Morning Tea and then Lunch at Fortnum and Mason.

[gertbysea]

Stopit right now chookie! I can't stand it F & M OMG. What a place. Memories!!!!!!!!!!!!. And now you will have them too. You are one lucky girl.

Gertbysea

[trudy]

Chookie you have such lovely memories - thank you for sharing them with us, as it's lovely to hear all about what you saw.

[Frozzie]

sounds like you had a lovey time...the slate plates are all over the place here too and you can even buy them on occasion in our supermarkets in the crockery isle....people use sauces etc also to write on them for deco with the dish placed on them

i hope you dont get hit with extra tax and fees when your package gets to oz..happened to my parnets a few times..they purchased some very expensive statues in italy once that were sent home the same by the shop where they purchased them and got hit with a huge fee when picking them up in oz..basically told htem they pay the fee asked or you dont get your items..to say the least they were peeved....really hope this doesnt happen to you!

[Cuilidh]

So long as the value is less than AUD1,000 they should get through customs OK, but if there are foodstuffs, wood, leather, etc. you may be faced with quarantine fees.  I can give you details of a good and reliable customs agent if you need help with clearing the package.

[achookwoman]

Thanks for the advice and offers of help, Cuilidh and Frozzie.  The only item I might have trouble with is a packet of tea bags.  The package was under the $1000 limit. When I came through customs on arriving home,  I had 2 tins of tea in my suitcase.  They said that I should have declared it,  I hadn't as F&M said it would be OK.

[trudy]

Chookie what lovely memories you have.  It;s been so nice sharing your holiday with you.

[Frozzie]

So long as the value is less than AUD1,000 they should get through customs OK, but if there are foodstuffs, wood, leather, etc. you may be faced with quarantine fees.  I can give you details of a good and reliable customs agent if you need help with clearing the package.

i knew about food stuffs and animal products etc but not about the thousand dollar limit and customs fees ....thats why they would have got hit with a huge fee as the statues were well over a thousand AUD each...i never have this problem as im not in the habit of buying such expensive items lol...ill just inherit them!!!  If I remember correctly they were aware there were fees but were a little shocked at how much it was.  My purchases are generally kitchen bits and pieces, food stuffs toys, books or clothes so nowhere near that kind of amount...  i also know that for alcohol (mum used to take back some european liqueurs etc on her visits over) that if you dont declare the exact amount and even if its only a few mls over the allowed limit they dont care they will charge you duty on all of the bottles again and dont allow you to say leave the bottle that makes you go over...a bit over the top if you ask me but anyway!

[Cuilidh]

I wonder if a quick tipple before you get to customs would be helpful to cut down the quantity of the liquor - it would certainly make you more cheerful as you wait in the queues.

[Frozzie]

if i remember well i dont think it matters..even if you bring half a bottle back because you drank some on your trip they count it as a full bottle...money making (clears throat)....i really do hate some duty customs...i can understand for food stuffs or animal products as thats keeping the environment and people free from any kind of illness or infestation but some other things I dont get the over the top crack down other than it being about yet again making money!

[cookie1]

Especially when all this is happening at 2am and you didn't sleep on the flight.

[Decadent Dot]

Vat (value added tax) is always redeemable by those living outside of Europe. Fortnum & Mason should blush if they incur other taxes for anyone since they themselves practice tax avoidance here in England much to the wrath of the public who demonstrated against them this year.

[Frozzie]

Decadent Dot its not so much the VAT, GST or TVA but more Australia and their super strict policy and all over the place fees and charges (they have to be the kings of finding ways to make you pay)...imo they pretty much make up fees just to get more money out of you...an example we paid fees etc on sending luggage from an airport in oz and when it arrived back in france they said there was a note saying the sender (ie us) had asked us to pay some ridiculous fee well DH gave them an earful and in the end they apologised for hte mix up and just blew off the supposed fee...i get it alot as my parents or I are always sending things back and forth from europe to oz either on our travels or just from one destination to the other and there are always extra fees involved on top of standard taxes where oz is concerned or nearly!! makes the blood boil but not much you can do about it except contest it and get around it where you can!! winge over lol!

[Cuilidh]

I believe I heard somewhere that Australia was the most "taxed" country in the world.  I hope I am wrong, but I don't think I am.  In fact, I believe I heard somewhere that one of our taxes was even taxed!  Can't remember which one it was, but I'm not in the least surprised.  In fact, come to think of it, one example may be our GST (VAT / TVA equivalent).  As a small business, we automatically collect GST on sales, then we pay it back to the tax office, either monthly, quarterly or annually, depending upon how our businesses are set up.  In the interim, it is in our bank account - and we get taxed on the money in our bank accounts ...

Having said that, this may be true for other countries as well.  Maybe I should sit back and think of another example?

Haven't we wandered a long way off the track from Chookie's wonderful  visits to Fortnum & Masons!  Dear Chookie, I didn't mean to get so side tracked, sorry about that - your memories and stories of your visit are so much more important than my moaning about other, totally unrelated, subjects!

[achookwoman]

Thank Cuilidh,  but  I would like to say a few words about the VAT tax also.  My DH bought me a diamond ring while in South Africa.( my engagement ring had been stolen 50 years ago and never replaced).  The expected VAT made it a good buy.  I returned home with a VISA card and instructions how to redeem the tax.  Yesterday I went to Melb. To cash it in.  I was instructed to go to Travelex.  Travelex told me I couldn't cash it in but had to spend it.  So of to DJ 's who were having a sale and bought a sheet and tried to pay with the card.  Guess what ?  Didn't work.  So today I will spend time on the computer, ( when I would rather be playing with my TMX) chasing my refund.

[Cuilidh]

What a story!  One other thing I have learned about Australia is that it loves its bureaucracy (but they don't like people to know that) and employees / staff don't like to take responsibility for anything that is the least bit unusual.  I would try contacting different people until you get the answer you want, then take down their name and note the time / date of the conversation and see how you get on then.