>Well, it is official. It has been a little over three weeks since I ceased to be a home owner. With one less tie in the UK I have been busy forging ties in Australia, having opened a bank account in Sydney. I’m told it is not necessary to open an account before my arrival but I thought it prudent to do so as I do not wish financial documentation to be sent to hostels or PO Box numbers. I can confirm that HSBC is the worlds local bank, and they have been most helpful in assisting in the process (which is suprisingly straight forward). Of course, there is no need to open up a bank account for travelling only purposes – I am only doing so as I have a working holiday visa, and thus intend to work for part of my time. Nationwide provide a flex account which can be used to make withdrawls from cash points worldwide for no fee!