Repatriate Me!

Yeah the yellow dust is back – wrote about this last year – I am really not going to miss this once I’ve moved back to Canada.

Apr 30, 2011 Comments(0) Tweet

weather - 5 things - korea

Whenever I check into house rentals in Toronto a lot of the listings state that they are near go train stations. Clearly this is different than a subway station. What is a go train?

updating with info from facebook comments

G(overnment) of (O)ntario transit. A system of light rail and buses which bring commuters to and from the TTC system.

Hey Sean. It is the commuter rail that links downtown Toronto to the suburbs. It isn’t part of the subway as it serves municipalities east west and north of Toronto. Usually people take it to Union Station downtown and then are close enough to either walk to work or they then get on the TTC (Toronto transit) to het to the office. Check out gotransit.ca. It is a combination od trains ( double deckers) and buses. Quite convenient and reliable. Check prices for monthly passes, they are tax deductible.

http://www.gotransit.com

Apr 23, 2011 Comments(2) Tweet

traffic - toronto -

BlogTO just posted an article about the best Korean restaurants in Toronto. – Twelve restaurants listed with a mini review of each and a google map to find them all. Looking forward to trying them out once I’ve returned to Canada – will be a couple of months before I go to Korean restaurants I’m sure, but when I do, I hope they taste better than what I had in Vancouver.

Apr 20, 2011 Comments(3) Tweet

food - toronto

Yesterday we had a moving company come to our home and do an estimate for us. The guy first sat down and explained the procedure with some ready made literature which we got to keep. He told us that the estimate is +/- two cubic meters with a basic cost of 1,250,000 ($1142) for the first three cubic meters and an additional 250,000 (us$228) for each additional cubic meter. We then walked around our home saying yes, no, how much to ship this.

Our total including 1 bookcase, the kitchen table and our piano is eight cubic meters. We were told that we would have to pay an additional cdn$100 in Canada for the piano due to it’s size and weight but to us moving the piano is worth it. Basically at 250,000 per cubic meter furniture like sofas and beds is just not worth sending, it’s cheaper/better to buy brand new once you get to your destination. Cost includes door to door.

Since the total cost of the estimate was well under our guesses we decided to go with this company rather than get more estimates. Time saved, decision made, time to move on. We went with Hyundai Shipping and Harry Kim, who did our estimate, spoke very good English and had lived in Vancouver for almost two years. If you wan to contact him directly his business card lists his email as harry at cyhds.com

Moving day is booked for June 15, one week before I leave Korea. The best part is that the company comes to your home and packs everything for you. I am going to pack some of my electronics, such as my drobo, because I still have the original packaging. Even so they take what you’ve packed and place it in their own boxes.

On an unrelated note, it really feels like moving season as four mixed families I know are leaving or planning to leave this summer. Haven’t known so many people to leave Korea at one time since the IMF crisis. ‘Tis the season for moving on.

Apr 16, 2011 Comments(0) Tweet

moving - planning - korea