Immigration Forum / Australia and NZ / October 2007

Now that is a really open-ended question with lots of possible
variables!

Firstly, what is your definition of a "normal" life? Definitions
vary widely from person to person, and I would
be a bit surprised if even you and your wife would have the
same definitions.  

One way I could approach the question is how my wife
& I would try to look at the situation were we to enter
Australia for the first time today with no jobs arranged
beforehand.

Firstly, we probably wouldn't be looking for settling down
even semi-permantly in a given location.  Would look
for cheap accommodation where we could rent from
month to month, or even week to week, as wouldn't
wasn't to be tied down by a lease as mentioned in previous
letter.
[above].

At the same time, would want to do our own cooking to
save money.

As it happens, just sent a reply to Helen in Rec. Travel which
dealt with a similar issue of low cost accommodation, but just
a few days in Sydney for two people.
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Newsgroups: rec.travel.australia+nz
Subject: Re: quiet small hostel in Sydney - mission impossible?
Sender: kangaroo@invalid.com
Message-ID: <g498i3dn02i4jkrka7d285naf93pr293dt@4ax.com>
References:
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Date: Sun, 28 Oct 2007 05:28:15 GMT
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Renting a caravan in a caravan park by the month would
seem a good option.   Not as any sort of a permanent arrangement,
just a temporary place to stay until one or both of us had jobs,
then would have the flexibility to move at pretty short notice.

Being confined together in the limited space of a caravan would
probably be a bit difficult, but can stand almost anything for
a couple of months.  Even if may have to go to a central building
for toilets, showers, and washing machines.

As to caravan rental, really have no idea of current rates.
Depends how far it is out of the CBD, whether the park is private
or run by the local shire, and so on.  

However a few enquires to the caravan parks in Sydney site should
give you some info for a start.

Employers here are desperate for workers of all sorts, and it is
definitely a "sellers market" as the link to the article
"Recruiters reinvent rules"

What the link doesn't show, but the newspaper does, is a little
"Strategies" list for employers and recruiters.  It says, quote:

. Speed interviewing
. Let candidates create their own job descriptions
. Provide opportunities to take sabbaticals
. Offer flexible work arrangements
. Pay superior salaries
. Introduce generous maternity leave provisions
. Provide retention bonuses
. Offer bonuses such shares and performance related pay
. Give ample opportunities to train, learn and develop
. Build relationships at all levels

www.rcsa.com.au
www.eocexpo.com.au
www.mets.net.au
www.hays.com.au
www.beaton.com.au

Haven't checked any of the above.  You might want to have a look
at them.

Anyway, other things to do at the moment, so will close.  Hope
some of the info may be useful.

Cheers,
Kangaroo16

As probably wouldn't have a car at that stage, would probably
choose a small caravan park, located near a train station, as
offers great flexibility of travel over a wide area.  Prefer
trains  over buses, as buses can get caught up in heavy traffic,
especially if there is an accident on a highway or main road, as
this can tie up traffic for hours.  

Nevertheless, if possible, would mind being on a bus route as
well.  This would be pretty likely if a train station near.

One of the first things would get would be a street directory
of Sydney.  It can be embarrassing to have an address for a job
interview and get lost trying to find the place.  Would also
get a map of the railway system and bus routes, as well as
schedules for both.  

Would check on cost and availability of tourist type
"day trip explore Sydney" fares.  Last time I checked could
for a pretty moderate cost get a day long pass enabling travel
anywhere on the train, bus, & ferry public transport system. Just
to get a "feel" for the city, if nothing else.  There is quite a
lot to see in the Sydney area.  A trip to Taronga Park
Zoo would be a must, to acquaint us with Australian animals.

This is on the north side of the harbour, at Mosman.  Can get
buses there, but the easiest and most pleasant trip is to go via
Circular Quay on the south side of the harbour near fairly near
the CBD.  This is the main spot in the city where most ferries
dock, there is a city railway station, and a number of bus stops.
So wherever I was living in Sydney, would go to the zoo via
Circular Quay.

Access to a computer would be a must, of course, for job
applications, research, communication, and so on.  My own and
an Internet connection if affordable, although could get by
if there was a library nearby.  Most would have computers with a
high speed broadband connection.  Usually no charge for
using the computer as long as you like, printing and photocopying
available at a reasonable charge.

Would do my best to compose a couple of  professional quality
C.V.s or Resumes, one that would use to apply for a job in my
chosen field.

Another to cover any other job I might want to apply for in the
interim, or a part-time job, or a short term job.

These could be printed out as needed, photostatted, etc.
On the other hand, if you have camera ready copy, and think
you might be sending out a lot of them, you can take camera
ready copy to any large printer.  They will make a photo offset
plate from it which isn't all that expensive, and print it on 500
or 1000 sheets of any quality paper you want for little more than
the cost of the paper.   This is for black, white, and halftones
on an offset press.

If you want color, of course, it will be considerably dearer to
have printed, but if just want a small number a good colour
printer can print nice copy off a computer disk or other storage
media.

I suppose one resume could cover both types of jobs,  but
in looking for a lower paid job outside ones field, it can be
better not to mention professional qualifications.

After all, why should an employer hire you and possibly spend
money training you if he knows you are going to quit and
take a higher paid professional job if the opportunity offers.

Personally, wouldn't bother with the use of colour in paperwork
for a job application, but this is a matter of choice.  No idea
what is considered a good resume these days.

However, for a professional application, I would give some
thought to the paper it is printed on.  Many people seem to
use cheap photocopy type paper.  To make my application stand
out from the others would submit it on quality bond paper.

As probably is obvious, am not organizing this material according
to topic, just writing off the top of my head as various points
occur to me.

Getting back to the choice of a caravan park, would try to choose
one not only handy to transport, but one that had some shops or a
supermarket reasonably handy, as within easy walking distance.

If run out of something, neither of you want to have to catch a
train or bus to the nearest market.

Many markets deliver for a small charge, even small supermarkets.
Actually, a few do most of their business on the net and may only
operate out of a warehouse, not bothering to maintain a retail
shop.

Amazon books is one of the more profitable business on the net
and they operate worldwide out of a small warehouse in Seattle,
Washington, from memory.  They don't keep a lot of stock on hand
either, just order a lot of it from the publishers as needed.

Try a Google search for
web shopping groceries sydney .au

Just tried it and got about 1,300,000 returns.  One on the first
page was:

Best Sellers - Sydney - Woolworths HomeShop - Australia's premier
Online shopping for everyday grocery needs at everyday
supermarket prices delivered ... In order to use HomeShop, your
Web browser must support JavaScript, ...
www.homeshop.com.au/bestsellers.asp?

I haven't checked the site itself as when went there they
demanded that I allow placement of a "cookie" on my system, which
I generally don't allow.  

However, if you are willing to allow it, checking the site will
give you an idea of current food prices in Sydney.  Fresh fruit
and vegetables, fresh meat more expensive than usual due to
a severe drought and water shortages at this time.

Of course, if really want to save money and eat cheaply buy in
bulk at a wholesale warehouse.  Most of these exist to serve
smaller shopkeepers who aren't part of a major chain.  Supposedly
they are "wholesale" and not "retail" but most will deal with you
as long as buy say, $200 worth at a time.  Some canned goods
and small retail packs of rice, sugar, etc. also in case lots.  

Most also have catering packs of products in large cans, bags,
etc.  However, if living in a trailer you probably won't have a
lot of storage space.  In that case, get to know some local
neighbors who have more space and shop together with them.

Fresh fruit and vegetables?  Look for supermarket specials or
buy at a farmers market.  

It is much cheaper to prepare your own meals than to go out to
eat.  Sure, you can get a McDonalds hamburger for $A 3.50 or so,
but I suspect I can do one more to my taste for less expenditure.

Just did a search on Google using the string

migrants guide to australia

and to my surprise got around 344,000
returns.  Judging from the first page of 10 there
are a few books out now.  It might be interesting
to explore further on this issue.

Anyway, just a few more random thoughts, I don't know how much
they will help.