Canada so far…
So, I recently crossed the Atlantic into Canada — on an airplane oh , not on a boat :-) and even though I’ve been to neighbouring US a few times, this was my first time ever stepping foot in the land of the maple leaf. Here’s what I think of the country…of course my impressions are still evolving and may change or be reinforced over time. But from what I have seen so far:
Almost everyone is an immigrant.
There’s a sense of comfort you get from knowing most of the people you meet are just like you and have gone through whatever you’re going through at some point. So is it accomodation you’re trying to find? Almost everyone around you has gone through the process too. Don’t be shy to talk about your issues, you’ll be surprised at how helpful people can be.
Canadians are very friendly
I’ve only been to two cities, Toronto and Vancouver. So maybe this is a really small statistical sample but oh my goodness, the warmth and friendliness is truly delightful!
The cold is real…but can be avoided.
Many parts of Canada are frozen solid now :-). Some cities have been dealing with snow for several weeks now but in British Columbia? Not a whiff! It’s rainy quite alright but where the likes of Toronto are minus 3 degrees celsius (Regina minus 21!!!), Vancouver is a warm 9 degrees. That said, you don’t feel the cold unless you’re out in the cold…no pun intended :-). You can comfortably go from your warm house to your warm car to your warm office. Of course if you’re an outdoors person, you won’t be very happy living that kind of triangular life but hey, dress warm and go on your merry way!
Telecommunications is expensive
Mehn, it is damn expensive!!!! I mistakenly called a Nigerian number with my Canadian number and quickly ended the call in less than 3 mins. I paid close to $40 for that mistake. I didn’t find it funny at all. Since then ehn, it is whatsapp call by default. If you’re not on WhatsApp, sorry we can’t be friends. Its not like the UK where you can easily get prepaid sims like Lebara, Lyca to call both national and international calls, here everything is contract, contract..$$$$
Many Nigerians are UK returnees
Many Nigerians I’ve come across here either moved here from the UK or moved back to Nigeria from the UK before coming here. There are a lot of UK educated Nigerians here, so so many!
Professional jobs dey
Professional jobs are easier to get than they tell you at home. Many Nigerians are working in top companies here. If you come in through the Federal Skilled Worker scheme, chances are you have quality experience that will get you a job here. Do your research well though and have no misconceptions about the labour market. The nuances are the same as anywhere else in the world. It may take a while but immigrants get good jobs when in Canada.
Accomodation
Getting an apartment is not about having your money to pay o. It is very much a landlord’s market and landlords can refuse to rent to you. It helps if you have a job and can get your office to give you a reference. Landlords may also run (with your permission) a credit check on you to be sure you’re in good financial standing. This can be a challenge for immigrants coming from non-credit based countries like Nigeria because there will be no credit history to check. Basically, landlords want to be sure you are capable of paying the rent and may employ a variety of methods to ascertain this.
What else? That’s all I can think of for now. Maybe I’ll do a part 2 later on…
