People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
#32
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Location: Winnipeg
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Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
And some people think everyone in Australia spends all day at the beach waxing their surf-boards.
Well I managed to visit the beach on average less in Melbourne than I did the beaches in the yookay!(and that's saying something coming from the NE Scotland!) We were either working or it was too hot, too many flies (and sharks , too many Bogans (chavs/neds),too far away...
And I was certainly not the odd one out in not making it to the beach on a regular basis..
#33
Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
And some people think everyone in Australia spends all day at the beach waxing their surf-boards.
Well I managed to visit the beach on average less in Melbourne than I did the beaches in the yookay!(and that's saying something coming from the NE Scotland!) We were either working or it was too hot, too many flies (and sharks , too many Bogans (chavs/neds),too far away...
And I was certainly not the odd one out in not making it to the beach on a regular basis..
Well I managed to visit the beach on average less in Melbourne than I did the beaches in the yookay!(and that's saying something coming from the NE Scotland!) We were either working or it was too hot, too many flies (and sharks , too many Bogans (chavs/neds),too far away...
And I was certainly not the odd one out in not making it to the beach on a regular basis..
#34
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Joined: Dec 2008
Location: Vancouver, BC
Posts: 6,695
Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
Having just moved from Australia (Melbourne)6mths ago I would say that it's two extremes and in fact you can't go out for a walk comfortably every day in Australia either (although granted Melbourne is less extreme than some parts).
Extreme heat can be just as hideous and difficult as extreme cold - when it gets to anything over 35 it is miserable and you just end up with the air-con on all the time trying to find a cool place indoors to shelter and avoid getting fried. (especially if you have young kids - you want to avoid getting skin cancer so you are constantly trying to slather them in sun-cream and cover up)
And don't forget the very real prospect of having to evacuate for fear of bush-fires wiping you out (even in the suburbs I have been within spitting distance of them on a regular basis, and it's bloody scary! )
So the grass is not necessarily greener - in this case it is often brown, scorched and you are unable to water it due to water-shortages...
I'm not saying it doesn't have its good points - but don't look at it like a Utopia..
Extreme heat can be just as hideous and difficult as extreme cold - when it gets to anything over 35 it is miserable and you just end up with the air-con on all the time trying to find a cool place indoors to shelter and avoid getting fried. (especially if you have young kids - you want to avoid getting skin cancer so you are constantly trying to slather them in sun-cream and cover up)
And don't forget the very real prospect of having to evacuate for fear of bush-fires wiping you out (even in the suburbs I have been within spitting distance of them on a regular basis, and it's bloody scary! )
So the grass is not necessarily greener - in this case it is often brown, scorched and you are unable to water it due to water-shortages...
I'm not saying it doesn't have its good points - but don't look at it like a Utopia..
#36
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Joined: Dec 2006
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Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
As both countries are vastly large so only compare two cities: Melbourne and Toronto. I have been Sydney before and to me Toronto is even not close to Sydney in term of climate.
1. Melbourne is extremely hot in summer and Toronto is extremely cold in winter.
2. In Melbourne the number of days with temperature over 35 is around 1-2 week, whereas in Toronto, the temperature under -5 is about 2 months. There is no point to compare indoor condition as in Melbourne you can have AC while in Toronto we can heating. I am thinking of being outside, the feeling of -5 is about equal to 35 degree.
3. With temperature of 35+, in the morning or at night, you might still manage to have a walk outside for more than 1 hour. At night, you could turn off AC to have nature air in the bedroom. But with temperature under -5, it is 24*7 and the chance to have a "break" seems nearly impossible.
4. In Toronto, for almost half year, there is no leaf on trees and the sky mostly is grey. for at least 4 months, there is salt on roads, parking pot and driveway, everywhere. In addition, we have snow and ice conditions on road... There are no such issues in Melbourne to my awareness.
I know the bush fire is scary that is why originally I only considered moving to Sydney - Sydney has that too but there is less than in Melbourne (VIC).
For those of you who moved from Melbourne to Toronto, would you mind to share what made you come here? I don't have bias toward OZ but I am frustrated by how Toronto is.
#37
Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
I dispute your claim that the sky is grey for half the year
#38
Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
During this Christmas and new holiday, we were put into no power and no water thanks to the ice storm and today the windchill is -26!. We all are grounded at home too because we have a baby.
I realize from the practical point of view, the quality of life is significantly lowered by the lengthy winter and is not necessarily better than that of Australia. Am I a fool? I choose to stay in Canada because of feeling well/future-safe being close to the U.S.? If I went to Melbourne, I would probably have similar purchasing power because of the higher income and at the same time, almost all year around, I would be able to go out for a walk.
I might not be myself today as I am little bit depressed.
Did you get your $50 supermarket voucher for the power outage?
I have lived in Toronto & the surrounding GTA for 46 years & still cannot get used to the climate - but hey, its better than most places.
I have also live in Sydney & Perth Australia. I'll take Canada 2:1 over OZ.
As for the US, IMO its a $hithole country to live in
#40
Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
Also that it's "extremely" cold.
I enjoyed visiting Australia but, oh my, it's a long, long, way from London. I think if you moved there you'd have to adjust your cultural focus, whereas, if you live in Toronto, the major cities within reach are New York and then London. New York is quite like home so, while we're in a bit of a wilderness in Canada, it's still possible to go to the theatre, to enjoy crowds and excitement, to live a bit (one weekend at a time). In order to have similar cultural amenities while being based in Australia I think one would have to master Korean or Japanese.
I enjoyed visiting Australia but, oh my, it's a long, long, way from London. I think if you moved there you'd have to adjust your cultural focus, whereas, if you live in Toronto, the major cities within reach are New York and then London. New York is quite like home so, while we're in a bit of a wilderness in Canada, it's still possible to go to the theatre, to enjoy crowds and excitement, to live a bit (one weekend at a time). In order to have similar cultural amenities while being based in Australia I think one would have to master Korean or Japanese.
#41
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Joined: Dec 2006
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Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
Also that it's "extremely" cold.
I enjoyed visiting Australia but, oh my, it's a long, long, way from London. I think if you moved there you'd have to adjust your cultural focus, whereas, if you live in Toronto, the major cities within reach are New York and then London. New York is quite like home so, while we're in a bit of a wilderness in Canada, it's still possible to go to the theatre, to enjoy crowds and excitement, to live a bit (one weekend at a time). In order to have similar cultural amenities while being based in Australia I think one would have to master Korean or Japanese.
I enjoyed visiting Australia but, oh my, it's a long, long, way from London. I think if you moved there you'd have to adjust your cultural focus, whereas, if you live in Toronto, the major cities within reach are New York and then London. New York is quite like home so, while we're in a bit of a wilderness in Canada, it's still possible to go to the theatre, to enjoy crowds and excitement, to live a bit (one weekend at a time). In order to have similar cultural amenities while being based in Australia I think one would have to master Korean or Japanese.
Some posts really cheer me up a a little bit.
First of all, I think 0 C is not extremely cold, and -10C is and I should combine "no leaf on trees" and "grey sky" for half year. I should say for half year, there is no leaf on trees and during the winter time we have a lot of grey sky.
Don't get me wrong, I do love Toronto. It is a great city and I am thankful to have a good job. It is just the weather thing let me re-think my options...
I do not know if we've got the $50 voucher. The cost is not the major thing to me. The outage just reminded me how much we rely on energy to have comfortable life. We are pretty fragile.
Two groups of people I've observed have hard time with the winter, some seniors and babies. A few senior friends of mine cannot drive because of health issues, and they have to depend on friends/children for going out during winter. Their healthy issues also get worse in winter too. Myself have a little baby, this winter my wife basically does not go out anywhere. Only when we need to bring the baby to see doctor, we bring her out. Otherwise, we just stay home. I have another toddler and it is better because I still can drive him out to daycare or mall. But, it is much easier to take them out when weather is warmer.
I wonder if it will be better to raise small kids in OZ and also when I retire - long way to go :-), the qualify of life would be better over there because of the warmer climate. Am I wrong?
Btw, I don't agree it is an advantage to be closer to London and New York. Travel is much easier.
#42
Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
I immigrated to Canada 4 years and I have to admit it was because Canada is close to the US so I decided to move here. But speaking of Canada itself, the winter is so harsh and lengthy - I am in Toronto, it is actually not a liveable place to me.
I wonder for other people who immigrate here. The reason to pick Canada is because Canada is really good its alone or because its neighbour is the biggest economy.
I wonder for other people who immigrate here. The reason to pick Canada is because Canada is really good its alone or because its neighbour is the biggest economy.
#43
Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
I am thinking of moving to Australia in favour of its climate. But since I have got pretty good establishment here in Canada and also most my friends advise me that Canada is part of North America which is sort of centre of the world so it is better. I am confused and not sure if I should make the move. That is why I turned down the offer...
Jesus.
#44
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Joined: Sep 2011
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Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
What does French have to do with anything? I've spent the majority of my life in Canada, can't speak five words of French, and that has never affected me in the least as I do not live in Quebec.
This is patently ridiculous as our material standard of living is the same as in the US. If you take everything into account, we probably have a better standard of living than they do.
Where do you come up with such ridiculous tripe? This is easily one of the dumbest things I have ever seen posted here or anywhere else.
America offers a higher material standard of living.
This is patently ridiculous as our material standard of living is the same as in the US. If you take everything into account, we probably have a better standard of living than they do.
I would think most anyone living in a Canadian subdivision would want to move to the US, life would be the same but with an even bigger television.
Where do you come up with such ridiculous tripe? This is easily one of the dumbest things I have ever seen posted here or anywhere else.
#45
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Joined: Sep 2011
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Re: People come to Canada for Canada or the U.S
Yeah but everything costs a lot more in Australia.
I realize from the practical point of view, the quality of life is significantly lowered by the lengthy winter
Quality of life is not lowered. Many people love winter and thus their quality of life improves during winter. It depends on the individual and how they deal with winter. Personally, I hate the cold but the quality of my life doesn't diminish in the winter, I just wear warmer clothing. And I prefer that to sweating like mad in the ridiculous summer humidity that we get.
And the ice storm was a freak occurrence - our first in 40 years - so don't treat it as if it is normal.
Last edited by colchar; Jan 4th 2014 at 4:37 pm.