# Can't Decide Between NZ and Canada



## testo111 (Jun 6, 2017)

Hi there,

I'm in a huge dilemma and even after exhaustive research, find myself no better than when I had started contemplating the idea of immigrating out of India around six months back.

I currently run a photography training business here in India and to be frank , am quite comfortable with my life.

I purely want to move out because I've always desired to live abroad and now find my self financially capable of fulfilling my dream.

I'm willing to leave the comfort of my business and start all over again by pursuing a post graduate degree in marketing and then getting a job in the field of digital marketing, something I specialise and have considerable experience in.

I have narrowed down my options to Auckland (NZ) and Vancouver (CN).

Since this is the NZ related forum, I'll list down the points that are worrying me about NZ-

1. When I see videos of Auckland on YouTube, I find it very isolated. Like even the main streets somehow seem to be devoid of any real activity. Though I'm ok with being alone, but I really like to be in environments where there are a lot of people around me.

2. Considering the point above, will living in Auckland downtown be better? If yes, will it be out of my reach as far as budget is concerned? I practice a minimalist lifestyle and rarely spend on materialistic pursuits, but am willing to spend more on an apartment that is central and close to the activity hubs. Will it be possible to do this in Auckland or will I be forced to live far away from the main city? I'm single and intend to remain so for a long time.

3. Does NZ being under the Ozone hole pose a serious threat to developing skin cancer?

4. Is the job market not very good in NZ? Again, I'm not looking to win the rat race. I'm not super ambitious, but I do want a job that will allow me to lead a moderately comfortable life. Also, once I'm settled, I plan to start my business there. 

5. Are there any scary spiders in NZ? I have a mild arachnophobia and my aversion to insects lead me to not consider Australia.

6. When researching Vancouver, I found out that it rains almost 6-7 months in an year. That was a major turn off for me. Does Auckland have better weather?

I'd be grateful if someone could answer even few of these questions. Also, in case you have lived in Vancouver, I would love it if you could give me some comparisons too.

Thank you so much!


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## escapedtonz (Apr 6, 2012)

testo111 said:


> Hi there,
> 
> I'm in a huge dilemma and even after exhaustive research, find myself no better than when I had started contemplating the idea of immigrating out of India around six months back.
> 
> ...


Hi,

1. You can't expect a few video's on Youtube to paint the precise picture of what you want to see or give you any real idea of what life is like in downtown Auckland CBD.
In terms of what you are probably used to - crowds of people everywhere and loads of traffic, NZ is miniature in comparison. There's only 4.4 Million people in the whole of the country. In Auckland itself around one quarter of the population lives there, BUT Auckland covers a huge area. You can check this out by searching for "Auckland" in Google Maps and it'll show you the boundaries. I've been to Auckland CBD maybe 4 times in the 5+ years of living in NZ and it has been busy everytime. It was daytime each time but there was lots of people milling about. My Mrs has been in the evening when she went to a concert and it was as equally busy.

2. If you really want to be surrounded by people and things going on then yes I suppose it may be better for you to live more Auckland central but yes accommodation is very pricey. For a single person on a good salary with rent being your main focus I'd expect you could make it work. I suppose where in the city you can live depends on your salary and how much you are comfortable with parting each week for rent and then consider other essential expenses like food and drink, heating and health etc.

3. Not that I'm aware of.

4. It is very good but depends what industry you are looking to enter. Have a look on www.seek.co.nz for jobs.

5. In terms of creatures that can kill or seriously harm a person, NZ is pest free.

There are some biggish spiders but you'd be hard pressed to find one. The biggest is probably the flat huntsman spider (Avondale Spider - as in Avondale in Auckland!) that can grow up to around 20cm diameter but they are considered harmless to humans. I've never seen one here.
The one to watch out for here is the White Tailed spider. Can give a nasty bite much attributed to a wasp sting and after recently inadvertently putting my hand in a small wasps nest it damn well hurts 

6. Yes. Much better than that. I'm in Tauranga and we get similar weather to Auckland. It is pretty much a temperate climate. Mild winters with few frosts and comfortable summers with many long sunny days. Being really spoilt at the moment for the beginning of winter. Having some really crisp mornings of late but as soon as the sun is up it's blue skies and an increase of around 10-15 degrees on the temperature. Not experienced a temp below + 2 degrees yet this year.

I've no experience of Vancouver.
But, I'm working with a Canadian tonight and somebody else who has done a couple of ski seasons as an instructor there.
Vancouver is getting on to be twice the price cost of living of Auckland. Salaries are better than NZ though. Weather is very wet but pretty mild winters nowhere near as cold as the rest of Canada. Summers are hot and humid. Apparently a very beautiful city with lots to do and see and a high Asian population. Great for skiing if that's your thing. The nearest ski fields are accessed by boat across the harbor and bus. You can be there in maybe 30-45 mins. The big ski fields like Whistler can be accessed by train in approx. 2.5hrs. You have to be careful outside the city limits because of bears, snakes etc. My Canadian colleague said if he ever went back home he'd want to live in Vancouver. He did receive a job offer there before migrating to NZ but turned it down as he simply wouldn't have been able to afford to live there....and that was over 5 years ago. Prices have since doubled for property.


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## testo111 (Jun 6, 2017)

Thank you for the detailed answer. It really helped me a lot. Cheers


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## jawnbc (Apr 28, 2012)

testo111 said:


> Hi there,
> 
> I'm in a huge dilemma and even after exhaustive research, find myself no better than when I had started contemplating the idea of immigrating out of India around six months back.
> 
> ...


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## testo111 (Jun 6, 2017)

jawnbc said:


> testo111 said:
> 
> 
> > Hi there,
> ...


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## Shanen1604 (Jun 20, 2017)

Canada


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