9 Tips For Canadian Expats Making The Move to London
Moving from Canada to London can be a wonderful experience. Many of your countrymen have successfully made the move, and you can too. However, unless you hail from one of the large Canadian cities, moving to London can sometimes make you feel that you’ve not simply changed countries, but have stepped into another world!
So with this in mind, here are 9 top tips for Canadian expats moving to London:
1. Get used to being thought of as American
Yes, you know you’re from Canada, but to the British, most of them are going to mistake your accent for that of the US. It’s not that people are being disrespectful, it’s that they genuinely can’t distinguish between the two accents.
Of course, once you correct said person as to your real country of origin, this opens up a whole world of conversation about your homeland, as many people have far less knowledge about Canada than they do about the US. And it sure can be fun to educate…
2. Join the Canadians in London Facebook group
For anyone hankering for a little bit of home, the Canadians in London Facebook group can be a great place to go. You can catch up on the latest hockey news, as well as news from home. Plus you can interact with other Canadians who are experiencing life in capital city as well.
3. Get ready for a whole different coffee experience
If coffee to you means nipping into the nearest Tim Horton’s, then you’re going to be in for a big surprise. Coffee in London is now more of an art than simply a hot beverage. There are many big coffee house chains all over London. Costa, Starbucks, Caffé Nero are just a few. Of course, you can also go for a regular white coffee (with milk), or a black coffee (the same, but without the milk…).
If you’re a coffee aficionado, be sure to get loyalty cards from all the above, as this can add up to substantial savings, with a free coffee being awarded on every tenth cup.
4. Experience the Sunday roast
In London (and indeed the whole of the UK), it’s traditional to eat a roast dinner on Sunday. This calorific meal consists of meat (traditionally beef, but nowadays chicken, lamb and pork are also substituted), roast potatoes, various vegetables, Yorkshire pudding (a suet pudding) and all of it drenched in deliciously thick gravy. It’s filling and warming, and you’ll find all kind of restaurants and eating establishments turning their whole dining menu into a roast dinner on Sundays.
5. There are seasons, but not quite like those back home
If there’s one thing Canadians are good at coping with, then it’s the cold, ice and snow. So there’s nothing that the infamous London weather could throw at you that you couldn’t handle – right? Errr, no – definitely wrong. Because in London, one weather aspect that you’ll get to grips with straight away is that this is one damp climate. And dampness is a type of cold that is nothing like the crisp and dry cold that you’re used to at home.
You’ll soon understand the British obsession with the weather, thanks to the incredible speed with which it can change. Some of the most reliable weather forecasts for London and the UK can be found on BBC Weather and the Met Office websites.
6. Learn to enjoy the washing machine in the kitchen
This is one thing that most people find quite weird when they move to the UK. But it’s completely usual for most kitchens to be home to the washing machine (and even the tumble dryer, in some cases). Once you get used to it, you may even come to think that it makes perfect sense (or at least it won’t seem quite so strange once you come to terms with the fact that you can make a cup of coffee and wash your smalls at the same time).
7. Meet up with fellow countrymen
However much you love your new adopted country, sometimes there’s no beating a bit of native company. The website, Meet Up has some great Canada specific groups. The largest of these is a group of over 2,300 Canadian expats in the ‘London Expat Canadian Meetup Group’, who meet up at least twice every month. They also hold various events throughout the year around the London. It’s a great way to meet and socialise with folks from back home.
8. Begin an obsession with tea…
… Because in the UK, virtually everyone drinks it. You can start off with the usual English Breakfast Tea – so named because you drink it with the first meal of the day. Everyone develops a preference for how they take their tea: strong, weak, plenty of milk, just a dash… It’s all a question of taste. And then, if you become brave, you can move onto some of the other teas available, such as Earl Grey or the smoky taste of Lapsang Souchong.
9. And for the ladies:
Join the Canadian Women’s Club. This group of over 200 members has been around in London since 1932. It was set up by two friends who had a dream about starting a club to link up Canadian women in the UK. And their ethos since then has changed little, with the club providing social gatherings for ladies, as well as having a great humanitarian cause. During WW2, the CWC formed the backbone of the Canadian Red Cross.
Today, they club supports the Canadian Centennial Scholarship Fund and the Veteran’s Support Committee through The Maple Leaf Trust, a well-known charity of the Canadian community in the UK.
If you don’t want to join, you can still support by attending the many events the club organizes throughout the year (and that includes men, as well as women). If you choose to join, membership costs from £20 (for non-voting members living outside London and the Home Counties) to £75 per annum for full membership.