: Public Transport

Living in London definitely stood us in good stead for most public transport systems around the world.  And as much as we liked to complain about the constant delays and unbelievable reasons for these delays, we were in fact rather spoilt.

In Melbourne things run on time.  Well they have so far.  Every bus, tram and train that we've been on has come at the exact minute the timetable promised us.

However, unlike London, the said trains, trams and buses don't run as often as we're used to.  This means you have to plan your route very carefully and if you're doing a multi-legged journey then there might be a little waiting in between legs.

We spent last Saturday house hunting.  We decided against hiring a car for the day as we figured we should get to know the public transport system.  What a mistake.   We left the flat at 8am and got back around 5pm after seeing just four properties.  Advice for anyone in the same boat - HIRE A CAR!!!

Because we don't have mobile data to spare we planned the entire journey meticulously using the TripGo app on the wifi at home.  We didn't even have a map of the area so had to rely on my very detailed hand written directions which turned out to be more than bit sketchy.  We ended up taking 'short cuts' and then running like mad for a bus that we knew would be on time and wouldn't be passing again for another hour.

If we could have, we would have just hailed a taxi but those seem to be rather scarce in the suburbs.  So old preggers here had to do a few really fast waddles around the neighbourhood in the blazing sun, wearing just my trusty Havaianas - again, I repeat HIRE A CAR!

After that little moan I will tell you that the system is actually really great.   The network seems to be large enough to get you close enough to anywhere you want to go and it's also really cheap.   They work with the same system as the Oyster cards in London, only they're called Myki's.   You top up as much as you need and then touch in and out every time you travel.   You can travel for up to two hours on any mode of transport in zone one and it will cost you just the one fare which is $3.50.  There is a daily cap of $7 on weekdays and $3.50 weekends.  Melbourne is only split into two zones so if you're travelling just in zone two then it will be even cheaper.  I believe there are Myki Pass's  which will obviously be cheaper for those travelling to and from work but I don't know enough to tell you about them yet.  You can look here for more info.

The staff have all be really friendly too, they don't seem to be responsible for passengers paying their fares so they're not grumpy so-and-so's like the London drivers.  We had one driver who didn't know which stop we meant when we asked him where to get off so he spent a minute on his phone trying to find out where to drop us - what a sweetie!!

You can see  more about buying and topping up your Myki card here.    It costs just $2 for the card and then you top up whatever amount you want at any 7Eleven or station.

Melbourne's Coffee Culture

You've only got to spend a couple of hours in Melbourne to note just how much Melbournians love coffee and its not like they enjoy coffee, no no no... they LOVE coffee. Melbourne is obsessed with coffee,so much so that they are playing host to the international coffee expo this year. Every second shop on the street is a coffee shop.  No big coffee chains here but rather cool, chic and trendy independently owned stores, each with their own individual flare when it comes to interior decor.   And most importantly everyone has their own favorite shop and coffee blend.   Something you'll find out very soon after starting work in Melbourne is that a lot of meetings are held over a coffee so be prepared for the heinous task of walking outside in the glorious sunshine before ducking into an awesome little coffee shop to try out one of their many many blends of coffee.

   

This article from Weekend Notes gives some interesting info on the types of coffee shops around.  From those that do just the traditional 'black' and 'white' to those that offer all the trimmings and flavours known to man! 

We need a month of Sundays to explore the different cafes just in St Kilda but we have three more weeks here and we're damn sure going to try!  

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Walking in Melbourne: an adventure in itself

Having no car and no idea which buses, trams or trains would offer me the shortest/ quickest route to the office,  I did what any good Londoner would do when the trains inevitably stop working. I looked up the simplest route and walked the 2.5km to the office. The fact that the sun was beaming down and it was a balmy 24 degrees made the walk just that much more pleasant! And the fact that Loryn accompanied me 3/4 of the way like a proud mom taking her kid to school made the walk feel effortless.

The first thing that anyone coming to Melbourne or Australia in general will notice, whether driving or walking around the city, is that the traffic lights take foooooorrrrrreeeeevvvveeeerrrrr to go through the rotation. Add the crisscrossing trams to the equation and the walk took around 25 minutes. 15 of which were spent just waiting for the familiar tick ticking of the traffic lights to let you know that its relatively safe to cross the street. I say relatively safe as you still need to watch out for the trams which run down the middle of the main roads.  These 'rhinos on skateboards' posters on all tram stops give you an idea of what we're dealing with...

So the first time you cross the road you might have a mini heart attack.  You'll find yourself wanting to hurl abuse at the driver trying to mow you down when its your turn to cross the street, but he also has a green light and although you have right of way as a pedestrian, he might or might not actually stop...

Starting work and the admin involved

Waking up at the crack of dawn after a restless night suffering from crippling jet lag and walking around with blood shot eyes is the perfect way to make a good first impression...
In the build up to the big move, I was super excited about the new adventures ahead and I was really looking forward to sliding into the typical laid back Aussie style of working, but now that the day had finally arrived I felt like a kid on my first day at school all over again. Even though I had already made two trips out to Australia before the move and I knew all the staff members very well (mainly because I had personally interviewed most of them for their jobs!) I still felt a little nervous of the prospects which lay ahead.

Apart from the walk to the office which is just off St Kilda road, the rest of the day was pretty uneventful, so I'm not sure what I was too stressed about. Even though I am still working for the same company there was still the usual first day tasks to complete.  Things like signing a new contract and completing new employee forms is all pretty standard stuff, but there are a few things to look out for. I guess some of these can be done before you arrive in Australia so make sure you know what your company is going to do for you and what you have to do yourself.

Firstly, you need to have a Tax File Number (this is the equivalent of a UK National Insurance number) which the tax office uses to track all your tax payments for as long as you work and earn in Australia. This can be done online and should be done before setting up your Super fund (see below). The bank also asks for this number but its fine to open your account and get back to them with the TFN.  Bear in mind that tax in Australia is higher than the UK so get used to that idea before you leave!

The other thing you will need is a Superannuation fund,  I think Wikipedia explains this well...

Superannuation in Australia refers to the arrangements which people make in Australia to have funds available for them in retirement. In Australia, superannuation arrangements are government-supported and encouraged, and minimum provisions are compulsory for employees.^[1] For example, employers are required to pay a proportion of an employee's salaries and wages (currently 9%) into a superannuation fund, but people are encouraged to put aside additional funds into superannuation. The minimum obligation required by employers is set to increase to 12% gradually stepping annually from 2013 to 2020.^[2]

There are plenty of websites which offer comparisons between Super funds and I think they are all pretty much alike. The key thing to look out for your Super is the fees. All funds have compulsory management fees etc, but these rates vary quite a bit and most sites tell you to go with the cheapest funds you can find. Most Super funds can be taken out online,so get browsing.  We've gone with Australian Super which came highly recommended.


And then you can get back to your actual job!