edgey

I will be emigrating to Canada in the new year with my wife and two son's.
I have a job to go to in Winnipeg and i am really looking forward to it.
i am a civil engineer from manchester uk.
Can anyone tell me more about Winnipeg - ie what to expect.
Is there anyone who has made a similar move and can tell me the pro's and con's of such a move.

Glaswegian

Never been there, but it's on my list ....
Looked at http://www.winnipeg.ca/ yet?

edgey

many thanks!

willmore

I think that there's a thread somewhere on the Canada forum which discusses in incredible depth the pros and cons of Winnipeg - right down to the difference in snow and coldness between Manitoba/Ontario.

Have a look....and if you need more info just yell

iaink

This one? It wasnt really about winnipeg though.

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...9&page=1&pp=10

It seems whenever winnipeg comes up on this forum most of the talk is climate related.

By the way edgey (welcome), its cold in winnipeg in the winter, even by canadian standards. Thats all I know though. Tell us your story, how did you land a job from "the outside", and as a fellow engineer, did you run into the PEng licensing thing?

Iain

willmore

You always catch me when I'm down don't you......pulling to many all-niters I guess.....did I just imagine a thread on moving to Winnipeg?

edgey

It was purely by chance (as it usually is) a friend of mine who used to work at bechtel in warrington knows someone who emmigrated about 5 years ago.
during an e-mail chat he mentioned that they needed a drawing office manager in there new office in Winnipeg and my name was put forward.
The visa's are still very much in the early stages as i'm not due to start until jan/feb.

can't wait though.

willmore

You're a very brave man - I was born and partly raised in Winnipeg - as a kid loved the cold winters - but now - brrrrr........

Get ready for the cold!!!!!

crazydaisy

Hi - we came over in March and it's been a tough summer. It's usually hot and sunny but it's rained virtually non stop for the last 3 months!! Still, the Winnipeggers are good natured and fun to be with and I settled right in. I can certainly point you to some useful websites - let me know whether you need info. on housing, neighbourhood profiles, weather, cost of living, those first few days etc. etc. etc. For me personally I love it here but I know some have found it harder to adjust. After living in the U.S. for 3 years I find life here such a pleasant change - a very, cheap and reliable bus service (OK you get the odd wally driver but the majority are fab!) and I couldn't believe it when I saw a HMV and a Safeway right next to each other! The salaries here can be extremely laughable mind you and hubby is having huge problems getting a decent job but as you have work already then that's taken care of. If you need to know more you are free to reply on here. Cheers, crazyd

edgey

thanks for the info. i have looked at housing and real estate web pages and the houses do seem much cheaper. Any additional info regarding the cost of living would be appreciated. (it's the uncertanty of going to another country which is making us nervous). i've heard the winter's can be cold over there but in manchester (uk) its miserable all the time apart from two weeks (of summer). I keep hearing how friendly and helpful the winnipeggers are which is a bonus. thanks for your help - keep in touch.

crazydaisy

Hi there - the cost of living websites I used are probably out of date now but if I happen to come across them again and they've been updated I'll let you know. I can report on the sort of costs we pay out as a bit of guidance though:

House rent for us is $719 including water
Hydro bills have come to $70 per month during the summer (for 3 bed house)
Cable and internet package is $92 per month
Phone is $60 per month (warning - pay extra for an international rate straight away - we didn't and our international bill was $80 for one month because we didn't sign up for a savings plan!)
Child tax (of course will differ per family but as a guide ours comes to $51.75 pm)
Bus fares are $15.75 for a 5 day pass and you can get a transfer voucher free if you need to change buses. Where we are they are very regular and even run in awful weather. The bus stops have numbers on so you can call ahead to make sure the bus is running on time before heading out in the blizzrds!
Car insurance for a minivan has been $115 a month
Food is about $120 per week for family of 3 and a large hungry Lab!

Useful sites are:
http://www.communityprofiles.mb.ca/ to learn about the neighbourhoods
http://www.city.winnipeg.mb.ca/census1996/pages/wpg.htm to check out the stats for each part of the city ie cost of housing in each area, how many rooms, age of family etc.
http://www.gov.mb.ca/finance/reports/pdf/advantage.pdf lots of bla de bla about the province!!
http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/mb/LMBulle...bulletin.shtml useful bulletins giving info. on new companies, contruction, economy in the area etc.

Hope that's a bit of a guide.

Glaswegian

Been there, done that, froze my nostril hairs in the process while tapping numbers into my cellphone at a bus stop.

It's all down to getting a job that pays the bills .... it's much nicer to have a car.

edgey

thanks for that - but can you explain the child tax (we have two boys aged 7 and 4)

crazydaisy

Yeah sure - I was referring to the child benefit and there's a ready reckoner at the following site to get an idea what you'll get. You'll need to calculate on previous year's earnings though so would need to calculate UK sal. and convert to Canadian dollars and give them that figure. The Labour/immigration people here in Manitoba said we could apply before SIN numbers have come through but when we did they refused to process the claim - but you do get back pay so it works out in the end! http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/benefits/childbenefit-e.html

By the way - once you've found the school the kids are going to check out the following site - it's a real laugh!! http://canada.ratemyteachers.com/

Rhodes

Ah, I was alarmed for a moment that one had to pay extra tax on each child, and thought it was no wonder that Canada has an ageing population.