Toronto?

[lessonsintightropes]

DH and I are in our late 30s, no DCs as yet, and getting itchy feet for a spell overseas after 10 years in London (both born and brought up in the UK, I lived in South America for a year in terms of overseas experience, he's never done so).

We're fairly committed to Canada as we both love the country and have spent time in Yukon, BC, and Ontario, and qualify for the express entry working visas (for the next couple of years until we turn 40 anyway!). Aus too far and too foreign and whilst we adore the States wouldn't qualify for a move and don't fancy it to live.

Although most of our Canadian-based friends are out West - Vancouver, islands - we think Toronto would be the best starting point in terms of least culture shock coming from London due to the high level of immigration and good job opportunities.

We're going to visit for a week in late August with a view to putting in applications for express entry in January and moving at some point next year. We're steeled to the idea of the winter - and if we just can't stand it after a few years we'd probably move out west anyway, but elderly parents would be reluctant to fly that far initially and can seemingly be convinced to come to GTA, which is another reason it's first choice.

Please can anyone who's done this before give us some pointers about what to think about and prepare for? We'll take another trip in winter before we submit applications to speak to potential employers and suss out living opportunities, but are getting ridiculously excited (and probably far too idealistic) about life in Toronto.

Thanks for reading the essay any hints and tips/lessons learned woudl be much appreciated.

I am originally from the UK and currently live in Toronto with my DH and DD. It's a great city.
What would you like to know?

Bump for you. Would also like to know about Toronto.

Hi sounding, what we'd like to know is what came as a surprise/was a culture shock for you when you moved, and whether you found it easy to adjust? Did you find it easy to make friends? How did you find your first winter? And are you glad you came? Sorry for the bombardment

I used to live in Toronto, fabulous city, I'd go back in a heart beat. Things I found surprising when we arrived are :
actually -9 can be almost warm when the sun is shining and it's bone dry.
a London winter is worse than a Toronto one, you get used to the snow!
summer is very warm, I hadn't realised it would be 40degrees for 2 weeks a year
Toronto is very nepotistic, you tend to find jobs by who you know in a way that's just not true in London

I found Toronto one of the easiest places I've ever moved to, I found the people there are generally warm, generous and kind.

hope this makes sense, I'm replying from my phone for the first time and it's hard!

I live in Toronto (in my third year), after a long time of living in London.
Tips:
You need a car and to be able to drive.
Winter can get down to -20 at times, it's cold but it is not grey - there are plenty of bright sun shiny days which helps.
Toronto is cheaper than Vancouver (in terms of housing etc) but is not beautiful. It is very convenient for travel to New York City.
Pace of life slows down in the summer - people take the opportunity to go away at the weekends.
Holidays are spread throughout the year, not just in the first part of the year like the UK.
There are nice traditions to embrace like Halloween and Thanksgiving.
Parts of Toronto seem very old fashioned - in a good way. I do my fruit and veg shopping at the local market, I walk my child to school, kids play hockey in the street in the neighbourhoods, you can only buy booze at the beer store or licquor store (LCBO).
Property: I found this very strange. Sellers list their properties really low so they can go for $100,000 over asking. Don't assume the price you see as list price is the price they actually want. So, for example, if a house is listed at $689,000 in a good area expect it to go for the mid 700's.

As for the adjustment, after moving out of London I had to adjust to the fact that things don't happen as quickly - getting a coffee at Starbucks takes longer, people walk slower - think that would happen anywhere though. (bar NYC). I also found stuff big - bigger cars - bigger packs in the grocery store.

Marking place as we are also keen on a move to Toronto!

Adding myself to this if you don't mind op, there's a possibility will be moving to Toronto with DP for his work. I'm a bit concerned about being bored rigid in a hotel room for the first few months, does anyone know if the work restrictions on spouses are as strict as the U.S.? Ie; I'd better take a lot of books with me?