Hi , all.

Yet another newbie here.

Been an on & off reader of this forum for the past few weeks & decided it was time to bite the bullet & participate!

My wife , myself & our ten year old daughter are just starting the process of emigrating to Canada.

My wife was born in Canada (Montreal) , to British parents & moved back to the Uk when she was fifteen. She's now a senior nurse.

We had often talked in the past of moving away to a different country , as this country was leaving us more & more cold as time went on , for various reasons. & we saw it as a bit of an adventure. Her parents had done it. & so had mine (i was also born abroad). But it always seemed to be one for the future. On the back-burner.

Anyway , largely due to my wife getting more & more disillusioned with her job (the politics , not the caring) , the subject came up again & very much to the fore! We initially started looking into Australia & although having a long since booked & arranged holiday to Canada (my wifes first time back) , it was largely dismissed as a future place to live as i didn't think i could live with the Canadian winters. We are both very much sun/heat lovers!

But ... the holiday came. & went. & all that changed!!! The three of us absolutely fell in love with the place. Everything about it. The places we went. The people. Oh the people! The service industry has got so much to learn over here! It just felt so right. At no point did we ever miss home. Or feel like a fish out of water. & then when we did come home , we found that we missed it terribly. It lingered with us & still does. Whereas with holidays in the past , after a few weeks home it's forgotten. You think "Yes , that was our holiday but it's done now. Now we're home & back into the thick of it , it doesn't feel like we've ever been away!". But this was totally different!

Now i know some people may say that we had our "holiday glasses" on & to some extent that may be true. But the holiday was a city break. We visited various places , but were always city based. So it was very like being at home. We did similar things to what we would do here on a weekend. A bit of shopping. Going somewhere nice to eat. Maybe going out for a drink of an evening! We were just somewhere else. Thousands of miles away & on the other side of the Atlantic admittedly!

Anyway the up-shot of it is , we fell hopelessly in love with Toronto & are looking to move somewhere in it's suburbs (Pickering has been recomended by a school friend of my wifes. She has many dotted about Canada who she liases with via Facebook! But would be glad of anyones opinions of Pickering , on here).

My wife has been in touch with the relevant authorities & can apply for a Canadian passport. & we can also apply for both a passport & citizenship for our daughter (Just a small matter of how I'm going to get in!!!). My wife has also started looking into nursing jobs in the Toronto area & will hopefully be applying in due course.

& me! Well for starters , the Canadian winters are no longer an issue! I couldn't care less & infact quite fancy the idea of a bit of snow. & white Christmasses for my daughter. Well , that can't be all bad , can it! & providing they let me in , i suppose i'll have to find work too. But i'll do pretty much anything. I've never been that career minded & anything that brings in a bit extra of "pocket money" ! Having experienced the service industry over there i'd be more than happy to wait tables!

Anyway , I guess i should go. I've harped on a bit!!!

I've got a million & one things to ask , but i'll leave that for another post ...

John.

Hi there.

Just wanted to wish you every success and good luck with everything. We have been here for just over 7 years and I still love the friendliness of the people, the whole service thing being so superior and the fact that there is much less aggression all around than in the UK. We are in Calgary but I think that it's a Canada-wide thing from what I can gather.

It sounds like you must be off to a good start with your wife being a citizen and all - so again all best wishes. I don't think you will be disappointed.

John

Just wanted to wish you the best of luck I don't think you will regret it!


Phil & Kyla

Welcome John,

First thing, come back for a Reccie (not a holiday) in February and see how you feel about the winter.

It would be great if it was just a few weeks of snow and a nice white Xmas.

More often than not though its 4 months of sub zero temps (allbeit sunny) and for the last couple of years a brown Xmas. If its a factor at first, by the time youve been here a few years and the novelty has worn off, and you only get three weeks off work to go anywhere to get away from it, it will really start to eat at you...

Hate to be negative, but its a big move for a family to be leaving something like that untested...

Good Luck...ask away (try searching the archives and wikis first though)

Lord knows why anyone who didnt have to work in the GTA would recommend Pickering... Mind you Im not a big fan of the GTA. Too much concrete and too many people.

We have just moved over, with our eldest being 10yrs and she loves it.

We are in alberta, just learning the art of skating
good luck with your adventure

Ditto what Iain said - but then I'm another one that's not exactly a fan of the GTA!

Welcome, hope your move goes smoothly.

I hate the GTA! and i don't really like the word 'Hate', but i do.
Lived in Toronto for 3 years, finally started to love the Country once i got out.
Like others have pointed out, the Weather will get to you, thats unless you are into winter sports.
The first snowfall is always great, the 2nd not to bad, but snowfall 18 & 22 get to you., then their is shovelling, 6 times a week, sometimes twice in winds creating -20 windchill thats gets to you after a while.
Then there is the 3 week vacation... 3 weeks! arghh. after 8 years i get 4.
Wow, in the UK you got four in the first year.
Those are really the only two downfalls. oh and Canadian drivers,
Good things, Safer enviroment, just avoid all roads in and around GTA (greater Toronto Area), lots more sunshine, nice size house and cars, nice summers, even this past summer i thought was brilliant.

So, if you dont have to work i Toronto, look 30 minutes North, West or East.

To be fair I think Ive shoveled maybe an average of 15, maybe 20 times the last couple of years. Mostly its blue skies in the winter, with occasional dumps. It find it rare to have to shovel more than twice a week. Its exceptional to have to shovel more than once a day.

Worst is snow AND wind, but thats thankfully pretty rare. Its worse west of toronto between the lakes as they get lake effect snow more or less which ever way the wind blows.

Just wanted to say a big thankyou to all your replys! Both positive & negative.

All are welcome & most appreciated.

Maybe i'll ask my in-laws about the snow! My wife loved it. But then again she was just a kid.

Again , thankyou.

John.

& i realise now that i should have clicked "new reply" , rather than "quick reply".

Sorry! Still getting to grips

Hi John

If your wife gets her passport can't you go the spousal route?

Danny

Hi , Danny.

Well that can be the first of my a million & one questions!

As a spouse/husband of someone with a Canadian passport , can i just enter
on the back of that ? Or does it just make my entry requirements easier but not complete ?

My wife has contacted immigration about my entry into Canada but has yet to recieve a reply.

Thanks.

John.

Hi John

check out the wiki on Sponsoring a Spouse

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Spousa...sorship-Canada

Thanks , Elaine.

All made for very positive reading on the whole!

John.

Hi!!