amardan

Hi expats

Here is our journey to Calgary so far.

Well have been so busy settling in as we arrived in Calgary on 4th Sept 2008 and it has been non-stop. There is so much to remember and sort out at first. It takes a while on how things work in Canada as some things are quite different compared to the uk. Such as when you buy a car you then go to registries to buy your license plate. Also we found it not too bad for anyone to insure us as we had no driving history in Canada. However, I do recommend that you take proof of your no claims with you as Insurers rate you and the higher the grade such as 8 the better the insurance but the lower the grade higher the insurance. Unfortunately, for us my o/h had 9 years no claims but I had 4 years no claims so the grade was reduced and our premium raised from $139 to $179 per month as they take the lowest no claims. Also we had to surrender our uk licenses for canadian ones so that we could legally drive in Calgary. We found that our set up funds went a long way as we managed to buy furniture for the house and other things such as TV, DVD player and a car. The only thing that I have found strange is that certain supermarkets don't stock tin tomatoes and when I ask anyone they don't know what I am talking about which I found very funny. Luckily, where we live there is a Sobey's and they seem to stock Tomatoe sauce which is more like a passata but still does the job. The children seem to have settled in nicely but we are still finding our feet and haven't really made any friends as yet but it is still early days. It is nice to have a bit of a summer as well, unlike poor UK rain and more rain. Unfortunately, the one thing from UK I do miss is our TV setup as Canadian TV is dire but it makes us want to go out and walk and do more with the children. So that can't be all bad. We are just an hour or so away from Banff and views were outstanding. Well, I feel I have babbled on enough but there is just one more thing I would like to add that Canada is definitely the right move for us and we have no regrets.

Regards

Julie_p

Glad you seem to be settling in well sounds fab! i love reading how people are finding things, we are hoping to be in calgary soon, where abouts are you living?

Kokanee

Good to hear you have settled in nicely. We are moving to Calgary on the 13th October so hearing a positive story is timely.

xxTinksxx

Wow! I love to hear stories like these.
Well done on your move to calgary.

LMBrian

Hi amardan,

Its great to hear your story and and gives that feel good factor We are moving out next month and hope we shall have enough set-up funds! I dont want to be rude and ask you staright out what it has cost you but I would be grateful for a few rough figures. Feel free to PM me if you prefer!

Best regards

Little D

Glad you're settling in well!

I've not had any trouble getting canned tomatoes in supermarkets. Safeway and Sobeys definitely sell them. There is a brand called Hunt's, plus they do supermarket own brands. They call them diced tomatoes. Hope that helps!

Getting There

Congratulations amardan. Welcome to Calgary.

Kind regards,

Eamonn & Janet.

Beaverquest

with our without tinned tomatoes ?

amardan

Hi we are living in the NW Calgary a place called Tuscany it is lovely, we have some mountains views at the front of the house but the our back yard is a bit small and overlooked, everything else is fine. We are renting at the moment and hope to be in a position to buy. We like the look of Cochrane and the people are so friendly and welcoming. Our lady in the bank bends over backwards to help us out with questions and directions of places to go to get furniture. There is a place here called The Brick and we found it very reasonable and Bestbuy is where we bought our HDMI TV which works great with our laptop so am still able to watch some of my UK dvd's. There are just a couple of things haven't been able to get hold of yet and that is a Skype phone (which is no prob as use the laptop) and Mulit-region dvd players. We have been advised that the NE Calgary is not that suitable to live if you have a family as the crime is a little higher there. We are about an hour away which is fine and still commutable.

amardan

Hi haven't been on this site for a while and have forgotten how to PM please can you help thanks

amardan

Thanks for the tip actually I remember seeing that brand in Sobey's will check it out.

Getting There

We got a cheap multi-region DVD player in Wal-Mart...might have been less than $30 from memory. We could probably sort you out a Skype phone (surprised the likes of Best Buy don't have them) as we have two and don't use either now. If you're interested (no cost) then do a left click on our screen-name on the left of this message (just above the pic of the horse!) and take the option that appears to send a private message to Getting There...which also answers your question to LMBrian on how to send a PM!

Good choice re Tuscany...very nice area.

Hope this helps,

Eamonn & Janet.

MrsDV

Welcome to Calgary, glad you're settling well. We arrived late June and have found it a very easy place to live. Hope all continues to go well.

MrsDV

BorninCalgary

I have an interesting view of Calgary as Ive actully lived he all my life, My wife, my mother,my grandmother,my mother in law, my father in law are all from England. My Father is from New Zealand.

The city has grown alot in the last 20 years, but it still has the western charm and friendly attitude. You will find very little history in Calgary as the city is just over 100 years old, but its a clean and appealing city as it has more job opportunities then most other cities due to the large number of Oil and Gas head offices. Its close proximity to the mountains make in an Ideal destination hub for those who wish to enjoy sports like skiing!

One place in Calgary that British Immigrants will find appealing is Mckenzie Towne in the SE of Calgary. Its one of the few neighborhoods in Calgary were you can walk to the market and other amenities (It even has a round about! a rarity in Canada). My experience from my Britsh Clients is they have really preferred the Deep South in Calgary. The NW is my 2nd choice for locating clients. Then lastly the NE
The NE has a very international flare to it, has alot of different cultures living there, not that is a bad thing but it does have the Stigma of having higher crime.. But I can show people pockets of crime in any quadrant of the city.

Lorna_D

Welcome to Canada, I'm glad your settling in.

We bought our multi dvd from the Brick it was only $27. Look for United Furniture they sell the same funiture as The Brick and Ashley and are cheaper.