el_richo

I don't get it?

Libertay

We have just had the request for our passports to attach our permanent residents visa to.

I have never been to Canada nor has my partner so we are either very adventurous or completely mad.

We currently live in London have a nice house and live in a great street but life is short and there is so much of the world to see and experience.

I go from wanting to move now to wondering if I'm ever going to be able to do it.. I suppose I know that we can live in a nice place mortgage free with stunning surroundings and it will be very easy to travel across the US for holidays.
The UK is not a great place to be at the moment and hopefully Canada will work out much better for us.

MartianTom

I've been out there several times and have travelled right across it - and it was that familiarity that both drew me and pushed me away at the same time. Lots and lots of fors and againsts, which I'm sure you've considered (don't forget the very short holiday time you'll get, the long winters, the massive distances between places). And you can see and experience the world without emigrating. This is what I intend to do. I'm withdrawing my own application as next year I intend to do some extended world travel instead.

I still think it's better to do it because you want to go towards something rather than away from something - but that's just my opinion. The UK is a great place in many respects. It's also a lousy place in many respects. Same as just about anywhere, really. Don't assume that it'll always be better elsewhere, 'cos you might end up disappointed. And don't forget that Canada's suffering the effects of this recession, too - perhaps not as badly as some places, but it has affected the labour market out there. Many people have said the same: same shit, different bucket - or, at least, shinier bucket. It sounds like you've got a good life in London. Don't break all ties, just in case.

Good luck, anyway. The adventure begins...

Where are you thinking of going, out of interest?

Libertay

Thanks for your post I know the grass is not always greener but the views are certainly better

I think in the end it came down to the fact that I did not want to grow old in the UK and especially not in London.

If Canada (Vancouver) does not work out then we move on.. I'm not sure I would come home though..

The person I will really miss and have a problem leaving is my mum although I have made her promise to come and stay for at least a month a year

fledermaus

If i had money I would love to live in London. Flederman would hate it though.

MartianTom

Which other countries have you visited that you might consider if Canada doesn't work out? I quite fancy France myself.

dboy

Vancouver is an easy fit really. Similar weather (although better summers), and yes, great views. However, not sure you will even get a month of hols to start with.

Libertay

We looked at remote parts of Spain but it would have been to difficult to get work similar situation in France.

Alan2005

If I had the money I'd want to live in Tokyo for a couple of years, then maybe Shanghai, and then Bangkok again. Then retire back here. Alas I don't.... I blame my parents.

Almost Canadian

I have never been able to understand this objection. How many people regularly travel more than an hour away from where they live in the UK? Most people will spend more time travelling to and from work in the UK than they will in Canada.

Granted, if your annual or semi annual vacation in the UK is to Spain, your travelling time for vacations in Canada is likely to be a little longer, but not massively. If, on the other hand, you vacation in North America, Asia, Africa, Australiasia in the UK, then your travel time is likely to be very similar in Canada.

I appreciate that Canada is a huge country but, unless you have family/friends in a different Province to the one in which you live, I fail to see how the distances are an issue.

Any thoughts

Libertay

Thanks for the reply I was just reading some of your other posts

I realise we can only know so much as we have not visited the place but we have done so much research and now that google has Vancouver street map it can give you an idea.

I read lots about the climate being similar to here with more defined seasons (lots of rain but not too much drizzle).

I may be way off the mark but I see it as a kind of mini London lots to do without the levels of dirt and unhappy people.

I have quite a few Canadian friends here and they all say that Vancouver is much friendlier than London.

I have a lot of friends here so I think if I can make friends in London then I should be able to make friends in Vancouver

We don't have any children to worry about but do have two dogs that come a very high priority in our lives so we do not have the worry of children settling in a new place.

Lychee

I think initially, before even setting foot in Canada, a lot of people have romantic ideals about the Canadian landscape. "Oh, mountains! Lakes! Rivers! Forests!"... but then they find themselves settling in somewhere which is hundreds of miles away from the Canadian landscape of their imaginations. Or they don't fully appreciate that there is often hundreds of miles, if not thousands, before they can ever reach those destinations within Canada.

Somebody dreaming of Canadian Rockies and then finding themselves in Windsor Ontario, for example, will really notice those distances.

dboy

True and there is usually local stuff that you can do for a day or two. In Vancouver you can nip over to the island or the interior or pop down to Seattle (god forbid). There is also Whistler and plenty of local lakes etc to pass the time.

All we ever did from Manchester was Blackpool, Southport, Morecambe or North Wales - usually in the pouring rain.

Alan2005

I get 24 days which I think is excellent by Canadian standards. Though I lost 6 when I transferred over here... grrr!

Lychee

The lifestyle's completely different because it's not focused around career - it's focused around enjoying the beaches, the forests, the mountains, the islands, and the restaurants. It's not about pubs or nightclubs or theatre. Not so much anyway. It's much more of a grassroots city, somewhat of a DIY vibe.