10 things I hate about Aus: This traveller pulled no punches about their experience. Simon Maisch; SVGeasy; Unsplash
10 things I hate about Aus: This traveller pulled no punches about their experience. Simon Maisch; SVGeasy; Unsplash
When most expats move to Australia, they fall in love with the laid-back lifestyle, swathes of golden beaches and beautiful nature.
However, while there's plenty to boast about, there are also some things that infuriate foreigners.
In a lengthy Reddit post, a long-term expat listed the reasons why they dislike living in Australia, criticising housing prices, the construction of apartments, "logistical nightmare" of meeting up with friends and overall cost of living.
The expat's rant sparked a heated debate, and while many agreed with their point of view, others were quick to defend the country, backing its "quality of life".
In their post, the Reddit user praised Asia and said it was affordable, while eating out was both high quality and cheap.
But in Australia, they said it was quite the opposite.
"I've lived in multiple other countries over the years (mainly in Asia) and always struggled to enjoy living in Australia. I'm curious to hear others' experience and whether or not you have lived overseas," they began.
"Living in Asia, eating out is common, affordable and high quality, getting drinks at a local bar is easy, you can walk to where you want to go, quality apartments, access to events and maintained parks, friends nearby and always felt safe.
Many expatriates and travellers come to Australia for the lifestyle. Photo / Joey Csunyo, Unsplash
"Compared to Australia we either live in the suburban sprawl near nothing where doing any simple activity becomes a multiple-hour planned event OR live in a poorly designed and constructed apartment that costs almost just as much as a three-bedroom house."
They expat went on to explain basic activities like eating out or getting a drink with a friend, are luxuries "we are lucky to do once a week or a couple times a month" instead of being a regular occurrence.
They described it as a "logistical nightmare", adding: "The quality rarely matches the price."
They wrote: "In Australia, we have access to good jobs and high incomes, but it feels like we traded everything else that makes life enjoyable for it.
"We live in golden handcuffs in suburbia spending most of our time in our houses looking forward to the next time we can afford to do something outside."
There were many who shared the same view with one person saying the one thing they "hate" about living in Australia is the lack of urban/metro areas.
"Sometimes I have dreams to pack up and start a new life in a different corner of the country, but you basically only have like four places where that can be done in Australia," they wrote.
Another said they dislike the "suburban sprawl".
"I live in a high quality apartment surrounded by places to eat and drink and nice parks. But I agree most of Australia isn't like that, I can't stand the suburban sprawl."
Another explained the "biggest downside" is the "lack of night-life" adding how "everything closes early".
"Even on a Sunday afternoon, the shopping centres are deserted," they wrote.
Some said it was "isolating and lonely" with major capital cities taking too long to travel between.
"[They are] 1000km away from each other (taking up a whole day to travel to each by car), but we're also just not next to any countries. The most 'local' foreign territories that Aussies can affordably travel to are New Zealand, Bali and Melanesia," one person said.
Tyranny of Distance: One of expats' top gripes were the distances they had to drive between towns. Photo / Rainy Wong, Unsplash
Meanwhile, others had a completely different view and experience with an expat from India, who now lives on the Gold Coast, saying the quality of life is "orders of magnitude better here".
"There are things I miss about India, but it's mostly specific people and specific places," they said.
"Everywhere is so clean. Our taxes actually result in good roads, pristine waters and forests, and healthcare for everyone.
"From where I am, it's five minutes to the water, 20 minutes to mountains and across the street to a conservation forest. I see extraordinary animals all the time, literally in my backyard."
Another person who has been living in Australia for seven months accused the expat of "oversimplifying massively".
"There is like a lot of other places to live other than the suburban sprawl and apartment complexes in Sydney or Melbourne," they wrote.
"Eating out and such is expensive but also comes with living in a country that has decent worker rights, minimum wage and quality standards."
Another person who lives 10 minutes from a beach pointed out the free barbecues in parks, trails and surf.
"You name it. It's an amazing place for doing stuff outside for free."
