el_richo

If you're looking to travel BC while you're there, lack of driving ability could limit you a tad.

Still, i agree with Inspect-her Gadget on the West End rentals. For cheap, cheerful, and a great location that's where i would look for decent value if you were looking to remain downtown.

iaink

I cant imagine it will be any cheaper here, not taking the likely insurance cost into account.

DigitalGhost

Well I wasn't actually thinking of getting a car and driving there just learning and getting a license which I think would be an international license wouldn't it?

To be honest, I don't have a clue about cars or driving at the moment, I've never really been interested at all, but it was just an idea.

dboy

they have a graduated system here so you would only end up with a learners permit. It wouldn't be worth the effort. There nowt wrong with living without a car. I would if I could, but there are advantages to having one.

ExKiwilass

In the 'burbs there aren't a lot except hideous chains like Cactus club etc. Places to go check Gastown (I like the vibe down there right now - less pretentious, new pubs opening) or the Georgia Straight listings. But you're not going to find the same vibe as London. Fact. If you can accept the low-key nature of Vancouver you'll have a better time

As far as fashion goes, I went through the same thing when I moved here re: fashion but now I get that there is a west coast look (largely influenced by LA). It's not worse, it's just different. And there are lots of local designers here.

DigitalGhost

Thanks for that dboy, I think you could have just saved us a lot of money and time there.

dboy

I am really digging gastown these days, new places seem to be popping up all the time. The transformation in the past 5 years has been staggering. The W just went up on Woodwards and the theatre is set to open. Tons of derelict buildings, some vacant for 20 years are being redone. The carall street greenway is also breathing new life into the area and will connect gastown with Chinatown. Vancouver's heritage revival program, no taxes for 10 years and better enforcement are having the desired effect.

There's still much to be done, but i think that this is really an area to watch over the next few years and will breathe much needed soul into vancouver's night life. It could be a mini greenwich village in its own right.

Go to the atrim at woodwards and check out the scene from the gastown riot from the seventies - very neat -

ExKiwilass

I agree dboy as long as the landlords don't get greedy. That's partly why Yaletown is turning to the dark side now (read: chains moving in). Landlords don't like independant businesses as much as they like chains, apparently. But yeah, so far so good.

And then there's always the chance of a mysterious fire to force development.....

dboy

I don't mind cactus club - but see it has more of a lunch place - or dine and dash - prices are a bit high for what it is.

ExKiwilass

I'd rather go to the legion

dboy

All developments down there have to have a percentage of social housing and the city seems all to familiar with price gouging etc. Its inevitable that it will rise in price but I think there's a real desire to do something good with the area. Time will tell I guess.

ork

It would be lovely to have a watering hole within walking distance of the house - sadly, there is not even a Cactus Club close-by. We are between Marpole and Kerrisdale (closer to Marpole), so there are restaurants within striking distance but it is not the same as having a neighbourhood bar/pub.

*grin* Apologies, I didn't intend to make myself sound like a fashion afficionado! I am really not. I think that I might be the kind of person who has a tendancy to make most fashionable outfits look, well...frumpy? So I guess that I've learned to stick with some basic things that do not make me feel awkward. I have found that quite a lot of the fashion here, at least in the shops near us, is Asian influenced. I think that the fashions are really cool but they do not suit me at all.

Btw, it has not helped that I've truly blimped since my arrival in Vancouver and I needed wardrobe basics in bigger sizes. I looked, tried things on, winced and fled - in the end, it was just easier to wait until I got home and was able to shop exactly where I knew I would find what I needed. It took me about an hour to sort myself out.

ork

I was down there for a photography class in the Autumn, just before they had the opening of the shops in the building on the old Woodward site and I've been listening radio updates since; I must go see.

ork

Only over 3 months - are you sure?! It feels like it rains here pretty much everyday between October and March!

I thought that I was ready for the rain (my husband, then bf, told me how much it rains here but I thought he was exaggerating) but I just wasn't prepared (it turns out that he did not exagerate). I have never suffered from SAD in the past but after last/this autumn-spring period, I am thinking of getting one of those bloomin' lamps!

I am definitely stuck in the 'burbs. Of the souless variety. I did meet some of my neighbours when we were digging our cars out of the snow last winter and almost gave them heart attacks when I introduced myself. Unfortunately, most sightings of neighbours melted pretty much away with the snow.

If downtown is too expensive to live, what do people think of Strathcona? I've walked around there a few times and went to the Eastside Cultural Crawl and it feels like it has a sense of community and is a mix of young families, shared houses, students etc.

I think that it is possible to find what you need but I find it more of a treasure hunt. I am not saying that this is a bad thing, it is just different. I do not find it a one-stop shop experience at Safeway, in the way that I used to hit Sainsburys/Tesco for a weekly shop. Instead, depending on what's going on - we pick up things from a variety of different places to ensure that we have everything we need.

Also, it seems to me that availability of fruit and veg is more strongly linked to what's in season locally/California - I do not think that's a bad thing at all. E.g. sweetcorn in sweetcorn season. In the UK, we've got used to everything being available all year around because it's been zoomed in from somewhere else.

ExKiwilass

Oh, you're in south van. Yeah, it's kinda lacking in amenities over there...too bad..hopefully it improves.

Totally get it re: fashion.