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Lily222

Newbie
Oct 25, 2021
4
1
Greetings!

I don't know if I am in the right place to ask a bothering questions but I will appreciate if anyone help out.

I have just received my study visa but yet to land in Canada. Can I still apply to be in the express entry pool? Will it affect my study visa?
 

GandiBaat

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If you were to visit Calgary and Vancouver, what would be the thing you would look for in each city? I guess it depends on the temperament and perspective of a person, but I wanted to know your point of view if you, too, were to do something similar. What would be on your agenda?

I should mention that I have never stepped foot out of my country before. What should I try to take in? Since I don't have anything concrete in my itinerary, I was thinking of visiting a few touristy places and visiting some nature spots (as I am a nature person, and I find being in nature very soothing) in all of the cities. I wish to avoid the hustle and bustle of a city like Delhi. That is my only goal to find a place in Canada.
I, sadly have never been to Calgary, though I want to go there a lot... man proposes Wife disposes.

I have been around Vancouver a bit though. Few Places to visit in Vancouver, IMHO, are :

1. Gastown. Its sad that they have removed old gassy but still, this area of Vancouver is fun and hip. If you are there eat at "Meet@Gastown". Try their Bowl fulls. Super delish!

2. Take sea-bus to North Van. Cheap way for 15 minutes boat ride. Return with same sea-bus in evening.

3. If you are an X-File or 90s general horror film fan, remember, a lot of out door forest scenes have been filmed at Lynn Valley Lower Saymor Conservation Reserve (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/one-vancouver-forest-played-just-about-every-wooded-locale-x-files-180955686/). Its a nice wooded place. Be sure to take some advice from locals. Lynn valley and northern mountains are bear grounds.

4. While in North shore, go for Grouse Grind, a really fun hiking trip, try out Lynn Canyon suspension bridge, take a dip in lynn canyon puddle. Its clear and cold, very refreshing in summers.

5. If you have 100 dollars to spare go for Capilano Suspension Bridge. Else Lynn Valley Canyon bridge is a cheap way to get similar experience.

6. If you enjoy a cheap ride in on sea with possible food, take Ferry to Vancouver Island. For a on-foot guy, its just 20 dollars and views are worth every penny. BC ferry typically used to have restaurants on the ship but I do not know what has happened post pandemic. The food was freshly made and really really nice. If you want a full-fat experience, take BC connector bus.

7. Another place to try out is Sun Yat Sen chinese garden. My wife liked it a lot.

8. I used to like Vancouver Aquarium as well. It was sold to sea world due to pandemic and lack of money. I do not know what has happened to it.

9. There is science world near aquerium. Though its more of a family thing or atleast if you have a partner with you. You know one of those things you do together with someone else.

10. If you like teal coloured lakes, there are many around Vancouver (https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-turquoise-lakes-summer-2018). I will recommend Joffre lakes https://bcparks.ca/parks/joffre-lakes/. It requires little amount of hiking but its worth every effort. Not to mention, these are glacial fed lakes. Icy cold and often emerald coloured.

11. Since its summers, you might want to take one of the whale watching trip. It could be little expensive though.

12. Again, if you can pony up for some money, there is this sea plane, which takes off and lands in Burrad Inlet. Its fun and they do a sight seeing trip. If sea plane feels too shaky and not so fun, there is Heli jet which gives a fun ride around vancouver for same experience.

13. Visit Vancouver Lookout. Before Seattle Space Needle came into being, it was one of the few high points to see around vancouver. Its cheap to visit and quite some experience.

14. People often visit Whistler too, for suspension bridge and Gandola but IMHO, biggest value is in skiing there... which is a winter thing.

15. If you are in down town and its afternoon, try out food trucks. Some of them are really unqiue. Like Japa-Dog near waterfront sky-train station.

16. If you are coming from Seattle or going to Seattle, take the AmTrack train instead of bus or flight. Its a longish train but the views are worth every penny. There are special cars dedicated for viewing. Its like a cheaper alternative to more expesnvie touristy trains.

17. Speaking of touristy trains. If you have money to burn --an I mean good money-- take the Rocky mountaineer. (https://www.rockymountaineer.com/). Its one heck of an experience but it comes at a steep price.

18. I am giving options for a summer time but if you are in town during winters, you need to see Stanley Park Christmas decoration and christmas train. Its a 30 minutes experience of the most wonderous kind. (https://www.google.com/search?q=Stanley+Park+Christmas+decoration&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X).


--------

The above are touristy things. But if you want to get a feel of city itself, in the sense how people live here. Do one thing. Take a three zone day pass and just travel using sky train. Most of businesses are in downtown core. One may live in downtown core but it is not worth it. Its clastrophobic, noisey and above all, at times uncomfortable due to all the pan-handlers (meaning poor homeless people who ask for alms).

Start from say waterfront station and go to Coquitlam and possibly to Port Coquitlam and Maple Ridge. This is one axis in which a lot of people live and travel daily to the work. Get a feel of vibe of individual suburbs. Once you cross down town, you will see places start getting less densly populated. You will also get an idea of travelling time as well. If you can, take a ticket of West Coast Express and travel the same route again. It is a quicker way to reach downtown core. I never tried it but it can be worth looking into.

Second. do the same from Waterfront to Surrey. This is one more axis. This is the old skytrain line. You will pass through Joyce St, New Westminister and into Surrey. These places tend to be more house friendly than apartment friendly like Downtown. They are less dense. Surrey is essentially Chandighar with colder climate and Aemrican housing. You will feel at home here. They say to avoid Newton area as it is shady. I never ran into anything shady here, even roaming at night with my friends and once with my wife. YMMV. Since this is your first visit, avoid it.

Third take Canada-line skytrain from Vancouver waterfront St into Richmond. This is a Chinese dominated neighborhood. It is / used to be somewhat economical place to live with low travelling time to Downtown core. Its moderately dense.

Next, travel by bus to Vancouver West (NOT West Vancouver)L Kitslano, UBC etc. These are affluent areas of vancouver. Very expensive to live but really really nice and have great schools. Its also university area of UBC. They don't have connectivity with skytrain (last I visted).

Next, take the bus and travel to Vancouver South. I have not lived here or travelled here much but is moderately expensive area connected with moderate travel time to down town core.

Next, try out Burnaby. Burnaby is home to few hi-tech firms in IT and a lot of in Pharma. Its a mixed houses and condo neighborhood. It used ot be economic, but not anymore. A healthy community of south Indians and Marathi lives here. There are few temples as well.

Next, try North shore. Take seabus from waterfront station up to north van. Take up a bus on the lonsdale ave. I lived in this part of vancouver. It has a sizeable iranian population, it has a walmart, a whole food and lots of amerinites. A solid place to live. It is also close to mountains. It has a mosque and a small pakistani community as well. The western part is called West Vancouver. All I will say is, if you are west vancouver type, you will know it. I won't have to tell you. Its rich as hell.

I left Downtown core for the last. Downtown has few interesting parts. It has infamous Downtown East Side in the south eastern part. This place is unfortunate as it can be very prime location to live but it has a massive homeless and druggie problem. I will say avoid vanturing there if its your first time out. I don't want to scare you into skipping vancouver altogether. Its scary but no one has ever mugged me or my wife, even though we used to cross it alone at times in odd hours. For first time around, avoid it. East side also hosts Gastown, a very hip and touristy part. I wont recommend to live here as it is noisy. On the North east part of downtown is the forested stanley park and rich and expensive parts like coal harbour. I never lived here so I don't know much. Then there is south west part that is home to what is called as "west end" and english bay. This is Gay part of down town, literally speaking but its just a nice and clean neighborhood to live. It has quite a few rental towers which can be economical.

That would be my whrilwind tour of vancouver.
 
Last edited:

GandiBaat

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As an Indian IT engineer, you'll stick out like a sore thumb!
Its Vancouver. Nothing sticks around as sore thumb here. Have you seen asians dressed in victorian fashion that they feel straight out of 1855's London? Well, thats the norm in Vancouver. He will be fine.
 
Last edited:

navinball

VIP Member
Feb 26, 2018
3,663
1,642
I, sadly have never been to Calgary, though I want to go there a lot... man proposes Wife disposes.

I have been around Vancouver a bit though. Few Places to visit in Vancouver, IMHO, are :

1. Gastown. Its sad that they have removed old gassy but still, this area of Vancouver is fun and hip. If you are there eat at "Meet@Gastown". Try their Bowl fulls. Super delish!

2. Take sea-bus to North Van. Cheap way for 15 minutes boat ride. Return with same sea-bus in evening.

3. If you are an X-File or 90s general horror film fan, remember, a lot of out door forest scenes have been filmed at Lynn Valley Lower Saymor Conservation Reserve (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/one-vancouver-forest-played-just-about-every-wooded-locale-x-files-180955686/). Its a nice wooded place. Be sure to take some advice from locals. Lynn valley and northern mountains are bear grounds.

4. While in North shore, go for Grouse Grind, a really fun hiking trip, try out Lynn Canyon suspension bridge, take a dip in lynn canyon puddle. Its clear and cold, very refreshing in summers.

5. If you have 100 dollars to spare go for Capilano Suspension Bridge. Else Lynn Valley Canyon bridge is a cheap way to get similar experience.

6. If you enjoy a cheap ride in on sea with possible food, take Ferry to Vancouver Island. For a on-foot guy, its just 20 dollars and views are worth every penny. BC ferry typically used to have restaurants on the ship but I do not know what has happened post pandemic. The food was freshly made and really really nice. If you want a full-fat experience, take BC connector bus.

7. Another place to try out is Sun Yat Sen chinese garden. My wife liked it a lot.

8. I used to like Vancouver Aquarium as well. It was sold to sea world due to pandemic and lack of money. I do not know what has happened to it.

9. There is science world near aquerium. Though its more of a family thing or atleast if you have a partner with you. You know one of those things you do together with someone else.

10. If you like teal coloured lakes, there are many around Vancouver (https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-turquoise-lakes-summer-2018). I will recommend Joffre lakes https://bcparks.ca/parks/joffre-lakes/. It requires little amount of hiking but its worth every effort. Not to mention, these are glacial fed lakes. Icy cold and often emerald coloured.

11. Since its summers, you might want to take one of the whale watching trip. It could be little expensive though.

12. Again, if you can pony up for some money, there is this sea plane, which takes off and lands in Burrad Inlet. Its fun and they do a sight seeing trip. If sea plane feels too shaky and not so fun, there is Heli jet which gives a fun ride around vancouver for same experience.

13. Visit Vancouver Lookout. Before Seattle Space Needle came into being, it was one of the few high points to see around vancouver. Its cheap to visit and quite some experience.

14. People often visit Whistler too, for suspension bridge and Gandola but IMHO, biggest value is in skiing there... which is a winter thing.

15. If you are in down town and its afternoon, try out food trucks. Some of them are really unqiue. Like Japa-Dog near waterfront sky-train station.

16. If you are coming from Seattle or going to Seattle, take the AmTrack train instead of bus or flight. Its a longish train but the views are worth every penny. There are special cars dedicated for viewing. Its like a cheaper alternative to more expesnvie touristy trains.

17. Speaking of touristy trains. If you have money to burn --an I mean good money-- take the Rocky mountaineer. (https://www.rockymountaineer.com/). Its one heck of an experience but it comes at a steep price.

18. I am giving options for a summer time but if you are in town during winters, you need to see Stanley Park Christmas decoration and christmas train. Its a 30 minutes experience of the most wonderous kind. (https://www.google.com/search?q=Stanley+Park+Christmas+decoration&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X).
you know he is not going to do any of these unless they are completely free.
 

GandiBaat

VIP Member
Dec 23, 2014
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App. Filed.......
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26th September 2021
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you know he is not going to do any of these unless they are completely free.
I have done more than half of them for free. I am sure he can do it too.

Oh good that you reminded me. @stirredo When you are in Waterfront station, go down to Sea bus terminal, you know the place where you catch seabus. It has a shelf with lots of booklets for different attraction of the city. Pick one of all of them. They have coupon to get discount. :lol: Thank me later :p

I mean this area :

 
Last edited:

wonderbly

VIP Member
Aug 26, 2020
3,881
3,087
I, sadly have never been to Calgary, though I want to go there a lot... man proposes Wife disposes.

I have been around Vancouver a bit though. Few Places to visit in Vancouver, IMHO, are :

1. Gastown. Its sad that they have removed old gassy but still, this area of Vancouver is fun and hip. If you are there eat at "Meet@Gastown". Try their Bowl fulls. Super delish!

2. Take sea-bus to North Van. Cheap way for 15 minutes boat ride. Return with same sea-bus in evening.

3. If you are an X-File or 90s general horror film fan, remember, a lot of out door forest scenes have been filmed at Lynn Valley Lower Saymor Conservation Reserve (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/one-vancouver-forest-played-just-about-every-wooded-locale-x-files-180955686/). Its a nice wooded place. Be sure to take some advice from locals. Lynn valley and northern mountains are bear grounds.

4. While in North shore, go for Grouse Grind, a really fun hiking trip, try out Lynn Canyon suspension bridge, take a dip in lynn canyon puddle. Its clear and cold, very refreshing in summers.

5. If you have 100 dollars to spare go for Capilano Suspension Bridge. Else Lynn Valley Canyon bridge is a cheap way to get similar experience.

6. If you enjoy a cheap ride in on sea with possible food, take Ferry to Vancouver Island. For a on-foot guy, its just 20 dollars and views are worth every penny. BC ferry typically used to have restaurants on the ship but I do not know what has happened post pandemic. The food was freshly made and really really nice. If you want a full-fat experience, take BC connector bus.

7. Another place to try out is Sun Yat Sen chinese garden. My wife liked it a lot.

8. I used to like Vancouver Aquarium as well. It was sold to sea world due to pandemic and lack of money. I do not know what has happened to it.

9. There is science world near aquerium. Though its more of a family thing or atleast if you have a partner with you. You know one of those things you do together with someone else.

10. If you like teal coloured lakes, there are many around Vancouver (https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-turquoise-lakes-summer-2018). I will recommend Joffre lakes https://bcparks.ca/parks/joffre-lakes/. It requires little amount of hiking but its worth every effort. Not to mention, these are glacial fed lakes. Icy cold and often emerald coloured.

11. Since its summers, you might want to take one of the whale watching trip. It could be little expensive though.

12. Again, if you can pony up for some money, there is this sea plane, which takes off and lands in Burrad Inlet. Its fun and they do a sight seeing trip. If sea plane feels too shaky and not so fun, there is Heli jet which gives a fun ride around vancouver for same experience.

13. Visit Vancouver Lookout. Before Seattle Space Needle came into being, it was one of the few high points to see around vancouver. Its cheap to visit and quite some experience.

14. People often visit Whistler too, for suspension bridge and Gandola but IMHO, biggest value is in skiing there... which is a winter thing.

15. If you are in down town and its afternoon, try out food trucks. Some of them are really unqiue. Like Japa-Dog near waterfront sky-train station.

16. If you are coming from Seattle or going to Seattle, take the AmTrack train instead of bus or flight. Its a longish train but the views are worth every penny. There are special cars dedicated for viewing. Its like a cheaper alternative to more expesnvie touristy trains.

17. Speaking of touristy trains. If you have money to burn --an I mean good money-- take the Rocky mountaineer. (https://www.rockymountaineer.com/). Its one heck of an experience but it comes at a steep price.

18. I am giving options for a summer time but if you are in town during winters, you need to see Stanley Park Christmas decoration and christmas train. Its a 30 minutes experience of the most wonderous kind. (https://www.google.com/search?q=Stanley+Park+Christmas+decoration&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X).


--------

The above are touristy things. But if you want to get a feel of city itself, in the sense how people live here. Do one thing. Take a three zone day pass and just travel using sky train. Most of businesses are in downtown core. One may live in downtown core but it is not worth it. Its clastrophobic, noisey and above all, at times uncomfortable due to all the pan-handlers (meaning poor homeless people who ask for alms).

Start from say waterfront station and go to Coquitlam and possibly to Port Coquitlam and Maple Ridge. This is one axis in which a lot of people live and travel daily to the work. Get a feel of vibe of individual suburbs. Once you cross down town, you will see places start getting less densly populated. You will also get an idea of travelling time as well. If you can, take a ticket of West Coast Express and travel the same route again. It is a quicker way to reach downtown core. I never tried it but it can be worth looking into.

Second. do the same from Waterfront to Surrey. This is one more axis. This is the old skytrain line. You will pass through Joyce St, New Westminister and into Surrey. These places tend to be more house friendly than apartment friendly like Downtown. They are less dense. Surrey is essentially Chandighar with colder climate and Aemrican housing. You will feel at home here. They say to avoid Newton area as it is shady. I never ran into anything shady here, even roaming at night with my friends and once with my wife. YMMV.

Third take Canada-line skytrain from Vancouver waterfront St into Richmond. This is a Chinese dominated neighborhood. It is / used to be somewhat economical place to live with low travelling time to Downtown core. Its moderately dense.

Next, travel by bus to Vancouver West (NOT West Vancouver)L Kitslano, UBC etc. These are affluent areas of vancouver. Very expensive to live but really really nice and have great schools. Its also university area of UBC. They don't have connectivity with skytrain (last I visted).

Next, take the bus and travel to Vancouver South. I have not lived here or travelled here much but is moderately expensive area connected with moderate travel time to down town core.

Next, try out Burnaby. Burnaby is home to few hi-tech firms in IT and a lot of in Pharma. Its a mixed houses and condo neighborhood. It used ot be economic, but not anymore. A healthy community of south Indians and Marathi lives here. There are few temples as well.

Next, try North shore. Take seabus from waterfront station up to north van. Take up a bus on the lonsdale ave. I lived in this part of vancouver. It has a sizeable iranian population, it has a walmart, a whole food and lots of amerinites. A solid place to live. It is also close to mountains. It has a mosque and a small pakistani community as well. The western part is called West Vancouver. All I will say is, if you are west vancouver type, you will know it. I won't have to tell you. Its rich as hell.

I left Downtown core for the last. Downtown has few interesting parts. It has infamous Downtown East Side in the south eastern part. This place is unfortunate as it can be very prime location to live but it has a massive homeless and druggie problem. That being said, it quickly leads to "Sunrise" which is very liveable. It also hosts Gastown, a very hip and touristy part. I wont recommend to live here as it is noisy. On the North east part of downtown is the forested stanley park and rich and expensive parts like coal harbour. I never lived here so I don't know much. Then there is south west part that is home to what is called as "west end" and english bay. This is Gay part of down town, literally speaking but its just a nice and clean neighborhood to live. It has quite a few rental towers which can be economical.

That would be my whrilwind tour of vancouver.
you know he is not going to do any of these unless they are completely free.
@stirredo See? I told you - GandiBaat has highbrow taste :D . You need Navinball to show you the back alleys :cool:.
 
D

Deleted member 994371

Guest
I, sadly have never been to Calgary, though I want to go there a lot... man proposes Wife disposes.

I have been around Vancouver a bit though. Few Places to visit in Vancouver, IMHO, are :

1. Gastown. Its sad that they have removed old gassy but still, this area of Vancouver is fun and hip. If you are there eat at "Meet@Gastown". Try their Bowl fulls. Super delish!

2. Take sea-bus to North Van. Cheap way for 15 minutes boat ride. Return with same sea-bus in evening.

3. If you are an X-File or 90s general horror film fan, remember, a lot of out door forest scenes have been filmed at Lynn Valley Lower Saymor Conservation Reserve (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/one-vancouver-forest-played-just-about-every-wooded-locale-x-files-180955686/). Its a nice wooded place. Be sure to take some advice from locals. Lynn valley and northern mountains are bear grounds.

4. While in North shore, go for Grouse Grind, a really fun hiking trip, try out Lynn Canyon suspension bridge, take a dip in lynn canyon puddle. Its clear and cold, very refreshing in summers.

5. If you have 100 dollars to spare go for Capilano Suspension Bridge. Else Lynn Valley Canyon bridge is a cheap way to get similar experience.

6. If you enjoy a cheap ride in on sea with possible food, take Ferry to Vancouver Island. For a on-foot guy, its just 20 dollars and views are worth every penny. BC ferry typically used to have restaurants on the ship but I do not know what has happened post pandemic. The food was freshly made and really really nice. If you want a full-fat experience, take BC connector bus.

...................

Wow, man. Thank you so much for taking the time out to type all of that. When I sit down to plan my itinerary, I will do things exactly as you mentioned here. I will extend my trip if I have to in order to explore Vancouver more. I have saved your post in Evernote just in case this thread goes kaput for some reason.

Just to give you more context about me, I have lived in Delhi for close to 20 years but never felt at home here. My favorite places to visit in Delhi were the zoo and public parks near my house. That was my way of "being in nature" in a place like Delhi. Throughout my tenure here, I have felt "rushed" and felt like everyone is angry at everyone else for no reason. I always felt like I was dragging my feet here and never felt like I was thriving.

The only two times I have felt like having inner peace in my life are when I lived in a small town in Gujarat when I was a kid and when I lived in Goa for a couple of months. I am someone who depends a lot on the environment I live in. If you were to meet me in real life, it would feel like you were meeting two different persons when you meet me in a place like Delhi vs a place like Goa.

As I mentioned before, I have never stepped out of India and wouldn't call myself a well-traveled man.

My only goal for a close to a month-long vacation in Canada is to find a place where I don't feel "rushed". That obviously rules out GTA. Although you have written a lot about Vancouver, will it feel like a big city where everyone is in a hurry to get someplace? Surely the cost of living at the place would force everyone to be a part of the rat race.

Although I should be doing this research on my own, which area would be most suitable for renting an AirBnb? I guess access to SkyTrain should be my top priority so that I can explore most things you have mentioned in your post. I have set aside a budget for this trip but I still make Indian IT guy money in Indian rupees. In other words, I have *some* money but I would rather spend it on exploring places rather than renting a fancy apartment. I also wish to avoid affluent areas, which can be nice but that's not what I am about.

PS: I am a big fan of X-Files and would most definitely visit the place where they shot the wooded area scenes if nothing else. I will also try to find time and budget for whale watching if I can. I am pretty sure it is going to be the highlight of my tour.
 
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ImpatientAlligator

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Sep 7, 2021
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@PRANIT01 @ImpatientAlligator @wonderbly
Is it necessary to declare goods accompanying list at the airport?
Yes. You declare both 'goods accompanying' and 'goods to follow'. In the BSF186/A forms, just mention which pages contain the 'goods to follow' items. Make sure you explicitly mention that you have goods to declare at the customs checkpoint; they sometimes just wave people through
 

ImpatientAlligator

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Sep 7, 2021
782
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Wow, man. Thank you so much for taking the time out to type all of that. When I sit down to plan my itinerary, I will do things exactly as you mentioned here. I will extend my trip if I have to in order to explore Vancouver more. I have saved your post in Evernote just in case this thread goes kaput for some reason.

Just to give you more context about me, I have lived in Delhi for close to 20 years but never felt at home here. My favorite places to visit in Delhi were the zoo and public parks near my house. That was my way of "being in nature" in a place like Delhi. Throughout my tenure here, I have felt "rushed" and felt like everyone is angry at everyone else for no reason. I always felt like I was dragging my feet here and never felt like I was thriving.

The only two times I have felt like having inner peace in my life are when I lived in a small town in Gujarat when I was a kid and when I lived in Goa for a couple of months. I am someone who depends a lot on the environment I live in. If you were to meet me in real life, it would feel like you were meeting two different persons when you meet me in a place like Delhi vs a place like Goa.

As I mentioned before, I have never stepped out of India and wouldn't call myself a well-traveled man.

My only goal for a close to a month-long vacation in Canada is to find a place where I don't feel "rushed". That obviously rules out GTA. Although you have written a lot about Vancouver, will it feel like a big city where everyone is in a hurry to get someplace? Surely the cost of living at the place would force everyone to be a part of the rat race.

Although I should be doing this research on my own, which area would be most suitable for renting an AirBnb? I guess access to SkyTrain should be my top priority so that I can explore most things you have mentioned in your post. I have set aside a budget for this trip but I still make Indian IT guy money in Indian rupees. In other words, I have *some* money but I would rather spend it on exploring places rather than renting a fancy apartment. I also wish to avoid affluent areas, which can be nice but that's not what I am about.

PS: I am a big fan of X-Files and would most definitely visit the place where they shot the wooded area scenes if nothing else. I will also try to find time and budget for whale watching if I can. I am pretty sure it is going to be the highlight of my tour.
Bro, just settle in Whistler/Banff and become a ski instructor :)
 

GandiBaat

VIP Member
Dec 23, 2014
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NOC Code......
2173
App. Filed.......
26th September 2021
Doc's Request.
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26th September 2021
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Sent with application
File Transfer...
11-01-2022
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Not Applicable, Old Meds
Med's Done....
Old Medical
Interview........
Not Applicable
Passport Req..
22-02-2022
VISA ISSUED...
22-02-2022
LANDED..........
24-02-2022
Wow, man. Thank you so much for taking the time out to type all of that. When I sit down to plan my itinerary, I will do things exactly as you mentioned here. I will extend my trip if I have to in order to explore Vancouver more. I have saved your post in Evernote just in case this thread goes kaput for some reason.

Just to give you more context about me, I have lived in Delhi for close to 20 years but never felt at home here. My favorite places to visit in Delhi were the zoo and public parks near my house. That was my way of "being in nature" in a place like Delhi. Throughout my tenure here, I have felt "rushed" and felt like everyone is angry at everyone else for no reason. I always felt like I was dragging my feet here and never felt like I was thriving.

The only two times I have felt like having inner peace in my life are when I lived in a small town in Gujarat when I was a kid and when I lived in Goa for a couple of months. I am someone who depends a lot on the environment I live in. If you were to meet me in real life, it would feel like you were meeting two different persons when you meet me in a place like Delhi vs a place like Goa.

As I mentioned before, I have never stepped out of India and wouldn't call myself a well-traveled man.

My only goal for a close to a month-long vacation in Canada is to find a place where I don't feel "rushed". That obviously rules out GTA. Although you have written a lot about Vancouver, will it feel like a big city where everyone is in a hurry to get someplace? Surely the cost of living at the place would force everyone to be a part of the rat race.

Although I should be doing this research on my own, which area would be most suitable for renting an AirBnb? I guess access to SkyTrain should be my top priority so that I can explore most things you have mentioned in your post. I have set aside a budget for this trip but I still make Indian IT guy money in Indian rupees. In other words, I have *some* money but I would rather spend it on exploring places rather than renting a fancy apartment. I also wish to avoid affluent areas, which can be nice but that's not what I am about.

PS: I am a big fan of X-Files and would most definitely visit the place where they shot the wooded area scenes if nothing else. I will also try to find time and budget for whale watching if I can. I am pretty sure it is going to be the highlight of my tour.
Some of my fond memories are from Delhi. I was in IIT-D back in mid 2000s and South Delhi was dope back then. But then college life is dope in itself.

Vancouver can be chill or it can be fast depending upon what you are doing and where you are. Lynn Valley is slow paced but downtown obviously is fast paced. One more thing, people in BC are a bit outdoor-ish and on any sunny day you will find them exercising or just running around. Take it in stride. I personally never did AirBnB in Vancouver so I do not know how good it is. I did it in Victoria BC and it was easy here. I got one in Chinatown in Victoria BC and it was an entire small studio apartment for one week. In Vancouver, my employer arranged for a serviced apartment for me to live for 30-45 days while I searched for an apartment. It was a part of my relocation package.

If you want really laid back life, move to Vancouver Island -- its retirees paradise.

That being said. BC has another name, its called Bring Cash. You need money, lots of it. Its pretty expensive to live around here. A one month vacation, just be sure you have budgeted it well because money just god damned disappears here. There are ways around it but ultimately, you are living in an expansive part of the world, it catches up with you. Also, if you are visiting Canada, carry a visitor medical insurance because even with PR, your public medical insurance wont kick in for 3 more months. You don't want to be stuck in accident with no money in pocket. Also, even after having insurance, things can get hairy... some hospitals --especially ones belonging island health-- do not do cashless bill settlement. What it means is, you will have to pay in cash and then insurer will refund you. Yes, it sucks and can totally fuck you over. I do not know if hospitals in Vancouver do cashless direct billing. Check on it. You don't want to end up with 3-4 thousand bill with your hospital billing counter insisting on credit card and not accepting your medical insurance.

Also, mostly in BC, there are no bad places to live if you like open spaces, sunshine and nature. Every damned neighbourhood has parks. Many have sea shore. The only thing that is typically missing are sandy beaches but if you know where to look even those are not far. Only thing you have to work on is your job and possibly what you want for your family.

The biggest crunch BC is facing are doctors, teachers and general workers. Meaning some parts in BC will have issues with availability of doctors, many schools are facing shortage of teachers and many businesses are operating half staffed. Don't be surprised if you have to line up for paying your purchase as even though there may be 10 counters, there may be just 2 cashiers.

In the end there are things that you will love about BC and Canada and many things you take for granted will be missing. Thing like immediate access to an specialist doctor, things like immediate access to a plumber or a handyman to fix some part of your house, things like getting medicines on the counter, things like house help. I shit you not, I had an ancient oven to clean and I had to take appointment with cleaning lady who said she will visit me 10 days later. She cancelled appointment at the last minute due to some personal emergency. After one month of fruitless waiting around, I got the necessary tools and supplies and cleaned the oven myself over 3 days on a long weekend -- it was horrible. Meaning, you need to get handy in these parts, manual labour is in short supply.
 
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Rkb94

Hero Member
Jul 22, 2021
402
378
If you plan to bring in any goods from your home country, you should declare "goods to follow". If not, then no.
My parents will be sending some of my stuff that I could not fit into my luggage, it's not valuable stuff though just some sketchbooks, books, colours etc. Do I need to declare these as well?