THE STORY SO FAR

My landmark 30th birthday brought with it the standard premature mid-life crisis of wondering where my life was going. Both of my sisters had recently packed up and moved to Australia, and I was curious to know what the fuss was all about.

A call from my sister pushed me over the edge. She called to tell me about her bad day, but I jumped in first - moaning about how I’d snapped my credit card scratching ice off my car window and spent two hours stuck in traffic on the M25. I asked her why her day had been so bad; she explained that she was rather annoyed that two giant rainbow parrots had landed on her balcony and eaten her new lemon tree. I thought it sounded like the best bad day I’d ever heard.

I bought a working holiday visa online, left my job, rented out my flat and got on a plane. The subsequent year of travelling and working was, quite literally, a breath of fresh air. With beautiful landscapes, party nights that continued for weeks at a time and with British pounds that had doubled in value in my pocket - I was laughing all the way to the beach.

I also worked, moved into an apartment and did the weekly shopping – I got a feel for everyday life in Melbourne and with this I got a taste for the Australian lifestyle. Of course I still encountered the same tedium I had in the UK – getting up on a Monday morning and bad days at the office are still irritating no matter how strong the sun is shining. But the point is that after work the sun was still shining and it is somehow easier to cope with life’s irritations in a country that constantly looks forward rather than backwards. Can I go on about the weather? I’m English, so I’m allowed. Arranging a barbeque with friends three weeks in advance is easy – no worries about the weather. If you live by the sea, then going to the beach for an early swim or surf really is as commonplace as scraping the ice off your car on a winter morning.

As the end of my year approached, I knew I wanted to live in Australia, and my new relationship added incentive. I started my application for residency before returning to the UK, and here’s where the story really starts.