Ups and downs
Into week four now and this evening I'm going to a Cub Scout group in Victoria Park. The weekend before last I came across some Scout leaders on the south shore while I was out and about. They were running an event station as part of a huge event celebrating 100 years of Scouting in Australia. Scouts from all over the state were in Perth for the weekend, exploring the city all the way down to Freo and doing all sorts of challenges as they went. I spent Sunday with them on the station helping out and thoroughly enjoyed it. They put me in touch with HQ who helped me get in touch with a local group. Far more helpful than the Guides were!
But, I still have nowhere to live. The housing market in Perth is ridiculous, partly because of the mining boom the region is going through. House prices are going up rapidly it seems, pushing more people to compete for rentals. Every viewing I've been to has had upwards of twenty other people there. You just have to apply for as many as you can afford (you have to pay an option fee of one week's rent up front when you lodge each application, which adds up quite quickly) and hope you get lucky. Of course, I'm getting around on a bicycle so I can't go to viewings that are too far apart because I'd never make it in time! Still, at least I'm learning my way around quite quickly. So, I've been having problems finding somewhere to live, but there have been problems with the bank back in the UK as well. They detected an overseas transaction the other day (I was trying to get enough cash to pay the bill on the temporary accommodation the Uni arranged for me - it's expensive!) and put a stop on my card! What's really annoying is that I made a point of telling the bank I was moving to Australia and even had a meeting with a financial advisor to sort out my finances before I left. Argh. After several phone calls to the UK, it is now sorted and I should have access to my money again.
It's wierd. I've been away from home for a whlie before, but this is different. It's exciting exploring a new place, of course it is. But it's quite depressing being on your own sometimes. Normally I don't mind, I quite like the peace and quiet normally, but when you've got nowhere to live either, and not even any music to play (everything is still in the container which hasn't even left the UK yet), it can get very frustrating.
Swings and roundabouts.
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