Our first year (of many)
Aug 12th 2009, 4:39 pm
#16
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2007
Location: One foot in Calgary, one in London
Posts: 1,102
Re: Our first year (of many)
Just one question... how do you pronounce the place you live in? Is it sort of french... Musk-eau-du-bois?
Aug 12th 2009, 4:46 pm
#17
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Thread Starter
Joined: Jun 2007
Location: Musquodoboit Harbour, Nova Scotia
Posts: 2,549
Aug 12th 2009, 4:58 pm
#18
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Joined: Jun 2007
Location: One foot in Calgary, one in London
Posts: 1,102
Re: Our first year (of many)
Aug 13th 2009, 3:21 am
#19
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 2,332
Re: Our first year (of many)
Congratulations on your first canniversary, sure there will be many more to come.
Aug 13th 2009, 9:53 pm
#20
Just Joined
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 24
Re: Our first year (of many)
great post for your first year in nova scotia. me and my husband are currently living in manitoba and although we have enjoyed our last 2.5 yrs here, we feel now that it;s time to move on to something more of whta you picture canada to be, i.e hills and oceans, lakes. here in the prairies the isn;t the nice scenery that you imagine, so we decided that nova scotia is going to be our next destination, although my husband has been several times he hasn;t been off the highways he a trucker and it's a bit hard sight seeing with a 50ft trailer behind you.
anyway was hoping you'd give us some information about best places to start our research we want to be around 1 hour away from halifax but we also want views and scenery, but being greedy brits we also want nightlife and nice restaurants and places to go and see live music. wonder if you could suggest anywhere that we can start looking for a property. also wondered if you know of any trucking companys out there, that might be looking to hire truck drivers.
really enjoyed reading your post, makes me all the more excited about our new life in nova scotia
anyway was hoping you'd give us some information about best places to start our research we want to be around 1 hour away from halifax but we also want views and scenery, but being greedy brits we also want nightlife and nice restaurants and places to go and see live music. wonder if you could suggest anywhere that we can start looking for a property. also wondered if you know of any trucking companys out there, that might be looking to hire truck drivers.
really enjoyed reading your post, makes me all the more excited about our new life in nova scotia
Aug 13th 2009, 11:43 pm
#21
BE Forum Addict
Thread Starter
Joined: Jun 2007
Location: Musquodoboit Harbour, Nova Scotia
Posts: 2,549
Re: Our first year (of many)
great post for your first year in nova scotia. me and my husband are currently living in manitoba and although we have enjoyed our last 2.5 yrs here, we feel now that it;s time to move on to something more of whta you picture canada to be, i.e hills and oceans, lakes. here in the prairies the isn;t the nice scenery that you imagine, so we decided that nova scotia is going to be our next destination, although my husband has been several times he hasn;t been off the highways he a trucker and it's a bit hard sight seeing with a 50ft trailer behind you.
anyway was hoping you'd give us some information about best places to start our research we want to be around 1 hour away from halifax but we also want views and scenery, but being greedy brits we also want nightlife and nice restaurants and places to go and see live music. wonder if you could suggest anywhere that we can start looking for a property. also wondered if you know of any trucking companys out there, that might be looking to hire truck drivers.
really enjoyed reading your post, makes me all the more excited about our new life in nova scotia
anyway was hoping you'd give us some information about best places to start our research we want to be around 1 hour away from halifax but we also want views and scenery, but being greedy brits we also want nightlife and nice restaurants and places to go and see live music. wonder if you could suggest anywhere that we can start looking for a property. also wondered if you know of any trucking companys out there, that might be looking to hire truck drivers.
really enjoyed reading your post, makes me all the more excited about our new life in nova scotia
As for where to live, it all depends what you want and where you will be working. We live on the Eastern Shore and I would liken the scenery to the far west of Cornwall. There are rugged rocky areas, lovely beaches, walking trails and much much more. It is fairly un-commercialised and the people are really friendly. The further East you go the more rural it feels. Personally I would look no further out than Head of Jeddore to allow for fairly good local facilities and an easy drive into the City.
In the other direction out of Halifax you have the South Shore. This area is also beautiful. Personally I would liken the scenery more to the softer Devon Coastline although others who know it better may say different. There are lovely places to live around the Tantallon area which offer an easy commute into the City.
Alot of ex-pats go away from the coast and move inland to the Fall River area. This area has plenty of lakes and is has a more 'forresty' feel with many trees. There are some lovely properties in that area too.
This is by no means an exhaustive list but it may be a start for you. You could look at this list http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...in_Nova_Scotia for some demographics of communities in NS whic may give you some insight and there have been lots of discussion threads on here if you do a search.
Nothing beats first hand experience though, so if you get the chance do come over for a visit.
Where are you likely to be working as this will be a big influence on where you choose to live. Also, do you have children? There is alot of info on here about schools that you may find useful.
I don't know what else to tell you. I am sure others will chip in, and if you have any specific questions please feel free to ask.
Good luck, Lynn
Aug 13th 2009, 11:54 pm
#22
Joined: Oct 2007
Location: Ontario
Posts: 6,609
Re: Our first year (of many)
Congrats on your First Year!
Aug 14th 2009, 3:09 am
#23
Just Joined
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 24
Re: Our first year (of many)
thank you lynn for your reply, unfortunatly our children are all grown up and living there lifes back in the uk, i miss the terrible but it;s easier now as it's been 2.5 yrs and do try to get back often to see them.
we really would like to live in the country and not really bothered about travelling 1 hour or a bit more to get the right location, we would proberly only go into halifax maybe 1 a month for a night out, but would much prefer to live near a ocean or lake.
been lookignon different websites at houses and locations we've even contemplated yarmouth which we know is far west but have shopping centers and and various other complex's.
i will want to work when i get there not sure what i want to do yet but my hubby will still be truck driving till he finds something that keeps him nearer home as being away for the last few yrs has been hard for both of us.
i believe the weather is more like england but better than the extreme temps we get here -40's is a bit colder than we'd like we have also heard that you get more snow than we do in manitoba but that doesn;t phase me as snow is better than _-40's have you been to yarmouth? what the scenery llike there and people? any infomation would be great.. thanks again lynn_
we really would like to live in the country and not really bothered about travelling 1 hour or a bit more to get the right location, we would proberly only go into halifax maybe 1 a month for a night out, but would much prefer to live near a ocean or lake.
been lookignon different websites at houses and locations we've even contemplated yarmouth which we know is far west but have shopping centers and and various other complex's.
i will want to work when i get there not sure what i want to do yet but my hubby will still be truck driving till he finds something that keeps him nearer home as being away for the last few yrs has been hard for both of us.
i believe the weather is more like england but better than the extreme temps we get here -40's is a bit colder than we'd like we have also heard that you get more snow than we do in manitoba but that doesn;t phase me as snow is better than _-40's have you been to yarmouth? what the scenery llike there and people? any infomation would be great.. thanks again lynn_
Aug 20th 2009, 10:46 pm
#24
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Oct 2004
Location: Sherwood Park
Posts: 1,709
Re: Our first year (of many)
Great post........so glad to read others love it here too.
Here's to many more wonderful years to come.....
Linda
Here's to many more wonderful years to come.....
Linda
Aug 24th 2009, 6:39 pm
#25
YAY! Here and Loving it!
Joined: Apr 2008
Location: Toronto, ON (Formerly Wales)
Posts: 83
Re: Our first year (of many)
Thank you so much for your post. I've been doing research on this website for a while now and we're planning to send in our first forms at the end of August. I have been so excited about the move and this last week have been feeling down. I've been wondering whether it's right to ask the children to start all over again in new schools and making new friends but your post has really made me feel better. I've always hoped that they will try new sports that are hard to get involved with in the UK. We're planning on moving to the Toronto area so water skiing will be more difficult but skating, baseball, football and soccer are all a possibility.
You and your family sound so happy and settled even after only a year. I am so happy for you and just hope that it all works out for me and my family.
You and your family sound so happy and settled even after only a year. I am so happy for you and just hope that it all works out for me and my family.
Just wanted to add that you're really never far from water over here - wherever you are. Even downtown TO you'll easily manage to get some water- skiing in if you really want to!
Aug 25th 2009, 4:03 pm
#26
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Joined: May 2004
Location: Amherst Nova Scotia
Posts: 2,935
Re: Our first year (of many)
glad it has worked out really well for you and your family. If anything like our first year it has flown by and no homesickness at all
Aug 28th 2009, 12:07 am
#27
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 548
Re: Our first year (of many)
Congratulations on your first year, such a great post , and you have packed so much in to it , Weve been here two years now and ive still havnt got to grips with this skiing lark . Again happy canniversary
Sep 2nd 2009, 11:08 pm
#28
Home Sweet Home
Joined: May 2008
Location: Nova Scotia
Posts: 482
Re: Our first year (of many)
On August 6th 2008 we arrived in Nova Scotia to begin our new lives. A year on we are settled beyond our wildest dreams. We have a great house in Musquodoboit Harbour and all of our friends and neighbours are fantastic.
Although our children were in great schools in the UK, they have settled here better then we could have hoped and have developed new interests and hobbies that they never considered in the UK. They have also made the nicest group of friends we could have wished for.
Myself and both of our children learned to skate last winter (the kids much better than me), and the whole family began to learn to ski. During the summer we all swim in the ocean several times each week, our older son (age 14) has taking up sailing and is loving it and our younger son (age 8) has taken up golf and came home yesterday with a medal from winning his first tournament. We have all been kayaking which we really enjoyed and are hoping to do much more of it. Both of our children are learning to play the guitar having had no musical inclinations before.
We bought a speedboat recently and now that we are getting confident at handling it we are planning to buy some water skis and have a go at something new.
Last Saturday we had a BBQ party for all of our new friends to celebrate our first year. The weather was glorious and we partied well into the early hours. We felt incredibly lucky to have made so many good friends in one short year.
Two weeks ago we attended our first wedding in Canada. It was a real privilege to be invited to celebrate the marriage of 2 people that we had not even met this time last year.
As for work. I am unbelievably happy in my job here, after spending a miserable 2 years in my last job in the UK where I really hated every day.
We have had a couple of visitors from the UK so far and despite having promised that we will visit sometime in the next 12 months, I have really no desire to go back. It would be good to see some of our friends and family, but I would much prefer that they visit us here.
I know that emigration is not for everyone and that some people suffer more from home sickness so I wouldn't want say that our experience is typical, and I do remember all of the trials and stresses that we went though before our move. If we hadn't had the support of the people on BE, I think we would still be sitting in the UK now waiting for our (incompetent) immigration consultant to give us the right advice.
However, all that stress is in the past and as far as we are concerned, life is just perfect and we feel truly blessed.
Although our children were in great schools in the UK, they have settled here better then we could have hoped and have developed new interests and hobbies that they never considered in the UK. They have also made the nicest group of friends we could have wished for.
Myself and both of our children learned to skate last winter (the kids much better than me), and the whole family began to learn to ski. During the summer we all swim in the ocean several times each week, our older son (age 14) has taking up sailing and is loving it and our younger son (age 8) has taken up golf and came home yesterday with a medal from winning his first tournament. We have all been kayaking which we really enjoyed and are hoping to do much more of it. Both of our children are learning to play the guitar having had no musical inclinations before.
We bought a speedboat recently and now that we are getting confident at handling it we are planning to buy some water skis and have a go at something new.
Last Saturday we had a BBQ party for all of our new friends to celebrate our first year. The weather was glorious and we partied well into the early hours. We felt incredibly lucky to have made so many good friends in one short year.
Two weeks ago we attended our first wedding in Canada. It was a real privilege to be invited to celebrate the marriage of 2 people that we had not even met this time last year.
As for work. I am unbelievably happy in my job here, after spending a miserable 2 years in my last job in the UK where I really hated every day.
We have had a couple of visitors from the UK so far and despite having promised that we will visit sometime in the next 12 months, I have really no desire to go back. It would be good to see some of our friends and family, but I would much prefer that they visit us here.
I know that emigration is not for everyone and that some people suffer more from home sickness so I wouldn't want say that our experience is typical, and I do remember all of the trials and stresses that we went though before our move. If we hadn't had the support of the people on BE, I think we would still be sitting in the UK now waiting for our (incompetent) immigration consultant to give us the right advice.
However, all that stress is in the past and as far as we are concerned, life is just perfect and we feel truly blessed.
