Calgary Bound 2013

KarlMunster

Greetings all. I'm heading out to Calgary in January 2013. Just graduated from uni here in the south, i'm a 23 y/o guy from Tipperary. Said i'd set up this thread to see if there's many people around the same age looking to head out to Calgary around the same time. If anyone's interested in checking out accommodation with some other Irish around the same time give me a shout

TechnoPool

may have a room available if your interested. Both of us from dublin.

KarlMunster

Cool sounds good. Would it be available for around January?How are ye guys finding Calgary so far?

KarlMunster

Well I sent you on a private message there TechnoPool. New to this site though so I'm not a 100% on whether or not it delivered.

JustRoss23

Well bud heading out to calgary in march or april 23 aswell goin on me own:D..hope all goes well for ya:)

Martyn1989

The girlfriend and myself have been here just over 2 weeks, both 23 and from Dublin.

Here everyone moves on the 1st of the month, its almost impossible to get a place at any other time (though we managed it) so watch out for that and plan accordingly. Its pretty competitive for places too so you have to be on your toes. Also places will more then likely be unfurnished, we just went and got a floor model bed for cheaper and the rest off kijiji.

Workwise shes taken a xmas job in a deli/coffee shop while she waits for something to come through in her field and I have an interview today for a bar on 17th Ave SW, which is a stretch that has tons of bars and restaurants (well worth living near, its a bit younger and livelier then Downtown, but your still only 20mins on a bus to get in). We havn't really been out on the tiles, we've been flat out for jobs but there seems to be a fair amount going on.

Anyway the best of luck lads, you'll love it, any questions stick em up here.

JustRoss23

Martyn cheeers for the reply i hope to arrive mid march/april wenever fingers crossed i get the iec visa:D...could u recommand a hostel to stay at for the first wek or two?do you think 4.500 dollers would be enough to keep me tied over like yourself i wont be goin out much till i get sorted wit work.is there much cons work avaiable?:D thanks ross

Martyn1989

JustRoss23 wrote: »

Martyn cheeers for the reply i hope to arrive mid march/april wenever fingers crossed i get the iec visa:D...could u recommand a hostel to stay at for the first wek or two?do you think 4.500 dollers would be enough to keep me tied over like yourself i wont be goin out much till i get sorted wit work.is there much cons work avaiable?:D thanks ross

Be sure to get the application in early, they f'd mine up and I ended up waiting over 6 months but my gf's came really fast. You may even get it earlier.

We stayed at the Wicked Hostel, 1505 MacLeod Trail SE, its fine and if you are living in the shared dorms I think its quite reasonable, we took a private room which was pricey. Being a hostel you'll meet tons of people and a fair amount of drinking goes on etc. but we didn't bother we went straight out for a place and jobs. There aren't many options with regards to accomodation like that so book early. A mate of mine lived in that place for 6 months, he'll be back out in Feb.

$4500 should be plenty, its pricey gettin set up here though so have no shame in being frugal.

Some things to watch out for
-First morning go get your SIN number (social security num), you get that in the building on the corner of 4th Ave SE and MacLeod Trail SE (15min walk from that hostel), go through the motions and make sure they print you out your number on the spot.
-Go into downtown and get your phone/number, (banks/employers want to see you have a local number).
-Go to the bank to open your account if USIT or Go4less havn't done it for you (we went to HSBC), this is a tricky one because they want you to have a permenant address, tell them you plan on staying in the hostel for at least a few months or they'll make it awkward for you. They should give you your atm card there and then. Next you have to get your money into the Canadian account, transfers will take a week, Irish money orders/cheques will take anywhere for a week to a month to clear, a cash lodgement will clear straight away. Try to organise it so you won't get caught out with no money (like we did )
-Get yourself a beer and a rack of ribs from one of the many fine establishments around.

Reading back it sounds very serious (which is why I threw in the last bit) but just some stuff to watch out for. We found it tough getting a place with no jobs aswell, so watch out for that.

One thing I've remarked on alot is the amount of building going on at the moment, highrises going up everywere, roads being ripped up, it seems half of Calgary is a building site sometimes, look around on the job sites, kijiji is the one I used the most and see whats there, its probably slowing down a bit for the winter.

JustRoss23

Thanks so much for a great comment yea i have gone with go for less as i feared i mite have messed it up.i have as much done as i can just waiting for the iec stuff to be put up on the web:D yea i just got let go recently from my job so just wanna get goin:D... i actuallly had looked at wicked hostel seemed like a cool spot:D..yea goin on me own so want to get a spot where i can meet peeps similar age:D..dont worry i will be the same will be watching the dollers till i no i can get sorted with a job:(.....thanks for ur comment bud:D

Martyn1989

JustRoss23 wrote: »

Thanks so much for a great comment yea i have gone with go for less as i feared i mite have messed it up.i have as much done as i can just waiting for the iec stuff to be put up on the web:D yea i just got let go recently from my job so just wanna get goin:D... i actuallly had looked at wicked hostel seemed like a cool spot:D..yea goin on me own so want to get a spot where i can meet peeps similar age:D..dont worry i will be the same will be watching the dollers till i no i can get sorted with a job:(.....thanks for ur comment bud:D

Yeh I went with go4less aswell for the same reason, when they checked my form they caught a msitake aswell!

Got my job and had my induction today, start for real tomorrow night, things are looking up

Of course the cellar man is a giant polish fella who spent 3 years in Cork, real nice guy, the only one who can understand everything I say first time round

JustRoss23

Hahah good man martyn where u working a pub?:D say be grand to start working alrite:D..do u no do they take on people to work in pubs withou ny experiance?:D

Martyn1989

JustRoss23 wrote: »

Hahah good man martyn where u working a pub?:D say be grand to start working alrite:D..do u no do they take on people to work in pubs withou ny experiance?:D

Yeh, Im bartending, with no experience you would find it tough to get behind the bar but you could get a barback/barassistent job, it involves deliveries, stock, food running and a wide array of other jobs, pays about $9-$10 an hour and most places should tip out of the bartenders tips at the end of the night. Apperently these guys can walk out with well over $100 every night in the right spots.

They do it a bit differently here, alot of the bars hire on looks alone, I was told bluntly in a few places that they only hire female barstaff. They're also quite big into chirpy personalities etc. It seems if you can get the manager you hand your resume to to like you you'll get a job, regardless of having a few weeks experience or a few years. They love their induction and training here too, they have all their staff induction packs, written and verbal exams on the products etc. They ease you in. Its very different then at home

JustRoss23

Good man ..you working in an irish bar?:D Have ya been out for a few scoops yet?:D how do they find us irish jeezus the bog accent a me not looking forward to it ahha:D

Martyn1989

JustRoss23 wrote: »

Good man ..you working in an irish bar?:D Have ya been out for a few scoops yet?:D how do they find us irish jeezus the bog accent a me not looking forward to it ahha:D

No its a beerhall style place on 17th Ave, they serve beer by the pint or the stein (1litre), its pricey though. 72 beers on tap and well over 30 in bottles, its unreal, a long way from your Guinness, Bud, Heino, Bulmers like at home.

I've found people here to be very down to earth, its farely multicultural too, no-one will fall over themselves to talk to the Irish fella (their not like the americans :rolleyes:), a good few won't be able to place your accent. They're easy to talk to and have a good sense of humour too.

The main problem I find with my accent is when I introduce myself, I think we lose the T's a fair bit, so when I say my name, to them, it sounds like Maren, or something similar, so they look all confused while I struggle to pronounce my own name