British Expats - Alternative to Canada

British Expats (https://britishexpats.com/forum/)

- Canada (https://britishexpats.com/forum/canada-56/)

- - Alternative to Canada (https://britishexpats.com/forum/canada-56/alternative-canada-658738/)

Alternative to Canada

Canada sounds great. Not everyone makes it there though as we all know it is not an easy process for many. We have been living in Northern Sweden for 5 years now and love it. We see the area as Sweden's smaller cousin. Great healthcare, schools and an easy going out door lifestyle with plenty of skiing, fishing and freedom. Sweden's not as expensive as it once was and is comparable to the UK price wise on most fronts. Except housing. The cost of property is dramatically less here than in the UK.

If anyone would like further information on moving here, please just ask us!

Best wishes.

Kerstin.

Re: Alternative to Canada

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Originally Posted by TraveLapland (Post 8409830)

Much as you may have a point, please take a look at the site rules

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11. Using a username or user title that is an obvious domain name, company name or product name is not allowed, and any such member found with a username will have the username remove This is out of unfair promotion considerations as well as trademark implications. Email addresses are also NOT to be used as a username.

Dont be a one track poster, it looks a lot like spam if its all you post about.

Re: Alternative to Canada

Its a good point. Just starting and trying to find our feet in this forum. Not much here relating to Sweden at the moment so I am trying to jump into threads as best I can. Just commented on lunchtime boozing in Canada. Booze and Sweden are like oil and water. A thin layer of one thing on the surface and a whole lot of something else going on underneath.

Re: Alternative to Canada

but don't you have to speak Swedish?

Re: Alternative to Canada

It depends how you can survive financially. A lot of Europeans come here to retire. The language is then at your own discretion as to how uncomfortable you feel without much Swedish. The English language is very important to the Swedes and is core curriculum for kids after age 7 or 8. A lot of higher education course are offered only in English.

Most people over 40 have a very good basic knowledge of English and if you couple that with 60% of the TV coming from the US and the UK, its no big surprise that most Swede's you meet have great English.

Having said all of that, our first couple of years was spent chasing anyone over 60 down the road as they did not want to speak to the English people. Most Swedes are a bit embarrassed about their knowledge of English. Crazy really as in 90% of cases their English is a hundred times better than our Swedish...:o

Re: Alternative to Canada

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Originally Posted by Kiwilass (Post 8410266)

but don't you have to speak Swedish?

not to watch the movies they produce :rofl::rofl:
(so i've been told)

Alternative to Canada

Biggest problem I have here is trying to convince my visiting mates that the local sauna is not a meeting place for the local 'boys who like boys'. Apparently sauna clubs are a huge business in London. 46 years old and still a shed load to learn.:blink:

Re: Alternative to Canada

Just to add, they had that very good police television programme with that actor that always does Shakespeare stuff.

Re: Alternative to Canada

That was an English production shot in southern Sweden. Very nicely done and shown here in English. The Swedish Wallander is a bit clunkier, like comparing the new Batman to the old 60's fella.

Re: Alternative to Canada

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Originally Posted by Lapland Loungers (Post 8410355)

That was an English production shot in southern Sweden. Very nicely done and shown here in English. The Swedish Wallander is a bit clunkier, like comparing the new Batman to the old 60's fella.

If I was 21 again, I'd seriously think about moving to Sweden. :thumbup:

Re: Alternative to Canada

I couldn't move to a country that speaks another language and just expect to be able to speak English. Maybe most people speak English anyway, but to me that just smacks of that UK colonialism type attitude 'I speak English so everyone else must!'
I've visited Finland before and loved it there, would consider a move there but for the language. I'm not really good at foreign languages :unsure:

Re: Alternative to Canada

I have heard from some expats (married to Finns) that Finnish is like, way hard to learn. Way way hard. Harder than Swedish.

Re: Alternative to Canada

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Originally Posted by Kiwilass (Post 8410462)

I have heard from some expats (married to Finns) that Finnish is like, way hard to learn. Way way hard. Harder than Swedish.

I lived there a few months - it is hard, but at least have rules to follow.
It is hard for them to learn English too, they just start early.

I could still buy ice cream, chocolate, stamps, milk, cheese, bilberries - clearly I ate well over there;)

Re: Alternative to Canada

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Originally Posted by Kiwilass (Post 8410462)

I have heard from some expats (married to Finns) that Finnish is like, way hard to learn. Way way hard. Harder than Swedish.

Apparently itâ€™s as hard as Hungarian, which is hard to learn.

Re: Alternative to Canada

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Originally Posted by Lapland Loungers (Post 8409908)

Cannot see the point to your thread at all. So every time someone asks aquestion about Canada you plan on giving an answer about Sweden?