Is the grass always greener?

I have lived abroad twice in my life, due to my husbands work, once in the Middle East and once in Germany, both times for a few years. Although I wouldn't have missed each opportunity for the world, I found each time that once the initial excitement had worn off, you just live your same life but somewhere else. Both times just made me appreciate England more.

Me too, srn, Cyprus, Abu Dhabi and Oman - 13 years in all. I enjoyed it all at the time but wouldn’t want to live in any of them again - especially not in those Gulf summers!

Lived in the Adelaide Hills in South Australia for my entire life, heat is not that much of an issue and I never want to live anywhere else.

Adelaide is not so humid, though, is it?

I think it's the damp heat and humidity which is so hard to endure.

Re advice : live there for a year before making a move. About 10 years ago grind of mine decided they would like to live in NZ as their son and DIL Lived there. They rented a house and lived there for a year to try it out. Loved it and after pretty extensive and lengthy preparations eventually moved. And for four years or so all was good. Then almost out of the blue when they seemed really settled into their new life made a decision to go back to U.K.. few weeks later they were back. I think it very much depends at which stage of your life you move. The later you leave it the more difficult it is to settle elsewhere.

Adelaide isn't at all humid generally, Mostly that would be the northern parts of Australia.

Moved to Australia 15years ago, best thing we ever did. Wish we’d done it when the kids were still at home. The lifestyle is so relaxed and the weather is wonderful. We visit UK and can’t wait to get back home to Australia

AussiGran59, having lived 20 years in Australia and now back home, I am in complete agreement with you. Brits love to moan about what they have which raises the question of why does the world want to come and live here. Nowhere is perfect and if you're a failure here, you sure ain't gonna get a character transplant if you swap your surroundings!

I spent January in Australia- a much anticipated holiday years in the making. We travelled around, visited friends and had a wonderful time. I loved everywhere we visited and have unforgettable memories of a wonderful trip.
Some observations:
The food is not cheap. Fresh fruit and vegetables seem particularly expensive.

I needed to see a doctor whilst staying in Melbourne. I got an appointment right away, had a thorough examination and left with a prescription for 3 items. Naturally, it all cost money!
Some pharmacies charge more than others for filling a prescription - you need to shop around
(Chemist Warehouse, to be found in every town are wonderful and fairly cheap compared to other chemists )

The weather was hot! We couldn't help but think how much Aussies save on energy bills. In reality, it was the height of their summer and air conditioning is not cheap.
Everyone we met seemed friendly and went out of their way to be welcoming and helpful.
I returned home with a suitcase full of Tim Tam biscuits (Australia, you've turned me into an addict!)
But ... could I live in Oz? The answer is no. I love my home in NE England and as much as I enjoyed my holiday to Australia it was, just that, a holiday albeit an unforgettable one.

I’m well travelled and have been to some beautiful countries and met many interesting people but would never wish to live anywhere else but England. I love the seasons, the lack of mosquitoes and other nasty creepy crawlies. I adore the greenery and countryside along with the history. It’s home to me and I’m always pleased to be back.

I lived in Australia for a couple of years when I was young. I have been twice to New Zealand. I thoroughly enjoyed the experiences and saw many wonderful places but had no desire to live in either country. On my return I gazed at England's green fields and was so thankful to be home. For all its faults there is nowhere like England.

What a super post! Well done the original poster.
We lived in Oz for 5 years, 8 months and 11 days.
Never hated anywhere so much in my whole life.
Lived all over the world, Oz was the worst IMHO.
Then transferred to Belgium - what a huge delight.
Culture, culture, culture.

We noticed the lack of culture in New Zealand whilst we were there. Of course there are a few theatres and we went twice, once to the pantomime and also to a performance of songs taken from musicals, but the performers of the musical songs were from Britain and Ireland. I looked at the advertisements for future performances and the performers were mostly from abroad and were tending to tour just Christchurch, Wellington, and Auckland. There seems to be little home grown talent. No classical music at all whilst we were there and none in the rest of the year. Perhaps New Zealanders are not that interested, I don’t know. I would certainly miss the arts if I lived there. The All Blacks are iconic, but not enough for me!

SueEH

If I didn’t have ongoing parental ties here in the UK I’d be on a plane with a one way ticket to Greece.

Is that you Shirley Valentine? 😁

I was sorry to hear about your daughter’s marriage break up maddyone.
I remember when you said the family was going to work in New Zealand temporarily.

Is there any chance your daughter and the children will come back, especially in view of the extensive drawbacks to life there, which you have explained so clearly?

I don’t think so at the moment Jennifer, it’s a sad situation but not uncommon. My daughter has just taken another house and settled in, and so we’ll see what the future brings. Thank you for your concern, it’s appreciated very much.

That’s a shame but I guess it’s still early days for your daughter to try to decide what to do for the best.
There are so many things for her to consider aren’t there?
Very worrying for you and your husband though.

I don't think I'd ever want to live anywhere else than Britain, and Australia certainly wouldn't appeal to me.

However, I know people who have emigrated there or been there for holidays and they think it's great. I suppose it depends on what your interests and priorities are. People in Australia often refer to an open air, active life but, whilst I would certainly appreciate more sun, I am not particularly interested in beach life or sports in general. I wouldn't like to be so far away from other countries and so distant from other parts of Australia.

Each to his own.

I know I'm another who would miss the history.

My favourite places are full of old buildings, museums, places of worship and remote places where the hand and foot of earlier generations are visible in the landscape.

NotSpaghetti

I know I'm another who would miss the history.

My favourite places are full of old buildings, museums, places of worship and remote places where the hand and foot of earlier generations are visible in the landscape.

remote places where the hand and foot of earlier generations are visible in the landscape.

Australia is home to some of the oldest and most prolific collections of rock art in the world, and interpreting these ancient artworks provides valuable insights into our history

I loved my very short time in Australia some four years ago, and I also loved being in New Zealand then too. However that was before my daughter moved to New Zealand and I was on holiday. What’s not to like about holidays? I loved looking around Sydney and Melbourne, seeing the iconic sights such as the Sydney Opera House. We visited the Blue Mountains and went to a wildlife park to see the animals native to Australia. Then a cruise across the Tasmanian sea and spent a day cruising the breathtaking sounds of New Zealand. Milford Sound was absolutely awe inspiring. Out visits to different places as we cruised up the coast of New Zealand were interesting and informative. We loved every minute. But living in a place is not the same as holidaying in a place. During our holiday we didn’t visit a single supermarket. Why would we? We were on holiday. So we never found out that prices for basic foodstuff are so much more expensive than the UK. However I do remember thinking that it was all so wonderful to experience but that it’s so very far away from anywhere else in the world and therefore I wouldn’t like to live there. I thought that more in New Zealand than I did in Australia to be honest.

Thank you for your kind thoughts Jennifer.

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Callistemon21 I'm obviously aware of petroglyphs and pictographs and early Aboriginal art but it is not something that on its own would draw me there - any more than (say) the Lascaux Cave works would be sufficient to encourage me to visit from the UK or the petroglyphs in Nevada.

We all like different things. I don't want to have to interpret all the time to feel close to earlier generations. I'm a simple soul really and I suppose I like to feel people who might have been me there. I suppose that must be a failing.

aussiegran for all its faults and I can’t deny that it has quite a few when the NHS works well it’s fantastic.
The thing is that we have got used to it. In our surgery there are a lot more telephone appointments but if you really need to see a Dr you can.
The thing is that we understand how things work in our own countries. I’m in NSW at the moment and, because my DD lives here I’m sure she would get me sorted if I needed medical help. I’ve no idea how to access it.
If I had to choose another country to live in it would have to be one where we share a language, so important IMO. How could I fit in in France with my schoolgirl French and DH’s schoolboy German? I would want a proper life not one that depended on a small group of expats.
Also to find one that would welcome us at our age would be tricky.
If I was answering the question 45 years ago I may have had a different response.