Aatjjj

Hi
Weve been looking an hoping to move to Canada for a while now, but the timing wasnt right then when it was hubbys job disappeared from the noc, which left us looking for that elusive job offer

Well an opportunity (early days yet...) has come up in Saskatchewan....now its not somewhere we know or have considered before, we have family and friends in BC and Ontario.........

But...It looks like it could be our chance.....were both getting older (33 this year) and its one of those things, i know how hard it is to get a job offer and sponsorship ....hubby is a building project manager, we was hoping this may appear again on the list this year and then it wasnt even updated.....

Can anyone tell me is this a place you would consider..? we have a young family...oboviously we will def visit before commiting ourselves but wondered is anyone has any experience or comments on the area.

Former Lancastrian

OMG this thread could get interesting
It is a Prairie province meaning the southern part is mainly flat and wide open. It is between Manitoba and Alberta and commonly known as the Gap.
Major cities are Regina, Saskatoon & Prince Albert.
If you buy a dog and it runs off you will be able to still see it running away 3 days later.
If you stand on a box you can see across the whole of the Province.
Have you ever experienced minus 40C temperatures?
The oil and gas industry is becoming more prevelant and there is an expected boom job wise though this has made house prices rise accordingly.
Between August & November many residents can be seen wearing actual water melons on their heads as they head towards Mosaic Stadium to watch their beloved Riders Canadian football team.
Favourite vehicle to drive is a John Deere combine harvester.
Most of us would sooner poke a sharp knitting needle in our eyes than live in that Province.
Please dont let this post put you off persuing your dream
Easy to draw hard to spell.

Aatjjj

that bad then, ...
this is probably wrong but im thinking long the lines of its all good till we get pr and then can go look elsewhere....?...ie somewhere we rearly want to be, foot in the door and all......

MarkG

Personally it reminds me a lot of when I lived in Wiltshire in the UK, except it's flat and there are more pickup trucks. Nothing particularly wrong with it so long as you're not expecting a thriving cultural scene like a British big city; there are theatres and events, but nowhere near as many as you'd find in London.

iaink

There are a fair few posters here happy enough in Sask, and they would probably roll their eyes at the tired old cliches that get throw out whenever they come up.

The 2 things that are hard to argue are firstly its not exactly a transport hub, its somewhat isolated and it takes a while to get too or from there to anywhere else.

The second thing is the winter is a proper Canadian winter.

Neither need be a deal breaker, but a certain type of person is unlikely to see those two as benefits.

matty_c

Like you said, your foot's in the door!
If it was my only option I think I'd jump on it and worry later.
But thats my opinion, you must ask your self how much do you want to move to Canada ?
I know how much I want to move.

MarkG

Pretending to be Scott of the Antarctic as you walk home from the bus stop at fifty below zero is fun for the first few years. Unless you get frostbite.

AlmostThere12

We have already bought ski jackets due to looking at the temperature range! Cold does not bother me as long as I'm appropriately dressed. I would love four proper seasons, which I'm told you get there. It's still hot in the summer. I think it will be great for the kids, a mixture of winter & summer sports.

We are going to North Battleford, so our nearest city will be Saskatoon. 80 miles isn't far for a good day or two out.

Being completely honest, quiet isn't going to bother me. Mountains are nice but you can always go on holidays on Via rail & visit all that. I'm quite excited!

cheeky_monkey

Definitely not 4 proper seasons..winter last 6 months sometimes more and there are only so many times you can go skating or sledging before the novelty wears off. Spring and Autumn if you can call them that last 6 weeks at best..summers are nice but the price you have to pay for that is damn mosquitoes

AlmostThere12

Ah yes, mosquitoes, my husbands foes! I should be fine as they all seem to attack him!

iaink

Blimey, they must be paying you a FORTUNE...

While I agree that there is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing, the novelty of bundling up two small kids in several layers, thermals, snow suit, boots, gloves, ski mask, hat only to hear the immortal words "Dad, I have to go pee" just when you think you are finaly done, and then having to unbundle them out of thermals, several layers, snow suit, boots, gloves, ski mask, hat does wear thin, even in the relatively short cold periods of the Ontario winter...

And then they are so insulated they can hardly run, and you always miss a bit that gets cold and they get miserable, or too hot and sweaty, or both... anyway, you get the picture.... As an adult its OK, but thank god the kids are getting bigger.

MarkG

I'd like to do the rail through the Rockies thing, but so far we haven't had a time when both of us had vacation available and didn't have to go somewhere else. From what I remember it's expensive, but not that expensive?

AlmostThere12

We're going by rail from Toronto to Saskatoon when we arrive as it wasn't much more than the flights for all 5 of us, 2 day journey costing $1200 in total. Thought it might give us a breather inbetween.

Would love to do the other way to Vancouver. Take a while though, what with settling in & not much annual leave each year over there.

iaink

Rocky Mountaineer circle tour, starts at $3k each and rises sharply...

Id rather drive

Hawk13

+1 great list but you left out the mozzies. If you can't spell deet, I don't think they let you into Scratchatchewan.