# US citizen moving to Quebec



## expatincanada21 (Jun 6, 2012)

Hi, I am a 54 year old woman from California and I’m getting married to a guy from Montreal and planning to move there in August. Although I have traveled to 29 countries, I have never lived outside of the United States. Since I got laid off several months ago I won’t have to worry about missing the job. 

I have always fantasized about living in another country and now that it is going to happen, I’m getting a serious case of nerves/anxiety about leaving my friends and life as I know it. Of course, vacation is one thing but uprooting oneself from a house I’ve lived in for 20 years and getting remarried is a lot to deal with. 

Therefore, I’m hoping I can get support, advice from this forum. 

Thank you for reading.


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## Auld Yin (Mar 10, 2009)

Welcome to the forum and hopefully the members here can help you make the adjustment. Montreal is a marvelous city, quite European in style. As I'm sure you already know you'll need to deal with the Montreal winter which can be quite an eye opener especially for someone from California. I assume you are aware that your husband-to-be will need to sponsor you.


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## dannybou (May 21, 2012)

Hello

Welcome to Quebec!! A few things to know about our province:

1. Over the last few months, our students are demonstrating almost on a daily basis over the increase of tuition. We have the lowest in the country but it seems our student still want to pay less...

2. Quebec is the highest in income tax and in sales tax. Having said this, we have one of the lowest in electricity, auto insurance and property taxes.

3. Montreal is a great city but Quebec City is certainly the Jewel of Quebec. Old remparts, buildings, Citadelle, museums etc...

Enjoy Quebec

Danny


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## EVHB (Feb 11, 2008)

And beer is cheaper in Quebec compared to Ontario. ;-)


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## expatincanada21 (Jun 6, 2012)

Yes, we are aware of it and he is busily working on the paperwork. Thanks




Auld Yin said:


> Welcome to the forum and hopefully the members here can help you make the adjustment. Montreal is a marvelous city, quite European in style. As I'm sure you already know you'll need to deal with the Montreal winter which can be quite an eye opener especially for someone from California. I assume you are aware that your husband-to-be will need to sponsor you.


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## expatincanada21 (Jun 6, 2012)

Yes, I have been following the demonstrations. Thanks for the reply. Now I'll have to begin looking for a good winter coat.



dannybou said:


> Hello
> 
> Welcome to Quebec!! A few things to know about our province:
> 
> ...


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## WestCoastCanadianGirl (Mar 17, 2012)

I'd also recommend learning some basic French... you needn't become bilingual, but having a vocabulary broad enough (i.e. broader than your typical "tourist" phrases) to be able to ask for and do things when your husband to be isn't with you and you find yourself in a French speaking establishment would definitely be an asset (mind you, you'd probably be able to find someone to translate for you).

While you usually _can_ get by with English only in Montreal, you might not be so lucky in other parts of the province (i.e. Quebec City)... while the _entire_ country is _*officially*_ bilingual, there are elements in Québec (i.e the so called French Language Police) who would love nothing more than to make French the only official language in Québec.


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## Guest (Jun 8, 2012)

If you won't be living downtown and if you're not fluent in French, I'd consider looking into the suburbs on the West Island, which is considered more anglophone/bilingual and includes cities like Pointe-Claire, Beaconsfield, Pierrefonds, Kirkland, etc. Time-wise, they're less convenient regarding access to the city via public transportation, but there is access to nearby trains that can be taken downtown.

Montreal has what is considered one of the best public transportation systems in North America (and perhaps even in the western hemisphere), and it's heavily used by people in all walks of life.

I imagine that the more French you know, the easier the adjustment will be. Oh, and in addition to a winter coat, make sure you have some good boots for the winter too. Both of those things are probably much easier to find once you're here.


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## Guest (Jun 8, 2012)

WestCoastCanadianGirl said:


> While you usually _can_ get by with English only in Montreal, you might not be so lucky in other parts of the province (i.e. Quebec City)... while the _entire_ country is _*officially*_ bilingual, there are elements in Québec (i.e the so called French Language Police) who would love nothing more than to make French the only official language in Québec.


I believe that while there are two official languages for the country in regard to government functions, the provinces define themselves differently. For instance, New Brunswick is the only province that has declared itself to be bilingual. At a provincial level, the official language of Quebec is French.


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## ozbound12 (Mar 23, 2012)

In addition to a good winter coat and boots, a good scarf, winter hat (tuque), long underwear, warm socks (preferably wool or some other synthetic material that dries quickly) and gloves are essential. It can be really windy and snowy in the long winter months, not to mention brutally cold at times. It's also very grey and overcast in the winter; you won't see the sun very often. And it's usually dark by 4:30-5 at night in the winter months, which I also found a bit depressing when I lived there.

But the summers are so worth it -- sunny, hot, sometimes humid but always pleasant, and Montrealers do take advantage as there always seems to be some festival or something going on!

Although I have a few anglo friends in Montreal who don't speak a lick of French and get by just fine, your life would be infinitely easier there (especially if you plan on getting a job) if you learned French. It's the primary working language of the province and certainly if you were to go outside the Montreal area, it's often the only working language. I believe the government offers (or at least they used to) free or very low cost French classes to help newcomers integrate and learn the language.

Montreal is a really laid-back city and as far as Canadian cities go, it's one of the more affordable places to live in terms of housing and utility costs. (Someone else mentioned that Quebec income taxes are quite high and that's certainly very true.) If you want to be close to downtown and in a more anglophone area, I would suggest looking at either Westmount (upper- to upper-middle class area) or Notre-Dame-de-Grace (NDG). Other areas like St-Henri and Pointe-St-Charles are more mixed anglophone/francophone. Someone else mentioned the West Island suburbs, which are also more anglophone but are pretty far from downtown and are perhaps a bit dull.


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## Roland R. Cote (May 28, 2012)

*Great life in Montreal*



expatincanada21 said:


> Hi, I am a 54 year old woman from California and I’m getting married to a guy from Montreal and planning to move there in August. Although I have traveled to 29 countries, I have never lived outside of the United States. Since I got laid off several months ago I won’t have to worry about missing the job.
> 
> I have always fantasized about living in another country and now that it is going to happen, I’m getting a serious case of nerves/anxiety about leaving my friends and life as I know it. Of course, vacation is one thing but uprooting oneself from a house I’ve lived in for 20 years and getting remarried is a lot to deal with.
> 
> ...


After 15 years of living in Pennsylvania, we came back to live in Montreal. what a treat. It is diffirent and a lot of fun. We miss our American friends but with Skype we are in touch on a daily base. 
In Montreal you have to jump in. If you have money you can eat in a different restaurant every day at a fair price. With a lower budget you can walk around and anjo ynew things every day. You can travel around in the Metro (subway) that is clean and noise less. Montrealer love American and make sure to introduce yourself as such. If you speak or learn some french it will be more fun. But ther is always someone close by to spek to you in english particularly if you are American. There more bycicle path thna anywhre in world. You can rent a bike and numerous ite all over the city, the same for renting a car at cheap price. In winter you can live in the undergroud galeries, shops restaurants all connected to the Metro. With a smile you can make friends easily. The street are amongst the safest you can find. The people make the difference. We still dicover stuff every day. 
Bienvenue !!!!!


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## helenew (Jan 31, 2012)

Azsereth said:


> If you won't be living downtown and if you're not fluent in French, I'd consider looking into the suburbs on the West Island, which is considered more anglophone/bilingual and includes cities like Pointe-Claire, Beaconsfield, Pierrefonds, Kirkland, etc. Time-wise, they're less convenient regarding access to the city via public transportation, but there is access to nearby trains that can be taken downtown.


Living in the suburbs on the West Island is a drag if you work downtown. Trains only really run Mon-Fri so getting into town at the weekends you need a car. And the bridges are a nightmare, particularly at the moment with all the roadworks! I'd always recommend living on Montreal island (or Laval at a push!) if possible



Azsereth said:


> Montreal has what is considered one of the best public transportation systems in North America (and perhaps even in the western hemisphere), and it's heavily used by people in all walks of life.


It may be the best public transport systems in North America, but having come from London, it's definitely not the best in the western hemisphere!! Three small lines (plus the tiny two stop yellow line) with dated old stations and old trains leave a lot to be desired for me....



Azsereth said:


> I imagine that the more French you know, the easier the adjustment will be. Oh, and in addition to a winter coat, make sure you have some good boots for the winter too. Both of those things are probably much easier to find once you're here.


French is the official language of Quebec; this is not officially a bilingual province. While most people in customer service will speak English to you if you speak English to them, they don't have to if they don't want to and there have been a couple of instances recently that hit the headlines where STM (metro) workers have refused to speak English to customers. And if you don't speak French, getting a job is very, very difficult. Most jobs specify that you are bi-lingual with an emphasis on French rather than English.


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## Guest (Jul 10, 2012)

helenew said:


> Living in the suburbs on the West Island is a drag if you work downtown. Trains only really run Mon-Fri so getting into town at the weekends you need a car. And the bridges are a nightmare, particularly at the moment with all the roadworks! I'd always recommend living on Montreal island (or Laval at a push!) if possible


The West Island is on the island of Montreal and refers to the western suburbs on the island. It's a relatively short drive to the city on the weekends, and there are no bridges to cross. There are a couple highways running east into the city, so if you check ahead, you can take the one that is less congested.

Everything you said about the importance of French is spot on. I've lived both on the West Island and on the South Shore - one a very anglophone/bilingual area, and the other primarily francophone. I only recommend the western suburbs as an alternative if one doesn't want to live downtown *and* isn't already fluent in French.


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