Hi all!

Did medical on Monday evening and have been contacted by a potential employer in Ca out of the blue (networking does work! He said he got my CV from a colleague ... about 300 miles away!!) and he's keen for me to start asap. We may have to go down work permit route, even at this late stage of PR, unless anyone out there has any other ideas .....

So now I'm in panic mode and am thinking about what I have to get rid of, what's worth shipping and what's worth taking for the journey.
I wanted to ask, of those who have made the big move and shipped most of their stuff, what exactly did you take with you in hand luggage, knowing that you were going to be living 'rough' for 4-8 weeks?

We're aiming to upgrade to business class so we can take more stuff, but we'll also be bringing 2 (v. large) cats in separate containers as excess baggage.

At the moment we're thinking air mattress, sleeping bags, clothes (obviously) and a few basic kitchen items.

A detailed list would be appreciated if anyone has the time.

Also, if you had to do it all again, is there anything you didn't take and wish you had or stuff you did take and found completely useless??

Cheers for any replies - I think any answers may be really useful to all of us who are still playing the waiting game!

Trish

Is your employer going to help out, we came over on work permit and the firm my husband works for paid for our furniture shipped and provided us with an apartment for 3 months also a hire car for 3 months until we were able to buy a house ,we only brought clothes with us.

We were similar, during 'the long wait', Mr R2D2 was offered a position, and the co' started down temp visa route to get us out to Canada quicker (then the PR arrived) so not necessary.
With re to stuff to take on the plane, we took too much and nearly got stung with a hefty excess baggage charge ( see the thread entitled relocation costs, items overlooked). Because we came out in May, the weather could have gone either way, so we packed loads of clothes and really have only worn summer stuff the whole time. Then again, the forcast is only 12 degrees for Mon so maybe I'll be glad of those sweaters then (esp as still waiting for shipped goods, 2 1/2 months now, due to strike in Vanc..)
Toys for the kids, but you can never pack enough, we had a big trip to Toys R Us as ours were soon bored playing with the pathetic number we had room for in the cases.
Photo's, personal info/paperwork to do with the move and life in UK ie birth certs, insurance docs, medical history reports etc etc etc. As much as you think relevant.
Anything really precious that you just couldn't bear to lose. We have a friend who used to work for the Merchant Navy and he says SOMETIMES containers really do go over the side !!!! (This was years ago, so lets just hope things have improved since then.)
And yes, some basic bits and pieces of household stuff does help until you get chance to go to Walmart !
We didn't have to take bedding thankfully as our landlords said they would put ready beds in the condo for us (which was a godsend...but pretty uncomfortable after a couple of nights)
I bet your brains are buzzing with it all now. Good Luck.

I think the employer will help all he can, esp as the job is in Northern Ontario and they don't get many applicants! He's alredy told me I'd be entitled to claim the Underserviced Area funding from the Ministry of Health ($15,000) so that'll really help! We'll definitely need help to find accommodation, so I'll be pushing for that, as not every landlord is happy to accept pets.

Today has been designated "Clear out day" chez Brown (imagine, I've given up a good day's motorbiking in Perthshire to do this!!!! Mad or wot???!!!) - I think the most difficult thing will be having to give away/sell for peanuts perfectly good stuff and then have to shell out to buy it all at the other end!

Oh well, all for the great Canadian 'dream'.

Trish

Regarding accommodation.

See if there is an online version of a local paper and check the classified ads.

We had a look at the Calgary Herald, and there was a VAST choice compared with the properties we had managed to find online at various sites.

There is not so much info mostly and fewer pics if any than online, but at least you know they are all current ads, and it's just a case of sitting down with a phone. If you have a contact out there who could go look at any you select then obviously this would be best if you are unable to "pop over" for yourself.

Good luck! ..... Scary, isn't it!!!! :scared:

Mmm, very scary! Have actually just been looking at the Northern Sun News at property for rent and the local realtors (can't get used to that word!!). Not such a vast choice considering the area is quite remote (the municipality has a population of 5000!) at the end of highway 105. But, hey, beggars can't be choosers - I'm not going to Canada and expecting to slot in at the top end of the market (like some I've read about on this forum who seem to be going for material reasons, but each to his own as they say); we're quite prepared to rough it for a while to get a feel for the area and job before committing to buying, hence renting out our house here in the UK!

It's really interesting reading the local rag and finding out what's important to the folks who live there - nuisance bears seems to be a hot topic! Apparently 2004 was a really busy year for the 'bear managers'!! Mmmm, wonder how my cats'll like dodging black bears!!!

As far as 'popping over' is concerned, I don't think that'll be economically viable as we'll have to fly Edinburgh to Winnipeg via London and then on to red Lake via Bearskin Airlines at a huge cost. Will just a have to rely on phonecalls and e-mailed pics!! More exciting that way!!

Congrats on the job offer!

Have you ever been to Northern Ontario?

Many congrats! If you get an unexpected stopover or come to do some shopping in Winnipeg, give us a shout! We flew Edi-Wpg last December and I don't recommend the going via Chicago thing...absolute nightmare with connections/missing luggage/being told rubbish by rude Americans. Done O'Hare in various Canadian combinations and if I never see the place again I'll die happy. I've not done the Gatwick-Wpg Zoom flight but it can only be better. I think it stops the first week of December though

As for packing, we were going to fully furnished rented accom so didn't bring much in the way of equipment except for a few things for the little one. Clothes-wise we knew we'd have access to a washing machine so only brought a week's worth with us. We went out and bought a further week's worth when we got here and that was plenty for the almost 3mths.

Sure it was a pain being without some stuff but you soon get used to it. In fact, the day they brought our container we realised we were managing just fine without 800sq ft of "stuff" so why on earth had we brought it all over?!

Good luck with your move, and congrats again on the job!

Biiiiink