transatlantic

.....WE LOVE IT!

Im writing all this for the second time as my stupid tablet crashed and lost everything the first time!

Its funny to think that this time five years ago we (my wife, myself and our two boys then aged 5 and 1) were busy making the final arrangements for our big adventure to Canada. This time last year we were busy making plans to return... why on earth do we do it to ourselves!?

To say we had a rocky start to our time in Canada is a bit of an understatment... about two weeks after we landed in Halifax the job offer that I had arranged prior to leaving the UK was withdrawn with no explanation. Panic stations! I must have contacted every Architectural firm and house builder in Nova Scotia and beyond, and only recieved one 'we'll keep you on file' reply, I guess what they said about networking being crucial in N.S is true then! To add to all this our short term rental accommodation had been double booked and we only had it for four weeks and not the twelve I had expected. Apartments were in short supply and not having a job or much money transferred from the UK yet no one would return our calls. Faced with nowhere to stay in winter, in Canada of all places I contacted a distant relative of mine who I had never met that lives in Burlington, Ontario. I told her our unfolding tale of woe and she said that we could stay with her until we found our feet, phew! A few days later we were all crammed into our little Kia Rio and off on our second big adventure in as many weeks, this time the 1000 mile road trip to the Toronto area. After around eight hours of driving through pretty dire conditions we stopped for a night in the middle of nowhere in New Brunswick, and although it was -29C outside and we were all alone it was all very exciting, after all what else could go wrong?! We set off early the next day feeling very positive, passing through Quebec and downtown Montreal, after a very long day in the car we checked in for the night in Gananoque, Ontario. The next morning I phoned my relative to let her know that we'd be arriving in five hours or so, depending on the weather and traffic. Disaster strikes again! She said that we could no longer stay with her as her daughter had decided to move back in, just great! I went to the reception to book the room for a few more days so we could decide on our next step. Stuck in another hole I thought that I may as well call around in Kingston to see if there were any jobs going, after looking in the yellow pages I didn't hold out much hope as there was only a couple of Architectural practices listed. The boss at first place I called said that he would like to see me since I was in the area. Although the meeting went well he said that he wasn't in a position to hire anyone immediately and he wished me well. A day or two later we had started looking at the prices of return flights, feeling completely beaten. However since we had nothing to lose I thought I would call the Kingston office one more time to see if he had thought about it any more...... and finally some luck, or pity, either would have been fine he told me that an employee was going back on paternity leave and they would be short staffed and that I could start work on the following Monday. We finally found somewhere to live after lodging in a crazy lady's basement for twelve long weeks. We finally could settle in and the eldest started school and made some friends. For the first couple of years we were happy and content in our new life, we certainly had no plans to move back the UK, the first visit to the UK came and went and we were happy to get back to Ontario. We weren't finished with exploring new places, playing in the snow, learning to skate again and swimming in the lake and all the other new and exciting things we found, not to mention we had developed quite a taste for A&Ws onion rings and Wendy's. Maybe it was worth all the heartache at beginning after all.

Then we visited home again in 2012 and were overwhelmed by the feeling of 'home'. Suddenly everyone seemed so freindly and everywhere so hilly and green and the birds so songfull. When we got back to Canada nothing seemed the same, we felt lost and isolated and began to wonder why we were there. Watching the London Olympics made it worse! Things that had been niggles worth bearing to be able to live there became big irritations. The quality of schools in our part of Ontario was a worry, I didnt enjoy forking out $500 for inhalers and antibiotics when I had pneumonia, the cost of car insurance and food was border line extortion, and only 10 days annual leave didnt stretch very far. I would love to have seen more of Canada but couldn't get the time off even if I could have afforded it! On top of this some of our family members back in the UK had health worries and we felt helpless being so far away. By late 2012 it had become a possibility that we could move back, we went back and fourth on the idea and there were good reasons to live in each place. So when we took our third trip home we treated it as a reverse recce, we started checking out houses and schools. We narrowed the search to Alnwick, Morpeth and Hexham in Northumberland and also Whitley Bay, all areas with decent schools and semi affordable houses close enough to Newcastle for me to commute by train or metro.

When we came to sell our place in Ontario we found that the woman we bought it off, who also happened to be the mortgage broker hadn't actually transferred anything to our name, the solicitors claimed we had a contract that was enforceable, only one problem... She was in the process of going bankrupt and all assets were being siezed by other creditors, we lost our sizable deposit. You couldn't make it up, we were fresh off the boat and ripe for the taking.

We arrived at Heathrow on 21 November 2013, the four of us and 9 giant sports bags. We made our way around to the back of the airport to collect our cat Fable, who thanks to a cock-up by the vet only got her paperwork to allow her to fly sorted on the morning we left!, luckily the guys at the Belleville food inspection station were very helpful and made sure someone would be available to sign and stamp the papers. After about three hours and about £300 we had our cat and I had one very happy wife who had spent every second since we dropped off Fable at Toronto airport worrying about her. After stocking up with armfuls of chocolates at the first supermarket we found we started the long drive north to our little house that we had kept while away, it all felt very surreal. The house had been made ready by my mum for our arrival with food in the cupboards and there were even hot water bottles waiting in our beds... it was good to be home! We knew that we would never feel so isolated again.

Being far to busy rediscovering old stomping grounds and trying all the lovely food, as well as visiting relatives of course I had no time for a job, we decided to postpone the job and house hunt until the new year. After the first Christmas with family since 2009 I started the job hunt (boo). After a slow start to the Job hunt in the North East I reluctantly took an interview in Maidenhead. We really didn't want to leave again but money was quickly running out, however the day after I had a call from a firm in Carlisle and I got the job.... saved from exile in the south east! It was a little farther away than I had hoped for but I could commute for the time being. After looking at dozens of houses at various points along the Tyne valley we sold our little place in Gateshead and managed to scrape a big discount on a place that we originally thought was beyond our budget in Hexham. A few months on small town Northumberland life is working very well for us, there's always something going on and everything is right on our doorstep. We have a great leisure centre and lovely walks, I love using the butchers shops and green grocers... although having an M&S and a Waitrose within walking distance might become a problem! We've enjoyed exploring again and the countryside is stunning and the weather has been very pleasent this summer. I miss the snow and frozen lakes and my job in Canada but not much else at the moment. Home sweet home! Apologies for the rather long and rambling post, I'll leave you with a couple of photos from the last couple of months, thanks for reading!

curleytops

Welcome home! Sorry you had to go through the wringer to get what looks like a little slice of heaven now. Hope things continue on the up and up for you.

Bnet36

What a story and good for you for getting on with it despite all the negatives. So very thankful for the pictures although it makes me want to pack up and leave right away.

Marks and Sparks and Waitrose WILL be your downfall. I had a M&S close to me and I used to be in there twice a day. Hubby thought I should have been awarded some type of customer recognition!

lf1

Welcome back. What a story!!! Hexham is lovely, as is Northumberland. I have been discovering Northumberland in the last 2 years, after a long stint in Canada, and I think it is a hidden gem.

Sally Redux

great update. Hexham always seems lovely when we visit. Glad everything turned out well.

Perth

Wonderful to have such a nice long story! And love the pics too. I admire your spirit. Glad you have landed on your feet. Best wishes to you!

NiHao

Wow! I can't believe all you have been through, what a fantastic attitude you have been able to maintain.

I really loved this update and the photos are wonderful, thank you so much for posting. Looks like you have ended up in a beautiful part of the country. So glad things have worked out and you sound really happy. Are your children enjoying school? What do they think about all their adventures? Do they feel more British or Canadian?

London1947

Wow you had gone through the ringer. There is enough in this story good enough for a movie......

dunroving

Sounds like your world has turned around, good to hear a story that begins with a struggle and ends happily in the UK.

Northumberland looks lovely - are these pictures around Hexham/your house in Hexham (not your house in the Gateshead area)? The house looks exactly like what I want next!

I had a little snoop for Hexham on Google Maps. Some interesting place names around there - Muckle Moss, Humshaugh, Haltwistle.

transatlantic

Thanks for all the replies pals

NiHao - both boys are settled in and seem to be catching up, the eldest always stayed very British so he was fairly indifferent about leaving Canada, the youngest was however a mini Canadian, but sonehow managed to develop a little Geordie accent within about two weeks of being back

Bnet - I keep popping in for milk and bread but. the milk is right next to the cream cakes, oh dear....

If1 & Sally - Yes Northumberland is lovely and somewhat undiscovered, luckilly. I'd like to be a bit closer to the coast but you can't have it all. Hexham gets quite wild on a Friday night, but still so far the best place I've ever lived.

Dunroving - Yes thats our new place Lots of intersting stone built villages around, my nanna actually lives in Haltwhistle within spitting distance of Hadrians Wall.

chris955

Glad it has all worked out for you, there is a lot to love in this country and we are discovering more all the time as I am sure you will. As is often said sometimes you need to move away to appreciate a place.

MrMuffin

To the OP... a lovely post and a great ending to your story. Sorry you had to go through so much but so very happy it all worked out for you!! Take care and enjoy yourselves now home. Cheers.

NiHao

Good to hear they are settled. Too funny about the Geordie accent!

I keep taking another look at the wonderful photos you posted, such a lovely looking town. We are thinking we will end up in Lincolnshire but those photos had me looking at Hexham on rightmove but house prices seem pretty high.

Thanks again for the update!

morayeel

BEVS

Sounds hard yards but totally worth it.

I love the photos. Makes me quite homesick.