dudlek

Am about to hit 3 year canniversary here in Fredericton NB and I have to admit I am still lost and confused as to the draw this country, sorry I have to say province as not been elsewhere, has for my OH and others
We moved here for a new and adventurous life initially in the maritimes with a view to take experiences in other parts of Canada when an if offered but I'll be honest I just don't 'get' it!
Admittedly I am a SE England home counties lass used to having my workplace ie London on my 1.5hour commute doorstep. Easy access to shops and amenities and if course no more than 1 and a quarter hours from the seaside. But let's be honest everybody without exception told me of how wonderful Canadia was its beauty and it's people!
Beauty? Ok when you have seen the amount of trees in NB you think if there is beauty, I can't see it for the trees, and the people, well let's put it this way, simply, frederictonians don't like outsiders not as friends nor as employees. Harsh? I don't think so. I had closer friendships and still do with the people I met in my 3 years in Amman, Jordan, which was warmer (lol) but still had nearly as much snow, just only lasted 2 weeks!
I have been recently surprised by my friend Sinead moving to Australia after 4 years here but then thought about it and it is not easy being the stranger here with the funny accent! My OH has a very good job in the RCAF so employment for him is not an issue, which I never take for granted, for me? It is!
So in summary, I just wanted to say that a visit gives you a pretty good view of amenities, etc but living here daily with the maritime mindset, very very hard and at times incredibly boring!
Ps must add that would love to x-country ski or snowshoe but had ankle op last feb and still healing so pretty wintry walks out too sadly!
I sorry if this post seems vague but I just want to be honest about how I see life here and of course appreciate others feel differently.

Tangram

SE / London compared to the Maritimes. I think I found your problem. It's like moving to South Wales ( apart from the welsh ) from London and expecting it to be the same.

dudlek

Hi Paul

Thanks for your post and response to my soapbox stand.

Not directly comparing dear Freddy to London of course, just trying to give an appreciation of where I originally came from and tbh we actually came from 5 years in shawbury a small village 8 miles outside Shrewbury which is smaller than Fredericton but without the small town mentality! That is what has been such a shock oh and the la k of fair employment law and consumer rights-yes I know it's a different country but has some attitudes of uk 30 years ago! These sorts of things can not be found out unless you live here..... Or maybe read this forum!

dudlek

Oh an funny you say that I grew op on the gower and moved to high wycombe in my teens lol

MarylandNed

It sounds like you've given it a go (you've been there 3 years rather than 3 months) so maybe you're simply in the wrong place for you. Canada is a big country so maybe somewhere else would be a better fit (just as in the UK there are places where you'd be happier than others).

BristolUK

Some of the things on National TV......fashion tips for things my mum was doing over 30 years ago......some shows on a par with what we saw in the UK when all night TV was in its infancy, like that tacky James Whale show.

ChromeoHurts

I had a fantastic life back in London - lived in Greenwich and worked in Clerkenwell and moved for my OH to be closer to family. I enjoyed coming to Toronto on vacation but living here is a different story. It has stuff to do... it has shopping but it's not what I thought it'd be like. The winters are too harsh for me and I'm from Scotland!!! Almost 4 years for me. I guess Toronto has grown on me and I've finally accepted the city for what it is and not for what it isn't... but, if I could move back to London tomorrow... I would.

se1zm1c

Seriously even after 4 years? To be honest ... I'm convincing myself that I'll be ok in a GTA winter...but if I'm honest, I'm not sure at all how I'll cope with 3-4 months of relentless grey sky, bone chilling cold and snowscapes. Is it something you can learn to tolerate coming from SE UK?

ChromeoHurts

The skys are mostly clear during the winter. It's the -C temps and wind chill that piss me off. We've had a mild winter this year. It's 13c today OMFG

Miss Clinique

Its not the winter you should worry about too much in the GTA, its the landscape. The GTA is a ugly, souless place. I lived in Kent before I came here, so I miss the coast and the country side of Kent.

The winters can be hard and long, you somehow adjust, you need to make sure you buy good winter clothes and get out as much as you can.

ChromeoHurts

I think that's one of the issues I have with Toronto and the GTA. As in London when the city became to much I had a lot of options... i.e. home counties, Brighton or Whitstable. There is very little in the GTA with charm. So most of the time I feel like Toronto is all there is. Even places like Niagara on the Lake (which a lot of people rave about) is blah.

Former Lancastrian

I have to laugh about the GTA winters bone chilling cold
Try moving to the Prairies or live in the NWT or Nunavut before commenting on bone chilling winters.
Compared with the rest of Canada (excluding BC) the GTA has decent winters.
There again I guess minus 5C is bone chilling to some. Try a month of highs of minus 20C with lows down into the minus 40C range. I agree on the wind chill thing though.

MikeUK

Yep.. the cityscape is very grey in the winter......

But and its worth taking into consideration is its surround by the Niagara escapement, not just green belt, but large part of it classified as UNESCO protected, its beautiful and all year round, it has numerous parks many of which have cross country skiing as an option.

You have two options in a Canadian winter, one do as most locals do, hunker down inside and wait till spring, or two follow the minority, buy the right gear and get outside,
as an immigrant I think you have to have grown up here to give up three to four months of a year

MikeUK

There not bone chilling, they are unfit for habitation !!!

nldfc

How very dare you The James Whale Radio Show was a class act - Wasnt it followed by the Hitman and Hers late on a Friday night ?