Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I immigrated toCanada 10 years ago, live in GTA (not Toronto) and I find people in Toronto much friendlier ond more polite than in US ( I visited numerous States)
I immigrated toCanada 10 years ago, live in GTA (not Toronto) and I find people in Toronto much friendlier ond more polite than in US ( I visited numerous States)
I absolutely love those lists, because of course I would rather live in Ottawa than Paris, Barcelona and London
Maybe these "Quality of life" lists work for some people, but for those of us that want a little more in a city than "QOL" (whatever the hell that means) will look elsewhere for guidance.
As far as the people in TO are concerned, it is just like any other place on earth, Nice people mixed in with not so nice people. I never understand why people have to be overboard polite any ways. If you need total strangers to be "nice" and "Polite" to you constantly then you really need to get a life. Happiness comes from the people you care about (You family and friends). I could care less if my barista at Starbucks every morning is nice to me or not, I just want my drink made properly.
Just to be clear-This is not directed to you MapleLeaf, just speaking in general.
I absolutely love those lists, because of course I would rather live in Ottawa than Paris, Barcelona and London
Maybe these "Quality of life" lists work for some people, but for those of us that want a little more in a city than "QOL" (whatever the hell that means) will look elsewhere for guidance.
As far as the people in TO are concerned, it is just like any other place on earth, Nice people mixed in with not so nice people. I never understand why people have to be overboard polite any ways. If you need total strangers to be "nice" and "Polite" to you constantly then you really need to get a life. Happiness comes from the people you care about (You family and friends). I could care less if my barista at Starbucks every morning is nice to me or not, I just want my drink made properly.
Just to be clear-This is not directed to you MapleLeaf, just speaking in general.
I would rather live in Toronto than Paris, Barcelona and London... and better if I'd visit Paris, Barcelona and London as a tourist...
I find people very polite but reserved and antisocial. Most people do not want to make new friends but may talk to you for a couple of minutes with a faint smile.
Quote:
Originally Posted by 123syl
I was just wondering what people in Toronto were like. I would like to visit Toronto and I was wondering what I should expect.
I absolutely love those lists, because of course I would rather live in Ottawa than Paris, Barcelona and London
Maybe these "Quality of life" lists work for some people, but for those of us that want a little more in a city than "QOL" (whatever the hell that means) will look elsewhere for guidance.
Absolutely agree with you.
I remember Kingston, ON was also rated the most livable city in Canada.
Those three cities you mentioned, I'd die to live in one of them for a couple of years
Ottawa, no offense, I will never consider living there.
I am not sure these cities represent the best quality of life in North America. Could you please post the methodology they used to calculate the indices? I could not find it from the mercer website.
Do they take into account salary, taxes,fees, cost of housing and how well the cities are run?. I don't think these cities are the best run cities in North America. I could think of places like Salt Lake City and Denver that offer a better living standard with less taxes, cheaper housing and comparable income.
I am not sure these cities represent the best quality of life in North America. Could you please post the methodology they used to calculate the indices? I could not find it from the mercer website.
Do they take into account salary, taxes,fees, cost of housing and how well the cities are run?. I don't think these cities are the best run cities in North America. I could think of places like Salt Lake City and Denver that offer a better living standard with less taxes, cheaper housing and comparable income.
I am sure cost and tax burdern were not a factor in these rankings.
I immigrated toCanada 10 years ago, live in GTA (not Toronto) and I find people in Toronto much friendlier ond more polite than in US ( I visited numerous States)]
LOL. I have had the opposite experience. I've been to 46 US states and overall I found people there friendlier than people from the GTA. But I've also found people from the Maritimes and the prairies much friendlier than Torontonians. Don't get me wrong, I liked living in Toronto, but I just didn't love it. Just me personally; I prefer smaller cities and I don't miss the DVP and the Gardiner during rush hour and I don't miss the 401. Period. I love Ottawa and Montreal in the summer and I wish I could afford Vancouver.
People are nice. Just be street smart and careful. Have a nice time
Careful? It's probably one of the safest if not the safest city in North America. Maybe Torontonians are too careful if anything? In US cities we have good reason to avoid people because the crime rate is exponentially higher, yet we don't let that dictate how we live our lives.
I live near Toronto and visit often. The people I know in T.O. do seem to have much smaller social circles. Many are not happy about it either. There is a lot of introversion and there are reasons for it.
The city's biggest strength is also it's biggest weakness. DIVERSITY!
There is no common culture in Toronto. It's a large collection of people segregated by culture. Yes there are exceptions to this rule but people of similar cultures stick together and it goes beyond ethnicity. It seems that people who have lived in T.O. their whole lives, have their own cliques and do not stray to far from them when meeting new people. People new to the city share the same feelings and have the same problems. Especially if they are from small towns. Those that stay seem to make friends easiest with other transplants who share their culture and in this case pain. The same holds true for internationals who share a common first language ect.
Being the overly reserved lot that they are, people in this city tend to avoid expending the effort of building relationships with others unless they know that a person shares their culture and common interests. People tend to stay in their own social boundaries. There is nothing wrong with this. They are generally wonderful, tolerant, and accommodating people to a fault. They will let you have your own cultural idiosyncrasies but will ignore you if you do not seem like someone who would fit well as a friend. In a fast paced city with so many other options for socialization, this decision is frequently made too quickly. Nobody is perfect.
I am not from T.O. but even I feel that random people approaching me on the street are bothersome. When that happens I am just waiting for them to ask me for money or try to sell me something. If you are trying to meet people on the street, they usually have places to go and people to see. Trying to take part in an organized group like on meetup or through a community organization is probably a better bet. Toronto really is socially rigid and you have to use the right channels to find your place. The good news is that if you do there is no need to live in isolation lol! Just a little harder but challenges are fun.
To be honest I hear the same complaints about west coast cities, except they smile and humor you with meaningless conversation first. Then they ignore you. Slightly longer decision time, same end result. Relationships take work espically new ones, no matter where you are.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
