Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

It was on Boxing day, over the road in our "mini-Tesco" ........ and strangely enough it was with a Canadian from Winnipeg!!!!

Morw :D

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

For all in the UK reading..............
It works for My Wife and I being here simply because (although we miss our relations and mates, that can be fixed with visits in either direction, it`s only eight hours flying) we grew to HATE everythin` that the UK had become.

If you have that motivation, you will always move forward here in Canada, regardless of probs` !!! :beer: :zzz:

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

Hmm. I would have to disagree - having seen so many eat their words after giving up the fight to get ahead over here. There are even those posting on this forum now, who gave me a hard time when I sounded a note of caution before they moved here (of course, they knew best, they had the right attitude, if no clue what they were talking about). Now, well things aren't quite so rosy. The novelty wears off very quickly, especially if you have kids. If you have a load of money, it will fix many of the problems you will face. If you don't......it's probably not the place to be. Those of you who berate Julius - he is right on many issues from where I sit - my opinion only, as you are all entitled to yours. Living in Canada is horses for courses - after nearly nine years here (with no way out now) I hate it with the same vengeance you guys leaving the UK seem to think you hate the UK. Just wait...you have no idea what you are leaving in Europe, because you won't miss it until it's gone.

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

ha, ha, ha, haaaaaaaH!! what about Famous Grouse then!? at least someone here has some humour left!
and as for iaink--yes, sir, you hit the nail on the head! its just like milton keynes without the atmosphere or roundabouts! thats what i mean by lack of spirit! and by the way, i am still in damn mississauga, but only for a short time more, while the shippers come in etc.

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

hello, dingbat! well, i am sorry to all those whom i may have put off by my postings, but what i felt, i posted; what i saw, i posted; what i heard, i posted. i think i have said this before--i wish we had made this move when the kids were babies--at that age, they could have adapted very easily and wouldnt have known any better, and we would have gone along with them too. as one of my friends told me the other day--"the best thing to do is not to move at all and try and put up with whatever you have; and if you do move, then dont ever think of going back!" thats one hell of a statement, but oh so difficult to put into practice! :eek:

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

Hi Julius, good luck with the move, I know its not been easy. Why did you decide not to try somewhere other than mississagua?, I doubt many would argue about it being among the most souless, god forsaken miserable places in Canada after all, and its a BIG country. Oh well, all water under the bridge now.

All the best.

Iain

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

Canada behind ... feels like it. But really this isn't true, there are other reasons:

digital TV - with the size of the country and the population density, terrestrial (analog/digital) TV is not really an option (would be very expensive to cover 10.000.000km^2 compared to 244.000km^2 in the UK), so people have cable (in high density areas) or satellte TV (in rural/remore areas)
Mobile phones: see above, GSM (digital ) in high density areas, analog or nothing elsewhere (my sons have not even asked for a phone yet, after living here for one year!), not very cheap so saves me money, right now we have only one mobile phone which we all share
Internet access: mostly DSL up to 5MB over phone line or cable (depends on age of installation in area so remote areas will be worse), Canada commissioned its first Canadian satellite for two-way internet service for the northern regions to bring services up north

So, what applies in Europe in terms of communication, can not be realized in the same way in Canada for reasons as explained above. Bit of statistics: 90% of the Canadian population living in a 50mls strip north of its boarder. Each of the 32M Canadians have an average space of about 312m^2 (if they'd equally spread out), it is 4m^2 in the UK. Or: in the UK you'll meet a fellow Brit every 2m of your way. So what do you think would that means in terms of number of antenna masts for terrestrial TV in Canada? I think it is good to make yourself aware sometimes how big that country is!

As I am working in the high tech industry (telecommunication and earth observation satellites) I can assure you that Canada is far from "behind the UK" in that respect. In contrary it is very advanced in producing high tech goods for various industries and has some of the most modern car plants in the world. Toyota is currently considering a second plant in Ontario to serve the Northamerican market!

Just a reminder that the geography of the country, its population density in certain areas etc requires a different approach in how to reach everybody and provide equal resources to everybody.

Just my 2p.

Stephen in Ontario

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

Yes...we are really saying the same thing...only you did it so much better :)

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

I recently had a consultation with an immigration lawyer who advised that once you have the work permit and have landed in Canada, you should apply through London. You should then be fast tracked to permanent residence in 6-8 months. You can apply through Buffallo, but this is likely to take up to 2 years, as was born out by the recent expereince of one of my colleagues.

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

Interesting to know. When I applied back in 1999 I was told the opposite, and mine came through in 10 months..but that was before 9/11 and the increased security checks, and under the old rules. Anyway, i guess the important thing is you can apply as soon as you land.

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

yo, iaink! you sure are right--its been up n down since we arrived here. first it was fun (new place etc etc), then once i started working, it was just the same as home (work, eat, sleep, work....), and it went steadily down from there! to tell you the truth, i dont know what i expected from living here really--i mean, work is work wherever you go, and you have to work to pay the bills! but it sure didnt go down with us that well. you know, and i'm going to put on my philosophers hat now, its like how kids build sandcastles at the seaside, with so much care etc, then when they get fed up, those same castles that took ages to build, come down ina few seconds! so it was with us! it took ages to get all the docs through, but we didnt last more than 6 mths! as you say, staying in mississauga may have been a big booboo, but we had no choice really, as we had been here before many times on holiday, and was the only place we knew well. but yes, its a totally heartless place, at least in my eyes. everyone seems to be in a race to get the best house, best job, best landscaped garden, best truck, and of course, to get wherever faster than anyone else on the road! but, water under the bridge now! who knows, we may look back at this episode in 5 yrs time and think, good thing we came back to blighty. at least, i sincerely hope we do, cos if not, then we're in real trouble..!!! :scared:

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

I understand that Canada is wayyyyy ahead of the U.K. on snow clearance technology too!

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

That's not been my experience in any shape or form, and I work in advertising, possibly the shallowest industry of all.

I don't really agree that Canada is behind the UK. It's just different. As you would expect it to be. Sure, the first few months living here can be tough. But you shouldn't expect to be able to walk into a new life from day one. There are days like today when I miss home and wonder why on earth I decided to come here, but then something always happens to show me that this was the right thing for me to do. I think all aspects of my life have improved from the switch in continents, and while I respect your choice to move back to the UK, I can't really understand why you didn't give yourself more time to sort things out over here...

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

hi, sarah! thanks for the comments. hmm, i understand where you're coming from....maybe its true we didnt give it long enough, but on the other hand, maybe its good we legged it early on, rather than leave it till later! it wasnt just one thing; it started with the kids school saying that they couldnt pick them up, and that was when we were having temperatures in the -30Cs; i almost cried to see them walk out in the cold, massive rucksacks on their backs, looking totally lost....then there was the pressures on the kids, pressures which they never had been under in the uk, etc etc and it goes on from there. then there was me..i could never get away from feeling despondent about being here...funny how it was; we were watching Bargain Hunt or something on BBC Canada and it just clicked with me...what am i doing here in this wilderness of a place, when i could be at home, sipping a hot cup of cocoa in the garden, or curling up in front of the tv and watching some british film or something, instead of running around and getting nowhere fast? afterthat it just went downhill fast---i couldnt get enough of uk culture, whether on tv or radio ( i would listen to BBC world radio with great interest....!!). looks like you made it, so good luck to you!

Re: Why is it better in Canada?
 

I think that's half the problem really especially if we are leaving a good life behind but don't always appreciate it. Aside from my wife being Canadian we came here for the sole purpose of being able to buy a house outright and to get one that was big enough for us. In England we didn't have that and in Canada we do. For me that's the very clear difference and the reason we intend to stay here. Really in my opinion there's nothing new under the sun and coming to Canada simply means exchanging one set of problems for another. I can't relate to the generalised comment of it being a better lifestyle than the UK. Clearly it isn't it's just different and has to suit the individual for it to be better. Unfortunately we don't get to find out just how much it suits us until we try it.