Moving again...

From wordpress to blogger to multiply. Well, we've moved to a better platform. The primary reason we moved from wordpress to blogger was to take our chance on making money online :) oh swell, it didn't earn 5cents but we're quite happy to keep informing families and friends about the latest in the family.

So, we've moved to multiply where we could integrate our photos, blog, calendar, links, reviews among others in just one site! :) So, please update your links head on to

http://carofamily.multiply.com

Closure

Finally after six weeks of searching, we've finally secured a house to rent albeit not from a real estate agent but direct from the owner. God is good! We moved our stuff to our new house at Hamilton Hill last October 6.

God is indeed good. You see, real estate agents here have been dictating to us how we should live, i.e., for a family with three children you should have a three bedroom house. We did apply for a house as big as that even though we've been living in a studio or one bedroom house for the last six years but still our application had been rejected again and again.

Not that I'm being personal but there seems to be a trend that these agents have a preference for tenancy applicants without children. While I realize that Perth receives an average of 125 emigrating people each day, the glaring trend was simply irrestably obvious.

Anyway, enough with the ranting and back to praising . Ironically, just when I became a student, God has provided us everything that we need--a car and a comfortable home. The house is four bedroom! and reasonably priced.

We've been also blessed by brethren-in-Christ and friends here in Perth. Two friend gave us three single bed and matresses--one for each of my daughter. Some gave electric fans, pots, plates and all the necessary things to start a comfortable living.

Our Muslim friends, the families of Siti and Maswati, helped us in moving our stuff. Maswati's husband, Niza, was also kind enough to drive their family car and attach a trailer to move all the stuff.

We still have to fill the house with other furnitures but at least we have the rest of the year to do that. Thanks to everybody who contributed one way or another to securing our house. By the way, on a not so bright note on the day we moved--there was a police car chase that ended up right in front of our house! (a case of drunk driving) The suspect and the police were both calm and the apprehension went peacefully without further incident.

God is good and I know the "welcome salvo" is still a sign of good things ahead! God is great, to God be the glory!

Exciting Day

Nique turned 6 last month. At her age here in Australia, she is required to go to school. I'm blessed that as a full time student at Murdoch University, my children are entitled to free schooling in any WA public school.

Nique is quite excited to go to school again especially here in Australia where she'll attend a regular and bigger school. I, too, am very excited for her as she slowly ventures to independence in learning.

In the processing of my children's admission to a WA public school, I have to submit the necessary papers to Murdoch International. This office handles all issues relating to international students. From visa, health cover, school issues among others. I was told by a staff that upon submission of our papers to the Department of Education and Training, it will take about a month for DET to reply. The DET has to ascertain where there is still a vacancy near our declared residential address. So, we waited.

However, a friend suggested that we go straight to the nearest school in our suburb to inquire. Inquire we did and voila, today Nique and Nira are enrolled. Nique is in pre-primary while Nira is in kindergarten.

Hopefully, Nique won't be bored with the activities that she'll do as she's a bit advanced in terms of reading and numbers. As to Nira, I'm sure she'll have a very good time using her creative skills in drawing and coloring into action. :)

Week's wrap

Our first week was very busy as I had to formalize my enrollment, try to find a house, open accounts, meet people among others. It was indeed very good that we have Elaine on hand to accommodate us even on a temporary basis. She was also kind enough to be my mentor for almost a week, showing me around the campus and directing me where to go.

We also attended our first Sunday service at Subiaco Church of Christ and it was great!

Nel misses Thailand, Nique and Nira loves going out with their winter clothes and Dei is going berserk as she tries to secure a place for us (well, both of us are looking for a house online). It was quite hard to find a house at this time as some students have earlier arrived and most of the best houses are already taken, the rental prices has also increased.

We've finalized also our banking requirements, God willing we will have enough savings to get us through on another chapter of adjustment when we leave Australia after three years. We've set aside an account dedicated to savings and emergency funds while I have another student account to receive my allowance and where we will get our fortnightly living allowance.

If we're able to find a house within the month, I'll convert my Thai licence and buy us a car. It's quite hard to find a taxi for a family of five and while public transport is reliable, it is time bound so if you miss the last trip--it's the Maxi-taxi (a taxi that can accommodate more than 5 people) for us.

Well, that's all for now. Please continue to pray for us as we venture to our new life here in Perth, Australia.

Pursuit of a suitable home

I finished my enrollment at the Uni, now our task is to find a house and subsequently a school for Nique and Nira.

We are living with my friend and kumare, Elaine. It was good she and her good friend Stephii allowed us to stay in their house while Stephii's away on data gathering. But she's returning by November. We learned that we must declare to have a permanent place so that Murdoch International could forward my children's placement application with the Department of Education and Training.

Finding a home at this time of the year in Perth was hard as finding a needle in a haystack as rental prices could go high as Aus$550 per week. So, with the prospect that it might take a while for us to find a permanent place, we decided to forward our children's application with the school and see how it would go.

Nique is required by law to go to school while Nira could skip school we submitted her name just in case the Uni will be able to find a vacancy for her. As a full time Uni student, my dependents are entitled to free education in public schools in Australia. The cost of their education comes from a part of the visa application charge. So, whether you're single or not, part of your visa application charge goes to the Department of Education and Training (reason that Elaine was "bragging" that she's contributing to our children's education--eheheh!).

We're glad that it was alright with the Uni to submit my children's application. The second school term has already started late July and will finish by end of November, so barely just in time when Stephii returns. Now, we'll wait for the DETs response to our application. The process is for them to find a vacancy at the nearest public school from our place, otherwise they will forward the application to the next nearest and so on.

I'm quite excited for Nique going to school,a more formal one compared to the one she attended in Bangkok, which has a home-school-based curriculum. God willing we'll be able to find a house nearby with a reasonable price. For now, I'm trying to cope up with the winter weather and find my way around the Uni. :)

Of Perth and Delays

After months became weeks, weeks became days and days became hours, the time came for our travel to Perth. We flew via Brunei Air, which was the cheapest flight to Perth from Bangkok.

We maximized every opportunity that was given to us for this travel. We tried to say goodbye to most of our friends in Bangkok, chasing time and cherising every moment with them. We even maximized our baggage allotment--125 kilos in checked in baggage (we actually had 127.7 kilos after finally weighing it in at the airport) and more than 35 kilos in hand-carried luggages.

We left Thailand and arrived Brunei on time. However, the plane that would take us to Perth had to be delayed for further maintenance check in Kulala Lumpur. We were told that it will be delayed for five hours.

Nique, Nira and Nel (as seasoned travelers as they are) tried their best to maximize and enjoy Brunei International Airport--for a child, the airport was a bore, not too much to see although Nel had an interesting chase to observe how the cleaners brush the corrals in an aquarium. :)

I failed to get a wi-fi signal at the airport that I had to go to the Internet cafe to inform Elaine of our delay. Time passed by, we were then instructed to go for our final security check only to be told that the flight will be delayed for another hour--most of the passengers who originally flew from Europe gave the loudest howl of protest.

As if giving in to their request, less than 5 minutes we were instructed to board the plane but it was only able to taxi to the runway after almost 30 minutes.

We are excited and a bit anxious of what will be our life in Perth but we look forward to enjoying it. We've heard so many good things about the city and the people and we look forward that this will be better than Newcastle or Sydney.

We arrived in Perth at around 12 midnight and finished disembarkation procedures at around 1am. It was raining hard and I hardly left the airport when my hands became numb--it was freezing cold!

Anyway, the following day, we're up off to the Uni to formalize my enrollment, meet my supervisors and familiarize ourselves with my new University.

It was nice, with almost similar landscapes as with the University of Newcastle.

Next assignment after finishing Uni matters will be finding a house, a school for Nique, Nira and Nel, and buying a car. :)
Cheers 'mate!

Last post from home

Today is the last day we blog from our home here in Thailand. On Monday, we'll be off first to Brunei then to Australia.

We're a certified nomadic family, moving from one city to another, one province to another then one country to another. Not that we've moved to so many countries, well, the chronology is we started in the Philippines (of course), then lived for a year in Australia, then back to the Philippines, then off to Thailand and now we're coming back to Australia.

It's been a long journey but we've enjoyed it. Although from moving from one place to another, we do still have to master packing things or should I say Dei should master it (she's the one leading or usually doing the packing of our stuff).

As of this writing, we've packed and repacked our stuff for about four times now. Hopefully, by the time we need to go on Monday morning, we don't need to re-pack again-:(

Well, that's all for now, we'll try to do liveblogging if there'll be free wi-fi connections at Suvarnabhumi (well, I know there is). To those who just passed by to read our story here, thank you.

We look forward to your visit again as we blog about our new chapter in Perth, Australia. Cheers!