Hi Jack, I've been watching a few of your videos as I am applying for my IEC. I discovered you through a Moving to Canada video. Thanks for sharing your experiences, I find it really helpful. I've lived abroad many times and each time I go back to the UK I have the same feelings as you have described in this video. It is what motivates me to keep moving and having new experiences.

@JackStrange

Жыл бұрын

Completely understand! Exciting times for moving again. Hope it all goes well!

Thanks so much for posting this video it was very relatable! My partner and i just moved to vancouver with our 2 cats and i agree wages dont go far here as living and rent is ridiculously expensive (and so hard to find with pets!) My partner is still hunting for a job and is also dyslexic so i'm a little nervous about our PR points in a year, your video has definitely taught me to prepare for other outcomes if they happen and we have to go back to the UK. I hope you are doing well in Wales, wishing your partner and you every happiness and good look with Australia possible move & Canadian PR points! ❤

@JackStrange

3 ай бұрын

You’re welcome. I feel like people need to be more honest - too many people gloss over the problems and pretend it’s all amazing and much better, and it’s not always. I’m sorry to hear you’re in a similar situation, but glad you have kept your two cats. Your points should be better if you find that you are both working and have that Canadian experience. It’s hard not to get demotivated with it. We’re currently leaning more towards moving back to Canada, but not for a while yet. Definitely still don’t have enough PR points! Wishing you the best - keep me posted!

Jack, I left Wales for America as an eighteen year old. That was some 55 years ago. I understand how you might feel like a fish out of water. It sounds like you already know that you don’t want to stay in Wales. That is something you can work towards achieving. Be patient and kind with yourself. Don’t give up hope and dreams for your future. Work experience and continuing your education will help. I wish you much happiness. You’re a mature young man who’s learning about life. That should never cease to be. Life’s an adventure and full of surprises.

@JackStrange

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Mary. Appreciate the comment! It’s definitely all about taking it as it comes and working things out slowly. Where in America did you end up?

@maryalford5417

Жыл бұрын

@@JackStrange I have lived in three states ending up in the great state of Texas. I have been lucky to have traveled the world. My favorite places being Zermatt and Antarctica. In a month I will be back in Europe and the UK.

Thanks for sharing again Jack, I think I mentioned this on your last Canada video but mine and my partners experiences have been very similar to yours, and I just wish we had known some of these things ahead of time so we could have better prepared! I also found the exact same thing when I visited the UK after 3 years away last summer, everyone else’s life just carried on much the same but I felt like a totally different person and it was hard not to feel like I’d gone back in time. Glad to hear you have no regrets though, and hope your partner is feeling better soon!

@JackStrange

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Amy! It’s a weird feeling for sure

I think you’ve expressed yourself really well! There’s so many factors that comes into play especially as someone from a different country. I think it’s even more admirable to admit what was going wrong and being able to communicate that with each other. Best of luck in whatever you choose to do and I’m excited to see all your adventures!

@JackStrange

Жыл бұрын

Thank you!!

Thanks for sharing Jack. Unfortunately, myself and my partner are going through something similar right now.

@JackStrange

11 ай бұрын

Sorry to hear it. Back to the UK? Or in Canada?

@EJP668

11 ай бұрын

@@JackStrangestill currently in Canada!

Super interesting video! My cousin just moved from Vancouver, Canada to London, UK and she's finding it much more expensive over there, but I guess London is quite different from Wales.

Thanks for sharing this

@JackStrange

Жыл бұрын

No problem!

Jack, I moved back to Wales 7 years ago after living in London for 20 years (and in Manchester for 8 years before that). I felt that strange sense of disconnect for a long time after returning...a very uncomfortable anxiety where I felt like a spectator rather than a participant if that makes any sense?? I constantly evaluated whether I had made the right decision and was attracted to the "otherness" whenever I felt stressed. I imagine that's magnified by being from the LGBTQ+ community...as we probably spend much of our early years dreaming of getting away, of anonymity...escaping the internalised shame that can linger. In my experience, it has gotten better...I earn £20k less than I did in London, and, have (in many ways) a more stressful job. But something's crept up on me...a sense of being rooted, of liking other places but no longer feeling a need to live there. It's taken a few years. Good luck on your journey.

@JackStrange

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing David. It’s interesting to hear your perspective, and I would tend to agree too. So glad you feel settled and rooted!

Vancouver IS an insanely expensive city to live in, So is Toronto. they are really the only places for film industry work too

@JackStrange

Ай бұрын

That was the problem we found for sure - if we wanted to carry on in our careers we only had limited choice on where we could be

I mover to Vancouver 20 years old. I don’t recommend Vancouver to any no rich ppl. Yes, if u r not Rich or a tech genius, please don’t waste ur youth in Vancouver.

Hi Jack. Sorry to hear your experience didn't turn out as you'd hoped, I guess you can't fully plan for these things, and that's part of the adventure. You might have enjoyed your experience more had you been less focused on PR points and more on simply enjoying your time in Canada. Sometimes that changes our energy and leads to other opportunities. Had your partner taken a non-skilled "survival" job (as I like to call them), you'd be in the same position now re points, but would have had a more realistic income and maybe a better overall experience. However, I totally appreciate and respect that you had a specific goal in mind and were working towards that. It's really not easy being an expat and trying to figure out all of those things. It can be exhausting, and everyone's experience is their own. I'm a Brit living in Canada (Whistler, North Van, & Kelowna) and I agree with many of the points you've raised in your videos. I've gone through the PR process in recent years and have just been granted citizenship. Please reach out if I can help in any way. I did a working holiday in Australia and NZ prior to that. I 100% recommend Australia and would love to go back. It can be tougher in terms of staying long term, but for a working holiday, it's a lot of fun (much more so than Vancouver in my experience - different vibes). And who knows where that could lead for you both :) Cost of living is similar but wages are generally much better, so at least there's that. All the best to you being back in the UK (for now)!

@JackStrange

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Alicia! I think you’re right. Moving taught us a lot, but also taught me to just enjoy the now, rather than worrying about the future, because you can’t always plan for it and things won’t always go how you think they should. I did try as much as possible to enjoy Canada, and I did, but the cons outweighed the pros unfortunately. A mindset thing, but also just an experience thing too! I’m trying to convince my partner about Aus. We’re also trying to improve our PR points for Can, because we’re still quite low at the moment. Who knows where it will take us? 😂 Congrats on your citizenship! I’m so glad it’s all gone well for you!

Congratulations on the jobs! ☺ Thank you for sharing your experiences - we have quite similar circumstances so your insight is really valuable. I'm currently deciding whether to move and am a bit concerned about the cost of living/work situation as it will just be me and I'd prefer to have my own space. I'm a freelance writer but might like to do something else while I get settled. Despite the worries I'm really craving a new adventure and want to explore the opportunity. Are taxes kind of comparable to the UK? And did your kitties adjust okay with both flights? It's a long way and I don't want my cat to be mad at me 😅 Wishing you the best for your next adventures!

@JackStrange

Жыл бұрын

Hey! Our cats adjusted perfectly. There and back. They’re so relaxed in their new environment, and were when they landed in Van too! It’s weird because UK tax is higher, but for us personally, we felt like we felt the tax more in Canada than we did in the UK. I think because things were already expensive, and then we got hit with a provincial and a government tax at check out, along with any fees that sometimes cropped up. I’d definitely say go for it, and see how you get on

@rebekka3000

Жыл бұрын

@@JackStrange Thank you! That's really good to know and totally makes sense

nope mate it does not make sense what you said at all :). It's a typical experience from unexperienced and emotional guy :) However, that's totally fine and you need to be more grateful in general. And I do believe that you "think" that you are already grateful :) but what I've heard from you that u have a long way to go, mate and I wish you just good luck! ;)

@JackStrange

6 ай бұрын

I always find it funny how people are so quick to discount other people's PERSONAL experiences. Says more about you than it does about me. The fact you think you can tell me who I am just by a vid? No. It makes sense, it's my experience, and it's many other people's experience, because I spoke to them about it. I know I'm grateful, I have been grateful, and I've shared my experience of a hard time in Canada. That doesn't make me unexperienced - in fact, it makes me experienced because I have experience to compare it to. I think you have a long way to go, and I think you should consider other people's experiences instead of thinking you're right, and thinking you can speak for others, when you can't. Thanks 'mate' - have a good one.

why uk is not for you, comprehensively?

I live in Vancouver. If you are not into hiking or camping, you're f*#$ed! There is a lot of activity in Vancouver but it happens outside of the town. Also did you live on Hornby by any chance? I think we were neighbours.

@JackStrange

2 ай бұрын

Agreed! Yes, I did. Where were you?

@peymant3118

2 ай бұрын

@@JackStrange I am the guy who moved in to your old place. It baffles me how I found your videos completely randomly when I was thinking about moving to UK

@JackStrange

2 ай бұрын

@@peymant3118 that is crazy! Small world. Spooky! How was the apartment? Still there? Or are you moving to the UK?

@peymant3118

2 ай бұрын

@@JackStrange Still in the apt. I've been thinking about UK for the past month. You have mails here.

@JackStrange

2 ай бұрын

@@peymant3118 oh no! Pass them on to the landlord and I’ll speak with him!

All these U Tubers are the same, they never do enough research before they come, there is so much more to Canada than the cities.

@JackStrange

6 ай бұрын

🙄 cover all of this and more in my vids.

This was very interesting. I'm currently thinking about applying for the working holiday visa but I'm not sure. I have a decent civil service job and this looks like a big risk. I've never even visited Canada before.

Bro, the wages in UK are similar to Canada (except for public health and engineering)... It's unfair to compare wales or other non-london wages with Vancouver. I believe, as per my research, the wages in London and in line with Vancouver but with a lot more industry, variety of work and a lot of global headquarters. Vancouver doesn't have much in comparison...

@ExNihilo634

8 ай бұрын

Have you lived in both countries? Online research doesn’t show the reality. There’s a lot of hidden costs in Canada with taxes, etc. Of course, moving from a small town to a major city is going to be a dramatic difference. Give him some credit, I’m sure he understands that!

@Abhsjsjdn

8 ай бұрын

Why are you lifting his balls? I'm free to express my opinion on any content I see and when someone posts something online they've made it public and open to people's reactions and opinions. I agree with everything that he's said in the video. I just felt comparing his wage from a place in Wales to Vancouver doesn't give a clear picture of wages across both UK and Canada as they are varied. London to Vancouver is a fair comparison.

@JackStrange

8 ай бұрын

@@Abhsjsjdn lifting his balls made me lol

@JackStrange

8 ай бұрын

@@ExNihilo634 thank you