UK 2 Canada, questions questions!!

kpnut

New Member
Jan 16, 2007
12
0
1
Wales UK
My family and i are hopefully moving to Lloydminster from the UK towards the end of this year ( depending on how fast we can sell our house!!). Could anybody tell us whether or not we will be able to use any of our electrical goods from the UK in Canada? Plus at what age do children start kindergarten and school? Our kids are aged 3 and 5, but our daughter will be turning 6 in November.
At what age are you allowed to learn to drive? We were told that you are able to drive at 14!!
Tips on arriving in North Alberta in the middle of winter. Having lots of snow is going to be such a novelty for us.
Any advice on moving and settling in would be gratefully recieved. Thanks:blob3:
 

hermanntrude

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Jun 23, 2006
7,267
118
63
45
Newfoundland!
My family and i are hopefully moving to Lloydminster from the UK towards the end of this year ( depending on how fast we can sell our house!!). Could anybody tell us whether or not we will be able to use any of our electrical goods from the UK in Canada? Plus at what age do children start kindergarten and school? Our kids are aged 3 and 5, but our daughter will be turning 6 in November.
At what age are you allowed to learn to drive? We were told that you are able to drive at 14!!
Tips on arriving in North Alberta in the middle of winter. Having lots of snow is going to be such a novelty for us.
Any advice on moving and settling in would be gratefully recieved. Thanks:blob3:

Hi

I moved from the UK to alberta last year. I can answer the first question for you:

My desktop PC was one of my luggage items, and after switching the switch at the back to "110V" I could then just plug it in (with the help of some new power cables, since the plugs are different here) and it works just fine. The other electrical item I brought was a shaver, which is already designed to work on 110V (the freaky shaver plugs you get in bathrooms in the UK are a different voltage to our usual one). I think most items will need some kind of transformer, though, or might not work, since some items are designed to only work on one voltage. I'm not sure but you may be able to get an adapter of some kind which gives a british output.

As for kids, I ought to know but i dont. same with driving.

As for the winter, i'm not sure what lloydminster is like in winter but edmonton hits -30°C sometimes, and the best tip is to wear lots of layers and always be prepared for the cold. Sometimes you need a face-covering garment if it's a bit windy or you're walking a long way. Cars need to be warmed up a bit before you drive them. You can get special heaters which you plug into the electrical socket or you can just run the engine for a while before u take it anywhere. Watch the ice, cos it'll probably have you falling on your arse at least once. Weirdly the cold isnt as cold as the cold in the UK... probably because it's dryer here. try to get out during the winter into the countryside and see if you can spot the northern lights.... they're beautiful.
 

kpnut

New Member
Jan 16, 2007
12
0
1
Wales UK
Thanks for your advice and im so pleased about being able to bring my PC with me, especially for keeping in touch with family and friends.
Wow they start school alot later than here in Wales. Pre-school starts here from the age of 2 up until they start school just after their 4th birthday. The pre-school is optional though.
We just hope the quality of family life is better over there than we seem to get over here. Thanks once again.
 

Twila

Nanah Potato
Mar 26, 2003
14,698
73
48
We just hope the quality of family life is better over there than we seem to get over here.

Depends on what you mean by quality of family life.
 
May 28, 2007
3,866
67
48
Honour our Fallen
Thanks for your advice and im so pleased about being able to bring my PC with me, especially for keeping in touch with family and friends.
Wow they start school alot later than here in Wales. Pre-school starts here from the age of 2 up until they start school just after their 4th birthday. The pre-school is optional though.
We just hope the quality of family life is better over there than we seem to get over here. Thanks once again.


yeah the quality of life in the loyd....dandy little place...think colonial oil town in the boonies...on the other hand you won't be useing a lot of gas to get around town.....lol....we're a year and half off corrination street over here...Frankie just slept with her son....
 

kpnut

New Member
Jan 16, 2007
12
0
1
Wales UK
Quality family life...... here inthe UK my husband is away all week coz he is a truck driver and we only get to spend sunday together as a family. The job he has been offered in Lloydminster would mean he is home every night plus after working 7 days he would get 3 days off. When we have visited Canada you guys seem to be very family oriented.
We currently live in a small village of approx. 100 people which has an antique shop and a camping shop, the nearest town is 10 min drive away.
 

karrie

OogedyBoogedy
Jan 6, 2007
27,780
285
83
bliss
Hello, and welcome to the forum!

I see Hermann's told you what you likely need to know about the electrical side of things. lol.

As for the kids, your daughter will most likely go into grade one, and your younger child will start kindergarten at 5 years old.

Learner's permits are granted as early as 14 years old, but children are only able to drive with a grown up then. At 16, they can get their driver's license, but it is a graduated licensing system which at first does not allow them to drive at night, or with more than one passenger.

Alberta in the winter can be a real shock if you arrive in the midst of it. Lots of layers, as Hermann said, are necessary. And I'd HIGLY recommend that, when buying boots for your children, you buy boots with removable liners. Wet boots do not dry quickly, and being able to take the liners out helps a ton. Snow in clothing is the biggest source of misery with young kids, so you want skipants that come up in a bib, not ones that end at their waist. They should also have an elasticised cuff where they snap over top their boots. Coats also need elasticised cuffs inside, and you should make sure that when the coat is on, their gloves go a ways past the inside of that cuff. I even go so far as to pay extra for the winter coats with an elasticized waist liner, that keeps snow and breezes out further. SEARS is good for snow proof coats and skipants.

Buy at least 2 toques(knit caps), scarves, and mitts for each child, as they have a pesky way of going missing and are absolutely vital.

Best of luck!


Plus at what age do children start kindergarten and school? Our kids are aged 3 and 5, but our daughter will be turning 6 in November.
At what age are you allowed to learn to drive? We were told that you are able to drive at 14!!
Tips on arriving in North Alberta in the middle of winter. Having lots of snow is going to be such a novelty for us.
Any advice on moving and settling in would be gratefully recieved. Thanks:blob3:
 

Hazmart

Council Member
Sep 29, 2007
2,265
32
48
Hi,
I just moved to Lloydminster myself this month, it has been quite a transition even though I just moved from Saskatoon! My hubby has been working here for a couple years and likes it here. If you have any questions about the town itself just let me know! Best of luck.
 

kpnut

New Member
Jan 16, 2007
12
0
1
Wales UK
Thanks for all the replys.
My son turned 3 in July and has been going to pre-school since he was 2 1/2 years old and it would be helpful if to know if there are any play groups that we would be able to go. Mainly for the socialising and making new friends for him and myself. My daughter will be going to school so she will be meeting plenty of new people but i dont want my son to feel isolated. Thanks Kate
 

Lester

Council Member
Sep 28, 2007
1,062
12
38
63
Ardrossan, Alberta
Everybody has told you aboutb the cold , but there are chinooks -weather systems that roll over the mountains from the south pacific it could be -30 one day and plus 15 the next- it's neat to see people walking around in their tee shirts with 2 ft of snow on the ground
 

kpnut

New Member
Jan 16, 2007
12
0
1
Wales UK
That sounds much better than continuous damp weather like over here. If its not rain its fog!! Will be nice to have snow over the christmas holidays:lol: We would all move tomorrow if we could but first we have to sell our house and the market over here is really slow at the moment. Fingers crossed that things get moving soon. :smile: