left our jobs, went to Asia

I've said mostly positive words about Australia so far. Well, maybe except the level of IT and internet development.
Still, we need to be objective, right? Therefore, a few words of criticism about how Australia treats its own citizens.

Let's start from Europe.

I come from there, so the comparison comes naturally.
Travelling in Europe is easy - if you're a citizen of an EU country, all you need to travel to the rest of the continent, is an ID card. The passport can stay at home.

Look what the authorities say:
“It is best to have your passport or ID card when travelling in the EU because you may be required to prove your identity.”
 

You may be required, how's that?

What happens in reality, is that you just drive past the border of yet another European country, sometimes even without noticing it. And nobody bothers to check you, except some rare cases.

Nice and easy.

In Australia, on the other hand,

even the citizens of Australia are asked to fill out the departure card!

Australian outgoing passenger's card  READ MORE »