When entrepeneur and cat-lover Jo Lapidge moved Down Under with her husband and children to enjoy a sunnier outdoor lifestyle, she knew that this time it would be for good.
“I spent some of my early childhood in Australia. My parents moved us all as part of the ‘10-Pound Pom’ scheme, which meant British citizens could immigrate for 10 pounds. We moved in 1970 when I was seven. It was a huge change from living in Chelsea, London, but when we returned to the U.K. I always hankered to go back.
When I met my husband Terry we often talked about moving to Australia, so when we decided to start a family we knew it was now or never. We didn’t want our children to get to an age when a move would have meant taking them away from their friends and school. It would have been too disruptive so we moved before we had them.
The first thing that struck me about being back in Australia was how good it was spending most of our time outside. In Britain we were huddled up indoors, especially when my husband’s work in marketing meant a brief move back to Yorkshire, which was beautiful, but where it seemed to rain everyday. I was desperate to get back to Australia. For a short while, we were going backwards and forwards, but in 2004 when Ben was seven and Sophie was four we returned to Sydney and this time it was for good.
I’ve always loved Christmas in England, being wrapped up - or ‘rugged up’ as Aussies would say – in front of a big open fire watching the drizzle outside, but somehow the British weather still made me feel gloomy. I longed for a life in the sun where my children could grow up playing outside instead of being stuck indoors watching TV and playing computer games.
Kids in Australia are more robust and energetic from playing outside. I noticed it when we came back and my son couldn’t play with his pals in the pool because he couldn’t keep up. They were used to chasing around and had bags more energy than Ben had. He soon caught up and that’s when I realised that we’d made the right decision moving.
It still amazes me how much more Australian property we get for our money. We bought our first house in Frenchs Forest – a northern suburb of Sydney - for $400,000 (£170,000) in 2000 and by 2007 it had shot up to $800,00 (£340,000). So we sold up and moved to Killarney Heights, also on the North Shore of Sydney, about 10 miles northeast of the Sydney central business district and considered to be part of the Forest District, known locally as The Forest.
We couldn’t be happier in our beautiful new home, which we bought for a $1,000,000 (£426,000). We still can’t believe that this huge six bedroom, four bathroom house with two studies, a double garage and luxurious pool cost us the same as a one-bedroom flat in Chelsea. I wouldn’t swap.
The only things I miss about the U.K are the English sense of humour, supermarkets and Christmas – it doesn’t feel right having turkey and Christmas pudding when it’s a sweltering 35 degrees outside. But life in Sydney makes up for it in many marvellous ways. It’s a fantastic place to raise a family. We’ll never tire of the wonderful weather, amazing beaches, huge choice of restaurants, cafés and bars. And, of course, living so close to the city and beaches means there’s always plenty to keep us busy as a family. We’d always dreamed of a healthier outdoor lifestyle and we certainly got it, but we had no idea that one day we’d be raising our family in such a beautiful place with the Garigal National Park on our doorstep.
But now we get more than sunshine in our Australian backyard we also get a few unexpected visitors. Last week I came across a red-bellied black snake, which has a lethal bite. Wildlife is protected in Sydney, so we called in a wildlife officer, who came and took it away. We regularly see possums; exotic birds and Chinese water dragons (big lizards) drinking from our pool. One of them cheekily made its way up the stairs and into our bedroom. You know it’s a long way from Yorkshire when you wake up to a huge lizard at the bottom of the bed.
Read the full story in our February 2008 issue.
