tell me about Canberra

[Glittergal]

Can anyone tell me about Canberra? I can't find anything but touristy info...We're looking to move overseas and Canberra is one of the few places both my husband and I can work. We like anything outdoorsy. How s it for families? Public schools? General quality of life? Birthing options? Anything?
:)

[aussiemum]

I've never been to Canberra, but we have considered moving there. I can share with you what I've 'heard', if that helps a bit. :)

It's a totally planned community, & it has a reputation for being a bit 'sterile'. It's the national capitol, so there are lots of politicians about. I've heard there's not a whole lot going on at night, as in not much of a live music/restaurant/club scene, etc., which kind of surprises me since the Australian National University is located there. It's close to the ski-fields, so it's about the best location in Aus for winter outdoor activities. In summer you can hike in the high alpine country, or drive a couple hours to the swimming & surfing beaches.

Cold in winter, hot in summer. Prone to bushfires, so don't buy or rent a house near a plantation pine forest. Canberra has the highest proportion of private school students in the country-around 65% I think. Don't know whether that says something about the schools, or about parent preference, tbh. :shrug:

Birthing options are very limited in most parts of this country, downright shocking in others. Would you like an epidural or a cesarean with that baby, Mrs. Smith? For the most part anyway. there are still some very good midwives about though, if you persist & know who to ask.

If you can get around that & are reasonably well paid, life is very sweet in Australia, in my experience. hth. :)

[Glittergal]

uh, okay. Doesn't sound too great, but I can probably work with it! :)
Thanks for the info. Does anyone else have any opinions?

[aussiemum]

Oh dear. I think maybe I sounded a bit scary before.

I guess I should add that a lot of people choose to live in Canberra because it's a pretty safe & comfy place. Most people I've known who have lived/ grown up there liked it. There are lots of good walking (hiking) tracks around thru state & national park, & the museums are fantastic. Cannabis is legal there, too, if that helps at all. :)

[spin462002]

I have lived in Canberra for almost half a century. I have travelled the whole world, and I would not live anywhere else! We have 300,000 people and we are a planned city, not something that just grew out of a big nothing. We have three big man made lakes.

We are the national capital of Australia so we have a parliament here and many national public buildings like the art gallery, museum, library, war museum etc. We have the best facilities here for raising children and our crime rate and unemployment rate is low.

We have four definite seasons and it is early summer right now. It is 36C or 96.8F which is a little warmer than usual for this time of year. We are in drought, so we have water restrictions. We had big fires here in January 2003 and lost 500 homes and four people. That was a first for us and totally unexpected. The pine plantations burned down so there is no chance of you living near one now!

You can find out more about canberra at

www.canberratourism.com.au

Marijuana is in no way legal here although you won't go to jail if you have a small amount for personal use. All recreational drugs are illegal in this country.

We have the best cycle path network in the country and lots of parks and recreation areas around the lakes. There is a river area designated for power boats, you cannot use them in the lakes. Sailing boats only.

Birth options are many, homebirth, birthing centre at Canberra Hospital, hospital birth. Australia, like the USA, has an astronomical rate of c-sections, so personally I would avoid hospitals. They are fine in an emergency.

Most people in Canberra are what might be known as middle class to upper middle class for want of a better definition, well educated, employed, environmentally aware and not poor. Australia has a good system of providing govt. benefits to unemployed, disabled, single moms etc, so single moms can stay home with their children by choice.

Canberra is a beautiful city, it snows here about every five years and goes down to about -5C or 23F in winter. Our homes and shopping centers are heated accordingly and you do get used to it. We have four major malls and lots of smaller regional shopping centers.

We are three hours drive from Sydney, two from the beach, two from the snow. Eight hours driving to melbourne.

Some of the few disadvantages include the fact that many major performers never come here, so we go to Sydney to see them! The public transport/taxi systems are terrible here, so most people drive where they need to go. The up side of that is we have great roads and it only takes max. 45 minutes to drive from the north to the south of the city on a freeway.

We have two major universities here and many schools and colleges. We have two major hospitals.

I think that's the best outline I can give you. Once you get to know people you would love it here, get used to the millions of round-abouts on the roads and come to love our sunny winter days and cooler summer nights.

trust me ; )

Lynn

[Glittergal]

thanks aussiemom and lyn!

i actually appreciate any input and it sounds like a fine place to move to! at this point in time, i'm more concerned with safe places, good schools and lots of opportunity for kids to run about. we're not really into cities or the arts - both of us are outdoorsy homebodies, so canberra would probably be great for us! i'm really leaning to moving there as i do have opportunities to work (i'm a midwife and can get licensed there) and am hoping we can get the ball rolling for a move in late 2007! so exciting!!!

[wildtigercubs]

Hi I don't know if you're still interested in Canberra but for what it's worth I'm a Canberra girl. I've lived here for the last 9 years. There are things I like and things I dislike. I love the northside, but I think that that's because I've spent the most time here. Southsiders will always tell you the southside is better-lol.

I've had all 3 of my kids here in the public hospital system. In fact I found that when I requested an epidural with my eldest they were quick to give me reasons why I shouldn't! I birthed my twins with the help of a little gas and nothing else and have nothing but praise for the midwives who were there both times.

I don't know much about the private school system but my eldest daughter attends a rather small school in Canberra (public) and I again have nothing but praise for it. The attention given to each student is fantastic and the equipment they have is impressive. I have zero problems with all 3 of mine attending school there.

There are plenty of outdoorsy places to go, plenty of parks and bushland etc. I have a huge reserve about 2 blocks away.

We have a fantastic public pre school system. Elsewhere in Australia it costs about $50 per child per half day for preschool education (that's with the rebate if you're eligible) but in Canberra it is free for those who can't afford it and a $25 donation a term for those who can.

I think for me what I like about Canberra is the fact that it is big enough to have big city advantages but not so big as to feel unsafe or have to travel in heavy heavy traffic to get anywhere.

As for the weather yes, winters are cold and summers are hot but we can also have 4 seasons in one day. Wake up to sun, pouring rain by lunchtime, overcast in the afternoon and hot by dinner-lol.

Hope this helps some and good luck with your move if it goes ahead.

[EricaLee]

I just want to put in a good word for Canberra here. I lived there for two years (2001 & 2002) - while going to grad school at the ANU - and I LOVED it! Actually - now that I think about it - it was six years ago today that we moved there. When I was there, I did miss parts of home...especially green grass and water. But, I should have realized, being in Australia, I shouldn't have expected anything other than brown grass in the summer and low precipitation levels. (Mind you, when we moved back to the US, the community we moved to gets over 200 inches of precipitation a year. But - now that we're back here - I long for Australia; Canberra. The place stole my heart!

Of course this is all relative - depending upon where you're coming from - but we miss warmth, sunshine, sun bronzed faces, fresh fruits and veggies, small, local grocery stores just a block from our house. Things really were a lot easier there.

We didn't own a vehicle for the two years that we were there and we found the public transit very accommodating. I know this contradicts what someone posted earlier, but I just needed to throw in a differing opinion. We also had bicycles and cycled EVERYWHERE in and around the city.

As for being a foreigner in a foreign country - that was challenging. More so than what I anticipated. I lived in Africa prior to Australia and I foudn that way easier. I think that was b/c in Africa I looked different and therefore was expected to act different. But, in Australia, I looked like everyone else but acted differently and that threw everyone off. It was hard to sort out cultural differences and anticipate what was expected of me. And, I totally didn't get the dress code. I'd show up to a dinner party in dress pants and a button up shirt and the Aussie women would be dress to the 9s. I ended up A) figuring out that it really didn't matter and B) asking what was expected of me prior to attending an event.

That's a mouthful...But in summary - I LOVE CANBERRA and I WOULD MOVE BACK THERE IN AN INSTANT!

Erica

[Garocon]

Hello,

I live in Canbera and am interested in topics related to mothering-motherhood. I'm a member of an Australian branch of the Assocation for research on mothering and would love to work with others to put together an event. I live in Lyneham and there is a very nice venue down the road called the Front - that could be available for something. I'm particularly interested in getting together an artistic competition for depictions on maternal subjectivity (and could put something towards a prize) what do you reckon - any takers? Even to get together and meet ourselves - its a start.

My kids are now 10 and 13. I had them late in life so I am now in my 50s but don't let that put you off I aspire to be young at heart.

cheers, Joannie