We live in the country! This is very new for us and we love it! We moved after a lifetime of city living (over 60 years) to a country town and so we are now living the country life. If you are considering a tree change or a sea change you might like to read our thoughts on this.
Of course there are pros and cons for living in the country so think carefully before you make the change. We can help you think about this- just keep reading. But first, a little about why we moved and about our country town, to set the scene.
Why did we move?
We had lots of good reasons for moving. We were tired of living in an overdeveloped, busy city. We were also tired of being locked in during the pandemic and were looking for a quiet place to live with less people around.
We wanted space to have a big garden and we wanted a place where family and friends could come to visit. We were basically looking for a simple life and this town and the house we found to live in ticked all the boxes.
Our country town
We moved half way across the country for our change and found a country town in South Australia. We are about an hour from Adelaide but surrounded by farmland. We are only about 30-40 minutes away from beaches and close to bushland reserves. Doesn’t that sound wonderful?
We have the best of both worlds ( i.e. the tree change and the sea change!) and we managed to escape the busy city life. Our town is not huge but there are about 6000 people living in the immediate town area and so we have the infrastructure to support us including a supermarket, a hardware store. a library, a pool, police and ambulance stations and a range of health services. Oh, and of course very importantly there are 4 pubs and lots of coffee shops!!! We can walk everywhere around town and we feel safe where ever we go.
So, whilst this all sounds great, if you are a city dweller at heart you might need to consider your priorities before you make the move. Do your research about what it is like to live in the country.
The great things about living in our country town:
- There is almost no need for a car around town so we save loads on petrol,
- A short stroll into town gets you to a range of eateries, boutiques and antique shops,
- Our pool is 5 minutes walk away,
- People are friendly – even the teenagers say good morning or good evening,
- The tradies are friendly and are always on for chat as are the people in the shops,
- There is a real community. The people of the town make an effort to organise events that people can attend e.g. a yearly country show, a Christmas pageant, car club events, art exhibitions, concerts, wine tastings etc.,
- There are no traffic or parking issues,
- Lots of community groups care for the sick and elderly,
- There are lots of big blocks of land with lovely gardens and lots of gardeners to talk to,
- A healthy ‘buy nothing’ group helps to keep life simple by sharing, donating etc it is a real thing here,
- There is willingness in the community to help others in need,
- There are fresh eggs for sale all over town and access to lots of agricultural products,
- We have lots of sporting groups with both indoor and outdoor activities for children and adults. Our town even has a walking netball team for people of all ages and abilities.
- Access to grocery delivery is, in my opinion, quicker and more reliable than in the city,
- Online shopping and delivery is no different here! Since the pandemic, the world of online shopping for everything has become the norm for most of us. That has been an advantage for me as I set up a new house in a new State. What became the new normal has been very handy. In fact I don’t like shopping in person any more and only do it for items that I really need to see such as lounges and chairs etc.
- The location of our country town enables many people to commute to the city for work – yes it is about an hour but the drive is very different to the drive in a big city like Sydney!
- And lastly, we have found a quiet and simple way to live. If that is what you are looking for then consider the move to somewhere similar.
However, don’t make the decision through rose-coloured glasses. Consider some of the challenges and work out how important they will be for you and your household.
Some challenges in a country town:
- The country attitude to what happens around town can be a bit frustrating – you may see something that you think should be changed e.g. the opening hours of the local pool. But ‘it has always been like that’ is the answer you will get if you question the status quo. Of course, there are less people here than in the city so sometimes the ‘way things have always been’ are necessary due to cost.
However, my view is that it is worth questioning, pushing a bit and just observing what is going on with the issue. Whilst I don’t want to be accused of the big city person throwing around their views, I will also have a go if I think changes should be made. So some advice- be forthright but tactful and put on patience because things will not change overnight.
- There are ‘them’ and ‘us’ in our town and I am sure it is similar in many country towns. The ‘them’ are those who were born and bred here and the ‘us’ are anyone who is not born and bred here. So basically we will never, ever really belong. There is a strange snobbism about the town and who it really should belong to. This has been made worse in recent years because of people like us moving from other States, cities and towns across Australia. I just ignore this though and have made quite a few friends already and none of them give a toss about the old or the new!
- It can be a bit more difficult to find a tradesman to come to your house than when you are in the city. But we are happy with the service we have had so far.
- If you like your takeaway food delivered then you might struggle a little in the country. We have takeaway food shops but not the big chain ones.
- You will need to travel a bit to ‘hang’ in a shopping centre – but then you moved away from a city to get away from all that didn’t you? There are plenty of places to go for a walk here and not once have I dreamt of walking around a shopping mall.
- The roads in the country are country roads. That means that they are narrow, a bit windy at times and not always well maintained. So your journey out of and into town is likely be on a country road not a freeway. But of course the upside is that there are no traffic lights!
- Roosters! Yes. Lots of people have chooks in the country and most chook owners appear to have a rooster or two. When we first arrived I was waking up very early as the rooster was crowing at 3, 4, 5, 6am…..
But now I don’t hear them and I quite like the sound of the chooks as they lay their eggs.
Your new destination is going to be very different to mine but in some ways you will make a similar journey. You will mourn what you left behind ( a little or a lot), you will question what you have in front of you and you will have to adapt. The trick is to ensure that the positives of the change outweigh the negatives for all of your household.
Let us know how you get on!
We hope you will join us at Helpful by Nature by following us on social media and reading our posts. We would love to hear from you, take your questions and provide answers if we are able.
Until next time,
Gillian (and Andrew)
