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Expat Vancouverites
Sky_2000
01-10-2012, 08:43 AM
So who here is originally from Vancouver and has since moved away to some other part of the world? Why did you move? Do you miss Vancouver? Still visit much?
achiam
01-10-2012, 01:11 PM
Moved to London for 6 years, came back 2-3x/yr.
Moving to NY or San Jose pending job.
Don't miss it at all. Coming back for skiing in winter and hiking/kayaking in summer is more than enough.
LSF22
01-10-2012, 01:15 PM
*Waiting for dukes response
bcrdukes
01-10-2012, 05:04 PM
*Waiting for dukes response
:alone:
SkinnyPupp
01-10-2012, 05:13 PM
Moved to Hong Kong 6 years ago
Moved because of many reasons. Mostly I just like it here since visiting in 03. Also because I felt like something different, wanted to visit different countries in asia, thought it would help with my work (it didn't, but other opportunities came up), weather, crime, other little things
Haven't been back since 2008. Don't miss it too much except after the 3rd month of summer or so. I'd love to be able to go back every summer for 2 months!
jmvdesign
01-10-2012, 07:04 PM
Just moved to Pasadena (LA/South Pasadena border) and got in the Transportation Design program at Art Center. Also met a previous Richmond native in the same program. Talk about small world.
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TheKingdom2000
01-10-2012, 07:17 PM
Moved to London for 6 years, came back 2-3x/yr.
Moving to NY or San Jose pending job.
Don't miss it at all. Coming back for skiing in winter and hiking/kayaking in summer is more than enough.
You don't miss it at all?
Is your family still in Vancouver?
SkinnyPupp
01-10-2012, 07:22 PM
He said he goes back 2-3 times a year, that's plenty enough not to miss the place, and presumably he sees family, and they probably visit him occasionally too.
Cartier Wearer.
01-10-2012, 07:31 PM
The people who left Vancouver and say they don't miss it are not being truthful.
Vancouver recognized as the most desirable city to live in in the WORLD!!
When Summer hits its like paradise. The only shitty thing is 1) Lots of Rain 2) Increasing Crime Rate 3) No Jobs Opportunities 4) Cost of living as most people are not able to afford a house in Vancouver save for renters, house sharers, basement renters etc..
I will never leave Vancouver because its home. I can travel to anywhere I want to vacation but get homesick after 2 weeks or longer. If you actually live in the downtown core and can club, attend live events, enjoy stanley park then you'll never want to leave. If I had to move to Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey I would move because I am not a suburbs kinda guy.
scottsman
01-10-2012, 08:22 PM
Moved to Maryland, USA for about 2 years, back to Vancouver for few months while waiting for my job in Vietnam and now been here for about 4. Since being in Vietnam I have been back for a total of about 4 weeks and honestly do not miss that much about Vancouver.
I travel enough in Asia that anything I miss about Vancouver I can get here.
My parents, grandparents, cousins, brothers, friends, etc... have visited me a lot in Vietnam so I usually see someone at least every 4-6 months.
Moved for a change, new things, and Job.
The people who left Vancouver and say they don't miss it are not being truthful.
YOU CAN READ THEIR MINDS?
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4119/4876696414_d3f62d18be.jpg
EndLeSS8
01-10-2012, 09:08 PM
Moved back to Vancouver in 2009 for family reasons
Was living in Sunnyvale, California for 4 years
It was the right decision to move back to Vancouver, but I literally miss California every day.
Visited back Vancouver 3-4 times every year for holidays and work visa. To be honest, didn't miss it much when I was gone.
drunkrussian
01-10-2012, 09:13 PM
The people who left Vancouver and say they don't miss it are not being truthful.
Vancouver recognized as the most desirable city to live in in the WORLD!!
When Summer hits its like paradise. The only shitty thing is 1) Lots of Rain 2) Increasing Crime Rate 3) No Jobs Opportunities 4) Cost of living as most people are not able to afford a house in Vancouver save for renters, house sharers, basement renters etc..
I will never leave Vancouver because its home. I can travel to anywhere I want to vacation but get homesick after 2 weeks or longer. If you actually live in the downtown core and can club, attend live events, enjoy stanley park then you'll never want to leave. If I had to move to Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey I would move because I am not a suburbs kinda guy.
i dont mean any offense at all, but i think if u tried living somewhere else for a bit your opinion will change, jusy like everyone in this thread. its cliche as fuck to say vancouver is boring and even more so to say its so very liveable and amazing. fact is its nothing special at all, and thats the honest reality.
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artmotion
01-10-2012, 09:42 PM
I left to go to HK for about 2.5 years. First little while was kinda lonely to be completely honest but I started making a lot of friends out there and after that, I couldn't imagine leaving. After constant nagging from my mom and a job that wasn't rewarding enough, I came back to study and to be closer to my family and not one day goes by when I don't think about being back there. I'll probably try to visit once a year and possibly move back when I finish my degree.
@SkinnyPupp: The summers there are the worst!!! Wayyy too hot!!!
too_slow
01-10-2012, 10:06 PM
The people who left Vancouver and say they don't miss it are not being truthful.
Vancouver recognized as the most desirable city to live in in the WORLD!!
When Summer hits its like paradise. The only shitty thing is 1) Lots of Rain 2) Increasing Crime Rate 3) No Jobs Opportunities 4) Cost of living as most people are not able to afford a house in Vancouver save for renters, house sharers, basement renters etc..
I will never leave Vancouver because its home. I can travel to anywhere I want to vacation but get homesick after 2 weeks or longer. If you actually live in the downtown core and can club, attend live events, enjoy stanley park then you'll never want to leave. If I had to move to Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey I would move because I am not a suburbs kinda guy.
Please go fucking kill yourself
geeknerd
01-11-2012, 03:04 AM
I say this all the time,
"Vancouver is a very good place to live........when you retire."
The things that make me love Vancouver and be special -at least for me- are the natural attractions such as parks, lakes, beaches, mountains etc but the thing is, I can't be there everyday and unless you incorporate a hobby into it such as riding, fishing, hiking,(in which can be done in other countries just as easy) its does get boring. Like how goign to a rocky mt. tour can get boring if you go twice. It does get boring especially the sub-urb where the entertainment places are really lacking.
Vancouver also has a shitty night life if at all imo.
love and miss the weed and the nice people though.
Razor Ramon HG
01-11-2012, 03:06 AM
The night life is one of the biggest reasons I plan on moving to Asia when I'm done with school. It's just fucking pitiful.
geeknerd
01-11-2012, 03:18 AM
The night life is one of the biggest reasons I plan on moving to Asia when I'm done with school. It's just fucking pitiful.
This is also one of the reasons i moved to asia.
Imo, in vancouver, majority of the time you have to "miss" something and then "plan" to do that with other people who are 'down'. one "main event" in a day.
I also blame a lot of it on the crappy transportation system. it just restricts a lot of people on time and area.
StylinRed
01-11-2012, 03:50 AM
lived all over before my twenties the only thing i miss about other places is a night life
i cant stand how after 5 everything is closed & after 9 its a graveyard except for 7-11s and the save-ons/safeways/bars
other than that i prefer vancouver over elsewhere
but there are always those who "want something else" thats just the nature of many people they just cant be satisfied until they're in their 50s and they want to settle
its like a slut who does every guy around and then when shes in her mid/late20s she thinks the world is over and she tries to hide the fact that shes a slut so she can find a guy to settle with ;)
or the guy with the perfect girl but he wants to get with her friend ;)
Great68
01-11-2012, 09:40 AM
The people who left Vancouver and say they don't miss it are not being truthful.
Vancouver recognized as the most desirable city to live in in the WORLD!!
This is a pretty subjective topic. I sure as hell would never move back to Vancouver if I can help it. The only things I really miss are the local mountains and Mission Raceway.
dachinesedude
01-11-2012, 10:03 AM
The people who left Vancouver and say they don't miss it are not being truthful.
Vancouver recognized as the most desirable city to live in in the WORLD!!
When Summer hits its like paradise. The only shitty thing is 1) Lots of Rain 2) Increasing Crime Rate 3) No Jobs Opportunities 4) Cost of living as most people are not able to afford a house in Vancouver save for renters, house sharers, basement renters etc..
ONLY shitty thing? is that not enough?
seriously though, if its not for the good job i have right now, i'd be outta this shit hole asap, i envy the people whos living and working abroad
Hondaracer
01-11-2012, 12:30 PM
The night life is one of the biggest reasons I plan on moving to Asia when I'm done with school. It's just fucking pitiful.
It's a good thing you're 22 forever :/
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Jermyzy
01-11-2012, 01:18 PM
If I wasn't settled down already, I'd move to Sydney, Australia in a heartbeat
too_slow
01-11-2012, 01:33 PM
If I wasn't settled down already, I'd move to Sydney, Australia in a heartbeat
Any particular reason why you would pick Aus? You aren't afraid of man-eating kangeroos?
**I'm moving to Sydney for school+work in November :troll:
Ulic Qel-Droma
01-11-2012, 01:34 PM
i'd move to asia in a heartbeat. just waiting now...
i'd come back every year for like 2-4 months in the summer, that's about it.
Liquid_o2
01-11-2012, 01:48 PM
I've lived in Toronto now for 4 months and love it. More metropolitan of a city, always something to do, night or day. Like another poster said, Vancouver is dead as soon as it gets dark out.
Sure I miss my fam, the mild weather and the abundance of seafood, but as a city itself, I really enjoy living in Toronto.
Hondaracer
01-11-2012, 02:49 PM
If I was to move away from the lower mainland it would be into the interior, not to another city/country
The clown quotient gets smaller the further away you go it seems until you hit kelowna at least :p
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I've been living in Japan for 6-8 months for the last 2 years and coming back to Vancouver for the summer months. This year though I'm probably going to spend a year down in Australia. Can't wait to be able to surf just in a pair of shorts and have summer weather all year long.
I love living in Vancouver but so far I'm loving Japan waay more. Pretty stoked for Australia too.
SuperSlowSS
01-21-2012, 08:15 PM
cayman islands here. fuck tax lol
LiquidTurbo
01-21-2012, 09:56 PM
How do you expats make friends in new cities, etc? It seems like you pretty much have to start from square 1.
vancitylove
01-21-2012, 10:57 PM
Wondering how you guys find jobs in other countries. I'd like to live somewhere else for a while but can't figure out how to get started.
wouwou
01-22-2012, 01:32 AM
The people who left Vancouver and say they don't miss it are not being truthful.
Vancouver recognized as the most desirable city to live in in the WORLD!!
When Summer hits its like paradise. The only shitty thing is 1) Lots of Rain 2) Increasing Crime Rate 3) No Jobs Opportunities 4) Cost of living as most people are not able to afford a house in Vancouver save for renters, house sharers, basement renters etc..
I will never leave Vancouver because its home. I can travel to anywhere I want to vacation but get homesick after 2 weeks or longer. If you actually live in the downtown core and can club, attend live events, enjoy stanley park then you'll never want to leave. If I had to move to Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey I would move because I am not a suburbs kinda guy.
If you are in your 20s, there is a lot that you are missing out by "staying" in. Just saying.
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too_slow
01-22-2012, 09:54 AM
^Cartierwearer's a troll that got kicked out of SFU and lives in his parent's basement wearing a Cartier watch bought from some street vendor on Ap Liu St.
achiam
01-22-2012, 10:07 AM
Pros of Vancouver:
-Clean air, laid-back pace, lots of oriental food at very cheap prices.
Cons of Vancouver:
-Aforementioned laid-back pace = very, very little higher career options compared to bigger cities.
-Laid-back pace = (usually) also makes you slower/less driven on self-improvement etc. When you're in a huge city, just by looking at the people around you on the street/subway, everyone is stressed and you can tell they have 10+ things on their to-do list. In Van everyone moves at a snail's pace.
-Housing costs -- because Van is so gorgeous, the richest people in the world who've made their money in said "faster cities" come here and buy it up. To them, Vancouver is still hella cheap as the property on the other is still far more expensive. Thus, unless you have a great paying job, your own business, or you stand to get hella help from family, you're truly screwed regarding buying a detached house.
-Taxes. In Vancouver I'd be paying 40% effective tax. In the US I'll be paying about 25%.
RE: expats in other cities.
-I went to UBC, and after graduation, about 3/4ths of my graduating friends left Van immediately. Some to Asia, London, States, etc. So when you're going to that city, you tell your friends and somehow someone always knows some Van person who headed there as well. Since we're foreigners in another city, there's always that loose network in case something happens.
EDIT: In support of below statement -- Van people are NOT friendly -- not just the women. This coming from a Vancouverite.
taylor192
01-22-2012, 10:21 AM
How do you expats make friends in new cities, etc? It seems like you pretty much have to start from square 1.
Its probably easier in other cities than here. As someone new to this city, I find people very cliquey - while most cities in Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes are far friendlier.
Join a sports team, I find that the easiest way to make friends.
falcon
01-22-2012, 11:11 AM
I live in Germany right now. I love it here, but Vancouver will always be home. Can't imaging living anywhere else permantley. However, I am very happy I did this trip because it's opened my eyes bigtime to the rest of the world and EU in specific. The whole mentality of life in general here is way more laid back and much more progressive than North America.
Minata
01-22-2012, 11:35 AM
By personality, I'm an expat.
I've done exchange in South Korea, lived in Ottawa for a year. And I'm heading to Australia (Sydney) with a one way ticket in a couple months.
I was born and raised in Vancouver but I've always yearned to live in other cities since I was really young. After living out east for a year, I realized I missed a lot of things about Vancouver. However, despite my greater appreciation for its beauty and the fact that all my family and friends are here, I know that I won't feel content living in Vancouver, at least at this point of my life.
I've been in Holland for the last 3 years.
I visit Vancouver twice a year, and I'm counting the seconds until my 4 year contract here runs out and I can go home.
From Holland, it's really easy to travel anywhere in Europe. I never imagined I could I have dinner in Paris and be home before 12. But considering everything, Vancouver is a great place to live, especially when you consider the kind of life your kids will have. Asia is fun as hell and when you're there, you can live above your class at home. But I don't want my kids going to school for 16 hours a day, only to graduate from a good university and work for 18 hours a day!
RS ex-pat meet? Paris. Miss friends and family but I know I can come back to Vancouver anytime.
46_valentinor
01-22-2012, 03:43 PM
im planning on moving to seoul in 2 years after getting my commerical pilots license and such. take a long break away from vancouver, teach english, travel etc etc.
no matter where you guys are around the world, you still got revscene! =D
^Cartierwearer's a troll that got kicked out of SFU and lives in his parent's basement wearing a Cartier watch bought from some street vendor on Ap Liu St.
You seem to hate on everyone that is richer than you. Can't join them, so hate them?
Did you started reading any books after I told u? Or are you gonna work the same shit job everyday and do the same shit hobbies everyday, while complaining and assuming a ton of shit about other people all day? At least I don't judge people based on wealth or hate poor people. I just hate dumb people.
By the way I just bought a cartier watch as well, I hope that will make you even more pissed off.
J____
01-23-2012, 06:22 AM
i left because there are way better money and opportunity for growth elsewhere for what I do. Vancouver is great if you are wealthy and looking for a comfortable place to settle down, but if you are young and looking to reach great heights rather than a comfortable salary and mediocre title in your desired career, Vancouver is not really the place to be. Of course there are exceptions but I'm speaking from my personal and the experiences of the people around me.
I sometimes miss the beauty and convenience of Vancouver.
I moved/worked in Taipei after SFU in 2005, moved to Shanghai for work in 08 right before Beijing Olympics, moved back to Vancouver in Sept of 11 :)
Vancouver is definite not where you make big bucks, it's where you spend money and enjoy life.
SkinnyPupp
01-23-2012, 06:34 AM
You seem to hate on everyone that is richer than you. Can't join them, so hate them?
Did you started reading any books after I told u? Or are you gonna work the same shit job everyday and do the same shit hobbies everyday, while complaining and assuming a ton of shit about other people all day? At least I don't judge people based on wealth or hate poor people. I just hate dumb people.
By the way I just bought a cartier watch as well, I hope that will make you even more pissed off.
Every post you make is an attempt to turn a thread into shit. Fuck off and don't come back.
Gridlock
01-23-2012, 07:32 AM
i left because there are way better money and opportunity for growth elsewhere for what I do. Vancouver is great if you are wealthy and looking for a comfortable place to settle down, but if you are young and looking to reach great heights rather than a comfortable salary and mediocre title in your desired career, Vancouver is not really the place to be. Of course there are exceptions but I'm speaking from my personal and the experiences of the people around me.
I sometimes miss the beauty and convenience of Vancouver.
^^This. I took Operations Management at BCIT and found that there were a pile of shit jobs. Yay! I can take 10 years to become middle management of a crap company that I can outsource the whole f'ing thing to Thai-Chi-Singa-wan for 10 cents on the dollar.
Whats better is the people that I went to school with would get all excited when they could network with the said middle manager of the said crap company and get all weak in the knees. Like, you are kissing the wrong ass.
too_slow
01-23-2012, 04:22 PM
You seem to hate on everyone that is richer than you. Can't join them, so hate them?
Did you started reading any books after I told u? Or are you gonna work the same shit job everyday and do the same shit hobbies everyday, while complaining and assuming a ton of shit about other people all day? At least I don't judge people based on wealth or hate poor people. I just hate dumb people.
By the way I just bought a cartier watch as well, I hope that will make you even more pissed off.
It is too bad that you'll never see my response, but I will still post one.
I truly feel sorry for you that you need to use your parent's wealth to acquire material possessions to help offset your vulnerability and your insecurity. I guess you needed that BMW M3 more than anyone else when you graduated from highschool. How else are you going to be able to 'attract' friends in your pathetic circle of life?
"Cartier_Wear" used to be called "SFUDropout" and he was the biggest resident troll. I personally think he stoops below "Hyde" but I will leave that for another discussion.
To answer your question from a few months ago, my car is paid for by my work. I could have "leased" a 323/328i like every other poseur in Vancouver, but this car provides everything that I need, and still provides a net +ve difference to my earnings. I can be pathetic and sad like you and live in your parent's "midtown flat", but I prefer to live on my own and to pursue other endeavors such as having a life and spending time with 'real' friends. :) :nyan::nyan:
too_slow
01-23-2012, 04:26 PM
BTW, I noticed quite a few people are moving to Sydney!
I will be visiting there in April/May, and then I will move there permanently in November.
Are you guys there for grad-school/work? Have you guys decided on where about to live? I heard finding a place to rent can be a b*tch. A lot of the condo leases are handled by a realtor, and they only do showings like once a week. I heard that the housing situation is so dire that people would line up 2 hours before the showing time, and the unit would be gone on the same day.
Culture_Vulture
01-23-2012, 05:16 PM
My family immigrated to Vancouver more than a decade ago, and honestly I could never imagine living anywhere else. Maybe I'm just conservative, but after the first initial few years, I started preferring Canada over Asia more and more.
GFunk
01-29-2012, 06:40 AM
BTW, I noticed quite a few people are moving to Sydney!
I will be visiting there in April/May, and then I will move there permanently in November.
Are you guys there for grad-school/work? Have you guys decided on where about to live? I heard finding a place to rent can be a b*tch. A lot of the condo leases are handled by a realtor, and they only do showings like once a week. I heard that the housing situation is so dire that people would line up 2 hours before the showing time, and the unit would be gone on the same day.
I'm out here in Melbourne on a working holiday. I could have sworn I posted in this thread a while back, did posts get deleted?
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