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In this post, I will review 26 good things about Canada compared to the life I had when I was in my country, Chile.
When you have the opportunity to visit or live in another country, it is inevitable to compare and see what is better in one or another.
We are going to review 26 things that, according to our personal experience, stand out from Canada and that maybe can awaken in you the desire to explore this country.
Table of Contents
4. Minimum Wage
6. Health care
7. Weather
8. Sports
10. Green areas
11. Clean air
13. Oceans and lakes
18. Crime rates
20. People do not give their opinion about your body
22. People apologize
25. Big country
26. Food
1. Multicultural country
When you migrate to Canada, you meet people from all over the world with different beliefs, religions, languages, etc.
I have already mentioned that I have a coworker from India, and I love to have conversations with her about her country.
The richness of all the people living in Canada is incredible.
This country is so open to migration that people from all over the world come here and live in harmony.
2. Multiple programs
As I mentioned, this country welcomes immigrants from different parts of the world yearly.
They even set goals on how many immigrants they will receive. For example, in 2022, the goal is to receive 431,645 immigrants.
The good thing is that it is increasing; by essential 2023, they plan to receive 447,055 immigrants and 451,000 immigrants in 2024.
For more details, you can visit this official website with information on why immigration is important for Canada.
There are so many programs; I encourage you to visit the only official website Canada.ca and find the program that fits your profile.
I came to Canada with the Working Holiday program and am planning to get permanent residence through the Canadian Experience Class.
Some come as students and allow their husband/wife/partner to work full time.
You can apply online from your home country and come to Canada with permanent residence.
3. Official languages
Canada has two official languages: English and French.
If you obtain permanent residence, you have the benefits of learning French, especially in the provinces where French is more spoken (Quebec, for example).
Imagine, if you have children, all the possibilities open up for them if they can speak not one but two languages.
4. Minimum wage
I know that Chile has a better minimum wage than other Latin American countries, but it is still about $500 per month.
In Canada, you can earn your salary per hour or as an annual salary.
The minimum wage depends on the province. According to updated information, I found while researching for this post; this is the minimum wage in Canadian dollars in each province and territory per hour:
Ontario: $15.50
Quebec: $14.25
Manitoba: $13.50
Saskatchewan: $13.00
British Columbia: $15.65
New Brunswick: $13.75
Prince Edward Island: $13.70
Nova Scotia $13.60
Alberta: $15.00
Newfoundland and Labrador: $13.70
Northwest Territories: $15.20
Nunavut: $16.00
Yukon: $15.70
This is the source I got the information from, so for more up-to-date information, you can check it.
5. Trades are well valued
What we know as trades are well valued in Canada.
I am referring to jobs that are more manual or require skills learned on the job.
You can have a professional or a trade job here in Canada, and both are treated well.
Depending on the level of experience, the salaries are pretty similar.
For example, plumbers, mechanics, and construction workers are well paid. I found this article with interesting information that can serve as a guide.
6. Health care
I know, I know... this is free, but not free. Since we pay taxes out of our salaries, that is how healthcare is funded.
Knowing that...if you need any care from a health standpoint, you go to the doctor and present your health card, and they will take care of you.
However, dentists and ophthalmologists are not covered. Usually, that coverage is given to you by the company where you work.
Here you can find details on how to get a health card in Ontario with a work permit.
7. The weather
Believe it or not, Canada has four seasons and believes me, they are beautiful and well defined.
The winter is long, and the summer is shorter, but it exists four seasons, and as there are many green areas, each one is very noticeable.
8. Sports
Each season has its sport, and you can see people practicing in the parks.
There are sports that I didn't commonly see in my country like ice hockey, baseball and winter sports like ice skating, snowshoeing and more.
You can enjoy and learn about something you didn't know.
9. Heating system
As I mentioned in point 7, there are four seasons, and winter is long, but...
I have felt colder in Chile than in Canada. Although the temperatures are much colder here, everything is set up to keep you warm.
Buses, offices and houses are fully equipped with a heating system to keep you warm.
In addition, when there is snow, it is removed by people with special equipment, so in a couple of hours you can go out again.
So don't be afraid and come and enjoy the winter.
In other seasons that we have lived, we have received profuse rains, and there is no flooding in the city, which is something that in Santiago, Chile, was always a problem.
10. Green areas
This is something that has us mesmerized. What beautiful parks there are in this city.
We live in Mississauga and never get tired of discovering a new park every week.
You can check out my compilation of 14 parks to visit in Mississauga for you to enjoy this summer or winter.
And you can explore 14 reasons to live in Mississauga, Ontario.
11. Clean air
I had not seen smog in Mississauga, as we saw it in Santiago when we were in a high place to see it.
That dark cloud of smog is not present here.
12. Beautiful landscapes
Canada is a big country, and so far we have visited a couple of cities, but they are beautiful.
There are not enough words to describe it.
13. Oceans and lakes
Unlike Chile, which has access to the Pacific Ocean all along the coast, Canada has access to the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and lakes.
So you can choose where you want to go according to your preferences.
14. Good infrastructure
We have enjoyed many activities prepared by the city for the community.
The parks have good infrastructure for children, and this place is family-friendly.
There are bike paths and trails available all over the place, and they are in good condition.
15. Public Transportation
Nothing is better than waiting for the bus in the middle of winter and having it arrive when it says it will come.
I find the system to be punctual and connected.
For more than a year in Canada, all our trips were by bus or train, as we had no car.
We recently purchased a used car, and you can see the process of buying your first car in this post.
16. Importance of family time/vacation
This is a priority for Canadians. They respect their time off so much that it is crazy.
I rarely took vacations in Chile (don't do this) so as not to impact the company or because there were problems.
I have learned that what is important is our family and our mental health.
17. 40 hours per week
In Chile, we have to work 45 hours per week. In Canada, it's only 40 hours per week.
18. Crime rates
Canada is considered one of the safest countries in the world. I found this information in the Global Peace Index Map, where you can see the difference between countries.
The lower the score, the more peaceful the country is. For example, in a list of 163 countries, Canada appears at number 10 and Chile at 49.
I also checked the crime rate and compared it with my country here.
In this case, Canada appears with 41.89 events per 100,000 inhabitants (Ranking 82) and Chile with 53.42 events per 100,000 inhabitants (Ranking 41).
19. Use of piercings/tattoos
In my country, it is still frowned upon in some places for someone to have a face piercing, a tattoo or even hair of a different colour.
Here that is not even a topic of discussion. Those elements are part of your personality, and no one will tell you that you have to take them off for an interview or if you work in an office.
I got my nose pierced, and Aldo has long hair and an ear-piercing, and that's fine. It's cool, isn't it?
20. People don't give their opinion about your body
At least in Chile, you get comments about how fat you are, how sick you look, why you are so thin, etc.
Here people understand that it's none of their business and don't bother you with any comments. What a relief...
21. It is safe to walk outside of construction.
This is special for women.
In Chile, when a woman walks outside a construction site, men always shout "piropos" and things nobody asks for. This is uncomfortable.
In Canada, that doesn't happen. You can walk outside the building, and it's quiet. No one will say anything to you.
22. People apologize
You may have heard Canadians always apologize, even when they are not to blame for the situation.
This is nice, in my country this is not common at all.
23. Nobody touches you in the subway
This is a big difference. People respect your space and do not touch you in the subway.
If there is not enough space for them to take the subway, they will wait for the next one.
And if someone accidentally touches your arm, for example, they apologize.
Nobody invades your personal space.
24. Close to the United States and the Caribbean
Another advantage for the United States and Caribbean fans is that if you live in Canada, you are closer to travelling to Disneyland, Miami or for vacation wherever you want to go.
25. Big Country
This country is vast; there are always places to visit.
We have travelled a lot this year in Canada, but we have been all the time in one province (Ontario), and we went for one week to Montreal, in the province of Quebec and another week to Vancouver/Victoria in British Columbia.
So we still have a lot left to do.
26. Food
You can try food from everywhere, as there are many immigrants and restaurants worldwide.
You can visit places you wouldn't have had the opportunity to see elsewhere.
And you, is there any reason why you are still on the fence to decide to create your plan to move to Canada?