Bloemfontein international life

Welcome on board Veronica

I hope that other forumers will bring their input & contributions to your discussion soon.

Best of luck for the realization of your relocation project.

Regards

Hi Veronica,

having stayed in bloem for about 7 years- I can tell you that it is a very vibrant place- It used have more bars and restaurants than any other city according to size.

its not JHB or CT for sure but definitely not dull.

Hi Veronica,

Did you end up moving to Bloemfontein?

I am from the UK and my husband and I are thinking about moving there too. He is originally from Bloem but hasn't lived in SA for 12-13 years (and was only 20 when he left), in which time I am sure it will have changed alot.

I was just wondering what you thought of the place. I am similar in that I would hope to meet other expats and don't want to become too insular by the lack of mixing with different communities.

We are looking forward to it being a quieter city then London but I don't want to feel isolated.

-Pikkewyntjie-

Pikkiwyntjie - we haven't moved to SA yet, no. Still living in Norway. But our situation here has made the possibility of a move seem closer, though. We haven't been back to Bloem in a long time, 3 years, but we are going there for Christmas (if you're there in late December, let's meet up for a drink or something!). I suppose if we live there, I will get a better and deeper impression and understanding of the place.

The possibility of feeling isolated is what I fear the most about Bloem. But then again, I suppose it is a danger of that anywhere you choose to relocate to. I have lived in several different countries before, and it has never really been hard to meet people, but I just got a vibe in Bloem that it might get a tad trickier there. Then at least it is good that networking sites like this one exist!

And from what "Private property" says, it may be a much cooler place than what my first impression was. :-D

Do you and your husband have any set plans of moving to SA?

Veronica

Hi Veronica

My boyfriend's parents (both originally from the UK but have travelled the world)live in Bloem (they retired there) and we have visited a couple of times.  Although it is rather quiet it is a nice place with decent shopping centres and good places to eat and drink.  There is also a rather nice Art Gallery with a lovely restaurant.  Having not lived there personally I cannot say what it would be like living in the community but it certainly seems a nice place and my boyfriend's parents are members of local clubs and help some community projects.

Whilst I remember there is also a Cheetah Foundation which we have visited a couple of times where you can interact with Cheetahs and other wild cats including baby lions which I have to say were very cute!!

All in all, I cannot see why you wouldn't be happy there.

Good luck with your plans.

Hi JC125!

Thanks for the reply, much appreciated! :-) I actually went to the Cheeta Foundation for my birthday when I was in Bloem last time, and it was such an amazing experience. Truly fantastic to see such graceful animals walking around right next to you! Will definitely go back there again. When we were there, they also had a baby lion and some very energetic baby jaguars. We got some incredible photos of the baby lion, a baby cheetah and a Jack Russell playing in the back yard! :-D

Suppose I have to go by the old "don't knock it till you've tried it" and give Bloem a try.

Veronica,

No more trips to Bloem for us until we move there. Have a lovely time and enjoy the hot Christmas break.

Our plan is to move sometime between August and December 2013. So not too long! We are just planning what we need to think about over the next year regarding selling our flat, arranging my spousal visa and getting all our things over there. It's all quite exciting!

I'll keep you posted on the application process for the visa (althought it will probably be another 10-12 months before I apply) as I'm sure you will have the same process as me to deal with.

It would be good to keep in touch.