Doc2410, I omitted to say yesterday that, despite being born in NZ, I am an Australian citizen. I have lived and worked in Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney. In all my time in Oz, I have seen only one snake (and that was while walking in a fairly remote bushland area. It was more alarmed than I was and shot through in a hurry). As for spiders, I doubt you'd see any more than you do in this part of the world. You stand about as much chance of getting bitten by a snake/spider as you do of getting chomped by a great white shark. None of these need figure in your calculations. If I had my time over, I'd head for Western Australia because I believe it to be the most vibrant part of Oz. It's very different from the eastern states (perhaps because it's 2,400 miles away from them) and it has a more relaxed way of life. Plus a population of only two million despite its huge size. I believe Perth to be THE coming city in Oz. Type Western Australia London into Google and there are a swag of sites that might well interest you. As for America, I don't think I'd want to take kids to a place where weirdos regularly walk into various establishments (including schools) brandishing guns and slaughter innocent people by the dozen. And where drugs are a way of life. To me, the American Dream is starting to look more like a nightmare.