Think Australia is Small?

People simply do not realize how large Australia is. I didn't either until we first thought of this move.  I swiped this photo off the internet (my apologies to its owners, but I'm using it for educational purposes) and it does a very good job comparing the sizes of the United States and Australia.

To top it off, the population of the United States is 311.8 million as of July 2011.  Comparatively, the population of Australia is 22.7 million as of September 2011.  The state of Western Australia, roughly the size of the United States from the Rockies and west, has a population of roughly 2.4 million as of 2011.

Perth itself has a population of approximately 1.74 million.  So let's think about that.  2.4 million - 1.74 million =  .66 million.  That means there are roughly a half million people living on a land mass the size of Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Oregon, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and some of Washington, outside of Perth.  For the city of Perth itself, population is just a bit larger than what one would find in Philadelphia.  For comparison, the populations of Los Angeles are 3.8 million and New York 8.2 million respectively.  The entire population of the state of Western Australia - 2.4 million - would easily fit within the confines of Los Angeles alone with plenty to spare.

What does this mean?  For a land expanse the size of the United States from the Rockies west, you will find absolutely no one.  Western Australia's population density is currently 2.4 persons per square mile.  This statistic is skewed by Perth, as the true population density of the state of Western Australia is much less -figured at less than one person per square mile.

Does this mean anything else?  If you think about it, yes.  I'm looking forward to actually viewing the stars and Milky Way without haze and light pollution. I hear it's quite the sight to see.  I hear that you can see shooting stars quite often, and at least one per night that blazes across the sky leaving a fiery trail.

Once you get out of Perth and head north or east there aren't very many people at all, and as long as you are prepared, you can have a truly unmolested camping adventure.

This is another reason why the citizens of Perth, despite having criminals of their own sort, are more cooperatively minded.  I hear this is what makes Australians typically nicer, more respectful, tolerant, and engaged than most.  If they don't work together, they're alone.

Sounds like fun, eh?

Exchange Rate Update

The exchange rate has changed.  The dollar has either rallied a little, the Australian dollar has weakened, or both.  The current rate is:

1 AUD = 1.03 USD
1 USD = .97 AUD

That makes it a little easier on us and a little worse on the Aussies, for now.  We still will only transfer what we need, as there is a large fee for transferring.

Moving Costs and Exchange Rates

We've had a few estimates on how much it'd take to move our stuff from here in the US to Perth and the results are astounding.  We aren't even taking cars.  Here's a brief list of what we're taking:

Living Room:   Tv stand, LED tv (which we know might not work other than to play our video games, blu rays, and serve as a monitor), loveseat, two beanbags, a shelf with board games, and two small side tables, one with a marble top.  PS3, PS2, Wii, a combo VCR/DVD, the games (about 140), and about 250 DVDs. Three laptops and two 10.1 inch android tablets.

Dining Room:  Standard rectangular dining table and ten chairs (have extras on hand).  Dining buffet and hutch.

Kitchen:  Pots and Pans and dishes.  We aren't keeping many of our countertop appliances at all, and the large appliances stay.

Son's bedroom:  His bunk bed, dresser, cubbie shelves, toys, and clothes.

Spare bedroom:  Queen sized bed, dresser.

Bedroom:  King sized bed, matching dresser, all our clothes.

Bathrooms:  not much.

Den:  Maybe our PC, our two drawer file cabinet, a small coffee table, six standard bookshelves, around 3 of which are filled with books.

Storage:  Three bicycles, plastic bins (about 24qt each and roughly about 50 of them) and the contents.  Kid's wagon.  Two hiking backpacks.

Utility:  Toolbox and hand tools (hammer, screwdriver, etc.)  All powered items will not be taken.

Shed:  Nothing.  All yard tools will stay.  Customs issues.

For these items the best estimate we could get was from Allied Van Lines, and they said we needed a 40' crate and it would cost us ~$17,000 US to move it all.  Can you imagine?

The current exchange rate is $1.00 US = $1.10 AUS.  That means we'll be leaving most of our money in the US until (if) the exchange rate gets better.  A 10% loss during transfer is not pretty.