Moving back to UK from Canada
#16
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Walk in, order, pay the amount it costs and take seat where you like. That's the way it should be
#17
Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
No, not at all. You have to wait to be seated, then given a menu. If you dont want food the service is awful. Plus, if i sit at the bar i need to tip for paying over the odds for a pint. No thanks.
Walk in, order, pay the amount it costs and take seat where you like. That's the way it should be
Walk in, order, pay the amount it costs and take seat where you like. That's the way it should be
Going back to the bar situation, I can walk into my local pub where there is no hostess at the front door. Go straight up to the bar, order a pint, tip him a loonie, and then find a seat.
Once I have a seat, I rather enjoy the waitress service for the rest of the evening.
#18
Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Canada is one of the most urbanized countries in the world. Most of the population lives in a few cities dotted along a band an hour and half from the US border. Income tax is high because of double dipping between federal and provincial plus, there's a ton of secondary taxes that nibble away at your salary. So unless you're farmer or don't want a job you have to live in or around a big metro center. Plus, its naffing dull. In terms of lifestyle between Edinburgh and Toronto I think it's a no brainer.
#19
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
No, not at all. You have to wait to be seated, then given a menu. If you dont want food the service is awful. Plus, if i sit at the bar i need to tip for paying over the odds for a pint. No thanks.
Walk in, order, pay the amount it costs and take seat where you like. That's the way it should be
Walk in, order, pay the amount it costs and take seat where you like. That's the way it should be
Tipping is customary - that's just part of life in Canada. But there are loads of places where you can walk up to the bar and get a drink. I used to frequent the Rose & Crown and the Duke of Kent at Yonge & Eglinton.
Last edited by MarylandNed; Sep 29th 2017 at 7:26 pm.
#20
Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Hello all
I moved to canada in 2010, to Toronto, since then i have a good job with a good pension, married and have a good house. I am however always homesick and miss Scotland. I was born in edinburgh and moved over when i was 25, and now i need to convince my canadian wife to move.
I am tired of it here, its overcrowded, taxes are getting crazy and driving is really really frustrating.
I miss the little things about the UK - the landscape, being close to the ocean, less overcrowded and simply going to the pub for a pint and ordering at the bar.
I will have to give up a lot and its seems crazy so im wondering if anyone has regretted moving back or can give me advice on this
thanks
Joe
I moved to canada in 2010, to Toronto, since then i have a good job with a good pension, married and have a good house. I am however always homesick and miss Scotland. I was born in edinburgh and moved over when i was 25, and now i need to convince my canadian wife to move.
I am tired of it here, its overcrowded, taxes are getting crazy and driving is really really frustrating.
I miss the little things about the UK - the landscape, being close to the ocean, less overcrowded and simply going to the pub for a pint and ordering at the bar.
I will have to give up a lot and its seems crazy so im wondering if anyone has regretted moving back or can give me advice on this
thanks
Joe
As a few other posters have said on here....I think its Toronto thats your problem....its an in your face, crowded, big city, and its not for everyone. I enjoy my visits to Toronto for various reasons, but I couldn't live there now. Canada is a huge country, I think relocating in Canada may be something to try first...
Im not saying that you will, but many people that move back to the UK often regret it, and you have to consider your wife too? Seriously try the Maritimes, or a more rural part of Ontario. If I am honest I enjoy city and country, but they are like two different worlds.
#21
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Canada is one of the most urbanized countries in the world. Most of the population lives in a few cities dotted along a band an hour and half from the US border. Income tax is high because of double dipping between federal and provincial plus, there's a ton of secondary taxes that nibble away at your salary. So unless you're farmer or don't want a job you have to live in or around a big metro center. Plus, its naffing dull. In terms of lifestyle between Edinburgh and Toronto I think it's a no brainer.
I also think Toronto is dull, if you go about 2 hours (4 with the traffic) you get to a nice forrest. If you go 2 hours from Edinburgh you get to the highlands, seaside, another large city.
Transit also bother me, in scotland i could travel by train everywhere. There are no trains outside the GTA here, I cant go to Muskoka by train or to Port perry for a day.
#22
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Have you heard of Via Rail? For example, you can take a train from Toronto to Montreal.
#23
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Yes I have, an over priced service that runs slower than steam trains, and I want to get outside cities. Hence Muskoka, No via trains run anywhere but major cities.
#24
Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Whipping out a 5 euro note, I magnanimously told the (Dutch) waiter that he could keep the change.
We both had a chuckle.
#25
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Finally someone who understands how much we are taxed here. one of the reason i moved here was to pay less taxes, but its not much different from the UK.
I also think Toronto is dull, if you go about 2 hours (4 with the traffic) you get to a nice forrest. If you go 2 hours from Edinburgh you get to the highlands, seaside, another large city.
Transit also bother me, in scotland i could travel by train everywhere. There are no trains outside the GTA here, I cant go to Muskoka by train or to Port perry for a day.
I also think Toronto is dull, if you go about 2 hours (4 with the traffic) you get to a nice forrest. If you go 2 hours from Edinburgh you get to the highlands, seaside, another large city.
Transit also bother me, in scotland i could travel by train everywhere. There are no trains outside the GTA here, I cant go to Muskoka by train or to Port perry for a day.
#26
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Location: SW Ontario
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
http://www.agawatrain.com/
http://www.sinfin.net/railways/world...a/ontario.html
http://www.traintraveling.com/canada...x.html#ontario
Maps / Rail Atlas
Last edited by Siouxie; Sep 29th 2017 at 9:57 pm.
#27
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Buses do though. I know you can get a bus from Toronto to the Kawarthas expect you can to Muskoka too. If you are homesick, I totally understand that, but I did have a chuckle when you said you wanted to go back to the UK because of overcrowding in Canada. Toronto is busy, but not very far out and it's really quiet. We are in a rural area about 20 mins outside Guelph, an hour to Pearson airport. There are no traffic or overcrowding issues here. It's a 6 minute walk to our nearest neighbour.
#28
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
I've known several people who moved back after 3, 5, 15 years because they missed "whatever" in the UK so much ...................
and then regretted leaving Canada, because the UK they moved back to was not the UK they left, friends had moved on, and they realised what they had left behind.
Take an unpaid leave of absence, if possible, go back for 3 months with your wife, and see how like living back there vs visiting for 2 or 3 weeks. The decide whether you still like it as much "back there" .............. and whether your wife would be willing to live there.
Travel around Canada and see what the rest of the country is like
and realise that Canada is a huge country, with a small population hence cannot support a transit network such as you think you are missing.
and then regretted leaving Canada, because the UK they moved back to was not the UK they left, friends had moved on, and they realised what they had left behind.
Take an unpaid leave of absence, if possible, go back for 3 months with your wife, and see how like living back there vs visiting for 2 or 3 weeks. The decide whether you still like it as much "back there" .............. and whether your wife would be willing to live there.
Travel around Canada and see what the rest of the country is like
and realise that Canada is a huge country, with a small population hence cannot support a transit network such as you think you are missing.
#29
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Location: St Catharines, Ontario From Bournemouth UK
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Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
I've known several people who moved back after 3, 5, 15 years because they missed "whatever" in the UK so much ...................
and then regretted leaving Canada, because the UK they moved back to was not the UK they left, friends had moved on, and they realised what they had left behind.
Take an unpaid leave of absence, if possible, go back for 3 months with your wife, and see how like living back there vs visiting for 2 or 3 weeks. The decide whether you still like it as much "back there" .............. and whether your wife would be willing to live there.
Travel around Canada and see what the rest of the country is like
and realise that Canada is a huge country, with a small population hence cannot support a transit network such as you think you are missing.
and then regretted leaving Canada, because the UK they moved back to was not the UK they left, friends had moved on, and they realised what they had left behind.
Take an unpaid leave of absence, if possible, go back for 3 months with your wife, and see how like living back there vs visiting for 2 or 3 weeks. The decide whether you still like it as much "back there" .............. and whether your wife would be willing to live there.
Travel around Canada and see what the rest of the country is like
and realise that Canada is a huge country, with a small population hence cannot support a transit network such as you think you are missing.
FYI...we were in south west Ontario for the last 2 weeks. Toronto is a great place to visit, but not so great to live. (a bit like London, UK). We found St Catherines and Barrie to be similar to Bournemouth in the UK. Both St Catherines and Barrie are near a lake, they are large enough to have all the amenities close by and only 1-1.5 hours from Toronto and the International airport.
#30
Re: Moving back to UK from Canada
Very sound advice. I have lived in 5 different countries (UK, USA, Sweden, Belgium and Germany). Each place has its Pros and Cons. When I lived in the USA I missed a lot of the things you mentioned back home, e.g. Enjoying a pint in a country pub, walking down country lanes listening to the wildlife chirpy away. However, after being away for 3 years and returning, I remembered WHY I left in the first place. Grey skies, depressed looking people alway moaning about something, train delays (especially around London) etc etc etc
FYI...we were in south west Ontario for the last 2 weeks. Toronto is a great place to visit, but not so great to live. (a bit like London, UK). We found St Catherines and Barrie to be similar to Bournemouth in the UK. Both St Catherines and Barrie are near a lake, they are large enough to have all the amenities close by and only 1-1.5 hours from Toronto and the International airport.
FYI...we were in south west Ontario for the last 2 weeks. Toronto is a great place to visit, but not so great to live. (a bit like London, UK). We found St Catherines and Barrie to be similar to Bournemouth in the UK. Both St Catherines and Barrie are near a lake, they are large enough to have all the amenities close by and only 1-1.5 hours from Toronto and the International airport.