Canada 2009 - Meet-ups/When & Where are you going?

Cazlou

Hi All,

Following on from the other Canada threads, some thought it a good idea for anyone heading over this year to be able to have a chat about what their plans are without holding up either of the other threads in Independent Travel and on this page.
Mods I hope that's ok?!
For example: Have you applied yet, how the application's going, where you intend going and when, and if anyone fancies having a get together beforehand so anyone going to the same area can have contacts to help each other settle in and if/when the homesickness makes an appearance:o

I'll start with:
I applied in December, forms are approved by usit so waiting on them to go to the CHC, I hope to go to Toronto at the end of march/start of april. And I'd be well up for meeting other boardsies either here or over there!:)
How bout everyone else??

fluke

I'll do my best

Hi Cazlou,

I haven't applied yet but I am seriously considering applying for this. I'm in a similar situation to yourself at home, am pertified too and there's a certain part of me that knows once i apply there's no turning back, but eff it, i'm looking at going for the year and it's something i need to do, get out and see the world. If i do apply I'd love to meet up with other boardsies!

Have you applied through USIT and if so how have you found them?
Have you get a job lined up?
Where in Canada are you looking to go?

Cazlou

No

Hiya!
Yeah for me it was pretty much - fill it out, press send, oh crap what have I done!?!?!:eek::pac: So yeah, I'm the same, once the idea came to me I knew if I didn't follow it up I'd end up kicking myself hard!:o

I've found usit to be pretty helpful I have to say. Anytime I've had to mail them about anything they've gotten back to me within minutes. I am concerned though that on my update record, my application is showing as being approved by them since monday yet it's not showing as being sent to CHC yet It better be gone tomorrow or I'll never make my date!
Gonna start looking at jobs, or rather, temp agencies, once I know I'm going. You can have interviews arranged before you go but not jobs.

fluke

I'll do my best

Hi Cazlou,

So that's a definite on not being able to ensure you have a job before flying over there?

Also, are interviews over the phone not carried out?

What kinda work do you think you'll go looking for?

lonelyheart

Aw guys don't be worrying (I know easier said than done) but you're going to have an amazing time, I haven't heard of anyone who had a bad experience in toronto! I'm hoping to go back over on my 2nd visa this summer, my application is in London at the moment so hope to hear soon,fingers crossed! I'll be travelling over on my own too!

It's been 3 years since i did my visa and i loved every second, it's not too hard to meet people and i think its a tradition for all the irish to meet in a lil irish pub downtown every sunday night. They have a big trad session and you're almost sure to see someone you know there!! It's called McVeighs, I'm sure any one who has been there ended up here!

I wouldn't be too worried about jobs, i think it's easier to find jobs when you're there, at least you'd have the feel for the place then and know where everything is in relation to each other! mmm for accommodation i know a few that stay here http://www.neill-wycik.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=92&Itemid=110 it is pretty central and it's like a big hostel but everyone has their own room, great rooftop views too!

Trying to think what else might be good to know...... bit of a mental block tho! I'll keep posting as I think of it, hope it can help some!

Cazlou

No

fluke wrote: »

Hi Cazlou,
So that's a definite on not being able to ensure you have a job before flying over there?
Also, are interviews over the phone not carried out?
What kinda work do you think you'll go looking for?

I'm not sure exactly what the deal is with not having a job before you go - maybe it's just for ourselves in case there's delays getting there - I dunno!lol
I'm intending registering with temping agencies as I hope to do a bit of travelling and may move westward for the winter and I believe the holidays aren't great in permanent positions.

lonelyheart wrote: »

Aw guys don't be worrying (I know easier said than done) but you're going to have an amazing time, I haven't heard of anyone who had a bad experience in toronto! I'm hoping to go back over on my 2nd visa this summer, my application is in London at the moment so hope to hear soon,fingers crossed! I'll be travelling over on my own too!

It's been 3 years since i did my visa and i loved every second, it's not too hard to meet people and i think its a tradition for all the irish to meet in a lil irish pub downtown every sunday night. They have a big trad session and you're almost sure to see someone you know there!! It's called McVeighs, I'm sure any one who has been there ended up here!

I wouldn't be too worried about jobs, i think it's easier to find jobs when you're there, at least you'd have the feel for the place then and know where everything is in relation to each other! mmm for accommodation i know a few that stay here http://www.neill-wycik.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=92&Itemid=110 it is pretty central and it's like a big hostel but everyone has their own room, great rooftop views too!

Trying to think what else might be good to know...... bit of a mental block tho! I'll keep posting as I think of it, hope it can help some!

haha ah thanks for the info lonelyheart!!:)
I'm chuffed to hear about the music in the irish pub, I was planning on bringing my tin-whistle and was hoping I'd be able to pick up a cheap fiddle over there so if the worst came to the worst I could busk or give lessons, but it'd be fab if it was possible to jam with the musicians at the session too!:o:D I remember someone posting before about lads meeting for gaa matches in one of the parks too! :cool: Both'd be good for keeping homesickness at bay I'd imagine

mac123

I'll do my best

Well i applied for the visa but then I found out that I might be able to get permanent residency as i lived there when I was younger so I have to go and apply for that now. Not sure how long its gonna take and im not too confident that il get it either.
If that doesnt work out im hoping I can still go over on the usit visa but il just have to wait and see.

If I do get everything sorted id like to travel around a fair bit, maybe spending 3-4 months in each place. I was thinking of Vancouver, Toronto, Halifax and mayne Montreal but I havnt made up my mind yet.

Going on my own doesnt really bother that much, iv been away from home on my home before and homesickness hasnt been a problem before. Also every Canadian iv ever met has been fairly sound and friendly. They love the accent too;)

So whats everyones preference on where your going and why? It might help me make up my mind!

Cazlou

No

mac123 wrote: »

Well i applied for the visa but then I found out that I might be able to get permanent residency as i lived there when I was younger so I have to go and apply for that now. Not sure how long its gonna take and im not too confident that il get it either.
If that doesnt work out im hoping I can still go over on the usit visa but il just have to wait and see.
If I do get everything sorted id like to travel around a fair bit, maybe spending 3-4 months in each place. I was thinking of Vancouver, Toronto, Halifax and mayne Montreal but I havnt made up my mind yet.
Going on my own doesnt really bother that much, iv been away from home on my home before and homesickness hasnt been a problem before. Also every Canadian iv ever met has been fairly sound and friendly. They love the accent too;)
So whats everyones preference on where your going and why? It might help me make up my mind!

Ah that's deadly for you mac123, but will you not still have a 2-3 year wait for that to clear? if possible/necessary would ya still do the 1-year while you wait? or have you the time to hold off and take your time?
Besides weekends away and stuff I've never been away from my family for a significant length of time so that's why I'm worried about homesickness - the thoughts of being away from my brother kills me!
I was set on Toronto, but I've been hearing that Vancouver is much more health-orientated so I'm in two minds, but I think I'll still arrive through Tto and see how things fare as to whether I'd move on sooner or not. I'm just filling myself with as much info as possible and then see how I feel once I'm there!
Sorry I can't help with picking somewhere,:o probably best for people who are/have been there to give their opinions and advice

fluke

I'll do my best

anyone going to the worldwide work options event that USIT are hosting this saturday in their aston quay office? gonna have a list of questions ready re:Canada myself!

mac123

I'll do my best

Cazlou wrote: »

Ah that's deadly for you mac123, but will you not still have a 2-3 year wait for that to clear? if possible/necessary would ya still do the 1-year while you wait? or have you the time to hold off and take your time?
Besides weekends away and stuff I've never been away from my family for a significant length of time so that's why I'm worried about homesickness - the thoughts of being away from my brother kills me!
I was set on Toronto, but I've been hearing that Vancouver is much more health-orientated so I'm in two minds, but I think I'll still arrive through Tto and see how things fare as to whether I'd move on sooner or not. I'm just filling myself with as much info as possible and then see how I feel once I'm there!
Sorry I can't help with picking somewhere,:o probably best for people who are/have been there to give their opinions and advice

Well my family lived in Canada for 3 years when i was younger and I was granted permanent residence status then but that was 18 years ago so im not sure if that is still valid. So what i have to do is apply for a permit or something to regain the resident status so im not applying for residency from scratch and it shouldnt take too long. Im not too confident about getting it though so il still be going on the usit visa if it doesnt work out.
Either way I really wanna go to Canada.
To be honest id probably be happy with any city over there, I like the coast so Vancouver and Halifax would suit for that reason but Id also like to live in a big city like Toronto.
I think id like to head to New York for new years next year too if im in Toronto.
Id say il get a car over there too if i can pick one up cheap enough.

Teamhar

Hey all,

I'm a Canadian thinking about heading back over there soon. Just lost my job and my family are all over there so its sort of a no-brainer. My fiance has been dithering about going, but its looking more likely now. I was going to sponsor him for permanent residency, but the under 35 non-student program through usit will probably be faster.

Toronto's a cool place.

Oh yes, here's a link to an Irish ex-pat meet-up site. McVeigh's is a great pub in downtown Toronto, one of the few real Irish bars as opposed to the plastic Paddy places that are all over. Haven't met with the group myself, but could be good for anyone who ends up in Toronto by themselves. If anyone wants info on neighbourhoods, renting, job searches, let me know.

http://www.meetup.com/irish-society-toronto/

Good luck,
T.

Cazlou

No

fluke wrote: »

anyone going to the worldwide work options event that USIT are hosting this saturday in their aston quay office? gonna have a list of questions ready re:Canada myself!

I've put my name down alright but haven't heard anything concrete about it :mad:

mac123 wrote: »

Well my family lived in Canada for 3 years when i was younger and I was granted permanent residence status then but that was 18 years ago so im not sure if that is still valid. So what i have to do is apply for a permit or something to regain the resident status so im not applying for residency from scratch and it shouldnt take too long. Im not too confident about getting it though so il still be going on the usit visa if it doesnt work out.
Either way I really wanna go to Canada.
To be honest id probably be happy with any city over there, I like the coast so Vancouver and Halifax would suit for that reason but Id also like to live in a big city like Toronto.
I think id like to head to New York for new years next year too if im in Toronto.
Id say il get a car over there too if i can pick one up cheap enough.

Ah that'd be dead handy for ya if it is - jammy!lol
Ah don't get me started on all the possible plans I've made in my head for if/when I get there. I'm only learning to drive here so it'll be public transport all the way for me :pac:

Teamhar wrote: »

Hey all,
I'm a Canadian thinking about heading back over there soon. Just lost my job and my family are all over there so its sort of a no-brainer. My fiance has been dithering about going, but its looking more likely now. I was going to sponsor him for permanent residency, but the under 35 non-student program through usit will probably be faster.
Toronto's a cool place.
Oh yes, here's a link to an Irish ex-pat meet-up site. McVeigh's is a great pub in downtown Toronto, one of the few real Irish bars as opposed to the plastic Paddy places that are all over. Haven't met with the group myself, but could be good for anyone who ends up in Toronto by themselves. If anyone wants info on neighbourhoods, renting, job searches, let me know.
http://www.meetup.com/irish-society-toronto/

Good luck,
T.

Ah thanks a mill for that link!!!:)
I would most definitely be grateful of any info you can share. Hopefully if we can arrange a meetup you could come along and help give us some pointers?!;):D
Caroline

TedDiBiase

If anyones in the Cork City and are looking at heading to Canada at the end of the year let me know. I'm flying solo so it'd be cool to know one or two folk over there. Somewhere!!

CSHARKS

Some good news from Canada:

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Canada will emerge from recession on a stronger footing than other major economies that are burdened with weaker financial systems, Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney said on Tuesday.

While Canada's recovery in part will depend on the progress of other major economies, domestic growth will outpace growth in other countries reeling from the global economic slowdown, Carney said after a speech in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

"In terms of growth in 2010, we expect, subject to the stabilization of the global financial system ... that most of the major economies are going to grow," Carney said.

"We expect Canadian growth to be stronger than those other economies in part because we don't have those overhangs of imbalances and lagged effects of a recovery in our financial system than those other economies have."

Carney, speaking a week after the central bank lowered its key overnight rate to a 50-year low of 1 percent, said the domestic economy will begin recovering later this year as a series of interest rate cuts begin to take hold.

His comments mirrored projections released by the bank last week when it unveiled its quarterly economic update. The bank said Canada's economy would contract by 4.8 percent annualized in the first quarter, 1 percent in the second and then return to growth.

Caked Karen

I'll do my best

Hey guys,

hoping to head off early october - cant wait! just getting things in order for the U35 program now...thinking of heading to Vancouver until after the New Year and head over across to Toronto etc then...

Is there any "ideal" time to travel over?like as in work wise, getting apartments etc? def be on to meet everyone over and around! there is 4 of us going so know not going solo but even when it comes to houses and stuff...could throw us all in one big place

Teamhar

Hey,

Just wanted to throw another link into the conversation:

http://toronto.en.craigslist.ca/tor/

This link is for City of Toronto, Craiglist- best place for apartment searches, house shares etc along with casual work to real jobs. There are other craiglist sites for various other Canadian cities. Kijiji is another decent Canadian site.

Tips:

- When browsing for apartments through craigslist, make sure to get a good look at the pictures before travelling half the city to view it! I always search with the "Image" tick box marked
- Basement apartments, though cheap, can sometimes be really grotty and you may have to share the laundry facilities with whoever else is in the house. And whats worse, they may tramp through your basement space to get to the laundry! Privacy gone.
- A lot of rented places will include the utilities in the rental price, meaning electricity, heat/air con, sometimes tv cable and sometimes broadband. Its worth looking out for these.
- Canadian landlords look for "first" and "last" up front, meaning first and last months rent. They're pretty fussy about who they rent to and when renting to Canadians they'll usually do a credit check. For foreigners, they'll want a letter from an employer.
- Have a good idea of the neighbourhoods you'd like to live in. I only know Toronto but a couple of the coolest neighbourhoods are Leslieville, about 20 minutes from downtown and near the beach and the Annex, behind the University of Toronto and central to everything. Not cheap though. My family live in the Beaches- right on the lake and about 30 minutes straight run on a streetcar downtown. Its nice, but maybe a bit quiet.
- Public transport is cheap and easy- $110 for a monthly pass that cover bus, streetcar and subway- so don't worry too much about finding a place that close to work unless you're on a really strict budget. Bike is a great way to get around, lots of paths and really safe.

T.

fluke

I'll do my best

hey guys/girls,

anyone go to the thing on in USIT yesterday?

Potcher

I'm hoping to get going on the U35 thing aswell and am heading off solo. Anyone from the midlands area heading?

Corcs001

Potcher wrote: »

I'm hoping to get going on the U35 thing aswell and am heading off solo. Anyone from the midlands area heading?

Yeah I'm from the midlands hoping to go over with two of my friends on the student programme. What part ya going to? I want to head to Vancouver but my two friends want to go to Montreal.

fluke

I'll do my best

I'd consider myself a midlandser,going solo and looking at Vancouver & the British Columbia Area.What county are yee from? don't worry i'm not secular just curious!

Potcher

I'm from westmeath heading for toronto initially not sure where I'll end up after that. Hoping it works out.

fluke

I'll do my best

Hey Potcher and Corcs001!

Have you guys applied for the U35 visa yet? or are you just mulling over it?

Oh and i am from Kildare by the way!

watna

Teamhar wrote: »

Hey all,

I'm a Canadian thinking about heading back over there soon. Just lost my job and my family are all over there so its sort of a no-brainer. My fiance has been dithering about going, but its looking more likely now. I was going to sponsor him for permanent residency, but the under 35 non-student program through usit will probably be faster.

Toronto's a cool place.

Oh yes, here's a link to an Irish ex-pat meet-up site. McVeigh's is a great pub in downtown Toronto, one of the few real Irish bars as opposed to the plastic Paddy places that are all over. Haven't met with the group myself, but could be good for anyone who ends up in Toronto by themselves. If anyone wants info on neighbourhoods, renting, job searches, let me know.

http://www.meetup.com/irish-society-toronto/

Good luck,
T.

Hey, I'm not in Canada but my OH is sponsoring me for perm residency in NZ. I came on a working holiday visa because it was easier, quicker and a lot cheaper.

I wish I had just applied for the residency in the first place. I know a girl who applied through london and it took 6 weeks. Here it takes a year to get it. I can only work on contracts and I'm not entitled to any healthcare so have to pay private for everything. If I could go back and apply for residency from home I would. We knew we were coming for a year though so I had all the time to apply but didn;t so it's a bit different for you,

Just something to think about though. If he's going to apply for it anyway, you might as well do it now and get it over and done with.

Potcher

yep I applied and got some email back. I'm away to the guards tomorrow to get clearance.

fluke

I'll do my best

Potcher wrote: »

yep I applied and got some email back. I'm away to the guards tomorrow to get clearance.

so have you been confirmed??

if so congrats!!

Shinnac

Just went on to the Usit website to do my visa application and its all booked up:mad: just a wait list now anyone know any other way to go? or does the wait list work? really wanna head off in september on the U35 working visa

onemorechance

Shinnac wrote: »

Just went on to the Usit website to do my visa application and its all booked up:mad: just a wait list now anyone know any other way to go? or does the wait list work? really wanna head off in september on the U35 working visa

I was at the talk in USIT Dublin and they said they expect "a good deal more places to be available soon". I would expect that if you are on the waiting list now, you would get a place, especially if you are not going until September.

Did you apply and if so, what number are you? If you did not apply, do it asap. I cannot be sure, but I do believe the wait list will work.

SOH32

I'll do my best

I'm No. 63 on the waiting list & hopefull that extra places will be made available. Was hoping to go in late May so that timing may be a little too ambitious now!

What kinda posters are considering heading over? Just finished college? Recently been made redundant? Or simply those looking for an alternative for the year out?

Scatman81

Does anyone know what the job situation is over there?Im being made redundant in May,had originally planned to go to Oz but Canada seems to be the new place to go.Dont think id fancy goin over and finding out jobs are scarce:o

Teamhar

Canadian job scene is pretty good at the mo and they're going to weather the current worldwide financial difficulties pretty well.

If you're looking for a serious job, you'll want a degree or else a whole lot of documented experience and good references. Casual work- retail, bars, restaurants- are easy enough to get. Bar and restaurant work is a great way to make easy cash as tipping is pretty much mandatory. Don't let a basic wage put you off as you might still do pretty well out of it with the tips. Flexible hours are great too.

Anyone who has degrees in engineering, medicine, nursing or other healthcare, teaching, law and host of others may need to re-license to work in certain professions in Canada. My cousin just spent a year doing Canadian law exams to qualify for the bar over there. You'd want to check it out on the Canadian government website http://canada.gc.ca/home.html

There is a demand in these professions, so don't let a bit of extra study put you off- the rewards are excellent, even if it means struggling pulling pints for a while.

Also good demand for experienced IT professionals and its one sector where experience counts more than a degree and you won't need to re-train. Recognised certifications help- MCSE, Cisco and security specialties are good.

Its statistically proven that immigrants make less than Canadian citizens for up to 5 years, but don't let that put you off. I'm sorry to say that it depends where you're from- Easter Europeans and Asians suffer more than those from Western Europe. Fluent English and decent French count for a lot.

Don't forget that the dollar goes a hell of a lot further than the Euro, so even if the wage sounds crap, you may be better off than you are here.

T.

fluke

I'll do my best

SOH32 wrote: »

I'm No. 63 on the waiting list & hopefull that extra places will be made available. Was hoping to go in late May so that timing may be a little too ambitious now!

What kinda posters are considering heading over? Just finished college? Recently been made redundant? Or simply those looking for an alternative for the year out?

Hi there SOH,

I'm looking for a different way of life, alternative to this country.