Newbie from South Africa.. to Darwin

[Arleneg75]

Hi everyone

I am a mother of 2 young kids and we are from South Africa. We have recently decided to emigrate to Australia. We are moving to Darwin, Australia on 20 November this year.

I am really excited but nervous at the same time. I am looking forward to making friends on this forum. Anyone else here from Darwin?

My children are almost 4 year old Caitlin and almost 2 year old Daniel. They both have their birthdays in February.

Arlene

[aussienic]

Hi and welcome.. I am not from Darwin but am going there for a holiday next year

[mrsmac]

Hi and welcome. I live in Sydney but lived in Darwin for 14 months, DD2 was born there.

[Arleneg75]

Thanks for the welcome. mrsmac, did you enjoy Darwin?
I'm quite anxious since I have never been there before. Visited other cities in Australia before and loved Sydney the most but we are off to Darwin since I got a job there.

We hope to get the kids into daycare within the first 2 months and DH needs to get a job.

Hope we like it there. Any info would be appreciated.

[Lucy]

I was in Darwin for a long while.......my eldest was born there....

We now live in Adelaide, but I still hanker for Darwin at times!

Where are you going to be living in Darwin?

In comparison to other Australian cities I found it small, friendly, tropical and very very laid back. It is very different to Sydney: much much smaller.

I found it very family friendly. You'll have no issues getting child care.......places aplenty!

Welcome, and best of luck!

[Arleneg75]

The company I will be joining has an apartment in the city and we will be staying there for a few weeks. Then we will have to find a place to rent.
Seems like the Palmerston area is very nice but we will decide when we get there.

I realise that Darwin is a very small city but I am sure we will fit in. We live in Johannesburg at the moment and it is also a big city so it will be an adjustment to live in a small city.

Regarding Daycare, seems like a lot of the cheaper places get filled pretty quickly. I phoned 2 places that were recommended to me and they both had waiting lists of over 12 months. So, thats pretty scary. There are others with space but they are more expensive.

[mrsmac]

We lived in Durack which is part of Palmerston and we loved it, very family friendly, good school, plenty of open spaces and parks.
I agree with Lucy- Darwin is very laid back and welcoming, almost everyone you meet is from somewhere else originally so they are very friendly to newcomers.
Are you ready for the humidity??

[Lucy]

I am not as familiar with child care options in the Palmerston area........we lived in Bayview, which is a way away. We used Stuart Park Community Childcare Centre, which was wonderful.......(I was on jury duty for a while and Olivia went FT for a few weeks, then part time.)

Mrs Mac makes a good point about the humidity........it is hot and heavy! Its worth opting for a pool wherever you decide to live.....makes the heat bearable..........(and air con, obviously!)

[Arleneg75]

Yes, I have been told about the heat and humidity before. I guess I will know when I get there whether we will survive it.

I'm from South Africa so it is hot here but we don't have humidity in Johannesburg. I am originally from Durban which is on the coast and there is humidity in summer. But I have been told Darwin is worse than Durban, so we will see.
As long as there are aircons I'm sure we will survive.

Is it really that bad?

[mrsmac]

Its almost indescribably bad sorry!! I can remember sweating while drying myself after a COLD shower! Its really oppressive, you do get used to it but its still draining.
There is a big Child care centre at Durack, not sure what else cause its been so long since we left!
Hey Lucy- I worked at Stuart Park School!!!

[Arleneg75]

Its almost indescribably bad sorry!! I can remember sweating while drying myself after a COLD shower! Its really oppressive, you do get used to it but its still draining.
There is a big Child care centre at Durack, not sure what else cause its been so long since we left!
Hey Lucy- I worked at Stuart Park School!!!

Oh no. Thats not what I wanted to hear
But its a start on our journey into Australia. I guess if its really bad and we can't survive we can always move.

[mrsmac]

Sadly for you, you are arriving in the wet season which is the worst! Having said that the dry season is fantastic, not as much humidity, warm weather and no rain for months.

[Lucy]

I'd agree.......the humidity is shocking. I couldn't believe it when we first moved there. But I did get used to it........I went through two pregnancies and breastfeeding in the humidity and coped! The dry season is wonderful.....makes up for the build up!

MrsMac! When were you at Stuart park? My godsons both went there!

[Arleneg75]

Ok, now you guys are making me scared about the humidity.
I will report back once we move. Wish me luck.

[mrsmac]

I taught there for 1999 Lucy. I had Yr1 but we were buddy classes with a 6/7 composite.

[AndiE]

Hey there, I lived in Darwin seven years before moving to Brisbane 2 years ago. Yes, it's humid, but trust me ... it's "survive-able". I'm originally from Tasmania (the coldest state in Australia) - and I survived . The "Build-Up" is the worst of it, as it doesn't generally rain, it's just hot and humid. Once the wet season starts (1 Dec till approx end March/April) there tends to be a fair bit of rain, which I always found relieved the humidity for a while. And the storms ... fantastic! The lightning "shows" are truly spectacular. The wet season was a great time to be in the Top End.

Also, take comfort in the fact that your home will likely have air conditioning, your workplace, your car, all the shops, restaurants etc etc. Generally, most residential complexes have swimming pools too (you can't swim in the ocean or rivers between Sept-May due to jellyfish).

Darwin is small, but a very modern city. It has a great sense of community and I really enjoyed my years there. Palmerston is about a 20 min drive out of the Darwin CBD. To me, Palmerston has got a different "feel" to Darwin (I lived close to the Darwin city), but my opinion only. The population of Palmerston is pretty large, so I feel sure there would be several child care centres to choose from.

Good luck with your move.

Andie

[Arleneg75]

Thanks for your reply Andie and your good wishes. Its good to hear that the weather is survivable.
Your baby is gorgeous btw. I love looking at everyones signatures. Really beautiful babies on this forum.

[Lulu]

You have a couple of stunners there yourself!
Welcome to BB!