Not necessarily, you could probably check it if you had a mobile phone that can access the internet.

Not necessarily, you could probably check it if you had a mobile phone that can access the internet.

Now I'm picturing some guy hopping up and down on the spot and shouting "LOAD, DAMN YOU! LOAD!!" at his Nokia.

Since I'm about to become all un-American and stuff next month, would anyone mind offering up some random advice about moving across the world and tips on life in the Southern hemisphere?

Ooooh! Where are you off to? Is it forever?

t /ignorant

My boyfriend and I are moving to Sydney for a year at least. Well, that's our optimistic plan. (I'm remaining my dark self by imagining all sorts of catastrophes.) Then we might go back to the US, stay in AU, or go somewhere entirely different.

You know, billytea gave a shiny kangaroo dollar to the first non-Aussie Buffista to visit him there; you two ought to get something extra shiny for actually moving there.

Also, I'm quite jealous. I can't even get Hec to consider moving to Canada, and it's right next door.

Re: upping sticks and moving to a new continent - helps if you've got something set up in the way of job up front. But I understand that it's pretty straightforward getting temp jobs in Australia? Other than that, all I'd say is Go For It! And well done, you!

moving across the world and tips on life in the Southern hemisphere?

Don't jump, or else you might fall off the planet. It is all upside down over there, you know.

Wear lots of sunscreen as IIRC you are almost the whitest person on the planet and AUS is sunny in that "almost no ozone layer" way.

I gather that Consuela highly recommends Zorbing, which is basically sealing yourself inside a massive cat toy and rolling yourself down a hill. Why they do that only in the Antipodes -- actually, NZ, but maybe they do it in AUS too -- I do not know.

My only insights about moving are: buy those floor-protective feet for your furniture! Pack your checkbook, recent bills data (i.e. account and phone numbers, if not actual bills), and passport all in the same place. You will need them all at once, and immediately.

The recent bills data isn't as immediately necessary when you jump countries, especially that far, I've found. Checkbook can be next to useless too. However, passport and all your immigration papers should be close to hand.

We don't have jobs there yet, but Almanzo's occupation is in high demand, and if I take classes at the university, I can qualify for a student visa, so we should be all right. We've got the ETA's, so that's three months to find corporate or scholastic sponsorship.