Thanks for the welcome chaps, I look forward to meeting up, under a very different sky than I'm used to! I'm sure it's going to be quite an adventure once the life move and associated stresses are all out of the way.
I visited a friend out in Castle Hill a few years back but the holiday memories somewhat blur the reality... I have no accurate recollection how long it took to drive into the CBD from there (off-peak) or even how dark it was
but I do remember the look and feel, so that's probably where we'll start looking. It's possible that I'll be able to work from the office in the western 'burbs, but I won't know until I hit the ground.
How bad is the traffic along the M2? Currently I commute for 20km and if I don't leave before 7am it takes me 45-75 minutes, very unpredictable. I'd like to get a feel for what Sydney commuters deem bad. We're used to the other negatives of living around a large city, congestion, noise, cost, etc. We'll be bringing our cars with us, eventually. Luckily we drive on the same side of the road
If the sky is any better than here, I'll not be disappointed I'm sure. Truly dark skies are nearly impossible to find over here. I have a C8 and C11, the latter doesn't get out much here because it's usually clouded over by the time I get it setup
Is there anything climate-wise I should consider? Is it more humid around Sydney than the UK - almost unimaginable in my mind, but I haven't stumbled across any good weather statistics yet.