[sandeepmdas]

Heard that the real estate price of Australia is only 25% of that of the UK (typical scenario, of course).

@s3va, There are so many mallus there in UK, could be an advantage or disadvantage

@JustCause, would you mind posting your experience regarding racism in AU?

[gypsyFreak]

Man.... i have been to Canada twice both times from my employer. First time stayed there for 2 months and second time for 5 months.

Initially i too was bitten by this immigration bug.... during the second stint in Canada got bitten by the DESI bug .

Believe me all the hype and enthu lasts couple of months and then it's all loneliness.

Actually, you have everything there clear and green country, good public facilities, education and all the other stuff... but you loose your freedom... it is not like your country ... your city... your road... you can't sit on the compound talking to friends... you can't chit chat with your neighbours... you can't eat your favourite dosa/masa/pani puri... you can't roam around in the night on your bike. Then you begin to miss your country a lot...

Not to mention that half the year you cannot walk the street (it'll go upto -15'C and some places -30'C)

If you/your wife still wants to go... then go to some European country though a MNC.... stay there for 1 or 2 years. Once in 2-3 months take a break for a week and fly home (flights would be approx 9 hrs....rather than 17-19 hrs to Toronto and also half the cost). Come back and settle down in your home town.

[tsk1979]

As somebody who has seen a short glimpse of life in the states, I can tell you for sure that the quality of life is better there.
For example, roads, infrastructure, getting something done from a govt office blah blah.

So what sucks
1. Support ecosystem - If you don't have any friends in India you won't notice much
2. Lonelyness - If you and your wife both don't have the job, the chance of the partner staying at home getting insane is very high.

Overall, its a personal decision.
If you want to go there, and start a new life from scratch, it will be tough. People who are engineers in India often drive trucks there(I know a few). Are you willing to start new life as a truck driver?
OTOH, you may get a job in an MNC there. In that case its an easy move. through an MNC the transition is smooth, you land up with a good job, good pay, health insurance, and your kids can get good schooling(as long as you are in a good neighborhood).

But remember quality if life is not just infrastructure and roads etc., its also your social support circle. If your family is there, it makes more sense to go there, if your family is here, then its better here.

[download2live]

My two cents:

Going there will not make sure your problems in life will disappear. They will be replaced by a different set of problems. Nature does not like vacuum after all.You can go ahead and emigrate but do not assume that all the problems of life will be solved.

P.S : Is it God's way of social justice? Giving customized set of life problems to every individual, bank balance not withstanding?

I should stop now. I m going OT.

[chevelle]

Canada. The name brings back the memories of my 2001 visit as an immigrant.

I was precisely in 12th grade in India when my dad got Immigration Visa for Canada in unbelievable 10 months.

We had hell of 2 month time deciding whether to go there and settle or live in India itself and have our well settled life continued. After much thought process, we decided to go ahead and go to Toronto.

We stayed there precisely for 21 days and returned.

Reasons:
Dad was 48 yrs old, he didn't had any assurance of getting job in his field (Civil Eng).

I was suppose to start from 12th grade there, when visited the school, i was told i would have to start one grade lower irrespective of my results and also had to do 13th grade which was like pre-university. So my dad thought instead of packing boxes at a factory (that's the first job offer he got there) its better to have a relaxed life as govt employee in India.

Brother was as such gonna come back as he had on-going graduation in India. My mom also got offer of job for packing boxes at factory.

So we returned. On second thought, my dad always said, if he had gone there alone, he would have got settled and would have called us. But at 48 yrs it would have been tough for him to do labor job or some miscellaneous jobs instead of his field's job.

But my cousin's have gone to Canada and they have settled good, though they are quite young - in their late 20's. its tough initially but 3-4 years later, life does get better there.

Times have changed though, now its 2010, things may be different. But the essence is still the same. You start there from 0. As if you haven't done anything worthwhile in life and then you start climbing up your career. How far you can climb is certainly upto you and your skills.

Just my 2 cents. Good luck.

[vivekiny2k]

Originally Posted by gypsyFreak

Actually, you have everything there clear and green country, good public facilities, education and all the other stuff... but you loose your freedom... it is not like your country ... your city... your road... you can't sit on the compound talking to friends... you can't chit chat with your neighbours... you can't eat your favourite dosa/masa/pani puri... you can't roam around in the night on your bike. Then you begin to miss your country a lot...

Not to mention that half the year you cannot walk the street (it'll go upto -15'C and some places -30'C)

frankly speaking, if you immigrate, you have to make an effort to be able to do all that. If you want to chat with friends sitting on compound, you need to make friends first. If you seek out to create a "little india" (too bad I have seen people creating little AP, tamilnadu, bihari bhumihar, gujju association and what not), not only you will again isolate yourself, but the whole point of immigration is lost there (unless it was purely monetary). If you want your kids to not go to prom and not have a relationship until they are 29, you should stay back in India, or risk them growing up as "confused" desis. Same for dosa and pani puri, if you are gong to miss those very often, better stay in India.

and also be ready to shovel you driveway when its -30C outside if you go to Canada/north USA.

[CaliAtenza]

Originally Posted by gypsyFreak

Man.... i have been to Canada twice both times from my employer. First time stayed there for 2 months and second time for 5 months.

Initially i too was bitten by this immigration bug.... during the second stint in Canada got bitten by the DESI bug .

Believe me all the hype and enthu lasts couple of months and then it's all loneliness.

Actually, you have everything there clear and green country, good public facilities, education and all the other stuff... but you loose your freedom... it is not like your country ... your city... your road... you can't sit on the compound talking to friends... you can't chit chat with your neighbours... you can't eat your favourite dosa/masa/pani puri... you can't roam around in the night on your bike. Then you begin to miss your country a lot...

Not to mention that half the year you cannot walk the street (it'll go upto -15'C and some places -30'C)

If you/your wife still wants to go... then go to some European country though a MNC.... stay there for 1 or 2 years. Once in 2-3 months take a break for a week and fly home (flights would be approx 9 hrs....rather than 17-19 hrs to Toronto and also half the cost). Come back and settle down in your home town.

I felt the same when i came to India 5 years ago too, even though ive continually visited every summer since i was old enough to remember. Moving anywhere new is tough, especially if its half way around the world. I still remember the day i came to India 5 years back; i still remember sitting at LAX, thinking to myself if i was doing the right thing...at one point i wanted to run out of the terminal and go back home. I miss the 24 hour fast food joints, i miss Dennys/IHOP (come on, breakfast at any time, that is awsome!). I miss the order, the cosmopolitan feel of LA, etc, etc. I guess if you feel like missing India, you can always go down to the Little Indias that would be in any major city; i know its not the real thing, but its better than nothing.

[vijaypalsingh]

Originally Posted by saildrive

Hi

Hi SD, Emigrating to a country of your choice is always a very basic but HUGE decision. Before doing that you have to remember that the biggest shock that you will get as soonest you land anywhere in west is the CULTURAL shock. So if you ar OK with that, go ahead. Your kids accent changes within six months. But Canada is definately BEST choice for any Indian, if he/she is planning to emigrate & can do.
I own a motel in a town SW of Calgary but have other business interests so I am not a Canadian citizen. But I did start at grass root level. My suggsetions are my PERSONAL views. so here we go.

1) Is Canada a good country to go to? Why not Australia or New Zealand?
Canada has world's best living condition. You will find so many Indians in Canada that at few places you feel you are in some upmarket district of India. On other hand, Australia & NZ have been more racist in their views about Asians. I have office in Australia & can give you more views on that country too but this is not what we are here to discuss.

2) Why should one go to Canada - better lifestyle / better education for kids / cleaner - greener country / good living & civic habits and in all some sort of peace of mind
Though you have mentioned almost all considerable points except better education for kids. That is still best in India. You may find your kid *polluted* by western culture before you catch your first cold.

3) Does India not offer similar or better opportunities - If not now, dont we imagine that things will get better in days / months / years to come.
India does offer opportunities but there are more opportunists who wish to take piggy ride with you when you are going upswing. Hard work here does pay but by the time it reaps fruit you have crossed the age to enjoy its sweetness. On other hands we have not had single billionaire from Canada in last 5 years but multiples from India.

4) Leaving your country for another - where and of whom you know nothing or little about ?
Not the country but the people, who are different.

5) On second thoughts may be I am a bit lazy not wanting to leave my comfort zone and try out greener pastures...
Lazyness does not get us anywhere..

6) How easy is it to get a job and start and earn a living - when you dont have anyone to fall back upon in a strange country?
My B-I-L (My sis hubby) is a web designer by profession but is presently working in mines as trucker. The wages are highest in Canada & he was ready to adjust. He migrated in 2004. This year my sis & BIL bought a 5 bedroom house.
How many realtives can you 'truly' rely upon if you fall on bad times in India.

7) Heard that the government takes care of you - but that only after you become a citizen there.
NO & Never

8) May be there are a lot of things and reasons, why one decides to go.... but the moot question that i am haggling with right now..... Is It Worth It?
Cos once you are gone......there is no looking back!!
Its actually worth it, if you are ready to take a call. And as you mentioned above you always have MERA BHARAT MAHAN to fall back upon.

Share your views and experiences of those who have gone and settled abroad...maybe it will help people stuck in the moment and GET OUT OF IT, like me!

Cheers

PM me you email ID & I'll send you some helpful info to make up your mind.

With warm regards,
Vijay

[tsk1979]

Lot of people talk about cultural shock. But haven't all of us felt that in India itself? For example I am from Punjab, and when I went to the southern part of India, every was different. From language, to festivals, to holidays, to people. As a matter of fact, moving to Canada or USA from Punjab will be less of culture shock than moving to south, where most people may not speak any of the languages you speak.

[mohit]

OK my 2 Canadian cents!

I came to Canada 4 years ago on a work permit and decided to stay back. My primary reason was some medical and related needs of my son at that point in time and I have not regretted that decision even once! You get full medical coverage after 3 months of your arrival and most of it is free.

Canada offers you a culturally diverse environment with little to no racial issues (try that at a workplace that has people from Canada, US, UK, Eastern Europe, Russia, China, Israel, India and probably 10 other places!).

There are plenty of Indians around in the big cities. And there's tons of Indian food too. Am sure you won't miss you favorite dosa/pani poori for long.

The schooling system is better than US thanks to the immigrants who want their kids to excel. Obviously not all schools are equal but most are decent and the best part is that kids do get a life outside of school. Even in school, the teaching methods are more practical and there's lots of focus on physical activity. I have met so many kids who prefer to be in school rather than spending a day at home (Including my son).

The IT jobs market is little different from the other trades. There are certifications/qualifications needed for most trades but IT has no such issues. There's the issue of Canadian experience but companies do ignore that part and there are tons of Indian companies operating here who would happily take you on board.

Let me know if you have specific questions and I will try and answer them as best as I can.

[zenx]

Originally Posted by vivekiny2k

fand not have a relationship until they are 29,

That, you cannot do in Bangalore either
In fact, my parents were in small town India, and could not do much about it almost 2 decades ago when me and the wife "got into a relationship" in school!

[sumeethaldankar]

Forgive me for the car headed nut that i am , i can only see 2 good reasons why anyone should settle in a country like Canada.

1- Better cars
2 -Better roads

which for me is enough incentive

[tacho]

Originally Posted by sumeethaldankar

Forgive me for the car headed nut that i am , i can only see 2 good reasons why anyone should settle in a country like Canada.

1- Better cars
2 -Better roads

which for me is enough incentive

Driving with the constant fear of being pulled over gets old really really fast

[mohit]

Originally Posted by tacho

Driving with the constant fear of being pulled over gets old really really fast

Up here its even worse. The highway speed limit is 100 KM/H. If you are caught at 150 or more, they suspend your license, impound your car and the minimum fine is $2000!

[vivekiny2k]

Originally Posted by mohit

The highway speed limit is 100 KM/H. If you are caught at 150 or more

why would you do that?