Jag har börjat att vänja mig vid hur saker och ting är
här över. Den första skillnaden man märker, förutom
språket , är trafiken. Det är andra modeller av bilar
än man är van vid och det är mycket mer bilar ute på
vägarna.
I affärerna finns
produkter jag inte är van vid.
I've begun to get used to how things are over here. The first difference
you can see, in addition to language, is traffic. There are other models
of cars than you are accustomed to, and it is much more cars on the road.
The shops have products you are not accustomed to.
When we lived in Sweden we had a houshold budget in many years.
I have compared it with our current budget in Canada last year.
To get the true comparison you must look at the comment section.
An example is children..
In Sweden we paid a kindergarten / recreation fee of around 2.500
per month while here in Canada, they are now in school and we pay
no fee. Another big and interesting difference is the enery bill.
It is much cheaper in Canada with gas heating than with oil that
we used in Sweden. Houses here have airborne heating sysyem with
gas-fired furnace. Most have air conditioning connected to the heating
system. A little detail that have caused anger is the refrigerators.
They are big and clumsy. The freezer part is located above the refrigerator
at eye level. What you get most often, you have to bend over to
get.
A great plus is that dining and entertainment is cheap. Almost
all driving to work. In the mornings people stop at "Tim Hortons"
to buy the morning coffee and perhaps a donut. People drink it in
the car while driving to work, with the mug in hand or in the cup
holder. Fast food here tasts good and is cheap..
An interesting detail is as this: The Canadians park their cars
in the drive way, but keep their garbage inside the garage. It is
true indeed. Trash is keept in the garage in black plastic bags.
However, we have bought two plastic drums with lids to make it more
hygeniskt. Soft drink cans are keept in blue boxes. Each week we
take out the trash to the street or sidewalk. A garbage truck picks
the black bags, another picks up the recyclables from the blue boxes.
This site gets 1,400,000 hits per year.
We recieve a lot of e-mails with questions:
- I have always had a dream to go skiing and work in Canada. I
wonder if you know if there is any possibility to get a winter seasonal
job in Canada and where I could turn to search for such a job?
Others ask what we enjoy and how everyday life looks like.
- How are the Canadians and what do they think of the immigrants?
- What is better and worse compared to Sweden?
I generally use a standard answer for questions on how to apply
for a job: The only thing I have to offer are links like:
In order to enter the country you must either be married to a Canadian
citizen or have a very attractive skills. I personally believe that
the only chance is marriage. Read more about how to apply on the
web pages, The
Canada Immigration Newsletter or Canadian
High Commission.
An employer must prove that they need you and that they can not
find anyone else in the country. It is difficult to find an employer
who is willing to do this. If you have good contacts, perhaps it
will work.
What is important to keep in mind is that a large part of the salary
here are benefits. It is therefore important to consider things
like dental care aand fre drugs for you and also for your family.
Almost all have some sort of health benefit. Another thing is the
short paid vacation to you will start with, most likely no vacation
or only 2 weeks. It is like starting all over.
How are the Canadians? It is an interseting question that requires
a somewhat longer answer. In contrast to America which is a melting
pot, Canada is a mosaic. Most people have themselves or have parents
with a European background. Because it is so common people accepted
mmigrants especially if they come from Europe. If you ask Canadians
what they are, they often respond I am Italian, German, Dutch, etc.
It is common to meet Canadians with an immigrant backgrounds who
speak very little English. Nobody reacts to that.
It is difficult to describe daily life in Canada. Where I live
in southern Ontario the pace of life is high. There are a lot of
traffic and everyone tries to do everything possible at once. In
the Eastern coastal provinces or in the Prairie provinces life is
probaly calmer.
Overall, I think Canadians enjoy life more than the Swedes. It
is a little more Go and it is cheaper to travel, eat and drink.
I don't know if they are happier though..... More will come......
Whatch hockey and drink a bubba...it is life!
Chicken Wings, or Buffalo Wings as they are called in the US. Tasty
snacks at parties or as an appetizer.
With a Swedish license you can drive for 3 months in Canada. However,
it is very expensive with car insurance without a "Ontario Licens."
Without insurance, you can not buy a car or be a student driver.
There are 3 levels of licenses for cars
G1
New drivers of passenger vehicles learn to drive with six important
conditions with a G1 licence. A new driver must hold a G1 licence
for a minimum of 12 months before attempting the G1 road test.
$ 125
Knowledge Test $10.00
Class G1 Road Test $40.00
Five Year Licence $75.00*
G2
You may drive without an accompanying driver on all Ontario roads
anytime. However, you are still required to: maintain a zero blood
alcohol level while driving and ensure the number of passengers
in the vehicle is limited to the number of working seat belts.
G
Regular license.
With 5 years of driving from another country can go for a "G-licenst"
directly if you want.
It is pretty hard to do with high standards. It can be a long waiting
list for a road test in some areas.
