Hello Everyone,
I know that this blog post is ridiculously late and we
sincerely apologize for the wait.
We arrived in Melbourne on September 8. The city itself has
so much to offer, it is a multicultural hub which means amazing food options, music and arts events. We spent the first week apartment hunting. Here in
Australia apartments are listed with several different property management
companies. They list inspection times that involve a 10-15min window. That’s
right folks, if you want to see a specific apartment you need to show up on
Tuesday at 5:10-5:20pm. We were also able to book appointments with agents who
may or may not show up. The other frustrating part is apartments won’t be shown
until the tenants move out which greatly limits your choices when you need to
find a place quickly. We ended up with a furnished 1 bedroom apartment right by
the State Library in the middle of the CBD (Downtown). We moved in on September
14 and are now nicely settled in. We have signed the lease until June 14 and
will then look into a 2 bedroom apartment a little closer to the beach, since we are hoping for some visitors
by then!
After moving in we went on a serious job hunt. I had
interviews at the Royal Children’s Hospital. I had an interview with the
Emergency and Medical Imaging Department. I accepted a full-time position with the
Medical Imaging Department. The department includes: four general x-ray rooms, a multi-slice CT (Computed Tomography) scanner, two MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) units, four ultrasound rooms,
one nuclear medicine imaging room, one digital fluoroscopy room, one OPG (Orthopantomogram) and two DSA (Digital Subtraction Angiography) rooms. Nurses work alongside a diverse multidisciplinary team, co-ordinating and assisting with individual specialized care which includes, recovery, scrub and scouting for procedures (diagnostic and interventional), and sedations among other responsibilities. I am really excited to learn a new skill set and am
really looking forward to the normal hours that come with it. The department is
Mon-Fri (0800-1730) with weekends and holidays off except for the occasional
on-call. I start the position next week. Finding a job here was relatively
easy; it was registering with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory
Agency (AHPRA) that was painful. I am happy to report that despite applying in
June; I will finally be a Registered Nurse here in Australia tomorrow (5 months
later!).
Neal will be starting his new job on November 5. He will
start a position as a Manufacturing/ Engineering Recruiter with Michael Page.
It was a very unique opportunity as Neal was initially just meeting with the
recruiters of Michael Page just to get a manufacturing position. However, with
his manufacturing background and the experience he had from working at Nexus
they ended up recruiting him for their company and 8 interviews later he got a
job offer! It is also really convenient that the office is only a 15 minute walk
from our apartment. He is really excited for this new opportunity!
On paper five months without work sounds fantastic but when
you are not travelling every few days and staying in one place; the days go by
really slow and start to blend together. Not to mention receiving paychecks is
not something to be taken for granted.
We are really looking forward to starting work and meeting people. It
will also be nice to sit down at dinner and genuinely not know what each other
did that day!
We have spent a lot of time at the Melbourne City Baths,
which is a gym around the corner that we joined. We have spent the last 2
months going 4-5 times/week and are finally getting back in shape. It’s a great
way to kill some time and meet new people.
Along with job hunts and interviews we have spend several
days just wandering around the CBD and exploring. We have made trips to the
incredible Melbourne Zoo, Federation Square, Melbourne Aquarium, the numerous
gardens/parks and the Queen Victoria Market (just to name a few). The market
is around the corner from our apartment and offers an amazing selection of
fresh produce, meat, seafood, cheese and fresh pasta. We usually go several
times a week as it is also much cheaper than the grocery store.This comes in handy since the cost of living here is more than Calgary.
November 6th is Melbourne Cup Day and is a public holiday here. We are in the midst of the Spring Horse Racing Carnival which is basically a classy version of Stampede where people trade in the cowboy hats and boots for suits and fascinators. It still ends in drunken debauchery, so stay tuned!
Melbourne CBD consists of several lane ways that are filled
with cafes and boutique shops. If you spend your time walking along the main
streets than you are seriously missing out! Another aspect we really like about
Melbourne is that surrounding the CBD is an inner city ring filled with
different communities such as Carlton, St. Kilda, Richmond and Port Melbourne
that you can easily reach by tram that has its own cafes, shops and smaller town
vibe. The beach is located near Port
Melbourne and St. Kilda which is only a 20min tram ride from our apartment. We
are looking forward to some great beach days!
It is really difficult to meet new people and make friends
when you are the age we are. We joined the Canadian Club of Victoria and got to
meet some fellow Canadians for a Thanksgiving Dinner in October. We also have
gotten to spend time with a lovely couple Jen & Eric (and their dog Snickers), who moved here last
year. Neal and Jen used to work together at Flextronics. It has been great to
have friends here and nice that they have been through the same things and have given us tips along the way. Neal is also safe as now I have a new “twilight”
friend to go see the new movie with!
We are happy to report that our hard work preparing for our
permanent residency visa has paid off. We were granted the visa last week, only
6 weeks after formally applying! That means that we can work for whoever we
like for as long as we like and can stay here for up to five years. We also
qualify for Medicare. We did end up purchasing some private health insurance as
well (Employers don’t provide them here). We are pretty proud of ourselves, we were able to successfully move to another country and figure out what
we needed to do. In the first day we had a bank account and cell phones. We had
an apartment in the first week. We got our Medicare and Tax Numbers sorted. We
had job offers in the first month (starting work in 2 months). And got our permanent residency granted
within 6 weeks. It hasn't all been easy
though. Being homesick is something I have struggled with a lot since arriving
here. Neal has been a great support but feeling like we are in limbo with no
routine and missing out on so much at home has brought on the feelings I have never
experienced before. Considering I was born and raised in Calgary and only ever
left on holidays; I didn't really know what to expect. It’s funny the little
things that come out of nowhere and make you miss home so much! We are very
lucky to have such supportive family and friends at home and I can’t express
how much I love Skype. I don’t think I could have managed here without it. Back
in the old days waiting for letters to arrive in the mail would be torture.
Thank heavens for facebook, email and skype. I am sure once my time is filled
with work and meeting new people the homesick feeling will subside. We have
already tentatively planned all of our holidays for the next 2 years to fit in
everything we want to do with our vacation time and long weekends; that I am
very excited for.
Well that is Melbourne in a nut shell. Neal will have a post
soon on the excursions we have taken to the Great Ocean Road, Philip Island,
Yarra Valley Wine Tours and the Mornington Peninsula.
All the best,
Love Laura & Neal
The Melbourne Zoo
