Starting over

“It’ll be just like starting over – starting over”

John Lennon

Wow!

This has been quite a week. Having stripped our lives right back to the bone in the UK before we departed those shores we are now frantically putting them together again here in Victoria. I don’t know when the relaxation part of retirement is going to kick in, but it sure as heck ain’t gonna be just yet.

The days have thus far been just too busy for me to be able to find the time to post, but this end of (working!) week catch-up will hopefully hold back the rising tide of impatience amongst those readers who want to know just what the devil is going on with the immigrants and homecoming queens here on the Pacific northwest coast.

Well – this is what the Kickass Canada Girl and I have done this week.

We have:

• visited the Victoria Canada Service Centre to acquire for me a Social Insurance Number (SIN). This is necessary should one wish to work in BC or to be able to access other government services.
• been to the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) office to trade our UK driving licences for temporary BC equivalents.
• paid a visit to the bank to set up a chequing account for me and to apply for credit cards.
• commenced our search for somewhere to live (or rather, moved our previous online search onto the real streets of Saanich).
• sent off registration details and applications for Health Insurance Cards (BC Services Cards). Though these will not come into effect for three months (meaning that we had to take out three months travel health cover before setting out) when the cards arrive they can be used as proof of identity to turn our new temporary driving licences into permanent versions.
• completed and posted the application for my UK pension incomes to be taxed in Canada.
• had a meeting with a mortgage broker to get some advice regarding the existing mortgage on the Girl’s son’s condo (apartment).
• been to view – and shortly thereafter to purchase – a convertible for the Girl, to replace the much loved vehicle that had to be traded away just before we left the UK.
• been to view a suitable 4×4 for me. The vehicle concerned had not at that point been staged, so a return trip is on the cards tomorrow.
• viewed yet more houses – including paying a second visit to one that we liked a great deal and on which we subsequently made an offer! At this point we discovered that the real estate market in Canada is just as non-functional as that in the UK, though in different ways. At the point of writing it doesn’t look as though we will actually get this house, but this would appear to be because the vendors – although they have gone to the trouble of listing it – do not actually seem to want to sell it!

Well – I think all might agree that this represents rather a good week’s work. We – at any rate – are quite worn out, though at the same time really somewhat impressed with the progress that has been made.

Phew!

And so to bed…