We had great excitement here in the Doobie household as we have finally left our little shoe box and moved into a much better sized apartment. Our lease in the first place came to an end (can you believe we have been here more than a year already) and we started scouring the real estate listings for a new home. I am sure I recounted the strange manner in which Australians find homes to rent a year ago but this time was a little more civilised. For starters we had a bit of time to look for an apartment and didn't have to make a spur of the moment decision and secondly we had all the necessary credentials to rent a flat (job, references etc) so we didn't have to worry about finding a sympathetic landlord. Sydney rental prices are quite frankly insane. A two bedroom apartment on our side of town costs more than a 4 bedroom house on huge land further North or in the West, but we had our minds set on the local public school and we wanted to be close to the train station so we decided to compromise size for location. Its interesting to see what agents here think are comparable value properties, so we saw some magnificent apartments with spas, gyms and indoor swimming pool but that would only be suitable if you never intended to entertain and didn't mind having two under 6s in a flat the size of a matchbox to some enormous three bedroom apartments that were held together by sticky tape and prayer. Eventually we chose our new place. It has everything we could think of - walking distance to the school, a lock up garage, tons of storage space, a communal garden, proximity to a park and nice sized area. The kids have turned the dining room into a playroom so for them, this is just the best place ever. (We bought a folding dining table so that we can convert the room back to its original intention if we have guests). True the building is typical art deco and quite ugly but as it is not really visible being set into the side of a cliff, it really doesn't matter. I think we will be happy to stay here for a couple of years.
Moving was a bit of a mission. We used hire-a-box for the boxes which was great as they refund you some of your money when you are finished with them. They also deliver and pick up the boxes free so that made things a lot easier. Our movers were not great though. Moving companies here don't charge on the size of the apartment, rather they move you on a per hour basis. This means that moving day is drawn out into the longest possible process so that they can make the most out of the deal. They estimated 3 hours in the beginning but it took them closer to 6! They moved so slowly and took a ten minute break every time they went to the truck. It was so frustrating but there was not much we could do about it, so we just waited patiently (Yeah right) until it was all done. To their credit nothing got broken or damaged but I think if they had had another job waiting in the afternoon, they could have halved the time.
So far big school is going well for Rafi. He loves his teacher who is very patient and sweet and he has made a close circle of friends. His best friend is a girl named Orla and she is a huge tomboy. He is playing tennis on Tuesdays in a squad and he plays cricket on Saturday mornings. He plays ARL (Rugby League) at school once a week and will be starting Rugby Union after Easter. I was a bit anti the rugby union idea at first but it is really mini rugby - they play barefoot and we were assured that they play it more like touch rugby style rather than with serious tackling or scrums. I never realised that Kindy meant so much homework, my poor son brings home a book every night that he has to read by himself and he has to do an oral (show and tell style) every week too.
Mitch has gone up to the new group in pre-school too. He is still getting used to it but they take him back to his old class if he asks them. He also plays tennis on Mondays. Last week he was so excited when he hit a forehand that he dropped the racket and came running off the court to tell me about it. Mitchell's best friend's name is James and we try to make a play date once a week with him. They are both mad about Thomas the Tank engine and spend most of the play dates constructing train tracks and zooming trains round and round. If the weather is good then we meet at park and then they both play that they are the trains themselves. Its very cute to watch them running around choo chooing and tooting.
Hubby's job is good. His walk to the train station is now a bit longer in the mornings but at least it is flat now rather than all uphill. There is a bus option but DH prefers walking. (well as long as the weather is good). One of my favourite things about the new place is that we are around the corner from a little shopping strip and they have the most amazing delis, coffee shops and other stores. After I walk Rafi to school, Mitch and I often go for a walk around the shops. There are always interesting goodies to see in the windows. There is also an amazing fruit shop where it looks like each fruit has been hand polished. Another shop that sells pasta and other goodies, makes Mitch's favourite noodle dish.
See ya in March...
0 comments:
Post a Comment