After a weekend in Wellington spent watching the “horizontal rain” that had fallen for 10 days straight, Vanessa and John Pye resurrected their longstanding dream of relocating to a place in the sun.
The couple, who both work in higher education, moved to the capital from Auckland in 2021, initially relieved to have escaped a way of life that had become unsustainable. Living in rural Glenbrook, their commute to and from their university jobs in the city centre swallowed up at least three hours of their lives a day.
“Some days, like a Friday, it could easily take two to two-and-a-half hours to get home,” Vanessa, 52, said. “To us, Auckland became unliveable. Most mornings we were out the door by 5.30am.”
She loved her new job at Te Herenga Waka (Victoria University of Wellington) and found new favourite hangouts in the form of Cuba Street and Lyall and Scorching bays, but somehow the city never felt like home to either her or John, 58.
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After what felt like a very cold and wet winter in the capital, the couple got to talking about moving overseas again and, shortly afterwards, Vanessa reconnected with a colleague from Darwin’s Charles Darwin University. The reunion had a domino effect on their relocation dreams: A job offer for Vanessa at the university in December saw them sell their house in January and move to their version of paradise in February: A wildlife-filled rural community on the outskirts of Darwin called Humpty Doo.
Eight months on, Vanessa said their lives could not be more different.
Both working at the local university, they’ve traded their 500sqm section in windy Welly for a five-acre tropical lifestyle block also home to green tree frogs, guinea fowls, cockatoos, bush turkeys, parrots, fruit bats and “all sorts of colourful birds”.
The hot, humid weather makes them feel like they’re perpetually in spa-style detox mode, life is more laid-back and, importantly, their commute to central Darwin is 10 minutes tops.
“We love that there is no rush and no rush hour,” Vanessa said. “The lifestyle is extremely laidback, no one is in a hurry, people are very friendly and down to earth. What we love most is there is so much wildlife – wallabies, amazing birdlife, interesting snakes and reptiles, along with the vastness of the land, the blue, blue skies and the red earth and bush.”
The couple also enjoy heading into the palm-dotted state capital which, closer to Bali than Bondi or Brunswick, feels far removed from the rest of Australia.
“Every weekend there is something wonderful to do in Darwin,” Vanessa said. “There are multicultural markets like Mindil Beach, Parap and Nightcliff. There is a thriving arts and cultural scene and fantastic foodie scene. The Darwin festival has just finished and Exercise Pitch Black, which had 16 countries performing naval aerial exercises over Darwin.”
With 36 per cent of its population born overseas (the Philippines, India, England, Nepal and New Zealand lead the immigration charge), Darwin is more cosmopolitan than Northern Territory news items often suggest (think headlines such as ‘Man fights off charging crocodile with frying pan’). Home to a bigger First Nations population than any other capital city, it hosts events such as the National Indigenous Music Awards and National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (Natsiaas), providing, as Vanessa said, an excellent insight into First Nations culture.
And yet, with a population of just over 139,000 as of the 2021 census, it retains a small-town feel with the call of the wild ever-present. They only have to drive 10 minutes up the Arnhem Highway to find themselves in crocodile and buffalo territory, and Litchfield and Kakadu national parks, with their waterfall-studded rainforest, 20,000-year-old rock art galleries, sublime freshwater swimming holes, and astonishing array of wildlife, are within a 40 minute and two and a half hour drive respectively.
“Most weekends we either go camping or we work around the house on the property and in the gardens,” Vanessa said. “Come 3pm if we’re at home, it’s swim time and then we’ll watch a bit of sport on the outdoor TV and later we’ll have a barbecue. Sometimes we’ll have friends for lunch. Life is simple.”
Standout experiences so far include flying into Alice Springs over the MacDonnell Ranges; sipping rum around the campfire beneath a cartoonishly star-studded sky in Litchfield National Park; driving 10 minutes up the road and seeing a wild crocodile; and thinking it’s cold when the temperature falls to 25 degrees.
The weather is one of the best things about the place for the Pyes.
“We love the heat and humidity,” Vanessa said. “After all, we’ve been cold for 50 years.”
The three cats and two dogs they brought with them also seem to be enjoying the climate: “Oscar, who’s blind, used to shiver and wouldn’t go outdoors, but now he’s happy to tootle about.”
Asked how the cost of living compares to New Zealand, Vanessa said their wages are slightly lower, but houses are “much cheaper” and food and petrol cost less too. They’re comfortable enough for Vanessa to do a PhD in 2023 – something she’d never previously thought possible.
They’re so happy in Humpty Doo, they have no plans to return to Aotearoa.
“Each day here it feels more and more like home,” Vanessa said. “This must be like living in paradise and I don’t want to go home.”
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