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should i move to vancouver?
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what do you think?
to tell the truth i'm not exactly sure why i'm posting this question here, but i am, i guess.
Originally posted at 11:36PM, 23 August 2006 PDT
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striatic edited this topic 23 months ago.
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...shouldn't everyone?
Posted 23 months ago.
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Why shouldn't you move to Vancouver? I moved to the UK a few months ago and even people in this country can't understand why I left.
Posted 23 months ago.
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well, it is a very likely thing to happen, for a variety of reasons.
.. but perhaps there are some voices of doom who might submit a legitimately contrary opinion.
what does it take to make it in your city?
Posted 23 months ago.
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Well, compared to Toronto you may find a dearth of cultural activities but then most would argue that this is balanced out with the wealth of nature based activities. I think you'll find public transit to be lacking coming from TO. Also some people might complain about the rain but that's something never really bothered me and I never found it to be as bad as everyone says. Having said that, it did rain 27 days straight shortly before I left. That was close to the record and is unusual. So now is a perfect time to move to Vancouver since it'll probably be a few years before nature puts up another record breaking attempt like that.
Posted 23 months ago.
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Here's a thread in another Vancouver group which has a Brit immigrant's negative experiences.
Posted 23 months ago.
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I think it depends on what you want in a city. Vancouver is a smaller, quiter place compared to Toronto, with lots of "natural spaces" intergrated into the city. The rain and lack of sunlight in the winter months can be hard to deal with, but I definately prefer this to the extreme cold of Toronto. The weather also doesn't get as crazy hot and humid here in the summer, also a plus in my books.
There is less of an arts and culture scene in Vancouver, but it's a smaller, younger city and think it's still in the process of developing. I do miss the cultural diversity of Toronto, and it's many galleries and festivals.
The cost of living is higher in Vancouver than in Toronto, something I was really surprised about. Public transit is better here and cheaper - a single bus ticket is good for an hour and a half (?) and you can travel anywhere on it while it's valid.
I know Vancouver has a reputation of being a place where it's difficult to meet people, but that hasn't been my experience. Flickr and blogging has been a gateway for me meeting all sorts of people, and I suspect this would be the same for you too Striatic. You've already met quite a few Vandigicammers, and we'd be glad to have you. I find most Vancouverites to be laidback and friendly, and it's more about who you are than what you do or who you know.
If this is definate move, when are you coming?
Posted 23 months ago.
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I moved here 7 weeks ago, and I regret nothing. I've been to a *lot* of cities in the world and had the luxury of basically deciding where I wanted 'home' to be, and Vancouver is it for me. The main factors for me:
-Long ski season, close at hand.
-Ocean
-Walk to work along, you guessed it, the ocean.
-Amazing parks, like nothing you'll see in Toronto, within walking/biking distance
-Temperate weather (I lived in the UK and got accustomed to it)
I've been very lucky in that many friends of mine had friends here, so I knew a few people from the start (apparently meeting people here is harder than most cities, but I haven't seen it myself). You've got quite the Flickr rep, so I'm sure you'd meet quite a few people in short order too.
I've lived in T.O. - and I can tell you I prefer it here for many reasons, but the cultural scene might be slightly less than what you're accustomed to.
I am supremely happy with my lifestyle out here - living here feels like 'vacation' compared to my previous cities and careers. On the other hand, I haven't been taking nearly as many photos, because that was a form of 'therapy' for me, and I'm just too busy enjoying myself to spend as much time behind the camera, so be warned.
;-)
Posted 23 months ago.
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you already know my opinion on the subject :)
Posted 23 months ago.
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I moved here almost exactly a year ago. The rent is more expensive than T.O., but everything else is cheaper, if you live on the east side of things. It's easier to get in on the ground floor of things, arts-wise.
Finally, both cities are, to my experience, relative unfriendly and yet I'm managed to meet lovely people in both places, so I cannot complain.
I think the daily view of mountains and ocean is a definitely wonderful thing, though I'm not into the winter sports etc.
Posted 23 months ago.
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These other kind folks have already said my sentiments. The only thing I would like to add is that I did greatly enjoy living in Chicago for all of the big city reasons. However, as much as I miss those things, Vancouver is where I plan to stay. For me, the weather makes a huge difference and I like Van's climate.
Posted 23 months ago.
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You should definitely make the move... I came here 3 years ago, expecting to stay 6 months, and here I am, living in the East Side, working in my garden, enjoying mountains view every morning on my bike when I go to work... And more important, spending every week-end doing something new, from hikes to quiet week-ends on an island.
Vancouver has an excellent combination of everything I was looking for in the last 10 cities I lived in the last years, mainly in France.
The only problem: To find a bar european-style that serves alcoohol and where you can just sit and read, talk or laugh loudly. I find no average bar between the noisy bar/clubs of Granville, the sordid DTES pubs, and the "all-sports-full of-TV" bars.
But I guess I learned to live without it...
And for the rain? Curiously, you get accustomed to it. It's particularly enjoyable on a sunday morning, when it's warm inside and you have nothing to do except reading, drinking tea, and listening to the rain drops music on the skylight...
Posted 23 months ago.
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What are you waiting for? MOVE!
I did. Just got my resident status in March. Took around 3 years.
Never in my life would I have thought that I would enjoy the beach or walking around in a park or going outside in general...but it seems I do!
Posted 23 months ago.
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Yeah, today I got home from work at 5:20 and was swimming in English Bay at 5:45. There isn't a lot of places where you can do that. In the winter you're home from work at 5p and skiing Grouse or Cypress at 6p if you want.
The city is a lot less happening though. They're always filming movies here. Traffic seems to be getting to be an issue. Bike riding is really accessible and easy all year long. Summers are really hard to beat here. I lived in various areas in the States, and find Vancouver pretty much average in terms of big city friendliness.
Posted 23 months ago.
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Wow, great responses everyone.
I moved here a little over a year ago (from Baltimore), and haven't regretted it for a second. But then again, I knew what to expect: I'd already lived here twice before. I'll keep this short and wind things up by saying that the outdoors and weather suit my lifestyle very well.
Posted 23 months ago.
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I'm sitting in a hotel room outside of Salt Lake City and the smog is so intense, you can't even see the mountains. That goes for a lot of other North American cities. But never in Vancouver. Well, actually the polution gets blown up the valley and the poor bastards in Abbotsford have to deal with it. :(
I don't mind the rain either, but I have to admit the night life does suck big time.
Posted 23 months ago.
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We just celebrated our first whole year in Vancouver. The word celebrated pretty much sums it up! Like any place there are frustrations but it's been an amazing experience.
Originally posted 23 months ago.
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leftantler edited this topic 23 months ago.
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That depends on what you mean by nightlife. I went for a midnight swim at 3rd beach the other day and it was delightful. Is that what you meant?
Posted 23 months ago.
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If this is definate move, when are you coming?
this summer, depending on the circumstances.
my girlfriend is applying to UBC and SFU, so it depends a lot on that. if she gets in, we're moving.
the responses here have been great.
i've never been one for night-life, so that was totally wasted on me in toronto, as with a lot of cultural things.
growing up in Edmonton i was always 5 minutes from river valley, so being able to excuse myself from the city is very important and something i found very difficult in toronto.
professionally, i'm a bit more concerned. i do professional videography and i've heard that there is a lot of competition for creative jobs in vancouver.
not that there wasn't in toronto, of course, but i could also live very inexpensively there.
i have an aunt and a cousin in victoria {well, actually sidney}, and i'm extremely close to the two of them. i considered moving there but i think that wouldn't be a wise move professionally. it would be good to be a fairly short distance from them in vancouver.
i'm pretty big on biking, but we'll also have a car. i'm thinking the car will be parked most of the time.
this is still up in the air, but it feels good to have more of my suspicions confirmed. my sister lived in vancouver for a little bit and loved it, but she was there as a student and is very different from me in a lot of respects.
Posted 23 months ago.
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and by "this summer" i really mean "next summer".
or possibly january, it is an interesting situation.
i'm in vermont until december, then edmonton for christmas, then either back to vermont or set up early in vancouver.
i read the thread in the vancouver group with trepidation, but the sort of problems she experienced are not the kind i'm concerned about. i don't need a lot of friends and night-life and bars are really not my thing. also, i don't have a mobile phone : )
edit: oh, and i want to add that i've been thinking about this since my big trip last summer, of all the places i visited, vancouver was where i felt most comfortable and your group had a real impact on that.
but that was just one day really so got to do some verification.
Originally posted 23 months ago.
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striatic edited this topic 23 months ago.
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I'd be curious to hear some comparisons of the cost of renting between Vancouver and Toronto. People say Vancouver is very expensive and it is if you want to own a home in the city but it seems to me that there are still a lot of reasonably priced rental options in some great areas of the city. I used to live in Mount Pleasant in a big 1 bedroom and paid around $725. What would I expect to pay in TO?
Posted 23 months ago.
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With regards to meeting people, I found that tricky, too -- I've found people who grew up in the Lower Mainland tend to hang out with the same people they grew up with -- regardless of age!
Long-time friends are awesome, but for someone who's not from here, it can be hard to break into one of those groups without being a 'girl/boyfriend' -- and then, if the relationship runs afoul, there you are on your own again.
(Incoming shameless plug) A friend of mine moved here late last year and started a group called the 'Vancouver Social Club'. It's not a dating club, it doesn't cost money to join. It's basically a group of people who do things together; events get posted to the Web site, and if you want to go then cool! And if not, that's OK, too.
You need to meet someone who's already a member *coughLikeMecough* (haha!) who can send you an invite, and then you need to attend an event and meet somebody else so you can be 'verified'....a bit of a screening process, since you may end up posting personal info, like cell numbers and addresses.
Check out the Web site at vsc.blogdns.com/index.php if you're interested; there's a pool 'meet and greet' next Wednesday night. I've met some great people through the club -- just like Vandigicam!!!
p.s. One of these days I'll make it to another event... =P
Posted 23 months ago.
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Well then I'd have to say that Vancouver would make a pretty good home for you then. If you aren't worried about the night life difference and the cultural stuff, Vancouver is head and shoulders better than TO in most respects.
Posted 23 months ago.
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What would I expect to pay in TO?
in TO for a one bedroom? about that much.
but i was in a coop situation and living with someone, so much MUCH less than that, and for a pretty awesome spot.
Check out the Web site at vsc.blogdns.com/index.php if you're interested; there's a pool 'meet and greet' next Wednesday night. I've met some great people through the club -- just like Vandigicam!!!
ooh. i will. thank you for the heads up on that.
Well then I'd have to say that Vancouver would make a pretty good home for you then. If you aren't worried about the night life difference and the cultural stuff, Vancouver is head and shoulders better than TO in most respects.
we'll probably bit in vancouver this december to scout. ooh .. so exciting!
Posted 23 months ago.
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Not to put too fine a point on it, but oh hells yes.
Posted 23 months ago.
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Striatic, I've done the reverse (but for different reasons), so I'm still forming opinions after six months of living in Toronto.
The cost of living in both Vancouver and Toronto is higher relative to the rest of the country, but that comes as no surprise. It takes a while to find a good deal, but that applies to both cities. I lucked out in Toronto with my current place, but it's my second apartment in six months.
That said, finding accommodation for one or two people (versus a family, say) is not usually a problem.
Ultimately, the dealbreakers -- after employment -- enter into that category of quality of life issues: if a city offers what you want in terms of activities, leisure, recreation, etc. You're a pretty friendly guy -- I can't imagine you'd encounter more difficulties establishing your social circle here than anywhere else.
In the 10 years I lived here the first few were the hardest because I was stuck out in the 'burbs and everyone I'd met had lived in the same area all their lives. I couldn't relate to them. It wasn't until I moved downtown, met a more diverse group of people and became more engaged through volunteering and the like that Vancouver grew on me. I think the same applies to everywhere else I've lived. Usually what makes the difference is finding a group of like-minded people you enjoy spending time with.
Posted 23 months ago.
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I don't have a whole lot more to add here than what has already been said. I've been hear 3 years (almost to the day), I'm quite pleased with my move.
The most I've been in Toronto besides the airport, so there's little I can make in terms of real comparison. Needless to say, I'm quite happy here. I've had no real problem meeting people or finding nightlife.
Posted 23 months ago.
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I've been here since '95 and wouldn't go anywhere else since I live in paradise but I dont' want you or your girlfriend to move here. I don't know you and there's already too many people here for my liking (the city seems to be growing so fast) and it's too expensive and there's nothing to do and no snow on the ground in winter unless you go up in the mountains so please stay where you are. There, now there's at least one negative response. Are you happy to get a negative response, strictly for the purpose of balance, you understand, wink wink.
Posted 23 months ago.
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I feel that we really should start running Vancouver like a nightclub with a patron limit - we only allow someone in when someone else leaves. We're really already halfway there - we already have the over-priced alcohol.
Posted 23 months ago.
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The best reason to move to Vancouver, for me, is the way people in this city have a better work/play balance. (I was going to write work/life, but that's not it: work here is considered part of your life, but not the only part.)
If you like to work a lot of overtime, don't move to Vancouver.
If you like to job hop and climb the ladder, don't move to Vancouver.
If you're going to find a job you like, and you want to enjoy your time away from that job, too, Vancouver might be the place for you.
TTFN
Travis
Posted 23 months ago.
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I second the alcohol cost. Beer is cheaper than water in Montana! No, really. I strolled into a gas station, and a big-ass tall boy was a buck.
Now if only I could learn to enjoy American beer. :)
Posted 23 months ago.
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Practice, BLANKartict, practice.
Posted 23 months ago.
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Are you happy to get a negative response, strictly for the purpose of balance, you understand, wink wink.
i did ask for a legitimately contrary opinion!
now i'll have to rethink the whole thing. after all, i don't want to show up and ruin paradise! ; )
Posted 22 months ago.
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I've been here for a couple of years now, having moveed from the UK after passing through on a trip and feeling very comfortable here. The climate, work to live over live to work attitude, live and let live atmosphere, proximity to the sea / mountains, and all round feeling of space etc all factor into why I love it here, but it was just an initial feeling when I arrived here the first time that made me think it was something special. Still can't put my finger on it... but it's certainly working out for this brit.
Posted 22 months ago.
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I moved here two years ago, and the first year was hard. Vancouver is an exercise/outdoors culture, and if you're not into that, you're cut off from the activities that everyone else has in common.
On top of that, Vancouver is an 'old' city, meaning that the people you meet tend to have been here for years. It doesn't have the transient populations of Toronto or Montreal, where there's lots of students and newcomers looking for the scene, or people who just wanted to get out of their small towns. The result is that most people you meet already have their circle of friends and their regular calendar, and there's little impulse to open things up for you.
Now that I'm here a year and I'm into rockclimbing and other 'Vancouver' things, I've broken into a few social networks--that seems to be what it takes, finding something in common with the locals, who are as friendly and warm as in any Canadian city, moreso maybe. It's just that initial barrier you have to get over, which can seem really tough.
Posted 22 months ago.
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wow .. i've learned so much just from reading this thread.
i think the most important thing i've learned is that vacouverites have a tremendous sense of place!
Posted 22 months ago.
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Well, I was born in Vancouver and my fathers side lives there. We moved to Toronto when I was a child. I have since held to a juvenile notion that Vancouver was a sort of magical place with fresh air and mountains ever-present in the background.
It turns out that that juvenile notion was well founded. Upon visiting my last time I went to Granville Island. It is a wonderfully organic market with a huge concrete waterpark for childern. As an adult I, ofcourse didn't partake in the waterslides but was freakin delighted with the smoked salmon at the market and the resteraunts with a view of the water.
Granville Island aside, the place is special. Special in a way that Toronto can't even understand. The rain may be a bit of an adjustment for some. But you actually get to liking the sound of rain gently tapping at the window as you derift asleep. Besides, I hear that the droplets falling through the air kind of filter the air of polutants. I cannot overemphasize how great the pacific breeze air is. Such a simple thing just adds to your quality of life.
It's that and looking at some of the worlds largest mountains ever present on the near horizon. Like I said it's kind of magical, and that alone os worth living there- really.
Posted 8 months ago.
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I've been in the Vancouver area for almost six years now. My feelings about it as a city are mixed. (I lived in Toronto for 25 years, BTW.)
Vancouver is experiencing what Toronto went through in the early 80s at the moment, in the run-up to the Olympics. House prices are ludicrous, and the legislation that's in place to prevent speculation is inadequate (you can flip a house in BC after owning it for only six months, for instance; in Ontario you have to have owned it for a year - recent amendments to the Residential Tenancy Act to discourage this - a month's free rent to tenants - nothwithstanding).
Before I moved here, someone who had lived here, in Calgary, in Toronto, and in Ottawa (my hometown) told me: Calgary is like Toronto, Vancouver is like Ottawa. And he was right. The job market is hidden here and knowing people is important. There is also a certain amount of prejudice against Ontarians that you will encounter, and a defensive, 'You can't possibly know BC, you didn't grow up here,' that goes on.
What you need to balance in your mind is the ease of getting away from it all with the fact that employment opportunities - even if you're self employed - are limited. It apparently takes Vancouverites five times as long to make a business decision as Torontonians. I've certainly seen evidence of this on projects which are stop and go over a ridiculous period of time (a simple brochure gets put on hold and six months later the project is revived. That may be fine for the client but not so good for the copy writer with less than a photographic memory, if you'll pardon the pun). And there is definitely a 'scenery discount' going on here in terms of wages. In other words, unless you're very lucky, you will pay for the privilege of living here.
Co-ops also work differently here. There's a buy-in for co-ops that ranges from $1000 to $2500, and a waiting list of a year. The buy-in is refundable if you leave the co-op, but it can be a bit of a disincentive if you don't happen to have the ready cash.
As for people - while I am the sort of person who even in Toronto was able to make friends at bus stops, Vancouver is, in comparison with Toronto, an incredibly friendly city. A little story to illustrate: Less than a year before I left Toronto (and one of the reasons I knew it was time to leave), a little old man ran over my foot with a bundle buggy on College Street just outside my co-op. He didn't apologize, just scuttled away. This annoyed me, and I found myself chasing him down the street and yelling at him, not so much for the accident, but for the fact that he didn't have the decency to apologize. In the Superstore in North Van a couple of years ago, a man rammed his cart into my back because he wanted to get past me. I turned to him and said, "You know, a simple 'excuse me' still works." The guy tracked me down in the store (which is enormous) about 15 minutes later and said, "You are absolutely right and I want to apologize to you for being rude and impatient."
In terms of cultural events - well - you know - how many readings, openings, dance performances and plays can you attend in a single evening?
Originally posted 8 months ago.
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The River Thief edited this topic 8 months ago.
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Did he ever move?
Posted 8 months ago.
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No - I ran into him in Toronto last September and he was staying put. But you never know...
Posted 8 months ago.
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Vancouver hmmmm
i like everything except the Rain and public transportation.
Toronto has the fast and quick public transportation i know this because i lived there for 14yrs.
Posted 8 months ago.
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If you're J-walking (and really, who doesn't?) in Vancouver the oncoming cars will slow down for fear of hitting you and out of courtesy.
In Toronto (and the outlying burbs) they will actually speed up in threat to hit you. How dare you walk on road while someone much more important that you.
This is actually true, as I've almost been run over by motorists who clearly saw me, kind of as a punishment for getting in their way.
Posted 8 months ago.
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When I moved to Ontario for university, I once stopped to let a pedestrian cross the road at a marked crossing.
He was so shocked that he didn't look for any other cars, and stepped directly into the side of a vehicle that hadn't stopped for him. Thankfully he was just fine, just broke some of his shopping he was carrying, but it did make for an interesting statement to the police about the accident.
I think the "stopping for pedestrians" thing sort of evaporates somewhere east of Thunder Bay, and doesn't pick up again until you get an hour or two east of Montreal.
Originally posted 8 months ago.
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matt edited this topic 8 months ago.
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... looks to me that he moved to Seattle.
Posted 8 months ago.
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@Cazasco - try the railway club or la bodega for a good place to have a drink and read without the tv's...Railway during the day...kinda busy at night
Posted 8 months ago.
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