By Kevin Smith
Our foreign friends highly demanded this article, so we felt compelled to create it – no country is perfect. The most significant complaint people have is the highest cost of living in Canada. Specifically groceries (food), alcohol, bank fees, and of course, the insanely high price of internet, cable television and phone bills. Also, due to Canada’s enormous size, internet service is terrible in small rural towns. Below we list ten things you should know about before moving to Canada. Most people live 100km from the US border.
1. High Taxes – depends on how much you make, but Canadians pay more taxes than most citizens of other nations.
2. The weather – find out the temperature for your destination, but Canada generally gets very cold in the winter. The best place weather-wise in Canada is British Columbia, specifically the cities of Vancouver and Victoria. They are not as cold and don’t get as much snow (if any) as the rest of Canada.
3. Healthcare – to see a doctor or check up is free, but for any prescriptions, you have to buy them yourself. Some employers might help with this, specifically eye or dental care. Speaking of dental care, it is expensive in Canada.
4. Locations & languages – the two official languages in Canada are French and English, so if you only speak either one of the languages, it’s best to move to the destination that speaks the language you are more comfortable with. For example, Quebec is primarily French, and the rest of Canada is mostly English.
5. Tipping is expected but not mandatory (you do it if you want); taxi drivers, restaurants, barbers, and customer-based services.
6. Drinking alcohol in public is illegal except in Quebec. But in Quebec, it is only allowed in parks, as long as you have a meal. Smoking in restaurants is not permitted (we know in Eastern Europe, our friends smoke in restaurants as much as they want).
7. Different lifestyles: Canada is so big and diverse that you can choose how to live. For example, if all you want to do is live with nature, you can do that. If all you want to do is live life with the natives in Nunavut, in isolation from the rest of Canada, you can. If you want the big city lifestyle, you can see cities such as Toronto and Montreal.
8. Multiculturalism: Canada consists of cultures from all over the world so you will find all types of communities and foods from back home.
9. Transit: Canada is so vast that there is no public transportation in many small towns. You MUST own a car; otherwise, your only option is a taxi. But in the big cities such as Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa, Calgary or Montreal, transit is good. They have trains or buses.
10. Canadians can be passive-aggressive: this is to say that most people do not like confrontation, so they will do or say things indirectly. That also goes hand in hand with political correctness. You can’t just say whatever is on your mind without offending someone.