A typical scenario - you land in Toronto International Airport and you probably would check into a hotel or maybe you would be picked up by relatives or friends. After a few days, you'll be raring to go. I'm sure your relatives or friends are working people and would therefore not be able to "cater" to your needs as fully as possible. Weekends would probably be free for them, however, you would already have lost time and money by 'waiting around'……

Job Hunting:
Unless you have secured a job before you left for Canada, you will be going to the Canadian Employment Centres, where jobs are posted on boards and you will be joining the queue like all the other Canadians looking for jobs. It may take a while… or perhaps you could try temporary jobs.

House Hunting:
Where do you determine which is a relatively safe place for yourself and your family? It is by trial and error, asking around (which takes time) and you wouldn't really know which part of town to avoid - again, unless you ask around. When looking for a home, you may need short-term accommodation. Motels and hotels are in the range of Cdn.$500 - Cdn. $1,200 per week. If you have kids, you will be dragging them along with you and we all know how exhausting that will be for you as well as your kids. Unless of course, you have a babysitter…..

Schools:
If you have kids of school age, it may not be so difficult for you since you will be able to obtain information either from the University, College or school guide which is obtainable from the Canadian embassy. However, you may not know how it relates in distance to where you want to live or where your job may be.

If you're a student who will be staying on campus, your accommodations would probably have been pre-arranged. If not, then where would you live? As a parent, I know I would want to make sure that my child is in a safe part of town.