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So I'm thinking about moving to Canada when I can.

 

I'm looking for some current or former Canadians to give me some tips, pointers, guides, whatever. I'm currently living in Massachusetts, so I'm used to cold and can adjust to more cold.

 

 

How different is it?

Public transportation any good?

Crime rates are lower, how much lower?

What is the food like?

Could one survive without a car?

How warm can it get/how nice can the weather be?

Are there any majorly different laws?

How different are prices?

Do you make more money on average, the same, less?

I've heard the people are friendlier, true?

How is Canada's economy?

Anything I can get easily in Amurrika that I can't get in Canada?

How hard is the switch to metric?

How is the internet?

Am I okay not knowing any french beyond very basic stuff?

Are there any rights I have in the US that I don't have in Canada, or vice versa?

 

And anything else you think is important to know. I'm going to take a serious look at this and see if it's right for me.

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I don't like in Canada but a lot of these questions depend on where you want to move, just like any American city. Metric system is easy to learn, the currency holds about the same value as ours (theirs is slightly higher but not much), the people are about the same it just depends where you go really just like anywhere in the world. The weather of course is a bit chillier then the US (Think like Maine). You can survive in Canada without knowing french and I can only assume it's like living near the US-Mexican boarder where their is a strong spanish population, it only helps but isn't necessary to know the language.

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So I'm thinking about moving to Canada when I can.

 

I'm looking for some current or former Canadians to give me some tips, pointers, guides, whatever. I'm currently living in Massachusetts, so I'm used to cold and can adjust to more cold.

 

 

How different is it?

Virtually the same

 

Public transportation any good?

I consider it to be good, though I can't compare to the USA.

 

Crime rates are lower, how much lower?

Not sure, though google is your friend

 

What is the food like?

OM NOM NOM delicious.

 

Could one survive without a car?

For sure.

 

How warm can it get/how nice can the weather be?

Depends. Where I live (Central Ontario), it goes as low as (a few times a month) -25 degrees Celsius in the winter, and usually around +25 degrees Celsius in the summer.

 

Are there any majorly different laws?

None I can think of.

 

How different are prices?

Unless you need to ship from the USA, very similar.

 

Do you make more money on average, the same, less?

I'm a student, I don't work.

 

I've heard the people are friendlier, true?

True.

 

How is Canada's economy?

I know the basics, but what I can tell you, you probably already know.

 

Anything I can get easily in Amurrika that I can't get in Canada?

Might cost a bit more if you need to ship. That's it though, you should be able to get by easily

 

How hard is the switch to metric?

VERY easy. You'll still use imperial a lot though - For height, example. Nobody says "I'm 181 cm tall" here.

 

How is the internet?

Not great in some areas, I'll admit.

 

Am I okay not knowing any french beyond very basic stuff?

Won't make a difference, unless you move to Quebec.

 

Are there any rights I have in the US that I don't have in Canada, or vice versa?

None that I can really think of.

 

And anything else you think is important to know. I'm going to take a serious look at this and see if it's right for me.

Ignore most stereotypes you hear about us. The majority of our population doesn't consist of beer swilling hockey nuts.

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So I'm thinking about moving to Canada when I can.

 

I'm looking for some current or former Canadians to give me some tips, pointers, guides, whatever. I'm currently living in Massachusetts, so I'm used to cold and can adjust to more cold.

 

Disclaimer: I live in Winnipeg, so I don't speak for the whole country.

 

How different is

People are a lot more laid back, and more accepting

Public transportation any good?

Alright, here you can get a bus to almost anywhere in the city

Crime rates are lower, how much lower?

Well, of the ~40 murders here, 35 take place in the inner city, a couple take place out in a trashier suburb, and one or two happen in the rest of the city. Auto theft is bad too, but as before it's worse in the inner city.

What is the food like?

Idk, our fast food is better because we have regulations, and our restaurants are good too.

Could one survive without a car?

I hate the bus, but you easily could if you needed to. Expect to freeze to death at the bus stops 1/4 of the year.

How warm can it get/how nice can the weather be?

-40 in the Winter to +35 in the Summer. The weather in BC is beautiful though

Are there any majorly different laws?

Drinking age is 18 (19 in a few places), drug laws are a lot less tough, Age of consent is 16 with a 5 year difference allowed. I've yet to find one successful anti-piracy case, but Harper is a [bleep] and that could change.

How different are prices?

More expensive, but not that bad.

Do you make more money on average, the same, less?

Minimum wage here is $9.50, but I think the average salary is lower in real jobs.

I've heard the people are friendlier, true?

Yes, except in Ottawa :P

How is Canada's economy?

Better than America's, as we have a lot of resources and regulated banks.

Anything I can get easily in Amurrika that I can't get in Canada?

Combos, A lot of cereals, a lot of pop variations, basically a lot of awesome foods.

How hard is the switch to metric?

Metric is logical, if it's that hard for you just get a conversion app

How is the internet?

Shaw, Bell and Rogers are trash, and you shouldn't support them. Here I get unlimited from MTS, and you should try to buy from an unlimited local provider or reseller.

Am I okay not knowing any french beyond very basic stuff?

Yeah, just don't move to quebec.

Are there any rights I have in the US that I don't have in Canada, or vice versa?

Guns are a big no-no. All I can think of.

 

And anything else you think is important to know. I'm going to take a serious look at this and see if it's right for me.

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Just like Spork, I also live in Winnipeg (well, come from a small town, live in Win for 8 months a year for school).

 

How different is it?

Not too different. A lot less people (except for southern Ontario and the Vancouver area). I'm told we're more laid back and nicer, but I haven't actually lived in the USA so I can't say for sure.

 

Public transportation any good?

It's pretty good anywhere I've been. Winnipeg's bus services are average, Vancouver has a light rail system which is great, and Montreal / Toronto are acceptable.

 

Crime rates are lower, how much lower?

Like Spork said, Winnipeg is pretty bad, but that's just a few areas, nothing to worry about as long as you're not wearing gang colours (that's another thing, we use a 'u' in colour :thumbsup:) in a bad area.

 

What is the food like?

Much like the USA for the normal things like burgers and pizza and whatnot. Local dishes are a little different but quite good. Also, if you do not enjoy poutine and Tim Hortons, we'll deport your silly little American butt straight back.

 

Could one survive without a car?

For sure. In Winnipeg our bus system is pretty good. Even with that, I still prefer to walk everywhere (I walk to university in -40C in a hoodie and a windbreaker :cool:). I guess you'll need a car if you plan on leaving your local city/town seeing as there's a fair distance between them (unless you're in a sprawling area like vancouver or Toronto).

 

How warm can it get/how nice can the weather be?

We hit a few days of -35C (-50 with windchill, you'll get used to hearing that word a lot if you live here) and a few of +35C per year but most of the time it stays between +25C and -25C. That's the climate in Winnipeg though, we're in the middle of the country so we don't get the warm ocean air. Places like BC and the Maritimes rarely venture outside of -10 to +25 range as far as I know.

 

Are there any majorly different laws?

Guns are pretty regulated.

 

How different are prices?

Not too bad, but most things are usually a little more here.

 

Do you make more money on average, the same, less?

I'm a student so I can't say but minimum wage is about to be raised to $10.00 in Man and as far as I know, we're pretty average.

 

I've heard the people are friendlier, true?

I've met good and bad Canadians, and good and bad Americans. But overall I think we're a little nicer.

 

How is Canada's economy?

Not too bad. We fared pretty well in the crash of '08 when USA was tanking, but we are so dependant on the USA to buy our stuff (something like 40% of our exports go to USA) that we did still feel the pinch.

 

Anything I can get easily in Amurrika that I can't get in Canada?

I can't htink of anything, but I'm sure there are some.

 

How hard is the switch to metric?

Pretty easy. It's base 10 so there's no stupid math involved like 1242.94 feet to a mile. We still use imperial in day to day life like feet, miles (our roads were made 1 mile apart back when settling the prairies, so we're stuck with 'mile roads'), and pounds.

 

How is the internet?

Bad in some places because we're so remote. I get about 600 kbps in my home town for about $45 (bad by global standards, but I don't find it bad).

 

Am I okay not knowing any french beyond very basic stuff?

Unless you're in Quebec, or want a government job that requires it (like post office worker) then you won't need it at all.

 

Are there any rights I have in the US that I don't have in Canada, or vice versa?

Not that I know of

 

And anything else you think is important to know. I'm going to take a serious look at this and see if it's right for me.

Our beer is WAY better. USA beer is just water.

 

 

If you don't mind me asking, where do you plan on moving to? It is very dependant on that. It's like the difference between moving to NYC or the middle of Texas.

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Yeah it really depends where in Canada you move to.

 

For the most part things are pretty similar but there are some minor differences.

 

And Canadian beer is wayyyyy better.

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Yeah it really depends where in Canada you move to.

 

For the most part things are pretty similar but there are some minor differences.

 

And Canadian beer is wayyyyy better.

Aboot that, I disagree. Eh.

 

 

 

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How different is it?

It's not really that different. We just have more government services that the US doesn't offer. For example, healthcare you would need to apply for to get coverage from the government (citizens don't need to since they're already covered). But I'm sure they'll explain it all to you when you move.

 

Politically it is a lot different because when you vote, you don't vote your prime minister, you vote your local candidate. Whoever gets the most seats wins the election and the leader of that party becomes prime minister.

 

Public transportation any good?

Depends where you live. It's good in some areas, poor in others. Although overall in areas I can think of it's pretty good.

 

Crime rates are lower, how much lower?

I don't really hear of much crimes happening around where I live. It really depends on where you live though. For example, living in inner-city Toronto tends to have a higher volume of people. Higher volume of people = more crime.

 

What is the food like?

How's the food like in the USA? It's the same. You go to the store and buy it.

 

Could one survive without a car?

Depends where you live. Some areas are a bit worse when it comes to cars, but as always a car is a nice advantage to have. If you live in Toronto it's less of an advantage.

 

How warm can it get/how nice can the weather be?

Depends where you live. It's really the same as the northern USA states unless you want to live in Nunavut. Although it does tend to be colder overall, but not by much.

 

Are there any majorly different laws?

Gun laws are a lot more strict and some laws such as for marijuana are a bit more lenient, but overall they're the same.

 

How different are prices?

A bit higher, but it depends where you live. If you live in Alberta gas is a bit cheaper I believe (don't quote me on that).

 

Do you make more money on average, the same, less?

It depends on the job you are getting. If you are getting into the healthcare field, there is a high demand but you get paid less because it is government funded, however you can guarantee it being there.

 

I've heard the people are friendlier, true?

Depends where you live, although I live in Canada so I have nothing to compare it to.

 

How is Canada's economy?

Better than the States due to government regulations, etc.

 

Anything I can get easily in Amurrika that I can't get in Canada?

Guns

 

How hard is the switch to metric?

Not that difficult. It's a lot easier than the Imperial system considering everything is in groups of 10s. Considering the entire world uses it except for the USA (probably some other small countries) it makes it even easier since you need to use it in sciences anyway.

 

How is the internet?

The internet is getting [bleep]ed right now due to lowering internet caps. But, you can still get decent services.

 

Am I okay not knowing any french beyond very basic stuff?

Yeah, you are more than fine. French is only mandatory to learn in public schools until Grade 9, and even then a large portion of the population don't know it.

 

Are there any rights I have in the US that I don't have in Canada, or vice versa?

Gun laws for one. But I'd like to think there is more rights for Canadians vs USA because there is no Patriot Act. I'm not saying it's a good or bad thing to not have it, but that's just what it is. There is a similar law in effect but many sections of it were stripped when it revisited parliament.

 

http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/charter/

 

Full document located above.

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I spent a couple days in Vancouver. Place is the bee's knees. Everyone spoke English, it was awesome.

I seriously hope the last part is a joke. <_<

 

Anyways, Killerred covered it pretty well. Some parts of Canada are like the American Midwest, while others are like the state of New York. However, where I live there is no public transportation, so owning a car would be a good idea, unless you will live in a high density metropolitan area such as the GTA.

 

As for knowing french, the only province where you need to know french is Quebec. Outside of it, only New Brunswick really has a major francophone population. Hell, Ontario is well known for being stingy about speaking a language other than english.

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I'm thinking BC. I'm not really sure though. I want a place that isn't going to be too cold (-35 celsius is ridiculous). I kind of like living between suburbia and the city, or in suburbia close to the city.

 

LOL MOAR QUESTIONS

 

 

How are addresses written? Similar to American? For example ours are:

Name

Number of house Name of road *road*

City, State zip code

 

How are the outlets laid out? Is it going to be a hassle adapting cords to Canadian outlets, or are they the same?

 

How difficult is becoming a citizen? Is there a test? Does it cost money?

 

Voting age? Do the politicians spew crap like they do in the US?

 

Laws regarding abortion? Marijuana? Religion? Gun control? Gays? Health care?

 

What is the religious makeup?

 

How is it different if I live in Canada, but am not a citizen? Is that bad? Do I need to become a citizen?

 

Okay, now for weather conversion. I live in eastern Massachusetts. Winters are cold (usually doesn't get below 0 fahrenheit or -18 celsius) and there is a lot of snow. Fall is cold. It gets warm in May and continues to about September. Max temp is usually about 100 fahrenheit or 38 celsius. Basically it's very cold and then very hot. Very windy in fall and winter.

 

If I go to BC, specifically around Vancouver, what will it be like? I've checked weather records and it seems to be the same, just less extreme.

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How are addresses written? Similar to American? For example ours are:

Name

Number of house Name of road *road*

City, State zip code

 

Same except postal code.

How are the outlets laid out? Is it going to be a hassle adapting cords to Canadian outlets, or are they the same?

 

Same.

 

How difficult is becoming a citizen? Is there a test? Does it cost money?

 

Voting age? Do the politicians spew crap like they do in the US?

 

Test and fee. Voting age 18. All politicians are the same worldwide pretty much.

 

Laws regarding abortion? Marijuana? Religion? Gun control? Gays? Health care?

 

Abortion - completely legal.

Marijuana - illegal.

Religion - don't know what laws you want to know about, everyone has freedom of religion though.

Guns - no small arms, large arms only for hunting basically, fairly restrictive.

Health care - free if you register.

Gays - gay marriage is legal.

 

What is the religious makeup?

 

How is it different if I live in Canada, but am not a citizen? Is that bad? Do I need to become a citizen?

 

Okay, now for weather conversion. I live in eastern Massachusetts. Winters are cold (usually doesn't get below 0 fahrenheit or -18 celsius) and there is a lot of snow. Fall is cold. It gets warm in May and continues to about September. Max temp is usually about 100 fahrenheit or 38 celsius. Basically it's very cold and then very hot. Very windy in fall and winter.

 

If I go to BC, specifically around Vancouver, what will it be like? I've checked weather records and it seems to be the same, just less extreme.

 

Religious makeup is christian, muslim, atheist mostly.

 

If you're not a citizen you should become a landed immigrant, which basically gives you everything except voting rights.

 

Yeah vancouver doesn't get super cold or hot.

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How are addresses written? Similar to American? For example ours are:

Name

Number of house Name of road *road*

City, State zip code

We have the number and then street name. For example, if you live on Fake Street and live at number 123, it would be written as "123 Fake Street".

 

How are the outlets laid out? Is it going to be a hassle adapting cords to Canadian outlets, or are they the same?

Outlets are mainly organized around larger shopping centres. You may find smaller towns with small businesses and such, but mostly (as I said) there will be plazas.

 

How difficult is becoming a citizen? Is there a test? Does it cost money?

I'm not too sure about that because I've never had to go through with it since I was born here, but I'd imagine it wouldn't be too difficult. I know there's a minimum amount of time you have to have lived here though.

 

Voting age? Do the politicians spew crap like they do in the US?

18, and we're talking about politics here, so yes.

 

Laws regarding abortion? Marijuana? Religion? Gun control? Gays? Health care?

Abortions are legal but there's a panel you have to go through, marijuana is more lenient than the US meaning it's not Schedule I (and if you possess a very small amount they won't arrest you, but they will take it - but it is illegal overall so I wouldn't exactly be brandishing it around), there is no state religion, strict on guns (can't have automatic weapons or handguns but you can own hunting rifles if you have a licence), gay marriage is legal (you can just go through a Justice of the Peace - don't need to do it through a church), and health care has longer waiting times, but for the most part it doesn't cost anything (if you need a major operation, it doesn't cost anything if you're covered by OHIP (my province) but prescription drug coverage is limited and ambulances cost money - overall varies from province to province because healthcare is managed province by province.)

 

What is the religious makeup?

If you're going to BC you'll see a lot of people from other countries due to the location (right next to the ocean). Overall, it really doesn't matter because you'll see many different religions.

 

How is it different if I live in Canada, but am not a citizen? Is that bad? Do I need to become a citizen?

Being a citizen entitles you to a bit more rights, but the majority of them cover "permanent residents" as well, so you should be fine. It's best to become a citizen because it really makes things easier for you.

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The thing that I remember about British Columbia is that the weather by the coast, near Vancouver, tends to be very mild, with temperatures above freezing point, but below 20 degrees celsius. Ethnically, I believe BC also has a visible minority of Asian people, larger than the rest of Canada because of its access to the Pacific Ocean (which also produces a hell load of precipitation, I might add, you won't be seeing sun that often.)

 

The crime rate in BC is largely average compared to its population, maybe slightly above average, but it seems to have the highest rate of property crimes in Canada outside of the territories. [source]

 

As for immigration policies, I am personally an immigrant to Canada myself. You are deemed eligible to become a Canadian citizen after taking a test. This test gives you "points" depending on certain things about you, such as education, languages known, and current job. If you score high enough, you are eligible to move to Canada. Once here, you have to live and stay on Canadian soil for 3+ years before applying for full citizenship. This means no travelling abroad. After that, you have to take a test on the history of Canada (and about prime ministers and other stuff), however I personally didn't have to take it, because I was a minor at the time. Then there's a ceremony where you take the oath to swear allegiance to the queen, and you are now Canadian. This is the road my parents and I had to take, so some things might be different.

 

But honestly, if you wish to know all of this, better go to the Government of Canada's Immigration website, and stop listening to a Tip.iter whose info might be wrong!

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British Columbia is nice and is the only Canadian province I've spent time in as I grew up in Washington State. Vancouver is an awesome city and in my opinion one of the best cities on the entire west coast.

 

When they're not rioting...

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what city are you looking about moving to?

 

Toronto's weather is comparable to NY

 

Vancouver has a very mild weather, but rains more often.

 

Montreal... best night life, mostly because of 18 yr old girls being allowed alcohol and inside clubs. going there this week.

 

3 best cities in Canada imo. But i don't think i'd ever live in montreal because i can't speak fluent french

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Umm yeah, picture someone asking this question about the U.S., and that's about how hard it is to answer.

 

In fact, Canada is actually bigger... :shades:

 

If you have a specific city/region in mind, then perhaps we could answer accurately!

 

 

Suppose I'll add my thoughts to your questions though...

 

 

How different is it?

- Pretty damn similar overall

Public transportation any good?

- Depends on the city, it's usually good in big cities where more people use it

Crime rates are lower, how much lower?

- Area dependent

What is the food like?

- Exactly the same as far as I've seen

Could one survive without a car?

- Sure, I don't have a car 8 months of the year when I'm at school

How warm can it get/how nice can the weather be?

- Depends on area. I live in southern Ontario and it ranges from... really hot to really cold. In summer it's usually really hot/nice, with some 100+ degree (f) days.

Are there any majorly different laws?

- Not that I can think of.

How different are prices?

- I've heard that it's a bit cheaper to shop for things in the U.S., but right now our currencies are worth the same amount so pretty negligible difference as far as I'm concerned.

Do you make more money on average, the same, less?

- I have no idea

I've heard the people are friendlier, true?

- Maybe, but probably not

How is Canada's economy?

- I'm not an expert on this at all, but it's currently a bit harder to find jobs and such than it used to be, same as U.S I believe

Anything I can get easily in Amurrika that I can't get in Canada?

- Don't know

How hard is the switch to metric?

- Metric is 100 times easier and makes way more sense, everything is powers of 10 instead of silly arbitrary numbers

How is the internet?

- Just fine

Am I okay not knowing any french beyond very basic stuff?

- As long as you're not in Quebec, you have absolutely no need to learn french. I stopped taking french classes as soon as I was allowed to.

Are there any rights I have in the US that I don't have in Canada, or vice versa?

- Probably, but nothing that affects me.

 

 

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(As a pre note, this is about Halifax, which is on the Atlantic coast. While there are significant cultural differences between the Maritimes [Atlantic] and the Pacific, I imagine that what I see here translates better to BC than it would to any other Province, except maybe New Brunswic. The biggest difference that comes to mind is I believe that the BC crime rate is substantially higher than ours, and your winters tend to the more mild/non-existent scale than ours in at least a few places)

 

 

How different is it?

 

In a very broad sense, I don't find the states to be a whole lot different when I have vacationed there, but never having actually lived in America, I don't know how this would actually hold up if I were part of your society. From a political standpoint, we are very different, being much more liberal than America is. Our most capitalist party (the conservatives) would probably be about the same as your democrats (maybe a little more right wing, but not much). Our system is also quite different, with provinces having a different power distribution versus our federal government than your states do, and our voting systems are more straightforward (though perhaps not better). But I think the day to day lives actually do play out fairly similarly, its just the underlying structure of the country that is different.

 

 

Public transportation any good?

 

This really depends on where you are. My experience with Metro Transit (this would be Halifax, Nova Scotia) is that its nothing near as good as owning a car, but that is probably not a fair comparison. They have a go time system, numbers you can call printed on the bus stops that tell you when the next two scheduled buses are for every bus at that stop, and the system is fairly accurate. If your only taking one bus, its normally not to bad, but people who have to take 2 or 3 are looking at 45-90 minute commutes easily for what would take a car 20-25.

 

 

Crime rates are lower, how much lower?

I couldn't give you the numbers, but lets just say that every local stabbing and murder makes the paper, and they aren't normally a daily occurance. Now, that's probably just as much a factor of Halifax's comparatively tiny population (general and gang) compared to most capitals, as it is a factor of our culture. You can probably google the crime rates for where you live, and anyplace you want to move to though.

 

 

What is the food like?

 

Honestly, its not much different. There seems to be a set of North American foods that know no borders. My only comment would be that on average, I think the portions in our restaurants run ever so slightly smaller than they do in the states (at least compared to Orlando Florida).

 

 

Could one survive without a car?

 

As long as your in a city, for sure you can, and a lot of people do. If your in a sub-urban area that is still close to the city, its possible but considerably less convenient than it would be in the city itself. If your rural, not a chance.

 

 

How warm can it get/how nice can the weather be?

 

Halifax is in a moderate climate, as is most of Nova Scotia, by virtue of the Atlantic Ocean. It doesn't get to hot in the summer (33C tops normally, with an average of like 25-30), and it doesn't get to cold in the winter (maybe -15 on a super cold day, with -20 to -25 windchill's at its worst). Mostly we just have wind. The really cold season is only a little over a month long though (Feb).

 

 

Are there any majorly different laws?

Well, our gun laws are quite different, as are our sentances, but by an large, whats illegal in one country is illegal in the other. I expect that Canada has more laws overall, since we aren't quite as gung-[garden tool] about our freedoms and rights.

 

 

How different are prices?

Gas is more expensive, as are books. On the whole, all the really cheep stuff (talking like $6 and under) is likely to be more expensive here because out lowest bill is the $5, not the $1, which means (through process I don't care to explain here) that our base 'cheep' price (the what can I buy with 1 bill) is 5x what yours is. Actually, on the whole I think Canada is a bit more expensive, but I'm sure we do have things that are cheeper. Also, internet piracy is much bigger in Canada, so the point where we pirate about as much as the USA with a 10th of the people.

 

 

Do you make more money on average, the same, less?

 

Minimum wage is $10 in this privince, and I think we are on the low end. Not sure what you guys are at.

 

 

I've heard the people are friendlier, true?

 

I find so yes. Your more likely to at least find someone who will hold the door open for you, or let you in to traffic here. But then, I have met some really nice Americans too, so this would be better annswered by people who have actually lived in both countries.

 

 

How is Canada's economy?

 

MUCH better than yours right now, and easily one of the best in the Developed world at the moment (at least in terms of stability and growth). Our banking system is considerably different, with very few banks, almost all of which are National, and there are laws that protect your money, so confidence in our banks is very high. Most of our current economic troubles are coming from simple fear, and repercussions of our close ties to the USA, and to a lesser extent, Europe, both of which are failing compared to us.

 

 

Anything I can get easily in Amurrika that I can't get in Canada?

 

Tanerite, thermite, guns, anarchist literature (maybe). Seriously though, yes there is more 'stuff' in the states, and bringing it into Canada is not fun. But in terms of your basic needs and usual luxuries, you would be unlikely to ever need to do this. Most of the stuff you would need to go to the states for would probably be in the medical field, since there is a bit more freedom both in terms of medications and medical procedures than we have here.

 

 

How hard is the switch to metric?

 

The metric system is very simple. Its a base 10 system, based on water for the most part (mass, distance, volume and temperature are all based on water. 1 gram is 1ml or 1 cm^3 of water. 0C is the freezing point, 100C is the boiling point). All our units convert nicely to each other, which makes the math much easier. From a practical point of view, the hardest one is going to be temperature, but I expect after a few months to a year, it will be second nature to you. Our speed limits are pretty close, so speed shouldn't be an issue (100km/hr, which is the slowest of the highway speeds is a little over 55mph).

 

 

How is the internet?

 

MUCH better on average. I think the pricing is similar, but almost the entire country has pretty decent internet service (at least the inhabited part, not the 90% of the country that has next to nothing but trees). There is almost no place that I know of that would be limited to dial up, and Halifax seems to be going to fiber optic as a new possibility (I think Aliant is laying the wires out starting this year).

 

 

Am I okay not knowing any french beyond very basic stuff?

 

Quebec is almost entirely French, except the city of Montreal which is by and large bilingual. However, Quebec has vastly different legal system and culture compared to the rest of the country. New Brunswick is officially bi-lingual. Every other province and territory is officially English. The only impact is going to be jobs. The federal government practically requires bi-bilingualism in most positions now, as do some service industries (most notably the airlines). I don't know french beyond "I don't speak speak french", and a few random words, and I get along just dandy.

 

 

Are there any rights I have in the US that I don't have in Canada, or vice versa?

I think most of the rights are about the same (except the right to weapons, which we don't have). In general, we are less worried about pushing it and making sure they exist. Where Americans seem to focus on it (at least some do), to the point where it seems really ingrained in your culture, our culture would have a larger focus on just obeying the law, and not being [wagon] just because we can.

 

 

As a final note, I want to touch on religion. Roman Catholic is our largest religion, followed closely by one you guys don't have called the United Church of Canada (and sometimes the 'thinkers religion'). I only bring this up, because the UCC is about as far away as you can get from fundamentalist religion (most notably in terms of the Bible being considered a story book, not the literal word of God, that exists merely as a guide). On the whole, religion in Canada is a lot less extreme in any direction. There are lest fundamentalists, our Atheists aren't as in your face, etc. and it plays a smaller role in our politics.

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