The bigger the move the bigger the culture shock. Be it countryside to townies to city to moving an entire country.

Most people react to the change by latching on to their prior cultural identity. Kids tend to get even stronger traits brought out. Parents will talk about their bad day at work in the new environment and how good it was in the previous. We tend not to state why we've moved or the good things either about the new environment. Kids views become more strongly effected and they tend to polarize quite strongly against their new surroundings.

I expect that you came from a more strong gun culture community. I wonder if that same community is as pro guns as it used to be or has changed in either direction.

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As for the cost of living... I spend about as much in mortgage for a place a third the size which is 20 miles from the CBD... NY is cheaper then Sydney.