I’m often asked, “do you like it in Canada?” While the first couple of weeks were logistically challenging, we’ve done a good job adjusting, I think. We're almost half way through our work permit/visa now. To answer the question, yes I do like living in Canada. I like the people, I like the pace, I like our home and I do like our life here.
Don’t get me wrong – we liked our life in Naperville too. We made great friends, the kids went to really good public schools and it was a wonderful place to raise our kids when they were younger. They had access to unbelievable sports opportunities, music classes and more. They made really good friends. Most of them still live in Naperville and some of them have also moved away. But we were running around a lot. It was hard to have family time when there were times we felt like we lived in a commune. There was no anonymity.
I remember a summer night, just a few weeks before we knew about this move, Paul called me from New York City. He was in Time Square or someplace busy and he said he noticed all the kids taking public transportation and enjoying the city and he said, “Can you imagine kids in Naperville doing this?” Not really. We drove them everywhere, even to a friend’s house in the neighborhood. Kids didn’t readily use public transportation. Okay, mainly because it was not that available. But because they didn’t have to. Danielle takes a train, to a subway, to a bus each day to school here in Montreal. And she does the same thing coming home and in all kinds of weather. Is she more adjusted? Yes. Will this experience help her in the future? Yes. Is her schooling in Canada better than it would be in Naperville? That’s hard to say – but it’s just different.
We have more time at home as a family. We have more meals at home. We have different experiences. We're learning French. We're learning about Canada. We're in a culturally diverse city. We live 15 minutes from the airport. We've made new friends. The kids are happy. The dog is happy. We are happy.
It’s a slower pace and I have to say, it’s a welcome pace.
