Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Has anyone moved from NZ to Canada and if yes, are you happy with your move, disappointed, what are the main differences etc. Thanks.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

There is a member called Poppy2 thats doing it but I dont think she's here yet so that probably doesnt help much. She might know others though...

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

yep we have done it a couple of times,the countries are completely different,very few similarities....

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Louise33 is in NZ on a 6mth stay at the moment I think too. PM her if she doesn't see this.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Where were you howardk?

We might be going over to NZ for a one year secondment through work, but all very tenative at the moment.

I am buying Mr L2S a Lonely Plant for NZ for Christmas

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

What have you found to be the main differences? We live in NZ (are both originally from Germany). I also have Australian citizenship.... I have lived temporarily in Canada (as a student) and LOVED it and wanted to stay forever but couldn't get a work permit at that time. I am still thinking about Canada (maybe the reason why I had trouble settling in OZ and now NZ). I had a real coming home feeling in Canada back then and never experienced that in Oz or NZ. While I loved both countries for a holiday I had trouble settling. On the other hand: I have moved that many times and now with small children I am getting so tired of it. I am not really happy in NZ and can't even say why, because so many people tell me: now you have got what you wanted and live in a country that is exactly like Canada... but apart from the beautiful scenery there is nothing makes me want to stay.... also have this overwhelming feeling of loneliness, because it is so far away from Europe (I have small children now so cannot afford flights very often...). We are not in a hurry, but are trying to make a decision about whether we should go back to Oz (Germany is out of the question as partner says no.... although I would prefer that over OZ at this point), or going to Canada (which we both feel positive about). Can't really afford many recce trips from here and would love to know if Canada has changed much, what differences can I expect from NZ etc.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I've never been to NZ, so cannot compare NZ and Canada. I have lived in Oz, though.

What was it that you loved about Canada that you did not find in Oz or NZ?

Okay, Canada is closer to Germany than Oz or NZ. Also, Canada's seasons are in synch with Germany's seasons, whereas the southern hemisphere's seasons are not.

But what else does Canada have to recommend it over NZ or Oz?

I'm not asking to be confrontational. I'm asking because the answers to those questions might help you and us to understand what you don't like about NZ and Oz.

But let me warn you that living in a country as a student and living there as an adult with children can be two different experiences. That happened to me. I grew up in Swaziland, Africa, and had a very happy experience as an exchange student in Cincinnati at the age of 17 - 18. That, as well as subsequent vacations in the USA, led me to believe that I knew the States. But our expat assignment in Houston, with a couple of teenagers in tow, was a completely different (and far less enjoyable) experience.

You didn't say when and where you'd studied in Canada. I arrived in Calgary in 1977, and have been here for all but four years since then. I would say that Calgary has improved in some respects and also has deteriorated in some respects since then.

When we first arrived here, Calgary was much more of a "cow town." Local cuisine featured mainly burgers and steaks, and ethnic restaurants were confined mostly to Italian and Chinese ones. Since then, there has been a large influx of people from all over the world, and Calgary has become much more mutli-cultural than it was. I like that.

When we arrived, there was an energy boom taking place. Jobs were plentiful, there was construction going on all over the place, and service was poor. There was a high turnover rate in the service industries, as the energy industry paid more and kept on siphoning workers from the service industries.

In the mid 1980s Calgary experienced an economic downturn. Many people lost their jobs and their houses. That was a difficult period in many ways, but there were two positive outcomes. Calgary started diversifying into other industries, and the quality of service improved immensely.

Now we're back into another energy boom. We've experienced the full effects of it over the last three years or so. People once again are streaming into the city. Building is going on everywhere, but infrastructure is straining to keep up with the influx of people. Jobs once again are plentiful, but the quality of service is disappointing.

I interpreted the earlier energy boom more positively than I'm interpreting this one. At that point I was young, Calgary seemed to me to be a "happening" place, and it struck me as being full of opportunity.

This time around, I'm in a more established situation. I don't need the opportunities that economic booms provide as much as I needed them back then. So this time around the ubiquitous construction, the packed C-Trains and the bumper-to-bumper traffic (well at least packed and bumper-to-bumper by Calgary's former standards), and the poor service turn me off.

But Alberta is a unique case. During the time that Alberta has been going through what I've just described, other parts of Canada have existed in their own parallel universes.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

My boss in Canadian, married to a Brit. They have both lived and worked in NZ, and are looking to return there in the future. I shall have a more detailed chat with her !!!

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Hi Judy,

you are so right, that living somewhere as a student is so different to living somewhere with kids!!! That is my biggest fear that - because my circumstances were SO different back then - I would maybe not like living in Canada as much anymore.

If I had to say what I liked about it it would certainly be the outdoors (but I was very fortunate, as I lived and worked in the Rockies as a student (Jasper). I liked the mentality (mostly...). To me Canadians seem more genuine than Australians (this is probably only my perception...), on the other hand Aussies seem more positive and happy.... I should probably not compare at all. I liked the fact that Canada is closer to Europe and I also liked the seasons. But what it mostly was: I felt at home in Canada pretty much from the start, while I never felt that in Australia in 6 years. I can't explain why. It almost seemed like Canada was a good match for me and Australia wasn't. Although I have to say I did like the sun in Australia, my sister lives there which makes a difference, I now have friends there etc. I don't have any of that in Canada and would once again start again from scratch and I am starting to find that exhausting. I lived in Darwin and Adelaide. Adelaide was more my thing although the tropical living in Darwin had nice sides to it.

I think I have to go to Canada again (recce trip) just to get a feeling for the place again and do a bit more research. Can't seem to make a decision this way. We would go to Calgary, because my husband's company (he works in Oil and Gas) is there. The last time I was in Calgary was 10 years ago and to me it seemed like you said (cowboy town). NIce to hear that it is becoming more multicultural etc. I can understand how the traffic turns you off. I found that bad enough in Adelaide (coming from Darwin) although Adelaide is really a bit of a sleepy town...Has Calgary become as bad as Vancouver because Vancouver was too big and busy for me.

After saying all that: I spent a year in Dubai with children in between all this and I really loved it. Never thought I would as it really is the complete opposite to Canada.... but it was so international, beautiful people, close to Europe, bilingual kindergartens and so on and so on.... so maybe I have really now that I have children totally different priorities.... ah, this is hard... :confused::confused::confused:

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

If what you liked the last time around was Jasper, and if you would be moving to Calgary the next time around, I would say the idea of doing a recce trip before deciding is a very sound one indeed.

No, Calgary's traffic is not yet as bad as Vancouver's. Still, for a city of its size (just over one million people), I think Calgary has bad rush hour traffic.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

hi,we were in christchurch both times..

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

hi,things are slightly different for us....we have no job to guide us and just go where we feel we should....having said that NZ feels like home,we lived in small communities by the sea...kids sailed,swam,played rugby....great stuff for them...we came back to canada ( at present wondering why the hell we did it ) in theory to be closer to the uk so that we could travel over a couple of times a year and family & friends could do the same...also parents now getting on ...but we feel NZ is where our heart is despite the many issue's it has..my son ( aged 8 ) describes NZ as being full of old things and CANADA is full of big new things...i guess we prefer the old things,slightly third world.....we are english but like yourselves would prefer not to go back to our homeland....cheers.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Thing is, howardk, I really question whether Canada's relative proximity to the UK really translates into anything real. I mean, when you are actually sitting at your breakfast table in Cochrane AB the UK is still way too far away to "nip over to" as some have implied. You're still talking 2 hours in a departure lounge, 10 hours on a plane, and thousands of dollars.

In my view, anything over a five hour flight is the same: horrible and to be avoided as much as possible.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

In terms of money I tend to agree, families cannot go easily go home from Canada, New Zealand or wherever because it costs too much.

However, I've worked in London and Amsterdam many times while living in Canada, I catch the latest flight, sleep a bit on the plane, go to the hotel, shower, go to work. Leave mid-afternoon, sleep, and the next day is a normal work day, back in sync. The small time difference involved in working in California is more disruptive.

I've also worked in Australia, Singapore and Malaysia from here (trips comparable to NZ/LHR). Flying Toronto-West Coast-somewhere Asian-Sydney-Destination is knackering, coming back is worse, a half day presentation wipes out two work weeks.

I think the difference is significant even if money is not considered.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

While I wouldn't agree with your half-day-destroys-two-weeks argument, I can accept that for people with frequent business interests in Europe, moving to Australia is not a smart thing to do. However, most people will travel back to the UK at most once per year, whether they live in Hobart, Nanaimo or Memphis, and then it will be for at least a week or 10 days, etc., so the jet-lag concern becomes redundant.

The enormous concern on this forum with access to the UK is strange, because even those living in France are there for a new life, and you have to allow your mind to move to your new country at the same time and to the same extent as your body does. Constantly thinking about the old country is not a good thing to do.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I don't think that's the case at all. One reason our firm prohibits people from taking vacations south of the equator is that, when they return, they expect to be jet lagged on company time. A long holiday, such as a week or ten days, just means that the holiday is not much disrupted by the jet lag.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I'm actually chuckling a little about there even being a place of employment that can have a list of approved locations for employees' holidays. Is this for real?

Anyway, I accept, again, that our traveller will have jet-lag when he returns from his holiday, but the intelligent person lands a day or so before he starts work so he is more in synch with the new time-zone.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

My niece lived in Auckland until earlier this year. We had an open invitation and looked into taking a trip down there. It's not something I would consider unless I was wealthy enough to fly business and had lots and lots of time on my hands.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Yes. We also have an astonishing list of leisure pursuits that are grounds for dismissal, including but not limited to, skiing, riding in a private aircraft, skateboarding, driving offroad, horseback riding, snowmobiling, ice fishing, diving, deep sea fishing... It goes on and on but basically anything entailing an element of physical risk. It seems to me that everytime I find a new fun thing to do I get a memo from the legal department saying that it's been added to the list. We also don't allow people to take vacations in locations where they would not be reachable by telephone.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

We went to Adelaide on frequent flyer points.

Me:

Toronto-Philadelphia-Atlanta-LA

OH:

GJ-Denver-Salt Lake-LA

Both

LA-Seoul-Sydney-Adelaide

all of it in the back row of the plane. It's not something people can do for a vacation, take two days off, and be fit for work again.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I can partly understand your reluctance, but to my mind it seems like wasted opportunity. Firstly, it's only about 8500 miles, and you could easily get a stop-off in Hawaii for a couple of days either end of your holiday to soak some jet-lag up. What a great holiday - and no accommodation costs presumably!

Not sure I agree with you about the business class thing either. If you can sit economy for 8 hours straight, you can sit in economy for two separate shifts of 8 hours straight, surely.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

There's a book in here somewhere, dbd. Get scribbling. Driving off-road??? So you get fired if you're caught taking your car over a field to a lake, etc.? This is a US company, I hope? Surely no decent colony of HM would impose such draconian rules.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Four days is more than a third of the typical annual holiday allowance here. That's a lot of time to use for nothing in particular.

It's not two shifts of eight hours. Even if you buy a premium ticket it's something like six hours to the west coast, eight to a stopping point (Hawaii, Seoul, Taipai, wherever), twelve to Sydney, more to Auckland. Suppose five hours hanging around at each stop and even a cheap charter to London looks like luxury by comparison.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

That's right. YOW-YYZ-LAX-AKL is close to 30 hours, including up to 10 hours hanging around in airports.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

It's a Canadian company. The clients used to be in the US but they're mostly in India now. The Indian thing is more of a pain in the arse than the prohibited passtimes; yesterday, for example, a client called in broken English demanding that we all be working this weekend and on through next week. That's a bother because Tuesday is a holiday here, that's something that a US based client would have recognized and handled better - we'd still be working but we wouldn't be insulted.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Hey, I don't make the rules.


Again, this only counts for East Coast people. Those already in Vancouver or LA have a head start. But Quebec is only 4500 miles from Hawaii, 14 hours seems a long flight for so short a distance.

How can it be more to Auckland than Sydney when Auckland is 700 miles close to Hawaii than Sydney? Forgive me if none of these figures add up; I am pretty tired and wanna go home and no be sitting at a keyboard.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

But Canada has Boxing Day as a holiday too though, doesn't it?

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I'm not sure. We only take the ones that coincide between the US and Canada, that's usually Christmas Day and President's Day.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Canada has Boxing Day and I think about 10 Floating Free Days, Summer there is one long weekend each month.

Maternity Leave is a Year, paid.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I'm just quoting the numbers I got off Expedia.

YOW-YYZ 1 hour
2 hour wait
YYZ-LAX 5 hours 15 minutes
7 hour wait
LAX-AKL 12 hours 45 minutes

If I lived on the west coast, the trip would be very do-able. That last leg is my preffered flight length. What comes before that is the nasty bit. I think it would be much worse coming back.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Crikey. They must pay well, have fascinating work or offer you some other great benefits.

I can work really long hard hours (although I got all my proposals and final reports out the door yesterday so today I'm sorting my emails, doing my expenses, having a long lunch with a friend, then going to the hairdresser, but I did work last Saturday), but I play hard too - that's what life is about for me - I want to grab every opportunity. I couldn't work for an employer that restricted my private life so much. But each to their own, and maybe if we hit recession I might not so fussy.

One of the main points of a holiday too me is being cut off from 'home'. Mr L2S's boss assumed he would be checking his email when we were in Mexico - stupid idiot!

Our only real restriction is that the president of my company is really anti-alcohol, which is weird cos we're a Kiwi company, so all my co-workers in Kiwi land have "beer friday" and a great big p1ss-up at Christmas. We have "just working like a normal day Friday" and a polite pot-luck lunch for Christmas which only affects our billable hours a bit.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

the flight is difficult, I always took some mild valium to help me sleep, but when you wait in Hawaii for a connecting flight, you are herded into this small area with hard plastic seats and you wait, and you wait, because, surprise, the connecting flight is 3 hours late.

You arrive, guess what, your luggage doesn't, what to do, well they don't come leaping with offers, but you are entitled to buy some necessities and bill the airline.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I am Canadian: However I did have a good freind whose family emigrated from NZ he used to joke that he missed the vegimite sandwiches cause he hated peanut butter. But I think you can even get that here now. He said that NZ was a little slower paced and laid back. But that he loved NZ and would always want to go back for long visits etc. He though he would have a better career here in Canuk Land with more opportunity for advancment in his feild.
Canada is an unbelievably large place with a lot of different climates and types of places for almost every taste. Most people tend to pick an area based on their job. But I think the better Idea is to select a lifestyle and then find an area that meets your expectations. Cause really you can find a job almost anywhere if you try.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I would agree with you about the employment opportunities, but not with the climate comment. Nearly all Canadians, and consequently nearly all Canadian culture and opportunities, live within 100 km of the US border. This means that for intents and purposes, Canada is a 4500 km strip of land 100 km deep, and all on the same latitude.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

There are huge differences in climate across Canada.

Many of Canada's largest population centres are not slap bang next to the US border (eg Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Regina, in addition to all of PEI, NS and NF).

Canada's major population centres are spread over 10 degrees of latitude, which is roughly the difference between London and Rome.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

OK, a person does live in Regina. Nonetheless, Tableland's point is valid, most (I think even 90%) of Canada's population lives with a hundred miles of the US border. The three major cities are within that distance. There's significant way in which Canada is not functionally part of the US.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I recognise the point that is being made; I just didn't like the gross inaccuracies involved in making it.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

Even the '4500 km strip of land 100 km deep, and all on the same latitude' offers very different climates - just in BC the climates of the lower mainland, compared to Osoyoos and Canmore, for example are determined by altitude, proximity to the ocean, rainfall shadow etc. It's far too great an assumption to classify it as all the same or similar.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

I was thinking more about vegetation, etc, but climate doesn't differ all that much beyond East = colder and Vancouver = wetter.

And that is just looking at Canada absolutely, but if you compare it to the US or Australia for climate deviation then it looks even more boring.

Not to say Canada is boring though because I love it, just, you know.

Re: Move from NZ to Canada....
 

The climate still does differ a lot more than what you're suggesting. For example, most of BC is arid and dry, with exception to the coastal areas:

http://www.worldbook.com/wb/Students...itish_columbia

This map is definitely a lot more basic, but shows the different climate zones around Canada:

http://www.stuffintheair.com/Canadas-climate.html