http://www.singsupplies.com/showpost.php?p=309189&postcount=47
I found this inspiring and its from exsingaporean who has been helpful with his guidance and comments. Lifted it from Emigration Folder.
That's life in a "real world" ...crime rate, homeless people roaming the street...especially cities like VanCounver, Toronto and even Edmonton! Yea, believe me. It's that BAD!
But then let's look at Singapore...clean, very low crime rate, safe no homeless, most people are happy etc...well yes you are correct..or your "perception" is correct if you read all these in the Straits Times. Do you know that if you lose your bicyle, the police in Singapore would not record it as a crime but in B.C. Canada it counts towards the crime statistic?
The newspaper in Canada does NOT hide anything that is view as "social shame" in Singapore and would make the Prime Minister look bad.
You get my point.
Let's be practical if you are immigrating to Canada at end of the year...perhaps you want your children to finish the brainwashing school year in Singapore then do NOT come to Edmonton bec. it can be extreme cold in Dec. (minus 35 C with the windchill factor at night)...as the Cantonese saying goes "your balls shrink". Yea, your penis can shrink to just like a size of a tiny earth worm! I am not kidding.
Go straight to B.C.
If you are looking for a good-oaying job then forget it. Stay put in Singapore. If you are hoping someone to hold your hands and guide you like the PAP, then you will be disappointed.
I only can offer to pick Singaporeans up from the airport (not in winter please bec I risk my life to drive in the highway in the think snow) and put them up in the motel; drive them around the city for orientation, help them to register for the Alberta Health Care, open bank account, link them up to some other exSinaporeans. That's the best I can do.
When my wife 3 year-old daughter and I arrived from Singapore in May 1991, we took the airport bus from the airport to a downtown hotel. Stayed there for 4 days, find an apartment and started life from then on...not much help from any Singaporeans or anyone. We bought only about Sin $40,000, whihc was used up within 1/2 year...yea broke after that for years on..living on credit cards...contantly fearing to answer phone calls on Sat morning bec. that was when the credit card credit dept will call me for minimum payments.
"A person's character is like a tea bag. You do not know how strong it is until it is put in hot water."
For starters like you prepare to have a drastic drop in your pay compare to what you get in Singapore. For e.g if you are an manager earning Sin$7,000 per month (plus 12 months bonus) then expect to earn just Sin$2,000 (definately no bonus) as a clerk or storemanat least for the first 2 years. If you can prove that you are better than the local Canadians...in terms of spoken English language, people skills, extreme hardwork etc then you MIGHT get to be promoted to a supervisor then a manager.
By the way many "white" local Canadians like the Americians are damn hardworking and tough. I have seen TV. cable man working non-stop for 3 hours installing my new cables outside the cold with stong wind and minus 20 degrees C in the winter. He even declined my coffee offer...just continue working. This happens to other workers who come to repair things in my home. So don't bet on that you being a Singaporean are much more hardworking than the Ang Mo. The British and Australians are much layback.
My wife earns about Sin$100,000 but it takes her 12 years to reach this salary level. She began with a low pay of just Sin $24,000 per year in a Chinese car repair workshop as a service advisor. Now she is a senior workshop service advisor in a big car dealership.
If you tend to worry on things like high crime rates, drugs, robbers, low paying jobs then I tell you the truth, you WILL find them soon. VEry soon...perhaps on the first day you arrive! Yes I am that bad to tell you because I am not here to encourage neither discourage you. I am telling you the truth.
Whatever your mind look out for you will find bec. you will then to attract such circumstances and happenings.
Don't believe me then let's do an experiement.
Close your eyes.
Think of a while elephant. A white elephant.
Now STOP thinking about this white elephant!
STOP thinking about this white elephant!
I say STOP thinking abou this white elephant!
Now think of a golden lion.
You see the golden lion charging towards you!
It is about to jump on you!!!!!!!!!!
What happens to your white elephant?
You get my point.
Each city has its appeal. VanCouver in recent few years have been rated by some international survey to be the BEST city to live in the world. Heck isn't it good enough for you? Edmonton is not even mentioned in the survey!
However you still need to weight the earthquake treat in VanCouver and Richmond area. It can happen anytime.
I would suggest that you come in April or May...forget about the damn Singapore education...just come in May so that it is not that cold. Look around VanCouver, Calgary, Edmonton and if I were you look also into Toronto. The latter has no earthquake, about 7 to 10 degrees C warmer and less snow than cities in Alberta. Houses there are cheaper than Edmonton. But Toronto has less job opportunies.
In fact in about 3 years, we will be migrating to Toronto...we do not need to work so job opportuniy is not a concern for us.
The good thing about Toronto is that it gives my Canadian-born 13 year-old son wider exposure...huge central library, big museums, the Stock Market, nearer to New York etc. Next May, he will be with his school music team visiting Ontario and Montreal city; I will let him decide whether he likes that area before we uproot.
"No one can make a right decision;
we can only make the decisions and make them RIGHT".
I found this inspiring and its from exsingaporean who has been helpful with his guidance and comments. Lifted it from Emigration Folder.
That's life in a "real world" ...crime rate, homeless people roaming the street...especially cities like VanCounver, Toronto and even Edmonton! Yea, believe me. It's that BAD!
But then let's look at Singapore...clean, very low crime rate, safe no homeless, most people are happy etc...well yes you are correct..or your "perception" is correct if you read all these in the Straits Times. Do you know that if you lose your bicyle, the police in Singapore would not record it as a crime but in B.C. Canada it counts towards the crime statistic?
The newspaper in Canada does NOT hide anything that is view as "social shame" in Singapore and would make the Prime Minister look bad.
You get my point.
Let's be practical if you are immigrating to Canada at end of the year...perhaps you want your children to finish the brainwashing school year in Singapore then do NOT come to Edmonton bec. it can be extreme cold in Dec. (minus 35 C with the windchill factor at night)...as the Cantonese saying goes "your balls shrink". Yea, your penis can shrink to just like a size of a tiny earth worm! I am not kidding.
Go straight to B.C.
If you are looking for a good-oaying job then forget it. Stay put in Singapore. If you are hoping someone to hold your hands and guide you like the PAP, then you will be disappointed.
I only can offer to pick Singaporeans up from the airport (not in winter please bec I risk my life to drive in the highway in the think snow) and put them up in the motel; drive them around the city for orientation, help them to register for the Alberta Health Care, open bank account, link them up to some other exSinaporeans. That's the best I can do.
When my wife 3 year-old daughter and I arrived from Singapore in May 1991, we took the airport bus from the airport to a downtown hotel. Stayed there for 4 days, find an apartment and started life from then on...not much help from any Singaporeans or anyone. We bought only about Sin $40,000, whihc was used up within 1/2 year...yea broke after that for years on..living on credit cards...contantly fearing to answer phone calls on Sat morning bec. that was when the credit card credit dept will call me for minimum payments.
"A person's character is like a tea bag. You do not know how strong it is until it is put in hot water."
For starters like you prepare to have a drastic drop in your pay compare to what you get in Singapore. For e.g if you are an manager earning Sin$7,000 per month (plus 12 months bonus) then expect to earn just Sin$2,000 (definately no bonus) as a clerk or storemanat least for the first 2 years. If you can prove that you are better than the local Canadians...in terms of spoken English language, people skills, extreme hardwork etc then you MIGHT get to be promoted to a supervisor then a manager.
By the way many "white" local Canadians like the Americians are damn hardworking and tough. I have seen TV. cable man working non-stop for 3 hours installing my new cables outside the cold with stong wind and minus 20 degrees C in the winter. He even declined my coffee offer...just continue working. This happens to other workers who come to repair things in my home. So don't bet on that you being a Singaporean are much more hardworking than the Ang Mo. The British and Australians are much layback.
My wife earns about Sin$100,000 but it takes her 12 years to reach this salary level. She began with a low pay of just Sin $24,000 per year in a Chinese car repair workshop as a service advisor. Now she is a senior workshop service advisor in a big car dealership.
If you tend to worry on things like high crime rates, drugs, robbers, low paying jobs then I tell you the truth, you WILL find them soon. VEry soon...perhaps on the first day you arrive! Yes I am that bad to tell you because I am not here to encourage neither discourage you. I am telling you the truth.
Whatever your mind look out for you will find bec. you will then to attract such circumstances and happenings.
Don't believe me then let's do an experiement.
Close your eyes.
Think of a while elephant. A white elephant.
Now STOP thinking about this white elephant!
STOP thinking about this white elephant!
I say STOP thinking abou this white elephant!
Now think of a golden lion.
You see the golden lion charging towards you!
It is about to jump on you!!!!!!!!!!
What happens to your white elephant?
You get my point.
Each city has its appeal. VanCouver in recent few years have been rated by some international survey to be the BEST city to live in the world. Heck isn't it good enough for you? Edmonton is not even mentioned in the survey!
However you still need to weight the earthquake treat in VanCouver and Richmond area. It can happen anytime.
I would suggest that you come in April or May...forget about the damn Singapore education...just come in May so that it is not that cold. Look around VanCouver, Calgary, Edmonton and if I were you look also into Toronto. The latter has no earthquake, about 7 to 10 degrees C warmer and less snow than cities in Alberta. Houses there are cheaper than Edmonton. But Toronto has less job opportunies.
In fact in about 3 years, we will be migrating to Toronto...we do not need to work so job opportuniy is not a concern for us.
The good thing about Toronto is that it gives my Canadian-born 13 year-old son wider exposure...huge central library, big museums, the Stock Market, nearer to New York etc. Next May, he will be with his school music team visiting Ontario and Montreal city; I will let him decide whether he likes that area before we uproot.
"No one can make a right decision;
we can only make the decisions and make them RIGHT".
And that was for 4 years, including tuition, books, room, board,...
