Gday Sunny,
The country thing would be good - refreshing change of scenery and attitudes. Maitland is getting a few good reviews so might be worth a try.
If the cost is still a barrier, as someone mentioned before gliding is a blast.
I am a CPL holder but if I flew for leisure I would glide. It is relaxing and it is a good club environment where people are there because they want to be there. You also won't have to spend much on maps and bureaucratic bs. The last time I went gliding an hour cost about $50-60 depending on how high you got towed. Sure beats spending ~$300. The only downside is it is limited to local flying unless you start to get serious and do some cross country gliding (I haven't done any cross country gliding so I can't really comment on it - if anyone has done x-country gliding it'd be great to hear about it).
Cheers