Hey all,

I just thought I'd see if there was any Aussies or at least VJer's living in Hawaii on the island of Oahu. I've lived here for the 3 years I've been in the states (hubby is in the Navy) would love to get together with anyone in the area. I don't know why I haven't written here sooner !!


Tegan

Hi,
Sorry I don't live there anymore so I'm pretty useless to you, but just wanted to say that hope you find someone to get together with soon! It's a total bummer if you feel lonely.

My Dad was stationed in Oahu for 3 years and we lived in the Ewa Beach complex. Geez, what I'd give to go back! Things have probably changed a lot since it was over 10 years ago since I was there... one day...

Anyway, good luck to you in your search!

Jenni

I WISH i lived there.. does that count?

Hi Tegan

I'm a fellow Aussie currently living on Oahu. Hubby is in the Navy (he is PR too! ), and we live in housing near the airport.

Nice to "meet" ya.

P.S I ate my stash of imported TimTams already or I'd offer to share them with you!

My Husband is Australian, does that count?

Anyway, don't mean to hijack your thread, however we are talking about moving to Oahu. I've done a bit of research online today and I'm not finding too much about what it is actually like to live there, cost of living etc. I do know about the quarantine requirements for my cat!

Any help, websites you think are helpful would be much appreciated - if it looks good that would mean 1 more Aussie on the island (plus a Canadian/American )

Moving to Oahu sounds idyllic... but I'm afraid it does have its drawbacks. First up, the cost of living is ridiculous...the traffic is pretty much insane, and well you might end up with island fever and want to go for a big long drive somewhere instead of driving around in circles! Trying to pronounce the crazy street names is always a fun time too! Petty crime is also another problem... On the upside, not much beats the gorgeous feast for the eyes.. rainbows here there and everywhere. The climate rocks my world also. Got to love the beaches, and the "Aloha" spirit (where you find it).. Being a Haole (white person, pronounced howlee) sometimes brings a little racism into your life (according to friends of mine)..personally I'm a Haole and have had no problems at all.

If you're a milk drinker, it's advisable to buy yourself a cow and sit it next to your sofa..because the price of milk is OUT OF THIS WORLD!! I kid you not, it's anywhere from $5.50 to $8.00 a gallon. White Gold! LOL

I'd say go look at craigslist.org to check out the price of local rentals, but, again hold onto your chair!!

BTW Tegan, hubby and I have the most gorgeous half PR half skippy baby, so I hope your BC is foolproof unless you want one too~! lol

Yeah, I figure a lot of people would want to live there but don't for the cost of living consideration.

I took your advice and had a look at rentals - these prices seem pretty normal to me, if this is accurate, like $1295 for a 1 bdrm newly renovated apt in Wahiawa - some for 1200, some less, does that seem about right?

Our rents here are that much. I'm also assuming that utilities, water, electricity etc are high?

I only drink soy milk, so that will help the budget haha.

Per the rentals, you pay the premium for the area/locale.... Wahiawa is *somewhat* ghetto... it is a fair commute from downtown also. It all depends on where you work really. If a 1br is all you need you might do ok. Be prepared for downsizing on space, as apartments/townhomes and family homes are much, much smaller here. A 1br in a NICE area like Kaneohe , Kailua, Hawaii Kai, etc will set you back more like over $2k a month. It's all about location, location!!

I can't help with utilities much because my hubby is in the Navy and housing pays our bill All we have to worry about is cable and phone bills. I have heard from friends though that their electric bills can be $100-200 a month.

As for the soy milk, my daughter can only drink that, and 1/2 a gallon is between $2.80 (at the military commisary) to $4-5 in stores like Foodland. Crazy prices!!

I see what you mean, I read some boards about areas, lots of info on Wahiawa and surrounding neighbourhoods hmm

Anyway, you have been really helpful and I appreciate it

Hey AussieAmerican !! it's great to meet you, I forgot I wrote this thread lol Your hubby is Puerto rican too? What a small world, hey? I work at the Seattles Best on the Navy base (across from Macas) you should come by...

Yup the hubster is Puerto Rican..

Wow this is weird...is Seattles Best in the Mini Nex on the ship side? If so I was in there yesterday when the darn Nestle machine across the road ate all my money!!! I'll be sure to drop by..when do you normally work? I think I met you on yahoo once ages ago but lost touch when I moved!

yeah your right, it's on the ship side in the mini nex, I usually do the am shift (get off around 11 or 12) but Fridays I work the arvo shift... except for this Friday I'm working the am shift, I love getting off early on Fridays

That's so funny because that was the first time I'd been in that mini nex, hubster is on the sub base so I've always gone to the other lil' nex... I'll have to drop by next week after I've done the school/work taxi run! I'll be hard to miss... the blonde chick with a cute tan baby and that all familiar accent mate

Glad you got an Aloha Friday for once!

Lovely to meet you this morning Tegan

Oh, and thanks for the iced coffee