Moving to Canada for 12 months - IEC Working Holiday Visa

ScarySquirrel · 5 Apr 2013 at 02:46

McDaniel said:
Flying to the US tomorrow for my 3month travels before Toronto... Kinda nervous :/

How are you getting on now?

Tripnologist said:
At Boston Pizza, you have to try the Spicy Perogy Pizza. Yummy. I'd kill for one of their Boston Brute sandwiches right now too.

I also spotted the Cactus Club Cafe in one of your shots. They do amazing food.

Lastly, if you get a chance, try Kelseys. Is just a normal chain restaurant, but I love their food.

Edit: How did you find the time zone transition? When flying there, I find that for the first few days I get really really tired in the early evening, but even with forcing myself to stay awake until at least 10 or 11pm, I pop out of bed wide awake around 6am.

Yeah we keep seeing Cactus Club Cafe around, although we've not been in one yet.

The timezone transition wasn't too bad. We were probably back to normal after about 4-5 days, which isn't too bad.

I've had an awful week. I've not been feeling right since the day we arrived, I eventually went to the doctor, which cost me $150, as my throat was getting really bad. Turns out I have a throat infection and so now I'm on a course of antibiotics (cost me $51). I start work on Monday as well, so I'll probably be healthy again just in time for that! We've done bugger all the last few days and personally I'm feeling very down and a bit homesick because of it (well, I hope it's the illness).

ScarySquirrel · 6 Apr 2013 at 04:47

My girlfriend was happy today, we found her some Irn-Bru!

We also bought proper Heinz Baked Beans, Hula Hoops, proper Cadburys from back home, and various other 'British' food produce. It was so damn expensive, so this shop will be saved for when we want to treat ourselves!

McDaniel said:
I am okay at the moment landed in the US late Wed night, Today (Thu) just sorted out getting a SIM card as here for a few months then picked up some friends who are travelling with me for a few weeks, seeing Niagra tomorrow then heading to Cincinnati for a night before a few days in Nashville.

I am in a holiday mode at the moment so the whole move thing hasn't properly sunk in give it a few weeks and that may change.

Sucks to hear that you are Ill, no doubt that is contributing to your feelings and home sickness, how is the OH feeling? I reckon once you get settled in the new role and expand your social circles you will be feeling much better.

Glad it's all going well. We were definitely in holiday mode as well until I got ill. My girlfriend is missing home too, and I think me being a bit down has brought her down as well which is a shame. I'm 99% sure it's due to illness though, every time I go out I feel so run down again. Hopefully the meds will kick in soon and I'll be fit and ready to explore again!

Knubje said:
Just seen this thread after bumping my Whistler/Canada trip thread. Cannot wait to visit Vancouver next weekend!

I'm only there 2 days and 2 nights. Scarey - what would you recommend in that time? We were thinking of Lynn Canyon for a nice sightsee/walk around.

Your pictures look awesome!

Sounds good, although 2 days doesn't give you very long to see everything. I'm basing this purely on what I have done so far, but I'd say it would definitely be worth visiting Lynn Canyon Park.

I'd also venture into Stanley Park as well, if you get time hire a bike and cycle around it (we've not even had a chance to do this yet), then walk around Coal Harbour, watch some float plans taking off, and keep on your way towards Canada Place. The whole way along here you'll have unbelievable views of the mountains on the North shore.

We really enjoyed going up the Vancouver Lookout as well.

ScarySquirrel · 7 Apr 2013 at 01:21

Marky said:
Thanks for the continued updates Squirrel It made my hands sweat when I read about how you guys were feeling before leaving etc. I hadn't really been thinking about it too much until recently, and the more I think about it the more I become worried about being homesick I'm sure you'll feel fine after the first month once you've settled into your job and you sort of get into a normal routine

Your apartment looks really really nice! Where did you go to find apartments before you arrived? I've been looking around on Craigslist for anyone looking for a roommate (I'm really just looking as a demo for nearer the time, as I doubt there is anyone looking for a roommate now for in September ).

Also job hunting... Where did you go to start looking?

Thanks again for the updates and the wonderful pictures Very exciting

We did exactly the same, we knew we couldn't find a place so far in advance but we did lots of searching to get a feel for what we could get. Craigslist is a good bet, although we really liked using Padmapper, as you can do more filtering, you can find places on the map in the areas you want to live, and it actually pulls in Craiglist (among others) posts anyway.

I was quite lucky really. I didn't plan on applying for anything until I got here, but one day in the UK I searched for 'web agency Vancouver' (I work as an Account Manager, found one place I liked the look of, applied, had two Skype interviews in the UK then one face to face when we got here and I got the job.

As my girlfriend put it, I'm a jammy git

Antibiotics are starting to kick in now which is good, still not 100% but feeling better. We got a text off some random Canadian guy last night that we met a week or so ago inviting us out, but we couldn't go because of me being ill, but I think we'll meet him soon as he was pretty hilarious and we should be able to meet some new people through him too. Everyone seems very friendly and open to meeting new people here which is good.

We're off to the local shortly to watch the Canucks game, I may try and numb my throat with some alcohol, not sure if that's wise though!

ScarySquirrel · 23 Apr 2013 at 23:40

Sounds good, McD! Hope you're enjoying your travels

We're doing really well thanks. Personally, I'm starting to feel very settled, I'm loving city life. Every morning when I walk to work or when I walk home in the evening (when it's sunny in particular) and I can see the mountains, BC Place stadium, busy Robson Street, I still find myself thinking "Wow, I'm living and working in Canada" - it's a very cool feeling.

Natalie is still looking for work so I'm hoping she finds something soon as I think her being stuck at home looking for jobs all day may get to her soon. Financially I can support her so it's not a problem in that respect, but it will be good for her to get out and meeting people in whatever job she does. I've loved the last 3 weeks spending time with the people I work with.

We had an awesome weekend, we took a Zipcar up to Squamish and stopped off at loads of places on the way. Here's some pictures from a place called Porteau Cove.

Porteau Cove, British Columbia by Nicholas Benson, on Flickr

Porteau Cove, British Columbia by Nicholas Benson, on Flickr

We're off to a pub quiz tonight with some fellow Brits. Then this weekend I'm going to another Whitecaps game and I think we're planning to finally explore Stanley Park properly.

Canucks made the playoffs so it'll be awesome when that is in full swing as well.

Here's our latest blog post about our weekend trip with some more pictures - http://www.ourcanadianadventure.co.uk/2013/04/our-day-out-with-herman/

ScarySquirrel · 24 Apr 2013 at 16:52

Awesome, glad you're all set! The waiting was tough, but it was surprising how quickly the date of leaving came around! I'm sure it will fly by.

I was just chatting to someone at work who said that August, and sometimes into September are good summer months here, so at least you should have some nice weather when you arrive.

It's lovely and sunny this week, I can't describe how great the city looks in the sun. It's like a completely different place when it's raining.

ScarySquirrel · 3 May 2013 at 04:26

Nice one, when and where are you heading?

We're doing really well here now, we're finally happy with our apartment and I'm getting on well with work. Loving being paid every 2 weeks as well

Plus it's currently the Stanley Cup Playoffs which is great, although the Canucks lost their first game last night which isn't good.

I thought I'd share a some info about our apartment.

This is where we live; the little red dot:

It's right next to Rogers Arena and BC Place, so close in fact we can hear the Canucks goal horn before we see it on TV, which was cool at first but actually makes it quite annoying watching the game. We can also see through the window bits at the top of BC Place, so you can see the big screen which is pretty cool.

We're on the 18th floor (although technically it's probably only the 14th or so, as they have no floor 13, and a few other numbers as well as apparently they're bad luck for Asians or something).

It's pretty small, but it does the job, and there's a little Den which isn't pictured, but is great for storage and stuff, although we probably should have used it as an office.

On a clear day we can see some mountain ranges in the USA, including the MASSIVE Mount Baker, which looks incredible. Unfortunately a building blocks one side of it so you can't see it fully, but it's still cool.

There's four bloody 25 story building about to go up around Rogers Arena, the first of which will block most of our view of False Creek, and is due for completion in April next year. If we stay on for another year we'll probably move somewhere else.

In general though, we're very happy, loving city life, and very much looking for to an awesome summer.

ScarySquirrel · 9 May 2013 at 17:30

Jimz said:
ScarySquirrel that's a nice place, how much you paying for rent in Vancouver?

I have the same size almost and was just wondering the pricing difference from Toronto to Vancouver?

Sorry, only just seen this, it's pretty expensive at $1550 a month, but we're only paying for internet and about $20 a month for electricity on top of that, so it's pretty much the same as we were paying in the UK when you factor in council tax and bills. Unfortunately downtown Vancouver is an expensive place to live!

We're happy with the flat now, but in hindsight I think we could have got somewhere a bit nicer. My only annoyance with the place is that it gets so ****ing hot if the sun is out in the morning because the place heats up like a greenhouse. If we stay on beyond this first year we'll probably move and try somewhere else, although we are loving downtown right now.

FosterK said:
I'm now in the process of getting everything together for flying mid-June. Going out there with two friends, flying out to San Diego, where we'll buy a car and spend a month driving and sightseeing the west coast through California, Oregon and Washington, then finally make it to Vancouver.

If anyone's done the west coast before and has any places to see/avoid, please do tell!

Sounds awesome! I wish we'd been able to do some traveling like that before we settled down, I think I'll make an effort to save some money up and do something like that when/if we go back to the UK.

kwerk said:
Do you have any more pics of your gf you can post?

No.

ScarySquirrel · 9 May 2013 at 17:58

I realise now that I was very lucky, I applied for one job before I left the UK, had a couple of video interviews, then one face to face interview when we got here, and I got the job. My girlfriend on the other hand has found it a bit more difficult, she is very close to landing a good job now (I hope I haven't jinxed it) but it's been really tough.

She's encountered lots of people who have an issue with us only having a 1 year working visa (even though we can get a second year soon), and her last interviewer even had a problem with her Scottish accent.

It all depends on what you're looking for and what your skills are. You have to be very pro-active as well.

Where do you think you'd head in Canada? FYI, the applications for IEC 2014 will be opening around December '13/January '14 I think. The process 'should' only take about 8 weeks, so you could aim for a move around Feb/March 2014.

ScarySquirrel · 9 May 2013 at 19:15

You would have to land in Canada to receive your visa within 1 year of being accepted on the IEC programme. When you get your visa, it's valid for a year, no matter whether you left 1 month after being accepted or 11 months.

I hope that makes sense, basically you'll be fine if you apply in the next intake and want to come out in September 2014.

PS. Come to Vancouver, it's awesome

ScarySquirrel · 9 May 2013 at 19:40

Owen256 said:
Thanks for the speedy replies guys.. that all makes sense.

@SS I lived in Vancouver/Whistler for 4 months or so when I went to Canada before uni and you are right it's awesome! Ideally I will be in Whistler for the winter season and then down to Van for the summer but let's see what happens!

Glad you enjoyed it as well. We've not been to Whistler yet, only as far as Squamish on a day trip. The city is great though, I'm amazed every time the sun is out and I'm walking around, looking down the streets and seeing mountains at the end is a sight I won't be getting tired of anytime soon.

This is the view down our street:

View from the roof of the new office my company is moving to in a couple of weeks:

Lions Gate Bridge from Stanley Park:

ScarySquirrel · 12 May 2013 at 19:39

Yeah we're looking forward to the Festival of Lights later this year.

We will head to Whistler at some point, so we'll definitely check that place out

ScarySquirrel · 12 May 2013 at 21:31

There's so many awesome places around this city, this is where we had a picnic yesterday:

ScarySquirrel · 27 May 2013 at 22:57

That's a joke! Have you contacted them to explain the situation and see if you can get the decision overturned?

ScarySquirrel · 3 Jun 2013 at 20:08

It all depends how quickly you find work. My girlfriend only just started working today after being here for nearly 3 months, she turned a few jobs down knowing that I could support us (as I found work quickly), but if you don't have that luxury then you could find yourself running out of money very quickly.

£2k will get you in, definitely, and you will probably be fine, but the more you can bring the better. I brought more as I wanted us to do lots of fun things as well, we didn't want to just come here to work, we want to explore

Talking of exploring, we climbed a mountain yesterday on Bowen Island. 5 hours 40 minutes round trip, 16km, 2600 feet, and it nearly broke us!!!

I'll post pictures and a video we made later tonight for those interested (although the video is 25 minutes long!)

ScarySquirrel · 4 Jun 2013 at 07:31

** Some wearing, be warned **

ScarySquirrel · 4 Jun 2013 at 21:52

Really? Bloody hell, that would be quite handy! Was it definitely for the working holiday visas? I'm guessing that was only Ireland as well, I can't remember if Ireland and UK opened at the same time.

ScarySquirrel · 13 Jun 2013 at 22:15

So is anyone in or coming to Vancouver soon?

ScarySquirrel · 19 Jun 2013 at 01:00

deej said:
Ontario government have come back to te employer with a YES to provincial nomination for PR.

WOOT!!

All our paperwork has to be in 2 months, then hopefully 3 months later we will be able to stay indefinitely.

Nice one!! I'm not sure what our long term plans are yet if I'm honest. It'll be 3 months tomorrow since we got here, and we're loving it, but I imagine after our 2 IEC visas we may be wanting to settle down back in the UK. Too early to say yet though, we'll see.

Nix said:
Loved the video ScarySquirrel. Insanely envious, mind. Glad you're enjoying yourself.

Same to you Daniel. Glad to hear you're having fun!

Cheers

ScarySquirrel · 22 Jun 2013 at 00:34

Sounds like fun. I've still not been to Whistler yet, although I think our first visit will be a stopover in July, as we're planning on hiking and camping at Joffre Lakes, and it'd be good to not have to get up 3 hours earlier because we have to travel from Vancouver

We went to Victoria last week and had a great time, we went whale watching and went to an awesome museum, oh and got incredibly drunk of course!

We got a seaplane from Vancouver harbour over there, it was awesome!

Coming in to land

Some from the flight

Orca!!!

ScarySquirrel · 11 Jul 2013 at 19:43

You need to update your location McD

Hope you're enjoying life in Canada so far!

When my girlfriend and I first decided to move out here, I saw pictures of Garibaldi Lake and knew we had to go. Well, on Saturday last weekend we finally did it. It was a 3 hours 20 minute (give or take) hike to the lake, we stayed there for 2 hours or so (fed birds, chipmunks, swam, ate, and chilled out), then it took around 2 hours 15 minutes to hike back down. It was incredible.

I posted these in the hiking thread but I thought I' share here as well.

Garibaldi Lake, British Columbia by Nicholas Benson, on Flickr

Garibaldi Lake, British Columbia by Nicholas Benson, on Flickr

Excuse my stupid expression!