steve666

Lol.
How about Erin? Nice place?

steve666

Your children?? I don't think I'd entertain Canada if I had no children, at my age anyway (50>). Spain would be a more desirable option for us (north not south), or another part of England. Our concern is with our kids future here in the UK and Europe generally and have made the decision based on that. I'm all for a bit of adventure before I snuff it so there's a little bit of selfishness there too. I'm sure that some people have rather obscure and personal reasons for wanting to emigrate, others don't know why they're doing it at all except it'll be 'different', but that 'difference' doesn't last long does it.

This thread (along with the similar threads that have gone before it) reminds me of the existence of god argument, it'll run and run...

dbd33

I don't know the town/village itself but the general area is horse country, according to the local paper they're going to try and develop tourism around that theme. Lots of farms, lots of money in the farms, similar sort of snobbery around horses that you get in England but it's simpler as money is much more of a factor here; you can buy prestige if you want it rather than having to be born to it. Erin must be on the Niagara Escarpment which is scenic in a rolling hills, south of England, type of way. Lots of hikes there including parts of the Bruce Trail, a major footpath which goes, gasp, to Bruce.

I would think the advantage of Erin would be a rural or semi-rural location with easy access to suburbia (Brampton has curry and all the big box stores), the disadvantage creeping subdivisions; yesterday I heard someone refer to Orangeville as a suburb of Toronto. Note that there'll be no transit there, you'll need multiple vehicles. Easy commute to Guelph, workable to Mississauga, bitch to downtown.

I work in Guelph on and off. Next time I'll go through Erin and will note any gravel pits, landfills or other major features of possible concern.

printer

Well we considered Canada before we had kids but in the end it just didn't happen for various reasons. The missus wouldn't even consider countries like Spain as "they don't speak English" so that narrowed it down a bit.
I think Spain might be ok for semi retirement but if you still need to work unless you speak the lingo you're stuck with bar work or similar and the moneys crap.

steve666

Yes I agree, which is why Spain isn't an option with the kids. If it were just us we'd go. Maybe

steve666

I'll pass this info on to my wife, she was asking about the commute to Toronto, if she/me/kids needed it. Kitchener and Waterloo is also on the agenda. Personally I'm being drawn to Barrie or just south if it's going to be Ontario, they've got the 400 going to Toronto as well as the trains. While I get my choice of the countryside and lake. I'm also happy I've talked her out of Oakville

dbd33

The 400 is an awful commute, I tried it twice recently. Hitting the 400 at highway 89 at 5:45 am it was nose to tail traffic all going at 60mph in the snow; one mistake by one driver and there's a big crash. It's also dead straight and flat so there's no joy in it at the best of times. The people I know who live in Barrie either get to downtown Toronto between 6 and 6:30 (I guess they leave at 4:30-4:45) or drive to the end of the train line. I don't enjoy my 90 minutes of misery in the morning but I do often think "at least I don't have to drive from Barrie".

I've considered using a train but, to me, it doesn't make sense, the cost of having a car is mostly fixed; insurance and depreciation, so long as you're paying that the cost of moving it is less than that of the train ticket. As well, unless you can use the Lakeshore line, go trains are rare, slow and unreliable. The buses might be better, lots of people take GO buses but it depends where you're going, if you have to transfer to the TTC (locally expanded to Take The Car) it's quicker, and likely cheaper, to drive.

Souvenir

Yes. For a while Souvette used the GO for the Oakville-TO commute. Quicker and more comfortable but twice the cost.

steve666

I won't show this to my wife, she'll use it as a "See! Oakville would be much easier to commute from"

Hmm, ok, plan 372. Buy a ready made business in Barrie renting ski stuff in the winter and boats in the summer. Buy a beauty/hair/massage business for mrs steve666 and daughter in the same area, send son to music college.

Don't have to worry about the commute thing at all, sorted.

Souvenir

To be honest, it would. I did it for a short time. Door to door in about an hour. That's a bus, a train and the subway.

dbd33

What if the yuts want to do yut stuff, dancing and courting and carousing and carrying on the way they do? Unless you want them to take up with mullet wearers they'll need a means to get to Toronto.

Souvenir

Around here that's called Taxi Maman.

We've caved in and now allow the Boy to hold his drink and sex parties at home. I'll even buy the booze for them. They are doing just what they'd be doing elsewhere but the driving around at midnight is no longer our problem.

printer

Drink and sex parties at your place, sounds like fun.

Novocastrian

Ski rental in Barrie? I doubt it. Collingwood might be a better thought.

Novocastrian

We did it that way for a while a few years ago. The deal was they could party in the basement as long as I got to take the empties back to the Beer Store. Just about paid the mortgage that did.