I moved to Canada?

Dear friends, 

I have moved to Canada! Okay maybe to say “move” is a bit dramatic but I will be here temporary for an extended period of time. Two months to be exact. The longest I’ve been on “holiday” is about a month in the Philippines so two months feels like I am actually moving to a place. Besides, it’s not going to be my typical holiday where I go gallivanting to strange new places (on my own). In fact, I’ve been in Canada for a couple of weeks now and I have not done much travelling. 

So why am I exactly here? The main reason is family. I am needed here in Toronto and being a recent graduate, I am conveniently unemployed. Ha! Initially, I wanted to be here for only a month but I felt staying longer will give me more chances to spend time with my family as well as to give myself some free time here and there. I also thought it might be a good opportunity to relax, digest the fact that I am now an unemployed graduate (Ha again), and start planning for the next chapter of my life. 

What exactly have I done so far? Well...I have been underneath the CN tower but never on top, pretended to be a student at the uni which people actually fell for, tried and hated the ever ubiquitous Tim Hortons, passed by China town, went on a cruise around but never landed on centre island, had my first drive-in theatre experience and nearly froze to death and well honestly that was it so far. I also had a few shopping experiences here and there which I enjoyed despite not purchasing anything due to my current appalling financial situation.

And can we please talk about how the “streets” (not roads) seem to run from one end of Canada.  I am unashamed to say that I have recently started playing Pokemon Go again (peer pressure I swear) and my heart sinks every time I play because of how void my surroundings are of stops and gyms. Now, I know enough of world geography to know that Canada is the second largest country in the world but it’s actually so different to feel and experience that vastness. I am constantly flabbergasted by how far away everything is!

With London (where I live), there’s something charming about the sprawling alleyways, the endless curiosities at every corner despite all the grime and dirt. It’s the kind of charm that breeds stories like Harry Potter and The Infernal Devices. In Canada, there's loads of empty spaces and hardly nothing in between. It’s not extremely horrid and I haven’t been to many places yet. It’ll just take a while to get used to and I am excited to see what kind of tale it inspires.