Tell us about Adelaide ?

[Guest GMERIN53]

I / We are fairly new to the Forum.

We have been on Poms in OZ for a while and the wife would like to move to Melbourne, which is where her sister lives. Saying that she stays in Mount Martha which is supposedly a very nice area.

What I want to know is - Why come to ADELAIDE ?

I think the place looks Beautiful and I think the wife needs persuading!

Help me out here!

Post all the good things to see and do, the best areas to live, the best areas for kids, and all the positives please - Web site links would be good!

I look forward to a wealth of information coming my way!

[Guest guest4829]

Hey Gmerin53,

 

I suppose it depends on what you are looking for? I visited Adelaide last year for the first time and then brought my whole family out here in June this year. I have to say I didn't think that much of the area on my visit and the locals I spoke to didn't think Adelaide had that much to offer but my job meant that I had to come here rather than anywhere else.

 

I am so glad I wasn't put off - Adelaide and region has so much to offer! We are still exploring and getting to know the place but so far it's fantastic!

 

It's quieter and more laid back than many other cities and Adelaide itself is still fairly small but it's well laid out and everything is there - it has a great 'feel' to it! We love central market on a Friday night (anytime is great but Friday night is best!), we also love Glenelg and Henley beach (and it's still winter). The Adelaide mountains are beautiful, Victor Harbour is a great day out!.

 

we are lucky enough to live on the edge of the Barossa valley in Gawler - we love it here, all the feel of a country town yet still close enough to the city and of course the wineries!! I like many people, thought Jacobs Creek was the be all and end all of Aussie wine - BIG MISTAKE!! we only live 20 minutes from the HQ but wouldn't go there again or buy the stuff when there is so much more in the smaller wineries around!

 

I can't imagine a much better place to live except I must admit the weather has been awful since we got here - however in comparison to Scotland I suppose I shouldn't complain!!

 

Anyway - I was a real sceptic on the place and now I could go on all day about how great we have found it!

 

Daniel

 

p.s. where in Scotland you from??

[Diane]

Don't know much about Melbourne, or the areas around Melbourne, to live in, so can't give any sort of comparison I'm afraid, but just to start the ball rolling...

 

Adelaide is...

More of a big town than a small city: most things are reachable within about 30 minutes drive, wherever you live: Beaches (all down the west side, from north to south); Hills, (mostly down the East side); Wineries (boy, where do I start? McLaren Vale, Barossa, Adelaide Hills, Clare Valley - some a little bit further depending on where you are living..); shops, sports, restaurants and cafes. There is also a friendly kind of vibe to Adelaide - once you've lived here a while, it's hard to go anywhere without bumping into someone you know (could be good, could be bad), and because Adelaide and South Australia is the "forgotten" capital, people tend to be quite proud of the place, and give you 'points' on the friendly scale for choosing to come here! People - complete strangers - take the time to chat to you.

 

The climate is described as 'Mediterranean' - I've noticed we tend to get Perth weather a couple of days after them! Can be very hot in the summer, but feels quite chilly in the winter - although not to the point of snow, ice and frost (very rarely anyway). Generally SA is the driest state in the country, and the heat is certainly a dry heat (as opposed to humid), but we don't tend to get the 'four seasons in one day' that Melbourne is renouned for.

 

It's a very well laid out city - having been built primarily to a plan, with lots of parklands, parks, nice country areas within easy reach. For example, near us there is Morialta Gorge - you are just 10 minutes from the centre of the city, yet could be in the middle of the French ardeche region. Beautiful.

 

We have the Torrens River running pretty much North East to South West, passing through the city centre, with walking and cycling trails and parkland all along it.

 

Historically the "poshest" areas have been to the East, but in recent years developments in the West have become sought after, mainly for their proximity to the beaches. North is generally industrial but has a lot of new developments and investment, with some very nice areas in the close north such as Mawson Lakes, and some nice country towns such as Gawler which is a little further out, but well connected transport wise. North West beach areas have traditionally been a little run down, but are growing in popularity and probably a good investment.

 

South has attracted a lot of Brits in the past few years - again probably because of the proximity to beaches plus the attraction of cheaper land. Transport is a little hit and miss at the moment imho because of the ridiculous "one way at a time" freeway, and most roads tend to run either north-south or east-west, so getting from South West to North East (if that's your commute to work for instance) or vice versa, can be a bit of a pain but there are rail and bus links (mostly city-centric). We also have a tram that runs between the City and Glenelg which is on the west, slightly south west, and the O-Bahn which runs between the North East and the City (busses that run on rails for part of the route)

 

The hills areas of the South East range from very up-market (such as Stirling) to nice and middle class (Belair and surrounds) and are very pretty, well located, and have nice community spirit, but bushfires are something to be aware of (not often, but forget the risk at your peril!). North Eastern suburbs are also very nice, bordered by the hills, good transport, good facilities (shops, recreational etc) good commute to lots of work in different fields (building, industrial, technological, engineering, administrative etc)

 

I've said in the past that Adelaide isn't a place for bright lights and party on down, but it's a quiet, peaceful (generally), proud place, good for families, with charms that are subtle and understated. It's not known for it's shopping (Melbourne is), its nightlife, or its 'buzz', but we do have a couple of lively months in Feb/March/April with Festival and Fringe, and you can see top-class sports, shows, and bands here (sometimes!)

 

I think we have excellent schools here, huge choice, and three universities. And being a smallish place, if you or your family have a talent of any kind, it's a lot easier to be a Big fish in a small pond here. I find teenagers here generally articulate and polite which I think is a good indication of general standards. There is crime, there are drugs, there are plenty of deaths on the roads and a bit of roadrage - it's not utopia. But then, nowhere in the developed world is.

 

It's also about 8 hours drive to Melbourne, which - with your wife's rellies there - might be good news, or might be bad!

 

Dunno if any of that helps, I'm just trying to delay doing housework really or wouldn't have waffled on quite so much!

[Guest Guest75]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

 

I think the thread below should be compulsory reading ;)

 

http://www.pomsinadelaide.com/forum/news-gossip/16040-all-who-have-settled-here.html

 

Good luck!

[RockDr]

I won't go on about Adelaide, but you might want to talk to your wife, and point out that sometimes, definitely seeing someone for a whole weekend every 4-6 weeks (you can alternate who visits who, or meet up in the middle for a long weekend in the Grampians, and if you book flights in advance and during the sales, can get some pretty good deals), can work better than seeing each other one evening a week, but someone cancels half the time because somthing comes up, and you actually only end up seeing each other every few weeks anyway.

When I lived in switzerland, one of my friends in London mentionned that she saw me more often than her friend who lived down the road, because if there's distance involved, you actually have to organise and put aside time, rather than saying "yeah, we should meet up sometime".

[Prema]

Do you not have to pay fully for state school fees in Melbourne, generally primary state school is $300 and secondary state school is about $650 for the year in SA. I'm sure that I read somewhere that the same fees you pay as private schools here in Adelaide are the same fees that you will have to pay for VIC. Think this applied for temp visa holders only...

It's good to know as if we had opted for Melbourne we would have been in quite some trouble, for a few years.

 

Prema

[Guest RichandHelen]

Adelaide, traffic cameras everywhere. Melbourne, even worse...

[ian mc]

If you go to Melbourne from Adelaide its like traveling into the future and people are a lot more friendly in Melbourne. Adelaide is a lot quieter than Melbourne and the rest of OZ call it a country town.

[Guest WhatNow?]

Property prices are very much higher in Melbourne for renting or buying, as my nephew found to his cost when his company relocated him....don't get much for your money. Also it has been even colder/wetter than Adelaide, which is the norm.

[Diane]

... and people are a lot more friendly in Melbourne....

 

Isn't that strange? I've always found the total opposite!!

[Guest smit]

Mount Martha is a nice area, expensive too. Can hardly call it Melbourne though...over an hour away to cbd

 

Dont wanna start something , but why do you not want to go where your wifes sister is?......sounds like grief in the making to me.

 

Having said that......out of the places ive been in oz, Melbourne is the only place that ,me personally, wouldnt live.