Originally Posted by Lemi

Pretty much sums up our feelings on Edmonton. It really is a horrible town. We're the same as you, came for the work, but will relocate elsewhere when the economy settles.

Originally Posted by Lemi

Pretty much sums up our feelings on Edmonton. It really is a horrible town. We're the same as you, came for the work, but will relocate elsewhere when the economy settles.

Originally Posted by Linda P

Our experience has been so different....we have been here four years now and have loved it from day one. The open space, so many things to do all year round. To be honest we find there is not enough days in the week, to keep up with all the things we would like to do.

I was born in Surrey, but have lived for many years in both South Wales and Yorkshire and for me Edmonton ticks all the boxes. I told my husband years ago, my children would never be schooled in South Wales.

I would agree that the downtown area is very nice, Canadian cities do not seem to have a ' Town Centre' as such, but that's not wrong or bad...just different to what we are use to. Every city has it's not so nice areas....god knows there are some lousy areas in Leeds we use to drive though with our doors locked and you would pray that the traffic lights didn't stop you on the way through

I do occasionally miss wondering around pretty places like York, or popping in to a village pub for lunch, but that wasn't my everyday life and like twiglets you can survive without it

Hubby when we arrived went back to being a RN, in the UK he had been a Charge Nurse, but knew that here he would have to start again (which was no problem at all for him) Last month he got his dream position....he is now Unit Manager and as happy as the proverbial piggy!!!!

Edmonton may not be for everyone....but it is for us

Linda

Originally Posted by bsmith

I see you put "Sherwood Park" as your location - can't say I blame you.

Originally Posted by bsmith

Before I start, let me just say, this post will not go down well with Edmontonians - but it's not meant for them. I hope this thread will be read by people weighing up the pros and cons of the various Canadian cities. A recce is just a snapshot and warts-and-all, unbiased info (not just sugar-coated tourist rubbish) is hard to come by. Consequently, this piece may seem overly negative, but my intention here is not to anger or antagonize, but merely to redress the balance. Believe it or not I've gone easy, I've left out personal stuff that's happened, some of which would not make for comfortable reading on a forum such as this. (You can review crime stats etc. elsewhere)

So let's cut right to the chase, Edmonton is not the "world class" metropolis it's marketing people would have you believe. You could say the same for hundreds of cities. That's what marketing people do. It's a blue collar city that rises and falls on the strength of it's economy - people relocate here from overseas and from other provinces for the work and for that alone. And? People looking for the whole "quality of life" thing, would be advised to seek it elsewhere. The city has a lamentable infrastructure, horrible architecture and doesn't show any sign of getting better any time soon. Edmonton is a relatively new city. Not really sure what you expect. Not sure what you're referring to specifically in terms of infrastructure, so perhaps you could elaborate?

The cities "downtown" area is a bit of a joke. It has none of the vibrancy or energy you would expect in a city this size. Edmonton isnt a big city IMO. I spent last week in Toronto. That's a big city. I was speaking to someone from Calgary this morning, and they were saying that their downtown area is dead after 6pm. Personally, I like the fact that it's not massively busy. It makes my commute home really easy. Very few pedestrianised areas or natural outdoor gathering places. As I'm sure you'll appreciate, the winters are cold here. People typically dont want to spend much time outside. Having said that, Churchill Sq, close to where I work, is usually packed with people.
There is also a very serious panhandling and aggressive begging problem, (which sometimes escalates into actual violence and recently death), although this is a problem not just restricted to the downtown area. I disagree here. Using Toronto as an example again, the problem there was much worse. I've never seen any aggression from beggars. I'm sure it happens, but thats city life for you. Happens in any city. Once out of the city centre Edmonton is your average mixture of generic condo blocks (flats), older "character" homes, strip-malls and the ubiquitous avenue after avenue of newly built McMansions. That's not just Edmonton though is it? Property in Edmonton is relatively expensive by Canadian standards. Due to the recent oil boom. Wages are typically higher here, so siz of one, half a dozen of the other.

On the culture and entertainment front Edmonton is mediocre at best. There's stuff out there, but it's all pretty average and fairly generic, cinemas, clubs, galleries etc. Edmonton sells it's self as Canada's year round "Festival City", although most of these "festivals" are again pretty generic and mainly bunched together during the short Summer months. Again, the winters are COLD here. If you're problem is the climate, you should have thought about that more before you came. The better ones tend to be smaller and consequently sell out fast making tickets hard to come by. For example? Eating out here is never a great experience, the restaurants are on the whole terrible - indifferent service and poor quality food. I've always found restaurant service to be excellent, far ahead of the UK. Poor quality food? This just sounds like the ramblings of someone who is extremely difficult to please? Depends where you eat I guess, but I've never had any complaints.

Edmonton's "Crown Jewel" is it's "River Valley". The North Saskatchewan river valley effectively cuts Edmonton in two diagonally and provides some welcome greenery (during the summer) and a few miles of cycle trails. Unfortunately it also provides cover for an unofficial shanty town of tents and shacks housing many of the towns bums and vagrants during the Spring through to Autumn. Consequently, Edmontonians consider the river valley a no-go-area after dusk which is a shame. No they dont. Edmontonians are rightly proud of the area. I often take my dog walking there, and it's full of people out jogging, cycling, dog walking, or just out hiking etc. It is beautiful in the summer, but equally so in the winter, IMO.

Everyone mentions the driving, I confess, I do not drive. Conversation closed. That said, I have witnessed more driving accidents and near misses in one year in Edmonton than in the rest of my 40+ years put together. No exaggeration. Yes, some of these were just winter prangs, but the majority were just caused by careless driving on ice-free roads. Crossing a busy intersection with one hand on the wheel while talking on your cell phone appears to be compulsory here. And man, do Edmontonians love the horn (insert puerile joke here).

The people of Edmonton are for the most part very nice. They are on the whole polite and welcoming - though I suspect being white has helped me out on that front. No need for that really. I'm pretty shocked at how quickly many (Caucasian) Edmontonians, regardless of age or background, can turn any discussion on the cause of Edmonton's woes in to an opportunity to be blatantly racist about either Natives Americas, Blacks or various "Asian" groups . Is that just an Edmonton thing, or a Canadian thing? I highly suspect doubt Edmonton is any worse/better than any other Canadian city. (That said, these views may appeal to the "Daily Mail" type expat!) Canadians I've got to know from other parts of the country don't seem to fall back on these tired old clichés so often.
There also seems be a strange preoccupation bordering on an obsession with Calgary. Edmontonions generally seem to hate the place with a passion, whilst at the same time, desperately aspiring to be more like it. The fact that Calgary appears to be many Edmontonian's only yard-stick by which to judge it's own city gives some insight into the depth and breadth of the average Edmontonian's world view. Unfortunately, it doesn't help that Calgary is indeed a more appealing city in most respects, and at least has some character and sense of it's own identity. Jeez, are you for real? How many cities in the UK could you say that about? Manchester/London, Liverpool/Manchester, Birmigham/Manchester/London, Newcastle/Sunderland, etc etc. The rivalrly is mostly linked to hockey, as far as I can see.

Overall, after spending a year in Edmonton, my advice to anyone planning on making Canada their home would be to consider other cities before even looking at Edmonton. You don't get that whole "quality of life" thing here, far from it. How so? There's a ton of stuff to do in the winter. There's a ton of stuff to do in the summer. Spring and fall are over in the blink of an eye, but it sounds like nothing more than you not doing your research properly. Crime is low, people are nice, it's almost always sunny... what exactly do you want? I freely admit, we came here for the work and for that alone, and when the time is right we will be getting the hell out of here. Dont let the door hit you on the way out. I hope for the sake of the city and it's people the economy stays strong, Edmonton now isn't great, Edmonton during any kind of protracted slump doesn't bare thinking about.

Originally Posted by jericho

My comments in red.

Originally Posted by jericho

My comments in red.

Originally Posted by Stew681

Agree with Jericho here,

It's all about what you make of a place I think.

there's definitely plenty to do in the winter and summer here you just need to get out there and find it. I always compare here to cities in the UK so I would personally rate Edmonton above any UK city, (except Edinburgh maybe) in terms of crime, the people, restaurants, service, activities, sport clubs etc etc.. The cold doesn't bother me and I fully expected the temperatures that we get here, just dress better!!

As for festivals/concerts etc, I've been and had the chance to go to more here than I have in my whole life in the UK.... Say no more!!

Originally Posted by bsmith

Yourself and Jericho seem to think I have a problem with the cold weather? - if you actually read my post you'll see I don't mention it at all. The weather is the least of this towns problems.

You both also mention low crime rates?, You may want to check your facts there. (not known as Deadmonton for nothing).

Originally Posted by bsmith

Yourself and Jericho seem to think I have a problem with the cold weather? - if you actually read my post you'll see I don't mention it at all. The weather is the least of this towns problems.

You both also mention low crime rates?, You may want to check your facts there. (not known as Deadmonton for nothing).