Moving to Canada for 12 months - IEC Working Holiday Visa

Yeah I know the feeling. When we first got here we were suddenly really excited, although when we finally settled where we were staying we did think "WTF are we doing?". That quickly passed though!

Anyway, Welcome to Canada! :)
 
ScarySquirrel said:
Yeah I know the feeling. When we first got here we were suddenly really excited, although when we finally settled where we were staying we did think "WTF are we doing?". That quickly passed though!

Anyway, Welcome to Canada! :)
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Haha thanks bud ;)

I'm currently sat at the bar downstairs about to watch the Canucks game with some fish and chips on the way - Sorted :p

If you and your gf are ever free and in downtown let me know and we'll have to have a few drinks!
 
-westy- said:
Reading all this is SO frustrating :p 148 days to go!

FFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU
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Haha not too long ;) Im sure you're going to love it though - yesterday I did a bit of shopping in the Pacific Centre and then in the evening I hit a comedy club :D Such a fun night, a little embarrassing though - I literally spat out my drink on one joke, but fortunately I was a few JD's in and didn't really care hahaha :p

I'm just waiting on my phone to finish charging and then I'm going to walk to Stanley Park to rent a bike :)
 
ScarySquirrel said:
Yeah I know the feeling. When we first got here we were suddenly really excited, although when we finally settled where we were staying we did think "WTF are we doing?". That quickly passed though!
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I can echo that as well.

I remember after the initial excitement of arriving passed, I was sat in a hostel, it was midday, yet I wanted to do nothing more than sleep due to the jet lag. I had no place permanent to stay, no job and only a little money.

I had a sudden, "What the hell am I doing?" moment. Luckily it all just fell into place though.
 
Is anyone there over Christmas? I get over Mid December to activate my permanent residence and then will be back in the UK for Jan and then back for good from Mid Feb onwards. Will be in the Vancouver area. So would be happy to meet up with people for a few drinks etc.
 
Nexus said:
I can echo that as well.

I remember after the initial excitement of arriving passed, I was sat in a hostel, it was midday, yet I wanted to do nothing more than sleep due to the jet lag. I had no place permanent to stay, no job and only a little money.

I had a sudden, "What the hell am I doing?" moment. Luckily it all just fell into place though.
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I do kind of wish I had someone that come with me as it can get pretty boring on your own - but if you're forward enough you can get through it :p Just gotta push myself into situations :p

Origin said:
Is anyone there over Christmas? I get over Mid December to activate my permanent residence and then will be back in the UK for Jan and then back for good from Mid Feb onwards. Will be in the Vancouver area. So would be happy to meet up with people for a few drinks etc.
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I'll be in Whistler by then but I'll be back in May!
 
Marky said:
Haha thanks bud ;)

I'm currently sat at the bar downstairs about to watch the Canucks game with some fish and chips on the way - Sorted :p

If you and your gf are ever free and in downtown let me know and we'll have to have a few drinks!
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Sorry mate only just seen this. I'm actually not drinking at the moment (although we're going to Seattle next weekend so I'll have a few then) as I'm on some paleo/weight training/detox thing to try and shift a beer belly! haha. Maybe once you're settled in a bit we could grab a drink over Christmas? (I'll likely have some beers then too :))

Origin said:
Is anyone there over Christmas? I get over Mid December to activate my permanent residence and then will be back in the UK for Jan and then back for good from Mid Feb onwards. Will be in the Vancouver area. So would be happy to meet up with people for a few drinks etc.
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Yup, I'll be here. Probably heading back to the UK around mid-March / April though :(
 
-westy- said:
Is that a definite thing then, you can't change her mind?
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Not definite, we can change our mind. But if we leave it too late then we'll miss out on applying for another visa.

Applying for a visa costs money as well, so if we apply for it then it would only really be worthwhile if we were staying for at least another 6-12 months I'd say.

Natalie is adamant that we'll be going home though, she knows I'm coming around to the idea of staying a bit longer though. I think we're both just forgetting about it right now and we'll make a decision in 6-8 weeks when the visas open up again.
 
-westy- said:
Hows it going Marky? Anything to report? :p
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It's going good man - If I'm totally honest, yesterday I hit the homesick wall... Started getting pretty down about being away from home, but a quick call back home and I'm feeling a little better today.

When I rented a bike to go to Stanley Park on Sunday, I ended up renting it for half a day - Rode all around the park, down the seawall and down the other side through the city. Accidentally went into Chinatown (I've since been told never to go into Chinatown alone, and it's true - It's pretty risky around there!). But all in all an awesome day out ;)

The amount of homeless people there are that are just laying about on the streets is a little depressing - They've certainly got a big homeless problem out here, it's really sad to see :(

ScarySquirrel said:
Sorry mate only just seen this. I'm actually not drinking at the moment (although we're going to Seattle next weekend so I'll have a few then) as I'm on some paleo/weight training/detox thing to try and shift a beer belly! haha. Maybe once you're settled in a bit we could grab a drink over Christmas? (I'll likely have some beers then too :))

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Yup, I'll be here. Probably heading back to the UK around mid-March / April though :(
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Haha that's cool man :p I've been drinking waaaay too much recently - I've put myself on a drinking embargo until I get to Whistler now :p I've been ridiculously dehydrated, and jet lag hit me way harder than I thought it would. I'm just starting to acclimatise now fortunately :p

I'm heading to Whistler this Friday, so if you ever find yourself back on the mountain this Winter gimmie a shout ;) I'm working in a Rental shop, so I should be able to swing some deals in as well if you needed any more gear :p
 
Marky said:
It's going good man - If I'm totally honest, yesterday I hit the homesick wall... Started getting pretty down about being away from home, but a quick call back home and I'm feeling a little better today.

When I rented a bike to go to Stanley Park on Sunday, I ended up renting it for half a day - Rode all around the park, down the seawall and down the other side through the city. Accidentally went into Chinatown (I've since been told never to go into Chinatown alone, and it's true - It's pretty risky around there!). But all in all an awesome day out ;)

The amount of homeless people there are that are just laying about on the streets is a little depressing - They've certainly got a big homeless problem out here, it's really sad to see :(
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Sounds like you had a great ride!

I work out on Dunlevy Avenue, in Railtown, on the edge of Chinatown. Yes, there's a lot of homeless people (particularly around Openheimer Park), and you'll regularly see people shooting up in broad daylight, but it's really not a dangerous place. Vancouver is a really safe city and Natalie and I have onl ever felt unsafe once (on our first day and unsure of the area we were in - but in hindsight it was fine).

There's a lot of homeless people as it's a very compact city, so it feels more concentrated. I've only ever encountered one or two rude ones, for the most part every one I've encountered/spoken to/given money to has been lovely :)

I bet you're excited for Whistler. You'll love it up there :)
 
I've met one Irish guy here who, I think, works in construction. I'm probably not the right person to ask though, but I have heard that construction and engineering is a good field to try and find work in if moving out here from the UK and Ireland.
 
Well, it's pretty much certain we're coming home in March/April next year. I'm absolutely gutted. My girlfriend wants to go home basically, I'd happily stay, and honestly if I was single I probably wouldn't ever go home. I can't stay here though if she is unhappy.

Some things about going home excite me, but all I can really feel right now is sad that I only have a few months left here. I hate the thought of not being here one day.

She says she hopes I don't end up resenting her once we're back, of course I won't, but I can't help but feel miserable at the thought of being home again.
 
That sucks. I've really enjoyed the experience after a year where the transition begins and you really start to feel like Canada is 'home'. I don't think I'll ever return to live in the UK. Christmas sucks here though, despite it actually being snowy :(.
 
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