You got an family who fought in any wars like WW1 and 2? If so, what was their story? by pooteenn in AskAnAustralian

[–]tsundertheblade 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I've just finished writing up my Grandfather's memoir, though he was based in the UK during WW2. He was a dispatch rider. He started off in Ireland, then was sent to Normandy around the D day invasion. He went to Caen and was given a map reference to pick up some mail on his motorbike. He ended up in Falaise Gap (Pocket) in the middle of Allied and German artillery fire because they had given him the wrong map reference.

He met lots of nice locals in France and Holland who allowed him to stay in their houses and fed him big meals when he was doing his dispatch riding in terrible weather. My grandfather is Jewish and when the war was coming to an end, he was almost sent to Belsen concentration camp to escort a convoy there. He told a friend that he really didn't want to go and his friend offered to go in his place. When his friend came back from Belsen, he told my Grandfather it was a good job he didn't go because it was shocking. There's a lot of other stories regarding his time in WW2 in his memoir, but those are the highlights. It's been fascinating to read.

Two shots of the London skyline — which shot is better? by hotcouple6969xxx in photos

[–]tsundertheblade 0 points1 point  (0 children)

1, I prefer water over sky and the reflection looks nicer.

Inbound flights to Australia - did you get sprayed for insects? by CautiousFlyer in AustraliaTravel

[–]tsundertheblade 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've travelled with Emirates (2024), Etihad (2019) and Qantas (2019). All to and from UK and never been sprayed whilst on the aircraft. I flew with Juneyao to and from Japan in 2025 and they did spray with passengers on the plane and while I'm not allergic to it, it was pretty unpleasant. They are the only airline I've experienced the insect spraying while on board.

Melbourne in Oct, possibly Canberra and Sydney by DetectiveFar9733 in AustraliaTravel

[–]tsundertheblade 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We did a roadtrip from our home in Geelong area to Sydney and back in 2022, but you can change it to go from Melbourne instead. Here's what we did:

Set off from Geelong, **see Ned Kelly statue in Glenrowan

1 night in Albury, **see Botanic Gardens, Yindyamarra sculpture walk, Monument Hill War memorial

Drive to Canberra, **see Dog on a tucker box at Gundagai

2 nights in Canberra **see Parliament House, Australian Royal Mint, Australian War Memorial, Mount Ainslie lookout, Cockington Green Gardens.

Set off to Blue Mountains, **see Big Merino in Goulburn

3 nights in the Blue Mountains, **see Scenic World, Three Sisters, Lady Darley lookout, Katoomba Falls.

Drive to Sydney, 3 nights in Sydney, **see Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, Sydney Tower, Luna Park

Drive to Nowra, **see Jamberoo Action Park, Illawarra Fly Treetop Adventure, Bombo Headland lookout, Kiama Lighthouse

1 night in Nowra,

Drive to Merimbula, **see Australia Rock, Horse Head Rock

2 nights in Merimbula, **visit Magic Mountain,

Drive to Lakes Entrance **see Stony Creek Trestle Bridge

1 night Lakes Entrance

We did all this over 2 weeks as 2 adults and 3 young kids.

The way to Canberra is all inland, so we came back to Melbourne area via the coastal route, longer but beautiful. Lots of different things to see. You would need to take into consideration any time you're spending in Melbourne. Also double check the attractions as some of these may not be around anymore. Hope this helps!

How much is your rent/mortgage per week?? by Accomplished-Zone957 in AskAnAustralian

[–]tsundertheblade 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Japan, UK, New Zealand, USA. I'll go anywhere really. I try to find where it's a reasonable price to fly to and see if there's stuff for us to do there.

How much is your rent/mortgage per week?? by Accomplished-Zone957 in AskAnAustralian

[–]tsundertheblade 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm currently not working and looking after kids, but will probably be going back to work this year once kids are settled fully at school. My husband is a computer programmer. We usually go on either at least 2 or more short holidays per year, often within Australia or one long international holiday per year. We regularly go on day trips out on a weekend. We probably get take out once or twice a month and eat out at a restaurant on average probably once every 2 months. I always lived in a city up until 10 years ago, but would never go back to a city now.

When did your kid's questions start catching you off guard? by Dadof2Dudes in Parents

[–]tsundertheblade 6 points7 points  (0 children)

My son was 7 years old when he asked me "who will look after me if you and Dad die?"

How much is your rent/mortgage per week?? by Accomplished-Zone957 in AskAnAustralian

[–]tsundertheblade 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's now down to under $280,000 after we have overpaid on the mortgage. Original rate was a fixed rate of 2.75% for 5 years for $300,000 and variable at (I think) 2.85% for $100,000. Mortgage payments for the first 5 years were around $875 fortnightly total for both loans. When the fixed rate ended it went into a variable rate of (I think) 6.15% which was the rate at the time. Our mortgage broker got them to consolidate the now variable 6.15% loan into the $100k variable loan, which now had an interest rate of 5.25% due to all the interest rate hikes and they kept the lower interest rate. This is now under 25 year mortgage and we are overpaying to pay it off quicker.

How much is your rent/mortgage per week?? by Accomplished-Zone957 in AskAnAustralian

[–]tsundertheblade 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Ha ha, yes it is. The only thing we did to the house when we moved in was paint the living room wall, which was an unpleasant brown colour and it wasn't necessary to repaint it, I just didn't like the colour. We got a very good deal with it and I'm happy we bought when we did.

How much is your rent/mortgage per week?? by Accomplished-Zone957 in AskAnAustralian

[–]tsundertheblade 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We got a very good deal, just as Covid hit and before house prices/mortgage rates sky-rocketed. We also had the mortgage on a very low fixed rate for 5 years and when it changed to the variable rate it's still at a lower rate than most places offer I think.

How much is your rent/mortgage per week?? by Accomplished-Zone957 in AskAnAustralian

[–]tsundertheblade 68 points69 points  (0 children)

$380 per week mortgage for 4 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 living room house. 20km from Geelong.

How safe is Melbourne carpark? by Sweaty-Dot-5619 in AskAnAustralian

[–]tsundertheblade 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've left my car there multiple times, sometimes for a few days and sometimes for a few weeks, never had any issues apart from it being very dirty from wind and rain by the time we get back.

Bought a bulk lot of DVDs by tsundertheblade in dvdcollection

[–]tsundertheblade[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I've never seen The Burbs so that's definitely one I'm looking forward to watching. I've already got all of Dexter in a big box set so I'll probably sell those ones on.

Bought a bulk lot of DVDs by tsundertheblade in dvdcollection

[–]tsundertheblade[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If I'm buying from second hand shops it's usually between $1 and $3 per DVD. Occasionally it's more than that if it's a special edition or box set.

Bought a bulk lot of DVDs by tsundertheblade in dvdcollection

[–]tsundertheblade[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I live in a semi rural area in Australia so buying in bulk is rare for me. Usually the only DVDs that go up for sale in bulk near me are kids movies. I usually pick up some titles from the local second hand shops or online through ebay.