Just thought we would let you know how we went on our recent recce to Halifax Nova Scotia, if any of you are interested.

Last week we spent the week in Halifax and found it to be absolutely wonderful. We applied for PR 15 months ago and have been wondering how we could get there quicker. I am studying here in the UK and researched the Student Visa Route to carry on with my studies, with an Open Work Permit for my husband. I am studying Childcare and have secured a place at a college in Halifax. The international student fees are quite expensive but we thought that it would be worth it.

We have a daughter who is 16 and a son 11. With my daughter leaving UK High School this year we thought that if we don't do it this year we never will. We were very nervous and excited about the recce. After a nightmare journey there (another story) but nothing to do with Canada, we had to change in New York and it was just terrible, flights being cancelled and no cases turning up in Halifax. Great start with a 16 year old girl and no clothes! The weather in Halifax was that misty, when we landed we were shocked we thought we were still in the clouds!!

The first evening we were invited for supper by a fellow BE (thanks the chilli was delish)!, and from then on the trip was fantastic. They made us feel very very welcome, and had home made wine which made me forget all about the lost cases!! They had an 18 year old daughter who goes to the High School my daughter is looking at, and she was just lovely with her and convinced her she wants to make the move.

The next day we went to Peggys Cove which is just amazing, freezing and the waves were lapping up on the side, but gosh it was unbelievable. Fish n Chips there are yummy! We then carried on to visit some friends in Bridgewater, which is a gorgeous place. They are so happy and settled so well that we were convinced NS is the place for us.

We had a meeting with Mike from UK2NovaScotia who was really nice and gave us loads of information and encouragement. Next we went out with Jerry Murphy Realtor, who was wonderful. We have decided that we would like to live in Bedford or the surrounding area. The schools that we visited were just wonderful, Charles P Allen for Hannah and Bedford Junior High for Liam. Both children have said that after visiting the schools they can't wait to move over, which is such a relief as we were a little nervous they would have liked it especially Hannah with her being 16 and has a big social life here in the UK. We also picked Bedford because it is close enough for me to travel to college in Halifax and we are hoping my hubby can get a job there. The community atmosphere and the people we met were just lovely.

My husband met with Halifax RDA whilst we were there, and they were extremely helpful. He also rang a Brewery, (as he is a marketing manager for one here) and they were keen to meet him. This also went really well, and he met with a couple of job agency people who were very encouraging that he will get something when we move.

All in all we found NS a fantastic place to be. We saw it at its worst, the weather was dull, we did have a bit of sunshine, there was no colour on the trees, but we loved it. We think if we love it now we definitely love it in summer & autumn.

Anybody that is going on a recce in the next few weeks you will have a wonderful time, I'm sure!

The only thing to do now is to sell our UK house. This is frustrating, but there are a lot of us going through the same thing and hopefully things will start to pick up.

We had a few days in New York on the way back for my daughters 16th and my god it was a culture shock after NS. She had been so looking forward to it for months but when we were there, she actually said, I wish we were still in Canada!!

Sorry about the rambling, but hope it may help people going over on a recce in the next few weeks.....can I come with you!!!!!

Lisa

Glad you enjoyed your trip. Hope the job hunt works out for you.

Excellent news, so glad that you had a good time, we love it here too, we landed in October last year just before the "worst winter" in years hit us! The winter was tough, but like you we are SO looking forward to the summer. Good luck with your move, hope you manage to sell your house quickly

Great news, fingers x you are able to get back over asap

Sounds like you had a great time

Word up Lisa cant wait for the guitar playing and the pups going mad on the beach lets hope not so long now until then stock the fridge up for saturday

Good post Lisa,hope to hear that you all are back to NS for good soon
Yoong

Thanks for the messages of support! Bellanova I just cant wait to see it in the summer, I bet it will be stunning!
Aid, you haven't heard Gary's guitar playing yet, it's OK if you like the Beatles or the LA's, sshhhh don't tell him! The fridge will be stocked, can't wait!!

Sounds as if you had a great time Lisa - glad you enjoyed it

Our CI app is about to wing its way over to NS

Tell your OH I also used to be in brewing (15yrs!). I'd be interested to know how he got on with the brewery at NS - maybe you could drop me a PM.

What timescales are you looking at - house sale pending of course

Good luck with the rest of your plans.

Sounds like you had a really fruitful trip.

We're heading out on a recce in September so I'll let you know what its like in the summer/autumn!!

We have been in contact with UK2ns and Jerry Murphy to organise meeting them when we are there. Was Jerry able to show you the kind of property you were looking for?

I can't wait for our trip to come round, all the good things people say about the place when they come home just make you want to jump on the plane immediately!

Hey Guggismith, Good luck with your application . It's scary & exciting all at the same time isn't it! Whereabouts are you looking to live? My hubby said the people he met at the brewery were really helpful, I will get him to pm you later.

Upupandaway, You will love NS, I have heard that September is the best month to visit! If I'm not there you will have to let me know what its like! Jerry was fantastic. We gave him lots of information before we left and he showed us around 6 houses. He now knows what we are like as a family, what areas we preferred and what sort of styles we liked. He is now looking for us, and will keep us informed.

Ideally we would want to move in August. My course starts in September and I don't really want to miss the start, also it would be great for the children to start school in September when everyone else does. Fingers crossed for the house selling,:curse:... just hope things are picking up.

Sounds like you had a great time! It gets me so excited about going when I hear such positive stories!
I have heard good things about UK2NovaScotia, so maybe we should drop them a line too and see if we can meet up during our recce... can't hurt.

Good luck with the rest of your application etc, and I wish you all the luck selling your house. Bet you can't wait!

It cant do any harm Both Mike and Orla and Jerry and Annete are lovely people, they have helped a lot of Brits out and were certainly helpfull to us, Mike got me our first rental for 2 months, and Jerry got us our house. Check them out, it will be worth it.

I think a visit to UK2Novascotia is a definite must he knows everything there is about the area, and he is just so helpful. You should whilst your there book an appointment with Jerry Murphy, he is a really nice bloke, he will get some info from you before you go on what type/price range/area you are looking at and will arrange to take you viewing for a few hours.

Snort, I am going to wing you an email in a min!! Thank you so much for that, and we can't wait to invite you over to our house for supper!!!

Lisa