One year in British Columbia

Our anniversary came up on 26 April and we reflected on our first year in Canada. A pleasant mixed bag would be the general conclusion, although we still have several concerns, notably work and incomes, and waiting to see if we can get permanent residence.

School has been a big success for both kids, to the point that telling them we have to leave next year would be exceptionally difficult. Kes loves his teacher and school, learns about how animals live, the time, the calendar, the seasons, the weather, and doing presentations, all whilst learning to read and write (not bad at 6 years old). Rudi also likes his teacher and classmates a lot, does lots of games at school, and has broken out of his wimpy shell to become a strapping 12 year old in the full flows of puberty (not sure Canada had anything to do with that), and now heads for high school in the fall (autumn for you lot looking in!) and will do woodwork, metalwork, theatre, lots of sports, and hopefully some maths, English and French…..

2008 October 31 saw our first Halloween –Vancouver is known as the second Hollywood (lots of film studios and film locations) some people here make a real film set of their front garden, including special effects to make it even scarier for the kids.
Big fun for the kids as we, as well, decorated the house outside with severed heads, fog, monster skeletons in cages, fake blood, etc etc. Trick or treat with a bunch of friends produced about 6 months supply of teeth rotting candy, and the fireworks (only time of the year they are allowed here) nearly took out the power lines (which is probably why….). As
Power lines – with plenty of bad weather to report in Canada on the news every day, there is regular info on power lines going down in storms or heavy snow. So we asked why they are not underground as the recent tendency has been in Europe? No real reply other than it is expensive – we figured less expensive than all the repairs every year. North American logic……bit like their cars.

 

Kes Birthday

We had managed to organise one for Rudi within 6 weeks of arriving, and Kes had an abundance of buddies for his in November, an early evening session at Go Bananas, a local play area. Big success, and papa ate most of the Shrek cake!!

The Pineapple Express

Weather is a big topic in Vancouver and BC in general. They do get lots of it. We figured our first summer was quite nice, but the locals felt it was very poor. No pleasing everyone.
It sure does rain a lot, although again, we were prepared for worse and it didn’t seem too bad, although some weeks were pretty damp, others were bright and fresh.
Towards the end of November the frosts came along with some bright days. But it got colder and colder, and then on December 1 we awoke to see snow all over the roads. Fun and games for the kids, but continuous snow made driving hazardous. Throughout BC it was worse as cold temperatures and snow hammered away as Canada wide the winter onslaught gathered pace.
We had been informed about the Pineapple Express, a warm damp weather belt that hurtled in from Hawaii bringing warm winds and plenty of rain. On the evening of December 2, the snow turned to rain as the Express motored in, dumping some 10-15 centimetres in one day. With melting snow and driving rain, rivers ratcheted up to maximum or overflowed. The fall was the equivalent to one month precipitations in one day – bearing in mind a BC month of rain is already very substantial relative to elsewhere. The forecast was to return to cooler temperatures within a day or two, but the experience is already there.
On 29 January we awoke and got out of bed, only to go back again. 20 centimetres of snow had rendered roads impassable. All schools were closed and the normally mild Vancouver area had been hit by severe winter weather and sub zero temperatures. However, we were better off than -29C in Edmonton and other cities across Canada.
There were some great walks out the back in the snow, with no fear of the hibernating bears, and the battle of Limerick Place between two snow-castles met with an unsurprising end.
In Vancouver the mild climate sets it apart from the other snowbound 5000 kilometrs long, especially since the east had record snowfalls, most since 1939. However, Alberta had a mild one for once.

Home for Christmas

Being away for so long, we felt it prudent to go and see the families at Christmas. A very expensive trip was somewhat dulled by just about everyone being sick at some stage, plus a plethora of nasty 6 hour delays. Coupled with the fact that we missed masses of snow in Vancouver and some excellent skiing, meant these activities were to be taken up when we got back. Probably the last trip away for Christmas – logistical problems, especially with presents, fatigue, and lack of activities for the kids, means the next (and hopefully a lot more) will be in BC.

Kes learns to Ski on Grouse Mountain

Grouse is one of the 3 local ski mountains, 15 min drive away from our house, park the car, going up in the cable car and start skiing. It is an incredible experience (at least for me, Tonnetje) to ski on Grouse and seeing Vancouver Downtown, the sea and Vancouver Island from there. Grouse is open till 10 in the evening and sometimes when it has just snowed and the trees have a blanket of snow on them and the lights are on, it looks like something out of a fairytale.
Kes’ first steps on skis were in Les Gets at Christmas 2006. On 13 January we used our season passes to take him up to Grouse Mountain and get him skiing again. After a frustrating hour he began to make his way down the beginner’s slope and be able to use the lift on his own. After a few evenings after school, we persuaded him to go on the long green run “The Cut” – this took over an hour with a very crying Keswick.
However, next time up he was prepared to do it again and made his way down comfortably. The next time he made it very easily so we tried the blue run. Despite early nerves, these soon disappeared, and he really flew down the piste so fast that we could bearly keep up with him!! Bumps and all, Kes was on his way. Afterwards we realised he had not fallen over once that day. By the end of the season Kes could get down all the blue runs, leaving the blacks for next year.
Rudi really got into skiing again, and could ski all the black runs (some pretty daunting) on Grouse Mountain. Tonnetje persuaded me to buy the lift passes again for next winter, although I hope that with the boys progress we can spend more time going to Whistler and the numerous resorts in the BC interior; more expensive, but some serious skiing to be had. For the record, the snow depth was 3.5 metres on Grouse in January, and finished at almost 6 metres deep in April! And that at 1.000 metres altitude and with plenty of rain at times. Take a look at the views!

Skating

The national sport is skating, ice hockey is the national obsession, splattered across TV screens in every pub and restaurant, so when the Vancouver Canucks failed to make the NHL playoffs, it was a regional disaster. Masses of Canadian players play for North American teams, but Montreal carry the flag for those over the 49th parallel.
Both boys had to learn to skate, first on grouse Mountain in the open air, then with some lessons. Both have made good progress, to be continued, and Rudi can move pretty well now over the ice.

Working and Business

Tonnetje picked up a job working for Maxx Images, a stock image company in North Van. Small company, actually very small, actually just Tonnetje and the owner! Nice atmosphere and flexible, but too quiet for someone who is used to working at companies like Esso, IBM, Logica, Phillips, Shell, etc on big projects. This will end in June as she looks for something more suitable. Easy to change jobs in Canada, but also conditions well adrift of Europe, and three weeks holiday is considered very good, and 40 hours per week a minimum. Sadly, salaries are also well behind living costs, especially in Vancouver and North Vancouver, a classic example of where a country is rushing ahead of itself in trying to keep up. It could take several years for the situation to right itself.
Meanwhile, I get more and more frustrated in getting a business off the ground. Real estate booming prices have meant it is very hard to find cheap land for a recreation project as everyone speculates on future zoning. Hence I try to find other possibilities, but planning restrictions and technical hazards make this job even harder. I did make a huge (for me anyway) offer for an existing park in shabby condition, but he wanted 30% more. With another 30% needed in investments I shall have to be patient, hoping for some reality to creep into the market, as bankrupting the family is not an option.
However, since our acceptance into BC depended on me investing in a business here, and one year later there is nothing happening, we have many reasons to be concerned.

Sport in North Vancouver

As in other parts of BC, there is tremendous commitment to sport. The recreation commission has numerous centres and most sports and activities are catered for at a low cost. I play badminton Mondays and pay $5.40 (3.5 euros) for 2 hours playing. Tonnetje plays Mondays and Thursdays. Kes goes swimming and there are numerous levels, skating as mentioned has a huge programme with a rink very close by, plus tennis courts are free (outside), photography, theatre, squash, circus classes, and the list is endless. Kes has started Theater classes now. There is a total commitment and obsession with sport, and a lack of overweight kids, not to mention parents. And this despite a plethora of restaurants and shops selling some incredibly fattening (but often delicious….) foodstuffs and snacks. Snow-sports are a pastime as kids go after school for a ski or snowboard, or a sledge up on Seymour. Snowshoeing is the winter version of hiking, and on Sundays the parkings are packed as people head to the mountains for their winter snow fix. As usual, some things are a bit behind Europe, but enjoyment and getting out there illustrate some of the best features of Canadian lifestyle.

Entertainment

Being a major North American city, Vancouver gets its share of big bands – Rolling Stones, Meat Loaf, Police, REM, Joe Jackson, Lionel Ritchie…… sadly we missed many by arriving when we did, but we still managed to see Amanda Marshall (we used to play her music a lot at the bars in our hotels) on 17 January, and the “Boss” Bruce Springsteen in the ice Hockey arena GM Place on 31 March. More to come, hopefully.
We also head to Mosquito Creek bar and grill in North Vancouver, which has Karaoke nights on Thursday (crowd a bit young,) and now Tuesdays, and live bands on weekends. These are very good and on Saturday the band is older and the clientele, say 35-65, but they all dance like mad until 2AM to sounds of Beatles, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Bryan Adams, Bruce, and many others. Great atmosphere, no hassles, 40cls beer at $6 (inc tax and tip), cocktails for $7-9, good food if required, no entry cost. How good does this sound?

Spring Break

Like everyone else, although BC is great, winter takes its toll, and the temptation with two weeks vacation to get away is very high. No Spain, France, Italy, Greece or Turkey, over in BC it is California, Florida, Arizona, Mexico, Costa Rica and Hawaii. We went for LA and some parks for the kids, Universal Studios and LegoLand. Blue skies, warm (18-22C but 26C the week before and after!), and ideal for visiting the area. We flew out of Seattle as flights were around $200 per person cheaper, but this did involve a two and half hour drive, and worse still, getting past the US customs who are often rude and unhelpful. Since 9/11 their security is more than an airport, with fingerprint controls, photo shots, etc even with 2 children. It took us 2 hours to get thru, some people even longer and missing flights as a result.
But worth the hassle, California is great and so varied, we shall no doubt return when we can.

Universal Studios Hollywood

Visitors – Sally

Sally (Tony’s sister), our third visitor from Europe. The first ones, Mick and Pat came in July when we just moved into our new house, which was still a complete mess, but nevertheless they had a nice time, so we think. My mother (Tonnetjes) came in September for a couple of weeks and Sally was here a couple of weeks ago for 5 days. Very short trip, but nice to have her over. We tried to fit in as much as possible, but there is a limit what you can do and see in 5 days. Kids liked it a lot and i think Sally enjoyed it as well. One of our trips was to the Sunshine Coast, where I had taken my mother as well. Nice 40 min Ferry trip and the Sun Shine coast is a very nice, tranquile place. Sally is coming back in August, she booked a 2 week tour with her girlfriends, unfortunately she is not staying in Vancouver. We probably meet up somewhere with her. First 2 weeks in July friends from France are visiting us, John and Odette with their children Sam and Dianne, we probably go with them to Vancouver Island and might take the Ferry through the inside passage up north.  

Ferry to the Sun Shine Coast

Cost of Living

I could go on for ever making contrasts, but overall I would say that life is very similar to Europe. Supermarkets are slightly cheaper, alcohol is dearer because of taxes, cars are cheaper, gasoline is much cheaper, but cars are less efficient so no real cost savings. Insurance is more expensive, but not that much. Eating out is cheaper, and pub drinks are surprisingly about the same, some being cheaper especially cocktails, but not wine. Electricity, gas etc seems about the same, whilst property taxes even out in a similar amount. I think there are as many contrasts living in different countries in Europe. We like eating out, so there are advantages here.

Social Life

Gradually we are starting to build up a social life and meeting more and more people. Being away from your family and friends is difficult and we have been moving around quite a bit in the last years. Every time it is hard to start all over again in a new place. Most canadians are friendly, easy going people and have a positive approach to life, which helps, when you start from scratch again. Most people we meet at the moment are from playing badminton and we are making it a regular habit now to go for a drink in the pub after playing. We get along fine with our neighbours and a couple of parents we got to know via Kes and Rudi’s friends. I met up with some Dutch families, last month, who live in the area and we got along very well, we will try and get together now once a month. In fact tonight we meet up in the pub with a couple of them.

Conclusion

As with a typical school report, does well, can do better, and hopefully business and work will pick up for the second year. Current projects include finishing off the house we bought, looking at buying a boat (which sort), Tonnetje going on a motorcycle course leading to us getting a bike, catching the ferry up the inside passage in Northern BC, touring Vancouver Island (only 500 kilometers long…..), and checking out the Rockies again. We also bought a better photo camera as we want to be ready when the bears come back, some “Warning Bear Sighting in this Area” signs have been spotted already. But beside the bears there are so many other nice photos to take here. Yesterday we bought a trampoline, lots of kids have one in their backyard here. Still, plenty to see and do……………………to be continued……..!