Outside the NGV, National Gallery of Victoria.

NGV, the National Gallery of Victoria

Melbourne is full of wonderful museums. I was in the city recently and decided to pop into the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV). The NGV has two locations. One is the Ian Potter Centre in Federation Square, which is a home for Australian art, presenting Indigenous and non-Indigenous art from the colonial period to the present day. … Read more

Forest Glade Gardens.

Forest Glade Gardens

This weekend, my partner Theo and I visited Forest Glade Gardens in Mount Macedon. It was a bitter, overcast day, but fiery autumn colours in the trees made up for it. Forest Glade Gardens boasts four themes: an English section, a Japanese section, a woodland area, and a fern gully. Stroll along the rambling paths, past statues … Read more

Review: Australian Culture and the Workplace

I visit my local library two or three times a month. Browsing, I came across this little book and I had to share it. G’day Boss!: Australian Culture and the Workplace, by Barbara A. West and Frances T. Murphy, is a study into the diverse cultural environments of Australian workplaces. It is specifically aimed at migrants … Read more

Facebook Messenger.

Expats, stay connected with Facebook Messenger

In August 2012, I wrote about three tools to help expats stay in touch with family and friends abroad: Skype, the magicJack, and Viber. Here’s an update starring Facebook Messenger. As it turned out, I rarely use Skype. My family never caught on to it and I don’t keep it open to see if friends … Read more

Hand writing on papers. Visa process.

10 tips for your visa process

I’m not an expert and I’m not a lawyer or migrant agent. But I’ve spent a year working on putting my visa application together. With the benefit of hindsight, here are tips to make your process smoother.   I applied onshore. That is, from within Australia, as opposed to offshore, from another country. I applied … Read more

Coffee cup and notebook with to do list on blue rustic desk from above. Visa process.

The road to residency part 4: all the extras

I started on the road to residency in June 2013, almost a year ago. The process is finally coming to an end. Well, sort of. I’m applying onshore (that is, from within Australia) for a de facto partner visa subclass 820. This is a temporary visa. When granted, if the relationship is intact after two … Read more