Vanessa arrives in Australia on a multiple-entry tourist visa from Philippines, while her Prospective Marriage Visa application is being processed in the Australian Embassy in Manila. Registered Migration Agent Jeff Harvie from Down Under Visa organised the tourist visa so she could travel to Australia with her two Australian Citizen kids, and start settling into Australia while the processing of the main visa is taking place.

So how was it? Did excitement and amazement reign supreme? No, they were all tired. Long plane journey. The joys of passing through Immigration and baggage collection. And they hadn’t seen each other for a while. No doubt a bit bewildering, and we would expect a bit of culture shock as a Filipina lady and her half-Aussie kids from a small island in southern Philippines settle into life in suburban Melbourne.

This is a journey that tens of thousands of Australian Filipina couples have made, and countless more will make in the future. Old lives and homes in the Philippines will be left behind, and new homes in Australia will be discovered and the lives of all enriched by the love of family. Despite all of this, change can be tough on the emotions and downright scary. New family awaits, but old family are suddenly a long way away. But nothing good comes easy, and of course it’s all worth the effort.

So please watch and enjoy, to those who have already been through all this and to those who have all of this to look forward to. And please keep watching this space as Chris tells me to expect a steady flow of new videos as we follow one family’s journey from Philippines to Australia.