Returning to the UK earlier than expected

[evojoan]

On the 2nd September we will have been in Adelaide a year (1 year update to follow). We are settling into our new life here in Adelaide and were not expecting to return to the UK on holiday for at least a couple of years, or maybe longer. But my younger and only Brother is getting married on 5th July 2015 and I would love to be there to help him celebrate his wedding day.

 

Has anyone else been back to the UK within the first two years of emigrating and if so did it make you realise you had made the best decision moving to Australia or did it make the homesickness worse & make you yearn for the UK even more.

 

:confused::confused:

[cliffy]

"Has anyone else been back to the UK within the first two years of emigrating and if so did it make you realise you had made the best decision moving to Australia or did it make the homesickness worse & make you yearn for the UK even more"

 

Yes, I was back in UK for 4 months, after I had been here 18 months and was homesick for Adelaide and my life here the whole time. I could not wait to get back.

[scooterdan]

We went back for a wedding after being here 3 months..... even after that time i could see differences!! Although that was nearly 7 years ago and i guess a lot has change here and there!

 

Dan

[Guest Guest75]

I think it will be a good "test" of your move here.

It is fairly early to go back but it won't hurt.

 

I did not go back until 6 years after our arrival - I really noticed the changes.

[Guest Claire-n-tel]

Has anyone else been back to the UK within the first two years of emigrating and if so did it make you realise you had made the best decision moving to Australia or did it make the homesickness worse & make you yearn for the UK even more.

 

:confused::confused:

 

Hi!.....the first time we went back was after 13 months, we weren't homesick or yearning for the uk before we went and we weren't after either.

 

our attitude to moving here was never in the hope that it would be the best decision ever but just the next (and not final) part of our lives.

[soo_the_panda]

I went back for 2.5 weeks after 15 months. I've been here almost 7 years and gone back on holidays 4 times - 5th time scheduled for November.

My situation is slightly different in that I didn't plan to 'emigrate' as such - I came out on a one year working holiday with no intention of staying until 10 months in when I was offered my 'dream job' and sponsorship. Going home that first time messed with my emotions big time - but I would definitely not let that put you off! to be honest, every time I go back, or someone comes to stay here, I experience major homesicknesses, sadness - without sounding melodramatic, it's almost like a mini grieving process each time. Hate it but think it's all part of being an expat, especially somewhere so far away.

 

I definitely would not let the fear of any of that stop you though! Also, you may find you can't truly know if Adelaide feels like home until you've been back to the UK, then back here again. To me, I now feel like I'm going home to the UK - but also coming home (again) flying back into Adelaide. Whilst I truly feel 'at home' here, the UK will ALSO always be my home.

[snifter]

Hubby has been back already (although he is an Aussie and from Adelaide he called England home for 8 years and was very happy and settled there) and that was before we hit the 9 month mark. He is going back again in a couple of months and we'll have just been here a year. He enjoyed being back in the England, he was working in the same city we had moved from, but said it didn't feel like home anymore. He was happy to get back to Adelaide and his cycling. And this was with great English summer weather, hitting 30C on the odd day and him catching up with friends and family. He'll most likely be heading to England on a regular basis for work reasons but will also use it to catch up with family and friends and other things. I don't mind him going. I'm not homesick, not missing anything really and no desire to be there for any strong reason. I am planning a trip next year, July 2015 and I'll have been here less than 2 years at that point. I doubt it will change how settled I am living here. It will be a holiday, nothing more.

 

I think if you are settled and happy in your new life in Aus a visit back at any point isn't really going to cause any real woes. Its perhaps more when you are homesick or struggling to settle in and call it home that it may unsettle or cause you to question.

 

Also keep in mind going back for a wedding where everyone will be around, happy to see you and good moods abound is not how life really is. Its special occasion life

[Anne B]

I've been back and forth quite a bit between the UK and Adelaide over the last 22 years. Lived here for 3 years in the 90s. We moved back here in 2009 after 12 years in England and I thought I was reasonably settled. After over 3 and a half years away from the UK, last year we went back for a holiday and it completely and unexpectedly unsettled all of us. Still trying to decide whether to call it quits and head back to England as I don't think I will ever be able to call Adelaide home.

[adelaidenow]

I went back after a year for a funeral.

 

To me Adelaide was home as soon as I landed here, so it was no big deal. If you think it's big deal being back so quickly it will be one. If you think of Adelaide as home I can't see any problem going back and forth.

 

i have been here over 10 years and been back countless times, and now go regularly, I go and enjoy being back but don't think of it as anything more than a 'trip to UK'.

[Guest vikkiann]

I went back 13 months after arriving, within 2 days I couldn't wait to get back to Australia!

I then went back 7 months later and still wanted my life to be here!

 

We are planning our next trip in 2017

[nikkinoodlesuk]

We went back just after a year, My Mam had a stroke a few months after we emigrated and I needed to see she was ok, plus it was her 60th birthday one of those important milestones. We also had another family member with severe problems which made it difficult for us.

 

When back in the UK my husband was having mixed feelings but I was sooo looking forward to coming back to Adelaide.

We've been here over 5 years now, and love it, although husband and oldest daughter still get very homesick, we have a trip booked to spend Xmas in Wales and as much as I'm looking forward to it, I've got a feeling my husband and daughter are going to struggle returning to Adelaide.

 

This will be our 3rd trip back and it seems to get harder each time, I also think the fact that we have a strong network of family and friends in Wales is the reason it gets harder.

[Lily Rainbow]

I've just spent a few months in Adelaide,helping to look after my Mum.Have to be honest and say I was glad to be heading back to the UK.Spent 30 yrs all up living in SA,been in the UK 15 yrs and love it.

[evojoan]

Hi all

Thanks to everyone for their experiences. We are loving our life here in Adelaide, it has been an emotional journey but up to now one we are glad we made.

 

So now the count down begins to next years holiday to sunny Scunnie, Donnie & Leeds

[Gumster]

I went back 3wks ago for a funeral & had only bern here 8mths. I only went for a week as I'd started a new job here. It was lovely to see everyone again however it was good to board the plane again. It gave me a distance to bw able to see just wot I have in adelaide compared to my old life. I'd say it gave me a lot of closure perhaps but made me realise I was only 24 hrs away from them & if needs must can get home quickly in a crisis xx