One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Jun 12th 2013, 4:32 am
#1
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 232
One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Well me and the two kids arrived a week ago following on from OH who arrived 4 weeks ago to start his job. In some ways that made the move easier and in other ways made it more stressful. It meant most of the admin over here like driving licence, getting a car, dealing with ICBC 
and finding a rental was all done by OH before we arrived and I dealt with selling up the house, cars, rehome the cat and arrange the shipment (never want to have to do all that myself again!).
This was all complicated further as I ended up in hospital having suffered another heart attack (due to an underlying rare heart problem not a lifestyle of fags, lard and booze - just sayin) ten days before me and the kids were due to fly over resulting in more admin dealing with airline, insurance etc..
What we've learned so far and has been said many times before on here...
It pays to get the insurance letters in the correct format before leaving the country. We ended up with brilliant coverage for $1600 going ICBC compulsory cover and the additional through Candian Direct which isn't bad (in terms of BC prices
) as we only had 5 years UK accident free driving. CD also quoted very reasonably on our contents insurance and have found them really helpful and pleasant to deal with.
On the other hand banks and utility companies and everything else is pretty painful and behind the times, but we're getting there and that in comparison to everything that has led up to the big move is small beer.
Finding a rental was trickier, we had both been scouring the usual places but many of them got snapped up straight away or were dingy and in desperate need of an upgrade to make them liveable. Luckily OH managed to get somewhere nice and not too pricey by offering to pay an additional $100 a month (on the advice of one of OH work colleagues) in a really lovely location that will be great for the first 6-12mths whilst we look for somewhere to buy (we're already PR's since 2011). Slight problem in that the local school is full for G4 after the summer, so they can guarantee a space or should I say 'spot' for one kid going into Kindy but not the other
but hey we needed to get a rental in place, so we'll have to go with the flow and deal with the school thing after the summer and hope one person in G4 moves before then otherwise they'll both be going to the next catchment school (also very nice but not ideal).
We gave our daughter the option of waiting to start school until after the summer but she was raring to get started so she joined G3 today to do the last 3wks of school at the school which she may not be getting into after the summer. She's made about 6 friends already and came home with a birthday invite so all in all a successful first day and we all feel better now that it's out of the way.
OH is loving his job, it's been so nice to see him coming back from work happy which is the complete opposite of when he was working in the UK. He's already well into the banter at work and joined the soccer team although think he might be relegated to the over 35s team as he ain't as sprightly as the rest of the young whipper snappers in their mid 20's
The weather has been amazing and makes such a difference as it makes you want to spend all your time outdoors and not slobbin in front of the telly. Canadian telly sucks so we're not going to bother and will get by with Netflix and unblockus, although I did join a dvd rental store today haven't seen one of those in many years back home lol. OH had initially accepted a job in Vancouver but then got offered one in Kelowna and I'm so glad he did the lake and mountain scenery and lifestyle is pretty awesome.
Finding food shopping amazing, finding the choice so so much better than the UK. Most things are slightly more expensive but then we don't really drink booze or eat dairy or much meat, so aren't suffering from the shock of those prices like I imagine you would. There's practically a sushi and coffee place on every corner which is all I need!
The people so far are so nice, everyone wants to help you and if they can't they don't just shrug their shoulders and grunt at you, they try to find the answer from somewhere else but they aren't overly familiar in your face either which is great. I'm not working out here for the forseeable future so it will make things harder in terms of meeting people, but have already signed up to a few activities so am just throwing myself in the deep end with that and will no doubt meet some other mums in the playground in time once I get my lulu lemon uniform.
Sorry this has turned into a right ramble all over the place! Don't know if Canada will be our forever home but for now we are all glad we made the move and have all experienced the 'I can't believe we live here' moments already.
Thanks to so many of you for great advice over the last few years and best of luck to those making the move soon. If anyone wants any info on Kelowna give me a shout.
and finding a rental was all done by OH before we arrived and I dealt with selling up the house, cars, rehome the cat and arrange the shipment (never want to have to do all that myself again!). This was all complicated further as I ended up in hospital having suffered another heart attack (due to an underlying rare heart problem not a lifestyle of fags, lard and booze - just sayin) ten days before me and the kids were due to fly over resulting in more admin dealing with airline, insurance etc..
What we've learned so far and has been said many times before on here...
It pays to get the insurance letters in the correct format before leaving the country. We ended up with brilliant coverage for $1600 going ICBC compulsory cover and the additional through Candian Direct which isn't bad (in terms of BC prices
) as we only had 5 years UK accident free driving. CD also quoted very reasonably on our contents insurance and have found them really helpful and pleasant to deal with.On the other hand banks and utility companies and everything else is pretty painful and behind the times, but we're getting there and that in comparison to everything that has led up to the big move is small beer.
Finding a rental was trickier, we had both been scouring the usual places but many of them got snapped up straight away or were dingy and in desperate need of an upgrade to make them liveable. Luckily OH managed to get somewhere nice and not too pricey by offering to pay an additional $100 a month (on the advice of one of OH work colleagues) in a really lovely location that will be great for the first 6-12mths whilst we look for somewhere to buy (we're already PR's since 2011). Slight problem in that the local school is full for G4 after the summer, so they can guarantee a space or should I say 'spot' for one kid going into Kindy but not the other
but hey we needed to get a rental in place, so we'll have to go with the flow and deal with the school thing after the summer and hope one person in G4 moves before then otherwise they'll both be going to the next catchment school (also very nice but not ideal).We gave our daughter the option of waiting to start school until after the summer but she was raring to get started so she joined G3 today to do the last 3wks of school at the school which she may not be getting into after the summer. She's made about 6 friends already and came home with a birthday invite so all in all a successful first day and we all feel better now that it's out of the way.
OH is loving his job, it's been so nice to see him coming back from work happy which is the complete opposite of when he was working in the UK. He's already well into the banter at work and joined the soccer team although think he might be relegated to the over 35s team as he ain't as sprightly as the rest of the young whipper snappers in their mid 20's
The weather has been amazing and makes such a difference as it makes you want to spend all your time outdoors and not slobbin in front of the telly. Canadian telly sucks so we're not going to bother and will get by with Netflix and unblockus, although I did join a dvd rental store today haven't seen one of those in many years back home lol. OH had initially accepted a job in Vancouver but then got offered one in Kelowna and I'm so glad he did the lake and mountain scenery and lifestyle is pretty awesome.
Finding food shopping amazing, finding the choice so so much better than the UK. Most things are slightly more expensive but then we don't really drink booze or eat dairy or much meat, so aren't suffering from the shock of those prices like I imagine you would. There's practically a sushi and coffee place on every corner which is all I need!
The people so far are so nice, everyone wants to help you and if they can't they don't just shrug their shoulders and grunt at you, they try to find the answer from somewhere else but they aren't overly familiar in your face either which is great. I'm not working out here for the forseeable future so it will make things harder in terms of meeting people, but have already signed up to a few activities so am just throwing myself in the deep end with that and will no doubt meet some other mums in the playground in time once I get my lulu lemon uniform.
Sorry this has turned into a right ramble all over the place! Don't know if Canada will be our forever home but for now we are all glad we made the move and have all experienced the 'I can't believe we live here' moments already.
Thanks to so many of you for great advice over the last few years and best of luck to those making the move soon. If anyone wants any info on Kelowna give me a shout.
Jun 12th 2013, 7:35 am
#2
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Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 992
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Wow, sounds so fab. Good for you bcmama and all the best 
Jun 12th 2013, 11:24 am
#3
Pondering a career change
Joined: May 2012
Location: Sunshine Coast, BC
Posts: 2,595
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Glad you eventually got there in one piece and I hope it keeps going well for you 
Jun 12th 2013, 3:24 pm
#4
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Joined: Sep 2006
Location: Black Creek, Vancouver Island since December 2012
Posts: 1,385
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Great post BCmama. Another thing I found here is that staff in shops and banks really do treat you as a customer and not an inconvenience. In my area of the UK many staff barely make the effort to see if you want help and then go back to chatting to other staff.
The point about the insurance is a good one and the wiki on here is really helpful. The trouble I had was that the letter from the insurance broker wasn't good enough, it has to come from the insurance company. My broker said that insurance companies don't know individual details and she had to go out of her way to get the letter in the correct format with the insurance company letter heading and details.
Be warned that ICBC will cover initially on the strength of any letter from a broker, then, in the case of my other half, wrote to him 2 months later to say that his letter wasn't adequate. He was not as successful nor as persistent as I was and has had to pay full whack.
The point about the insurance is a good one and the wiki on here is really helpful. The trouble I had was that the letter from the insurance broker wasn't good enough, it has to come from the insurance company. My broker said that insurance companies don't know individual details and she had to go out of her way to get the letter in the correct format with the insurance company letter heading and details.
Be warned that ICBC will cover initially on the strength of any letter from a broker, then, in the case of my other half, wrote to him 2 months later to say that his letter wasn't adequate. He was not as successful nor as persistent as I was and has had to pay full whack.
Jun 12th 2013, 7:48 pm
#5
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Joined: Oct 2010
Location: A Briton, married to a Canadian, now in Fredericton.
Posts: 4,854
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Oh BCmama, what a bloody awful start....we "all" say that moving here nearly gave us a heart attack but you actually had it! By the sounds of it you are feeling great again now, and may continue so.
Just on the subject of DVD's....have you joined your local library? Our library is choc full of some very good DVD's and you can borrow five at a time, my son has just been through all of the Dr. Who series, and Merlin and we watched DVDs on home restoration and all sorts...might be worth a shot.
Continue to enjoy you new life, and have a great summer with your kids
Just on the subject of DVD's....have you joined your local library? Our library is choc full of some very good DVD's and you can borrow five at a time, my son has just been through all of the Dr. Who series, and Merlin and we watched DVDs on home restoration and all sorts...might be worth a shot.
Continue to enjoy you new life, and have a great summer with your kids
Last edited by MillieF; Jun 12th 2013 at 7:49 pm. Reason: Typo
Jun 12th 2013, 8:55 pm
#6
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 232
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Oh BCmama, what a bloody awful start....we "all" say that moving here nearly gave us a heart attack but you actually had it! By the sounds of it you are feeling great again now, and may continue so.
Just on the subject of DVD's....have you joined your local library? Our library is choc full of some very good DVD's and you can borrow five at a time, my son has just been through all of the Dr. Who series, and Merlin and we watched DVDs on home restoration and all sorts...might be worth a shot.
Continue to enjoy you new life, and have a great summer with your kids
Just on the subject of DVD's....have you joined your local library? Our library is choc full of some very good DVD's and you can borrow five at a time, my son has just been through all of the Dr. Who series, and Merlin and we watched DVDs on home restoration and all sorts...might be worth a shot.
Continue to enjoy you new life, and have a great summer with your kids
. We joined the library yesterday and was in seventh heaven the size of the place and selection of books, e-books and dvds was amazing. I laughed when the library lady said we could take 100 items at a time, it was only 10 back home.
Jun 12th 2013, 8:57 pm
#7
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 232
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Great post BCmama. Another thing I found here is that staff in shops and banks really do treat you as a customer and not an inconvenience. In my area of the UK many staff barely make the effort to see if you want help and then go back to chatting to other staff.
The point about the insurance is a good one and the wiki on here is really helpful. The trouble I had was that the letter from the insurance broker wasn't good enough, it has to come from the insurance company. My broker said that insurance companies don't know individual details and she had to go out of her way to get the letter in the correct format with the insurance company letter heading and details.
Be warned that ICBC will cover initially on the strength of any letter from a broker, then, in the case of my other half, wrote to him 2 months later to say that his letter wasn't adequate. He was not as successful nor as persistent as I was and has had to pay full whack.
The point about the insurance is a good one and the wiki on here is really helpful. The trouble I had was that the letter from the insurance broker wasn't good enough, it has to come from the insurance company. My broker said that insurance companies don't know individual details and she had to go out of her way to get the letter in the correct format with the insurance company letter heading and details.
Be warned that ICBC will cover initially on the strength of any letter from a broker, then, in the case of my other half, wrote to him 2 months later to say that his letter wasn't adequate. He was not as successful nor as persistent as I was and has had to pay full whack.
Jun 13th 2013, 1:37 am
#8
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Joined: Mar 2004
Location: Kelowna, BC
Posts: 903
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Welcome to Kelowna, bcmama & family! If you have any questions, feel free to drop a note my way.
Jun 13th 2013, 6:43 pm
#9
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Joined: Jan 2006
Location: Okanagan region
Posts: 625
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Well me and the two kids arrived a week ago following on from OH who arrived 4 weeks ago to start his job. In some ways that made the move easier and in other ways made it more stressful. It meant most of the admin over here like driving licence, getting a car, dealing with ICBC and finding a rental was all done by OH before we arrived and I dealt with selling up the house, cars, rehome the cat and arrange the shipment (never want to have to do all that myself again!).
This was all complicated further as I ended up in hospital having suffered another heart attack (due to an underlying rare heart problem not a lifestyle of fags, lard and booze - just sayin) ten days before me and the kids were due to fly over resulting in more admin dealing with airline, insurance etc..
What we've learned so far and has been said many times before on here...
It pays to get the insurance letters in the correct format before leaving the country. We ended up with brilliant coverage for $1600 going ICBC compulsory cover and the additional through Candian Direct which isn't bad (in terms of BC prices) as we only had 5 years UK accident free driving. CD also quoted very reasonably on our contents insurance and have found them really helpful and pleasant to deal with.
On the other hand banks and utility companies and everything else is pretty painful and behind the times, but we're getting there and that in comparison to everything that has led up to the big move is small beer.
Finding a rental was trickier, we had both been scouring the usual places but many of them got snapped up straight away or were dingy and in desperate need of an upgrade to make them liveable. Luckily OH managed to get somewhere nice and not too pricey by offering to pay an additional $100 a month (on the advice of one of OH work colleagues) in a really lovely location that will be great for the first 6-12mths whilst we look for somewhere to buy (we're already PR's since 2011). Slight problem in that the local school is full for G4 after the summer, so they can guarantee a space or should I say 'spot' for one kid going into Kindy but not the other but hey we needed to get a rental in place, so we'll have to go with the flow and deal with the school thing after the summer and hope one person in G4 moves before then otherwise they'll both be going to the next catchment school (also very nice but not ideal).
We gave our daughter the option of waiting to start school until after the summer but she was raring to get started so she joined G3 today to do the last 3wks of school at the school which she may not be getting into after the summer. She's made about 6 friends already and came home with a birthday invite so all in all a successful first day and we all feel better now that it's out of the way.
OH is loving his job, it's been so nice to see him coming back from work happy which is the complete opposite of when he was working in the UK. He's already well into the banter at work and joined the soccer team although think he might be relegated to the over 35s team as he ain't as sprightly as the rest of the young whipper snappers in their mid 20's
The weather has been amazing and makes such a difference as it makes you want to spend all your time outdoors and not slobbin in front of the telly. Canadian telly sucks so we're not going to bother and will get by with Netflix and unblockus, although I did join a dvd rental store today haven't seen one of those in many years back home lol. OH had initially accepted a job in Vancouver but then got offered one in Kelowna and I'm so glad he did the lake and mountain scenery and lifestyle is pretty awesome.
Finding food shopping amazing, finding the choice so so much better than the UK. Most things are slightly more expensive but then we don't really drink booze or eat dairy or much meat, so aren't suffering from the shock of those prices like I imagine you would. There's practically a sushi and coffee place on every corner which is all I need!
The people so far are so nice, everyone wants to help you and if they can't they don't just shrug their shoulders and grunt at you, they try to find the answer from somewhere else but they aren't overly familiar in your face either which is great. I'm not working out here for the forseeable future so it will make things harder in terms of meeting people, but have already signed up to a few activities so am just throwing myself in the deep end with that and will no doubt meet some other mums in the playground in time once I get my lulu lemon uniform.
Sorry this has turned into a right ramble all over the place! Don't know if Canada will be our forever home but for now we are all glad we made the move and have all experienced the 'I can't believe we live here' moments already.
Thanks to so many of you for great advice over the last few years and best of luck to those making the move soon. If anyone wants any info on Kelowna give me a shout.
and finding a rental was all done by OH before we arrived and I dealt with selling up the house, cars, rehome the cat and arrange the shipment (never want to have to do all that myself again!). This was all complicated further as I ended up in hospital having suffered another heart attack (due to an underlying rare heart problem not a lifestyle of fags, lard and booze - just sayin) ten days before me and the kids were due to fly over resulting in more admin dealing with airline, insurance etc..
What we've learned so far and has been said many times before on here...
It pays to get the insurance letters in the correct format before leaving the country. We ended up with brilliant coverage for $1600 going ICBC compulsory cover and the additional through Candian Direct which isn't bad (in terms of BC prices
) as we only had 5 years UK accident free driving. CD also quoted very reasonably on our contents insurance and have found them really helpful and pleasant to deal with.On the other hand banks and utility companies and everything else is pretty painful and behind the times, but we're getting there and that in comparison to everything that has led up to the big move is small beer.
Finding a rental was trickier, we had both been scouring the usual places but many of them got snapped up straight away or were dingy and in desperate need of an upgrade to make them liveable. Luckily OH managed to get somewhere nice and not too pricey by offering to pay an additional $100 a month (on the advice of one of OH work colleagues) in a really lovely location that will be great for the first 6-12mths whilst we look for somewhere to buy (we're already PR's since 2011). Slight problem in that the local school is full for G4 after the summer, so they can guarantee a space or should I say 'spot' for one kid going into Kindy but not the other
but hey we needed to get a rental in place, so we'll have to go with the flow and deal with the school thing after the summer and hope one person in G4 moves before then otherwise they'll both be going to the next catchment school (also very nice but not ideal).We gave our daughter the option of waiting to start school until after the summer but she was raring to get started so she joined G3 today to do the last 3wks of school at the school which she may not be getting into after the summer. She's made about 6 friends already and came home with a birthday invite so all in all a successful first day and we all feel better now that it's out of the way.
OH is loving his job, it's been so nice to see him coming back from work happy which is the complete opposite of when he was working in the UK. He's already well into the banter at work and joined the soccer team although think he might be relegated to the over 35s team as he ain't as sprightly as the rest of the young whipper snappers in their mid 20's
The weather has been amazing and makes such a difference as it makes you want to spend all your time outdoors and not slobbin in front of the telly. Canadian telly sucks so we're not going to bother and will get by with Netflix and unblockus, although I did join a dvd rental store today haven't seen one of those in many years back home lol. OH had initially accepted a job in Vancouver but then got offered one in Kelowna and I'm so glad he did the lake and mountain scenery and lifestyle is pretty awesome.
Finding food shopping amazing, finding the choice so so much better than the UK. Most things are slightly more expensive but then we don't really drink booze or eat dairy or much meat, so aren't suffering from the shock of those prices like I imagine you would. There's practically a sushi and coffee place on every corner which is all I need!
The people so far are so nice, everyone wants to help you and if they can't they don't just shrug their shoulders and grunt at you, they try to find the answer from somewhere else but they aren't overly familiar in your face either which is great. I'm not working out here for the forseeable future so it will make things harder in terms of meeting people, but have already signed up to a few activities so am just throwing myself in the deep end with that and will no doubt meet some other mums in the playground in time once I get my lulu lemon uniform.
Sorry this has turned into a right ramble all over the place! Don't know if Canada will be our forever home but for now we are all glad we made the move and have all experienced the 'I can't believe we live here' moments already.
Thanks to so many of you for great advice over the last few years and best of luck to those making the move soon. If anyone wants any info on Kelowna give me a shout.
Jun 15th 2013, 2:04 am
#11
Assimilated Pauper
Joined: Mar 2005
Location: Ontario
Posts: 40,018
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Now, now, there's nothing wrong with delighting in, reveling over, gloating obsessively about, one's location and consumer durables. I fear that, if I lived overlooking Central Park, I'd do the same.
Jun 15th 2013, 7:34 am
#12
BEd Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2012
Location: North Coast, BC
Posts: 671
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
In fairness, I think I'd be much the same if I were ever lucky enough to move back to Edmonton.
Jun 17th 2013, 6:26 am
#13
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Jan 2006
Location: Okanagan region
Posts: 625
Re: One month (kinda) in Kelowna BC
Wow...you made a bet with yourself? Is your real name Billy no mates?
Last edited by jossie; Jun 17th 2013 at 6:38 am.
