Now that we have been here two months (already?) I have had a chance to reflect on the things we love, and are not so wild about, in our new homeland...Things we like
- Free child care (nursery) for all 3 and 4 year olds – fantastic for early childhood education, shame it doesn’t apply to us as Sam is not quite old enough…
- Free medical prescriptions for all children on the NHS (and all doctors visits are bulk billed - grown ups too)
- Cheap flights - we are heading to Paris in two weeks time, at a cost of £30 each from Nottingham airport
- Playgrounds and kids menus at the country pubs
- Healthy kids meals and an abundance of organic food at the supermarket
- And on the subject of England's amazing supermarkets, a special mention for Ocado - delivers Waitrose (yummy gourmet) supermarket food to my fridge door, in colour coded bags so I know what is destined for freezer, fridge and pantry - all in a one hour timeslot
Things we have to live with
- English plumbing - although this house has been beautifully renovated, our en suite shower only runs scalding hot or freezing cold, and the main shower is more of a trickle. It’s a coin toss as to which is worse first thing in the morning
- Life without lattes... even if a Hopscotch Cafe was across the road, we would have to pay $5AUD for a very average cappuccino
- The price of petrol - £60 to fill the tank… ouch (that's AUD150 for a small sedan)
- The BT help desk - even though the problem is BTs, you have to pay by the minute for an Indian call centre to discuss it with you. Slowly.
- Mud - a problem specific to rural life, and the ruin of all my nice shoes
- Driving on country roads - whizzing along the hills and dales at 50 mph is exhilarating. Getting stuck behind a tractor, not so great
- Although we miss the beaches... and sunshine, we are discovering enough things to do with kids to keep us busy for the next 26 weekends... including a fabulous steam train ride last Saturday, with Thomas pulling us back (pictured)
- Learning a new language - when you are invited around for tea, that means dinner (not bikkies and a cuppa). When you are invited over for dinner, that means lunch... And don't ask for zucchinis or eggplants in the supermarket (that's courgette and aubergine to you)
3 comments:
I love:
- Costco (who can complain about 12 months supply of toilet paper for 12 quid and a 3 year no questions asked returns policy on electrical goods - which are cheaper to start with)
- the Peaks. Absolutely stunning and looking forward to getting out amongst it when the weather warms up
- IKEA stores that actually have what you want (could just be lucky on this one)
Could do without:
- England losing at sport so much. Feel guilty talking to anyone about it.
Could definitely do without:
- BT. It would have to be the worst customer service experience anywhere on the globe, including NRMA (and that's hard!!)
More things that are great:
- BBC. Amazing what a properly funded national broadcaster can produce. Real quality!
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