Questions about Newfoundland & Labrador? (sales, crime rates, how much)
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Could you please tell me about Newfoundland and Labrador?
I have recently applied for an immigration visa and I have fallen in love with Newfoundland's scenery. But I need to know more to live in NL.
How are the people?
I tried to find answers about the unemployment rates in NL on the internet but they were answered like 2 years ago. Are people still having difficulties to find a job there? I am a french teacher and my husband is an electronics technician. What do you think? Can I find a job in a school? Can he find a job?
What is the weather usually like in NL? Especially in St John's?
Are there any wild animals I can come across?
Is it a suitable place to raise children?
Are there any universities and if there are, are they good, how do they rank?
Is Newfoundland safe? How are the crime rates?
How much do a family of four need per month to live modestly?
Are there any shopping malls?
Thank you very much in advance. I appreciate your help.
People from Newfoundland are notoriously known to be friendly and welcoming.
Unemployment rate in NL for August was 15.6%, which is higher than most other provinces (Ontario was 9.4% in August). Source (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/subjects-sujets/labour-travail/lfs-epa/t090904a3-eng.htm - broken link)
Yes, from what I've heard, it's not difficult to come across wild animals outside of St. John's, and it seems to be a fine place to raise children. Memorial University is a large/popular university in St. John's.
I've lived in St. John's the past 21 years. It is by far the best place in my opinion to raise a family. It is an extremely safe place to live, there's practically no crime, even in the "worst" neighbourhoods it's not scary in the least. The people here are very friendly and welcoming. A big problem is the weather. I'm sat here now looking out the window at +++ rain and fog. Summers are generally short but nice while they last! Winters are milder in comparison to other Canadian winters, however they are very long. There are shopping malls! There's the Avalon Mall, the Village Mall and several other shopping areas (ex: Stavanger Drive) in the St. John's area. Other malls throughout the rest of NFLD too.
Friendliest people you'll meet anywhere
Job potential can be found on the many online job sites,like this one= Search Jobs. Find Employment. Look for Work & a Career | Monster.com
Summer weather is nice mid 70's to 80's,spring and fall equally nice but a bit cooler,winter = snow usually the wet heavy stuff as the surounding ocean tends to keep the climate from the -20's and -30s
Great place to raise kids.
no idea how the universities rank but they are there
I'd say St john's is a very safe city to live as crime rates are negligible
How much to live on? thats relative but a lot of people do just fine between $3000-$4000 total income,some of the outlying areas do it for a lot less.
I'm not sure this isn't to old to reply but I too, have been wanting to travel to St. John's sometime. Can anyone from there give us your views on how living there, working/going to school, bars, entertainment, etc. is? Thanks alot, as I'm trying to interest my g/f to travel to see it soon but as of yet haven't done so.
I'm not sure this isn't to old to reply but I too, have been wanting to travel to St. John's sometime. Can anyone from there give us your views on how living there, working/going to school, bars, entertainment, etc. is? Thanks alot, as I'm trying to interest my g/f to travel to see it soon but as of yet haven't done so.
The transit system is pretty bad, so having a car is highly recommended if you live outside of the old downtown core. People are friendly, but property can be pretty expensive, especially taking into account the salaries that most people make. (Expensive property is a relatively new phenomenon and it's directly related to the rise of the offshore oil and gas industry in Newfoundland.)
Sometimes, you have to shop around a bit to save money when looking for groceries. Prices at the Sobey's chain in particular can be eye-poppinginly expensive for certain items. If you find yourself balking at the price of something at Sobey's, then you might be well advised to put the items in your cart or your basket back where you found them and make tracks for Dominion. Also, compared to Arizona, beer, wine, liquor and gasoline cost a lot more, and the sales tax is higher.
There's no way to dance around the following matter, and some locals may object to the way that I characterize it, but the weather is awful. While it's not as bad as the -40℉ that places on the Canadian Prairies see in the depths of winter, it's perfectly abhorrent in its own way. St. John's is the snowiest, the foggiest, the wettest and the windiest of Canada's principal cities. The weather isn't fun. Summer is normally an abbreviated six-to-eight week period when the weather can be tolerable, if not pleasant, but then the rest of the year, it can be very cool and inclement. St. John's may be populated by people with warm hearts, but its weather is cold.
Despite the generally bad weather, people do get out a fair bit. Going to pubs and listening to live music are both very popular activities. There is also an active local art scene if you're into that kind of stuff.
The local university is reasonably well regarded for science, engineering, medicine, allied health disciplines (pharmacy and nursing) and undergraduate commerce. There are other faculties and schools, including arts, music, education and social work. I believe that the School of Music is well-respected, but I don't know much about it. Arts can be hit or miss depending on the discipline and education was historically sought out by people from away as much as those from Newfoundland, if only because it used to be so difficult to get into teacher's college in Ontario. That may or may not be the case nowadays.
Coming from Arizona, Newfoundland would be a huge shock on may levels. I'd try to spend a good two or three weeks in St. John's before making any decision about whether it would be a good fit if I were you. Be forewarned that plane tickets to St. John's don't normally come cheap and accommodations can be pricey once you get there.
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