Aussies: help me

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sirJacob
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Aussies: help me

Post by sirJacob »

hello all of you from the wonderfull country of australia!

me and my wife are moving to australia the 18 of september, were moving to brisbane for 7 moths (working holiday).

now im asking you guys if there are any good lego stores in that area. im fairly sure that there are no PAB stores in australia, im i corect?

im also glad for advise and hints on what to do when were arriving..
im hoping to pick up some exlusive legos and learn how to surf :D

i can also announce that i have to leave all my legos for over 7 months, and thats sad! i have no idea how i will manage without lego for that long :P

im realy looking forward to our trip, and i hope that the aussies will be nice to uss!
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Tower of Iron Will
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Post by Tower of Iron Will »

Talk about a culture shock! :shock: That's a far distance to go. I went to Australia when I was just out of high school (quite a few years ago). Brisbane is nice but it was a long bus ride from Sidney. Facinating place to vacation in, wish I could go back for another visit. I remember buying LEGO in Sydney but not sure if it was an official store or not.
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DARKspawn
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Post by DARKspawn »

G'day, sir Jacob,

Unfortunetly there are no official LEGO shops in Australia (or the Southern Hemisphere at all for that matter). Your best hope for buying sets is through the larger department stores like Target, Big W, Kmart, etc, they generally have the best range and prices as they are large enough to undercut the opposition (privately owned stores).

As far as basic brick purchases go your best bet is through Bricklink. There are heaps of Australian Bricklink stores and as the Australian dollar holds firm against the declining world economy (for now) the Aussie dollar works great for overseas transactions, especially to the U.S.

The LUG scene is pretty quiet in Brisbane, but a handful of us have got together to form a club that both builds with LEGO and drinks beer (as you spend time in Australia you will learn that beer goes with everything, especially more beer). It would be great to catch up with you once you and your wife are settled.

As for Aussies being nice, you will find Australians to be amongst the friendliest and most gregarious people in the world, but we are a twisted lot. Australians tend to be fun loving & irreverant, don't take them too seriously (myself included).

I hope that helps :)

EDIT: In all seriousness, please be careful on the beach. Many people from overseas really underestimate the power of the ocean, we have real surf in Australia & I am sorry to say that many, many visitors to Australia drown on our beaches every year because they have never been in real surf before. Please stick to patroled beaches & swim between the flags for your safety :)
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sirJacob
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Post by sirJacob »

thanks a lot for your replies, they've been great!!



thank you darkspawn! its realy nice to hear from someone over there. you're advises has been realy helpfull! and thanks for conserning for my health :) i promise i'll be carefull, i will not underestimate the sea! and considering im from finland the beer consumption will not be a problem :D
i think i will give the australian bricklink stores a chance! i've looked at it several times and found a lot of great stores!
it would be great to catch upp with some crazy australian lego freaks while were there! i think i might contakt you with a pm later on if its okay with you!?
i've met a lot of aussies in finland thats been wisiting my family and they were incredible nice. i havent found one single aussie that has'nt been nice! so i think most highly of you!
thanx again darkspawn you've been realy helpfull!

im glad you had a nice trip Tower of Iron Will!
yep its a quite a trip from brisbane to sidney but were planning to go there as well. we cant miss a trip to sidney when were considerable close after travelling around the world!
and yes it might be a coulure chock to get there! hope we won't be beaten up just becouse we forgot to say please in one sentence :P

hope more oy you guys will give me hints:D
thanx
sirJacob
natelite
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Post by natelite »

DARKspawn wrote:As for Aussies being nice, you will find Australians to be amongst the friendliest and most gregarious people in the world, but we are a twisted lot. Australians tend to be fun loving & irreverant, don't take them too seriously (myself included).

I hope that helps :)

EDIT: In all seriousness, please be careful on the beach. Many people from overseas really underestimate the power of the ocean, we have real surf in Australia & I am sorry to say that many, many visitors to Australia drown on our beaches every year because they have never been in real surf before. Please stick to patroled beaches & swim between the flags for your safety :)
that's true. i also arrived in sydney (from NY) about 4 months ago. i find the people are genuinely a friendly lot.

and the waves are a lot stronger than most places. so definitely follow the rules for your own good.

it's a terrible country for lego though. not only is it massively overpriced (vs US) but the stock is limited and sells out fast. the stores also seldom restock. for eg, target sold out the new clone wars sets during its july sales and never bothered stocking up again. sale is only 20% at most. don't even bother waiting for clearance. clearance sets are around 20-25% less than SRP and they sell out. no point waiting for another 5% less than during a sale event.

since your placement is only temporary i would advise that you hold off on your purchase until you get back since it's only for 7 months. if you absolutely must buy, then get your family or friends to buy at retail and mail to you. even including shipping it's still cheaper than buying at sale price.
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TriUmp
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Post by TriUmp »

Uh, I'm a little late :oops:
Hope you're enjoying it in Brisbane.
The surf's good there, but it is even stronger down south.
Also be sure to get into Aussie Rules football. It's a great game.
AFL season is over, and right now most people will be playing cricket.
But you might be able to make it to a couple of games before you leave. :wink:
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sirJacob
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Post by sirJacob »

yea you guys are wierd when it comes to sport! :wink:
i saw the semi finals with boncos and it was great though, but cricet... hmm i dont know its a wierd wersion of baseball!

but i promise if i get the chanse to see a football game before i leave im going!

and you know what, i'll go surfin on sunday! sweet. hope i wont be eaten by a shark! if there are any sharks in the wather i hope they take my teacher!

and yeah im really enjoying brissy this fare! you aussies are the nicest people i ever seen.
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