Oink

And the Japanese loved you being there and accepted you unconditionally into their culture?

As was mentioned, apart from the cold, Canada isn't a horrible place to live, its just dull as shit. People can get used to and endure many types of living conditions, plus meeting and interacting different people from different cultures, seeing new countries/environments is all very well, it broadens the mind etc, but in essence, IMO, North America is rather devoid of much enriching culture.

Novocastrian

The juxtapositioning of North America in the same sentence as enriching culture made me chuckle, then belly-laugh and then go get a stiff drink.

Alan2005

If living in a different culture is a motivation for moving then there are plenty of more interesting ones to pick. This is like the 'doing it for the adventure' motive - I'll never understand that at all

Oink

Maybe I should qualify, I meant 'any'.

Pretty Flowers

I've been here for seven years! Or I will have been in a month. I loved it here for the first eighteen months, hit some significant professional and personal roadblocks, really struggled and seriously thought about moving back to the UK in 2007/2008, but then met my partner, who I've been really happy with for the last 3 years. Sorted the job situation out about a year or so ago and am back to not really considering moving back to the UK.

An old poster here used to use the adage - happily employed = happy immigrant, and I'd say that that is pretty true for me.

Moving back to the UK isn't really on the radar for me. But then neither is moving anywhere else really. Although Canada will never really be home home, and I still feel foreign, it contains the majority of the people I love the most, bar my Mum & Dad and the couple of friends from the UK that I still keep in touch with.

JonboyE

I am in the "would do it again in a heartbeat" camp.

Partially discharged

+1..in my mind nothing gets the eyes rolling quicker amongst the 'cradles' than some self-important brit telling them how they don't do things properly here, the food is shit, there is no culture etc......and these are the same self-important brits who complain about all the immigrants invading the UK.

Canada is what you make of it and if all you have is self-loathing without doing anything constructive to improve your lot in life and wishing you were back in the UK, then your opportunities to forge relationships in Canada amongst the natives are next to nil. There are however, many ex-pats that you can have a collective moan with if that sort of thing floats your boat on an ongoing basis.

Novocastrian

It depends on what you mean by "it".

I'm certainly pleased that I've lived in many countries, and as you likely know, I'm heading for a new one soon. The two times I've come to live in Canada have been mostly rewarding but I'm only here today because I'm temporarily "ortsverbunden", which is German for "unable to move (just now) due to commitments".

As to returning to the UK? Never (to live).

Jingsamichty

I am perfectly happy to be working in Canada temporarily, same as I have been with every other foreign job I've been on... it's interesting to see somewhere new, live somewhere different and get an idea of what life is like in that country.

Would I ever choose to permanently emigrate from the UK to Canada? Not in a million years.

JonboyE

"It" means moving to live close to Vancouver with the expectation that it will be for the rest of our lives.

Professionally I have achieved many things that I maybe could have done in the UK but, realistically, the need to keep climbing the greasy pole meant that I wouldn't. Emigration can give you a big boot up the backside.

At a personal level Mrs JonboyE is far, far happier here than she ever was in the UK. Things may have changed now (though I suspect not) but in the 80s and 90s Britain was not a great place to be a visible minority.

Our experience here is that you get out what you put in. As long as you are putting in nobody cares who or what you are. It might sound a bit over the top but we feel free here. I am free of my education and background. Mrs. JonboyE is free from the colour of her skin. It is a good feeling.

And then there are the mountains and sea right on our doorstep ...

Novocastrian

Well good for you mate. Don't get me wrong, it all depends on your priorities. I don't have to deal with the skin colour issue, but if I did I'd agree that Vancouver/Toronto is a better bet than the UK (or at least the UK I left in 1977).

The rest of Canada? Less so, I'd think. But whatever.

I've been here long enough. I'm bored stiff by the (lack of) culture and the oppressive blandness of the Canadian self image.

Here in the GTA I'm totally sick of the winters and utterly fed up with clearing snow (although I know its better where you are and worse where almost everyone else is).

I wish you luck in your later years, but I'm not going to risk them here.

jimf

Is London/Birmingham 2011 very much different to Toronto/Vancouver2011. Is UK 2011 very much different to Canada 2011? I suspect not.

YoshiPal2010

Probably not! Nothing against Canada, but life here isn't sufficiently different to make all the expense and effort worthwhile!

Oink

Toronto has got to be a lot colder with more snow. Plus booze is much more spendy.

MarylandNed

So what do you suggest that someone who is bored and homesick in a foreign country do? Anyone who is bored yet doesn't get up and out to do something about it should say that. It certainly puts all their whining into perspective for everyone else. Maybe that inability or unwillingness to help themselves is the real source of their unhappiness and not the country they find themselves in.