Hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving holiday! I also hope you were all smart and avoided Walmart or Walmart or Walmart on Black Friday (seriously, America, what is it about Walmart that brings out such capitalistic rage?!)
I was very sad to see so many status updates of everyone going home to family and friends for the holiday, while it was business as usual up here in Canader. I am so very grateful for my family, friends, and the opportunities I've had in the last year, and I figured while I am sitting around reflecting on life, this would be a good time to write a reflective post about my first year in Canada (also, it's snowing, which means winter is officially here, and we have come full circle through the very distinctive Canadian seasons).
So, last month marked my one-year anniversary of moving to Canada (October 7). Obviously it's difficult to condense a year's worth of emotions, experiences, relationships, etc., of a new place into one post, but I will try to cover some big things. It's really strange to think about where I was and how much I've learned in the past year...
I have to admit I knew very little about our northern "neighbour" before settling here. I thought "eh" and"aboot" were old South Park stereotypes and that crossing into Canada automatically means crossing into some snowy Twilight Zone* However, a year later I find myself "eh-ing" and "cheers-ing" and trying to keep my "outs" from slipping into "oots." (Also, according to a few different people, I now say "Sow-uth"? I'm not going to admit to it, but my guess would be that it's a combination of a Southern/Canadian accent going on? Oh dear.)
*I promise I didn't think all Canadians lived in igloos!
Anyway, aside from "Why do you not have a Southern accent?" - the first question people usually ask me is why I moved to Toronto from South Carolina. I get it - it's kind of a bizarre thing and I don't really have a solid answer. At the same time, it wasn't a completely random decision. I didn't have a life plan after college except to A) get out of South Carolina and B) travel while I am still young and springy, and find a big city with public transit where I could "live out my youth." I also spent a good bit of my last semester of school trying to figure out how to avoid settling down and see the world with all of the money I hadn't saved in college. I had been researching some opportunities to work in Canada, but at the time I wasn't finding any solid leads. For a while I was even considering teaching English in Hungary (one of those "well it seemed like a good idea at the time" things, I admit...).
However, it is quite strange the way things work themselves out sometimes. I invested a lot of energy into figuring out "what to do with my life" but only hit dead ends. It seemed like my post-grad life would consist of moving back in with my parents to continue an endless search for the "perfect" life plan (whatever that is).
Anyway, one day after a ballet class in my last semester, I saw a poster for Jacob's Pillow internships outside the room. This caught my interest as there was actually a graphic design internship listed and it was an artsy organization. Granted I really knew nothing about dance at the time and was taking ballet just for kicks, but it turns out that glancing at a poster in the dance building - one I would never normally set foot in - would set things in motion for the next chapter of my life.
After some mental debate, I decided to pull an application together just before the deadline. The interviews went well and I was offered an internship. Finally, I had something to do for the next few months! I could let go, look forward to working in a new place for the summer, and that was enough.
I worked with a group of amazing people, including a girl who was moving to Toronto at the end of the summer. I had some plans in motion to move to NYC, but as another recent grad she had discovered a small window to come and work in Canada on a "working holiday." Well, I figured I had the rest of my life to live and work in the States, but only a few months to try working in Canada. I had been interested in coming anyway - why not just move to Toronto? Two other interns also had plans to move to other parts Canada in September - so we would have some friends to visit as well.
Now, no, I had never been to Toronto before, but she mentioned that Toronto has an big entertainment industry with many theaters, and this sparked my interest as I had a developed a love for arts marketing working at the Pillow. There was another intern from the Toronto area to answer some of our questions and sold me on the city as well. So I decided to go for it. Also, what is there to lose? I move there, hate it, and go home? At least I tried.
After I finished my contract at the Pillow, I submitted the paperwork to get the visa and sold my dear Rav4 Julie to finance the move. I managed to find some roommates on Facebook that were willing to take in a girl they had never met from a different country, and a few weeks later I condensed my life down to what would fit in a Honda Civic and headed north.
People who hear my story always say "you are so brave to move to a place you've never visited, only knowing one other person." Maybe, but I wouldn't say it was "brave." Really, this was just one of those things I didn't really think about, but again, just seemed like a good idea at the time (also see: "Teaching English in Hungary"). So yes, it was very brave of me to arrive in Canada and fall apart as soon as reality hit me. When I arrived, suddenly I was overwhelmed by homesickness and the uncertainty of my situation - moving to a snowy, diverse city from a small town in the Southern US, with no job and little experience using public transit. My first few weeks were a blur of applying for jobs and trying to learn my way around, while longing for the place I was so desperate to leave.
Admittedly, my first few weeks in Toronto I was not impressed. I heard it was a clean, beautiful city, but I didn't find the waterfront condos and skyscrapers to be particularly charming. In usual Ellen fashion, I really began to question my decision, wondering if I would ever "take to the city." Why did I move here again? Why didn't I visit first and get a feel for the place? Would I ever be able to eat something other than peanut butter banana sandwiches? What if I never find my place here and I have to crawl back to South Carolina, money wasted, and, worst of all, having to tell myself "clearly you couldn't handle that much adventure."
Despite my fears, as the days passed, I found Torontonians/Canadians to be very friendly and caring, and the city didn't let me fall.
My first 24 hours in Toronto, my friends and I went to a contra dance. After the dance, some folks invited us out for drinks. At the same dance a woman introduced herself and offered to show me around Toronto. A week later she took me on a driving tour of the city and made dinner for me, and we ended up chatting about life for a few hours. On public transit, if you leave your phone, a stranger will try to track you down to return it to you. Or, if you happen to fall off your bike in the middle of downtown, strangers will come help you up and graciously spend 20 minutes of their commute-to-work-time figuring out how to put the chain back on your bike while making sure you are ok (I may or may not be speaking from experience). People (even the non-crazies) are usually willing to strike up a conversation with you while waiting for the subway or streetcar. Obviously, it is still a big city and I have had my share of cold stares and heated exchanges with strangers, but overall I find most people to be pretty nice and genuine.
Eventually I found work and established a routine. I worked with a great group of people at a little old theatre downtown, and started to feel settled in my snowy city life.
Another big challenge I faced was spending my first major holidays away from home. When "American Thanksgiving" rolled around, I had only been in Toronto for a few weeks, so my network was limited to a few Canadians I worked and lived with - that did not celebrate Thanksgiving in November. I bought myself a small dinner for one and Skyped with the family. I had a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit as well - trying to be festive in an less familiar place, knowing I wouldn't be able to join the family for the holidays. At the time I was pretty depressed, but looking back it was one of those "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" experiences (I had a lot of those my in my first months here) I am glad I had. I very much understand there are worse places to be in life, so I am slightly embarrassed to reflect on this as I know things could always be worse.
Then, in February, I hit a major road bump when I thought I would have to leave Canada in April instead of the following October. This was very scary, but one thing I have witnessed this year is the power of positive thinking. For anyone who has struggled with immigration issues, it is usually a mess of red tape, differing opinions on everything, and endless run-around. At first I figured all hope was lost - how would I get immigration officials to pay attention to something as small as a working holiday visa when they have refugees and complicated permanent resident applications to tend to? To boot, the office that makes these decisions is in Alberta, a good 3,000 miles from Toronto, with a backlog of 4-9 months for a response on all applications submitted. I certainly couldn't re-submit an application and wait for 4 months for a response - I needed a new visa and I needed it fast, and I would have to accomplish this all over the phone.
I buckled down and refused to believe I would have only lived in Toronto during the coldest months of the year and have to throw everything away to go home six months early. After many, many phone calls and a little help from my program, I was able to find someone who pushed my case through and - voila! A new visa arrived in the mail about a month after I received my initial rejection letter. A few weeks later, I landed a job in my field, moved into a new apartment with a very good friend from the Pillow and winter was finally on the wing.
While I learned to enjoy Toronto in my first few months, after the snow melted and the city came to life I really fell in love with this place.
I began biking around the city (also can I say living in a place where it is not over 95 degrees all summer definitely helped my outdoor exploration efforts) and thoroughly enjoyed biking to work and discovering the trails around TO. In the summer months there's never a shortage of things to do. There are a million outdoor festivals for every culture in this melting pot (and there are a lot of them). It's easy to ferry over to Toronto Island or bike out to the Beaches to get out of the city for a day and soak up some much-needed sun by the lake. I also live in a really hip and fun neighborhood, where it's fun just to walk to the grocery store on Saturday morning.
My family came to visit in July, and I have to say it was a strange experience to have something so familiar, from home, come to Toronto. It seemed that my life in Canada existed in a different world from SC, and it was weird to have something so homey and familiar in Toronto - to have the two worlds come together. At any rate I had a blast showing them all of the things IRL I had been talking about for so many months. Now they can picture what a streetcar looks like, where the "stops voice" comes from, how my apartment is set up, and the like.
As soon as I decided I loved Toronto, the time was coming for my current visa to expire. Anticipating this, at the beginning of the summer I spoke with a lawyer about my options come October. She proved to be very unhelpful, saying I had few options and that my chances of staying legally were pretty slim. This, of course, sent me into a slight panic, as my care-free summer city life now had a firm expiration date unless I could find a company to sponsor me - which is no small favor. To get sponsored the company has to prove they advertised the position and prove they couldn't find a suitable Canadian to fill it - all with lots of paperwork and waiting for approvals from the government. Unfortunately the job I had didn't qualify for sponsorship. At this point I really began to hate the month of September, as again a year later I was brought back to the question "ok, that's over, now what should I do with my life?" as soon as I felt settled and happy.
I resumed the search for my perfect life plan, but, again, I couldn't figure out what that would be on my own and eventually had to just let go. Of course, as soon as I did, I found my answers. Through one of those friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend connections, I was able to meet with another lawyer who told me that graphic designers are on a list of tradeable-skilled-workers with NAFTA, so getting a new visa wouldn't be a problem. A couple of weeks later I took my paperwork down to the border and was granted a new visa!
A year ago, I was so desperate to avoid "settling down." I often found myself bored in one place doing one thing all the time. After a year in Toronto, I can say I am rarely ever bored, and would be happy to stay here for a few years. I miss my family and close friends quite a bit, and living in a different country (while not that different from the US) has its challenges. I do love meeting new people, but it can be difficult only to be surrounded by people you've just met. Moving away has made me greatly appreciate those I love back home. I am quite excited to report that I will be home for Christmas this year, and I cannot cannot wait to see everyone!
Anyway, really the biggest thing I've learned is that I can take care of myself. I moved to Canada with an air mattress and some clothes. I found work and an a place to live. Eventually I found work in my field and now I have my own fully-furnished apartment. I can bike downtown and I am even developing a loyalty to a sports team. While I was unsure at first, now I am very happy here and I can't imagine living anywhere else!
Love
Me
PS - All of that said, I hope I sold you all on this wonderful city - so you will come visit!! I will show you a good time :) :)
This one time I moved to Canada in a Honda Civic...
