I Would Be...

 I Would Be...

Life in Serbia

      If my ancestors did not immigrate to Canada I would be living in either England or Serbia. My maternal roots are in England and my paternal roots are in Serbia, I will be focusing on my Serbian roots. 



    Both my grandfather and grandmother immigrated from what was then called Yugoslavia (which is now several independent nations, Serbia being one of them) to Canada. My grandparents reason for leaving Serbia was WWII. My grandmother, Sofija Maodus, lost both of her parents in Divoselo, Yugoslavia. Around this time she also lost her younger brother to the war. After spending 4 years in a refugee camp in Egypt she immigrated to Canada in 1947. My grandfather, Milan Maodus, left Serbia after WWII ended. Before WWII he served with the Yugoslavian Border Guard, during WWII he served with the Chetniks until 1943, then with the Royal Yugoslav Navy PT Boats under British Command until the end of WWII. He then came to Canada to start a better life in a non- war torn country. My grandfather and grandmother met each other in Canada and began their new life together.



One of the boats my grandfather would have fought
on while serving in the Royal Yugoslav Navy.


           If I were living in Serbian today the cost of living would be about 50.22% lower than in Canada. Rent in Serbia is about 75.24% lower than in Canada. The level of crime in Serbia is moderately low, being only 38.24. The healthcare system in Serbia is basically the same as ours, being "free" but having a large amount of our taxes contributing to it. In terms of pollution Serbia has very low levels of air, water, noise, and light pollution. Education in Serbia is also very similar to Canada's, the only differences being children start when they're 7 years of age and graduate at 19 years of age. Serbia has 17 universities, 8 public and 9 private. Serbian citizens can study at public universities for free while the tuition costs for the private universities vary. Overall, life in Serbia wouldn't be drastically different from life in Canada. I hope to one day travel to Serbia to experience the way of life there and learn more about my heritage.

Works Cited

“Education in Serbia.” Wikipedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Serbia>.

“Milan MAODUS Obituary.” Legacy. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2016. <http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/windsorstar/obituary.aspx?n=milan-maodus&pid=19193524>.

Navy Boats. The Auxiliary Navy of the Basque Country. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2016. <http://www.marinavasca.eu/en/ficha-otras-marinas-auxiliares.php?id=43>.

“Quality of Life in Serbia.” Numbeo. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2016. <http://www.numbeo.com/quality-of-life/country_result.jsp?country=Serbia>.

“Serbia, Map.” Enclycopedia Britannica. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2016. <http://www.britannica.com/place/Serbia/images-videos>.

“Sofija MAODUS Obituary.” Legacy. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2016. <http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/windsorstar/obituary.aspx?pid=156891519>.

Following up on my family's roots, Where would i be without immigration

Devon MacLean

Ms. Kurtz

Eng 3U

Thurs, June 9th

Following up on my family's roots

Where would I be without immigration?

 If I had been asked where my family had came from before I took up on my family heritage, I would have said that my maternal roots are in Scotland and my paternal roots are in Quebec. I basically only had a vague idea on both and decided to talk to my grandmother about her mom, who I learned was born in Dundee, Scotland in 1925 and emigrated to Toronto in 1946. My great grandmother Ann Arnott was a war bride and ended up marrying a Canadian soldier by the name of Walter Alexander Hoping for a brighter future in Canada than Scotland had to offer at the time. She came over on a boat called the Queen Mary ship which the prime minister at the time was on (William Mackenzie)


Before starting this project I was rather unaware of why My great grandmother had emigrated from Dundee, Scotland to Toronto, Canada. After further research I learned that my great grandmother was one of 48,000 war brides who met and married Canadian soldiers during the second world war. Many war brides looked at Canada as a place of opportunity especially for my grandmother as Scotland's unemployment rate was higher than ever while Canada at the time had better financial opportunities (Scottishaffairs.com). My grandmother would have been coming back to Canada with her husband at a time of Canada coming out of a 6 year war and a decade of depression which meant Canada was on the rise for the first time in 10 years, filled with mass opportunity and great leaders, there was no wonder everyone wanted to emigrate to Canada which in the time period was also considered the promise land. After getting to Canada Ann became a nurse at the Toronto Grace hospital as for Walter, he worked for the largest manufacturing company in Canada at the time, Massey-ferguson which made things like farm machines and combines plies.



Shortly after Ann adapted to the Canadian lifestyle, her and Walter decided to raise children since Canada was such a suitable place at the time and ended up having three children one being my mom's mother who would live a life of Canadian culture instead of kilts and haggis. Although Ann did not let her children grow up without knowing they're heritage and kept some of the Scottish rituals in order, for instance my uncle got married in a kilt and bagpipes behind him. Some of the major push and pull factors for emigrants coming to Canada would have been. Overall I feel as though my great grandparents made the successful decision on immigrating to Canada but one question in the back of my mind being, what would my life in Dundee, Scotland be like?

Push Factor (Scotland)	Pull Factor (Canada)
Poverty & Unemployment	The ability to have a better life financially
Natural Disasters	Opportunity / future opportunity for children
The land was poor and difficult to grow crops on	Rights & Freedom
Collapse of the social structure in europe	Multicultural

Overall I feel as though my great grandparents made the successful decision on immigrating to Canada but one question in the back of my mind being, what would my life in Dundee, Scotland be like?

After doing some research on Scotland. I've noticed that there are some major differences between economy's, culture, landscape & culture. One thing that would impact my lifestyle is that sport in Scotland is mostly driven to Football, Rugby and golf, where as all my life i have played lacrosse and hockey although the physicality would still be there in the rugby, and i feel as though i could have enjoyed those sports. Another thing is the real estate market. Real estate is much more expensive in Scotland apposed to Canada although Scotland's landscape and architecture is extraordinary and is filled with castles and some of the nicest golf courses known to man. 

 

In conclusion I feel as though my life might have been substantially different to the one I live here in Canada, mainly due to different culture, costs of living, scenery and landscape. Although I will always be a Scotsman at heart.

 

 

Works Cited Page

-"TICR Appeal." TICR Appeal. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 June 2016.

-”Scottish Affairs Law and Medical Negligence Claims Law.” N.p., n.d. Web. 09 June 2016.

-Flack, Derek. "What Industry Used to Look like in Toronto." BlogTO RSS. N.p., 2012. Web. 09 June 2016.

- Barbra MacLean. Personal Interview. June 2016

 



Jacqueline's ISU: "I Would Be..."

Without Immigration:
Hungary, the Country I Would Be Living in

I’ve always wondered where my family came from, why my last name has a unique ‘z’ in it, what my life would have been like if my grandparents never left Hungary. Before starting this project, I knew very little about my grandma, Anna Czibok, and how she emigrated with my grandpa, Vince Czibok, from Hungary to Canada. My knowledge of their emigration ended there, all I knew was they came to Canada before my dad was born. I never knew what their lives were like, what city or town they lived in, what they did for a living, their reasons for leaving, and what they had to leave behind. 


I'm going to focus on their emigration from Hungary to Austria, Germany, Halifax, and 
Quebec before eventually staying in Toronto, Ontario.

This is a map of Hungary, Austria, and Germany. My grandparents were born in Hungary, the light pink area, and then after the war, they passed through Austria, beside Hungary, in the dark orange area, and stayed at a Displaced Person's (D.P) Camp until they emigrated to Germany, the beige area, in order to get on a boat to Halifax, Nova Scotia ("Austria-Hungary").

        After World War II, my grandparents decided to emigrate to Canada after my grandpa fought in the war and Hungary lost. Where they were living was a war zone, people were being killed, bombs were dropping, and my grandparents had to think about the best choice they could make to keep their family alive. Since my grandpa was a soldier on the opposing side of the country taking over, he was at risk of being taken to the German concentration camps. My grandma was raising their child, Helena, she was only 10 years old at the time and they had to think about her as well. Could my grandma of taken care of Helena by herself if he was taken away to die? My grandparents knew if they wanted to keep their family together, they would have to emigrate to a country of opportunity, Canada. 


        Although they knew what the right choice was, going to live in a country that they can have a safe future in, things were still keeping them in Hungary that they eventually chose to leave behind. They didn't have any family or friends in Canada, they didn't speak English, they wouldn't have jobs, or a place to live. They would have to start over. Their biggest pull factor was Helena. She was only 10 years old, she couldn't take care of herself, "she wouldn't know when to run" (Czibok), so her survival rate was considerably low. My grandparents knew that fleeing the country would be difficult with a child, so they chose to leave her behind with my grandpa's brothers, whom weren't soldiers. 


       Not only did my grandparents face push and pull factors while deciding on emigration, they also experienced challenges during and after arriving in Canada. My grandparents emigration was very rough on them, they had to leave their child behind, then another one was on the way, and eventually my grandma became a widow. They could've given up, they could've just gone back and given up their dream to be free, but they kept going. 

"International Refugee Organisation", which is a certificate
used as a passport for the purpose of immigrating to Canada.
This describes my grandpa, Vince Czibok, when he was in
Spittal an der Drau, Austria, so he could have emigrated 
to Canada after the war (Vallaux 1).

"International Refugee Organisation", which is a certificate
used as a passport for the purpose of immigrating to Canada.
This describes my grandma, Anna Czibok, when she was in
Spittal an der Drau, Austria, so she could have emigrated
to Canada after the war (Vallaux 1).

        In 1949, when they decided to leave, my grandparents made it to "British Zone Austria" (Vallaux 1), and lived on a D.P Camp in Spittal an der Drau. My grandparents made a lot of friends with the other refugees, which helped them cope with the big change they were experiencing.They stayed there until 1950 when they emigrated to Germany. From there, that same year, they went to Halifax so they could go to Quebec. My grandparents stayed there for 8 years. My grandpa was a chauffeur in Mount Royal working and saving up enough money to make a down payment on a house in Toronto, Ontario. In 1958, my grandparents moved to Toronto because my grandma was pregnant with my father, he was born in 1959. Once my grandparents got to Toronto "they were overwhelmed" (Czibok), by the big change they were facing and their new addition to the family. They started renting a place in the basement of a home, they couldn't speak English, and my dad was a newborn baby. Money was tight, my grandpa wasn't making enough money, so my grandma got a job at the Bank of Montreal. Then in 1961, my grandpa had a heart attack and died, leaving my grandma to be a single mother. My grandma had a nervous-breakdown and was hospitalized for 2 years due to the stress and heartbreak she was experiencing, leaving my dad to be raised by his neighbours.


        When I think about my grandparents emigration story, I realize how hard it was for them to give up everything to start a new life, but then I think about how much harder their lives could have been if they stayed in Hungary. My grandpa would've eventually gone to a concentration camp, my grandma would've raised Helena alone in a communist country, and I might not of existed because my dad might of not been conceived. Although, if my dad was born anyway, and my grandparents stayed in Hungary, all aspects of my life would've been different.


        For one, the health care system and the quality of overall physical health would be different, and in this case, for Hungary, my health would be impacted negatively. 

This graph shows the different categories of health people experience in Hungary. Each line represents how weak or strong the area of health is, in Hungary, in comparison to other countries. In this case, the shorter the line, the weaker the health. Based on the results, Hungary has relative weakness overall when it comes to health  ("How's Life in Hungary in 2015?").

        If I was living in Hungary, in 2016, my health would;ve been in a poorer condition than it would living in Canada, and the environment plays a big role in that. In Hungary, the life expectancy is "4 years lower than other countries" ("Hungary"), because of the higher level of "the air pollutant, atmospheric PM2.5" ("Hungary"), which are tiny air particles that damage the lungs. If I lived in Hungary, I could ultimately have a shorter life expectancy than I would in Canada. Also, the water quality in Hungary isn't as clean as Canadian water, which would increase my risk of getting sick, and with the poor health care system, a simple bacteria or parasite in my body could be fatal, which would lower my life expectancy even more. 


        Also, since the government doesn't have enough money to provide sufficient health care compared to the health care system in Canada, more people, including myself, would have to be careful while working. In Hungary, people expressed that they work in poor working conditions that also impact their health in a negative way, in this case, at my age, I would already be working, so if I got hurt there would be a higher chance that my injuries could be fatal. 


        Not only would my physical health be affected more negatively living in Hungary, but also my mental health. With unsafe stressful working environments, poverty, and lowered overall well-being, many people weren't satisfied with their life, which is shown to be "4.8/10 on women's life satisfaction scale" ("Gender Differences in Well-being"), which could cause them to have a mental illness. Since there is already a funding issue for healthcare, the government wouldn't see the significance in treating people with mental health issues. Therefore, if I was living in Hungary, my chances of developing a mental health issue would be significantly higher than it would be living in Canada. As a teenager, we already have a higher chance of developing mental health issues, so while living in Hungary, mental health would also be a concern.

This chart shows different aspects of Hungary's gender performance for each category, versus other countries that have collected the same data. For both genders, Hungary has poor health conditions percentage which is lower than the results from other countries. Women have a higher percentage of tertiary degrees for education and skills, which are higher than the average, but the men are lower. Men have a higher employment rate than women, each percentage is lower than the average. Also, women work longer hours than men in household tasks. For the seats in the parliament, 91% are men, which says a lot about the gender equality in Hungary.  Finally, women don't feel as safe as men do walking alone at night, and women are less satisfied with their lives than men ("Gender Differences in Well-being").

              
        Another aspect of my life that would be different if I was living in Hungary, would be my education. Hungary has a good enough education system since "Hungarians can expect to go through 17.2 years of education between the ages of 5 and 39" ("Hungary"), but that is "slightly less than the average of 17.5 years, which is completed in Canada" ("Hungary"). Impressively, "in Hungary, 83% of adults aged 25-64 have completed upper secondary education" ("Hungary"), which is higher than the average in comparison to other countries. This means that my education wouldn't be impacted as drastically as other aspects of my life would, while I'm still a teenager. If I was living in Hungary, I would finish high school, but the next issue would be obtaining an even higher education in order to have a high-paying job, like I want to do in Canada. The problem with this is that Hungary is a poorer country, so they only have so much education and so many jobs they can offer. The pursuit of a high-paying job and a high level of education would be a problem for me if my family never emigrated.

This chart shows the overall rank of well-being, of children, in Hungary, which is represented by 3 different coloured dots (green=top third, yellow=middle third, and red=bottom third). Children's well being is very important because a person's childhood shapes who they are as a teenager and as an adult. In this case, there are more "middle third" and "bottom third" rankings compared to the "top third" rankings of Hungary's well-being ("How's Life for Children in Hungary?").

         
        If my family stayed in Hungary, my childhood would help define who I am right now, as a teenager, and who I will become, therefore I could've been very different. Based on the chart above, my living conditions would be very stressful because either my parents wouldn't have a job, we'd be very poor, or I wouldn't have a fully functional home with enough facilities. That can put a lot of stress on not only the parents, but also the child. The homicide and bullying rates are moderate, just like in any country, but the health status is significantly poorer. This could've impacted me, I could've been a sick child with a poor family, which could've either pointed me in a good direction, or a bad one. The poverty could've helped push me to do great things or it could've held me back academically. Therefore, if I lived in Hungary all my life, the poverty could've shaped me in an entirely different way. 

This graph shows how Hungary's working conditions have negative impacts on their people. In this case the worst impact on people's health is high work pressure, and at a tie for first place for poor working conditions are poor management practices, and high work pressure for 55% of workers ("Well-being in the Workplace").
        

         In Hungary, employment is a lot more difficult to get since it is significantly poorer than Canada. "In Hungary, 62% of the working-age population aged 15 to 64 has a paid job" ("Hungary"), which is "lower than employment average of 66%" ("Hungary"). This means since there isn't a lot of money, not a lot of people have job opportunities. In that case, I could've been lucky and started to work when I was 15, or I could've been unlucky and not started working early in life. Also, the job stability is significantly lower than in other countries because of the poor conditions of Hungary, so I'd have a higher risk of becoming unemployed at some point in my life. This is a big problem because Hungary is already a poor country, money would already be tight, so if I lost my job, I could've been living on the streets. 

        

        With regards to rights and freedoms in Hungary, it is a republic, therefore the "power derives from the people" ("Hungary’s Constitutional Framework"), and the government functions in a democratic manner. Although, the government broke that rule. After a new election "legal changes including a new constitution and over 1000 laws in parliament with limited or no meaningful public consultation occurred" ("Hungary's Constitutional Framework"), which violates many rights and freedoms. Some of those violations include: media freedom, criminalizing homelessness, discrimination against the mentally ill, disabled, and the LGBT community. These new laws violate freedom of expression, freedom of speech and media, and freedom of association. The Hungarian government has been taking away people's rights with their new laws, which if I was living in Hungary would impact me negatively. Being apart of the LGBT community, the discrimination would've impacted me, and I would've had to deal with discrimination because my rights and freedoms would've been taken away.

        

       What I've noticed after finishing this project, living in Hungary, even now, not surrounded by war like my grandparents were, would still be difficult. This project makes me appreciate Canada a lot more because I realized how lucky I am to be living in a land where I'm free, where I have an amazing education system, more job opportunities, a healthier environment, a great healthcare system, more equality between genders in the parliament, and a wealthier economy. 

        Overall, Hungary has a high level of work-life balance, and education and skills, but their country is lacking in social connections, civic engagement, environmental quality, income and wealth, housing, jobs and earnings, personal security, subjective well-being, and health status ("Hungary"). This means that Hungary may have a good enough education system, but when it comes to money, the environment, and gender equality, Hungary doesn't compare to places like Canada. If I was living in Hungary right now, I could be successfully going to school and balancing a job on top of that, but my environment wouldn't be as safe and as clean as Canada, I'd probably be living in poverty, my job opportunities wouldn't be as wide-ranged or secure as in Canada, and if I wanted to be apart of the government, there is only a "9% chance" ("Gender Differences in Well-being"), of that happening. Also, my safety as a woman, for instance, walking down the street would be a lot more risky than walking down the street in Canada. Finally, my health would be even worse than it is in Canada since Hungary doesn't have a good health care system. 

        My life could've been different if my grandparents weren't brave enough to follow their dreams and escape from their communist country. My life could've been a lot more difficult, I wouldn't of had all the opportunities that I've always had. In conclusion, if I lived in Hungary all aspects of my life would be different, but in a negative way.

Works Cited Page

I Would Be

I will be focusing my research on the German side of my family. My grandmother was born in East Germany. After the second World War my great grandparents moved to Canada (for unknown reasons) and settled in Brampton. Later to get away from the city in her adulthood, my grandmother moved to Orangeville with my grandfather.
If my grandmother had not moved to Canada I assume I would have been born in Germany. I think the German lifestyle would’ve been very similar to Canada to grow up in.
The GDP for Germany is $3.85 trillion and is ranked 4th in the world. This is substantially larger than Canada’s $1.79 trillion GDP ranked 11th in the world. However Germany also has a larger population at 85 million people where Canada has 35.5 million people.The education in Germany typically lasts for 13 years while the education in Canada typically lasts for 12 years which isn’t much of a difference.  The health care in Germany is also very advanced and they have a large number of medical doctors per capita. However health care in Germany is not free unlike in Canada. It is more expensive to live in Canada than it is in Germany. The unemployment rate in Canada is higher than in Germany and we have a higher forest rate with less CO2 emissions. People my age living in Germany have close to the same life as me. They are in high school, preparing to go off to post secondary or to get a job. The only big difference we have would be our language. At 16, I have just gotten my driver's license while people my age in Germany have to wait two extra years to get theirs.

In conclusion my life probably would’ve been very similar if I had grown up in Germany.



Citations
"Find the Data-Compare." Find the Data. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 June 2016. 
     <http://country-facts.findthedata.com/compare/29-31/Germany-vs-Canada>.
"German Culture: Facts, Customs, and Traditions." Live Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 
     6 June 2016. <http://www.livescience.com/44007-german-culture.html>. 
"Germany." Countries and their Cultures. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 June 2016. 
     <http://www.everyculture.com/Ge-It/Germany.html>. 

I Would Be..

Coming From Ireland:

Being Among the First Settlers of Mono

A map of the journey my family took.

When I first asked where my family migrated from, my Mom knew her background includes Irish, Scottish and English.  She didn’t know much about my Dad’s family history. As we got looking, we found that my father’s ancestors came from England.  My Great Grandfather immigrated with his parents in the early 1900’s.

 When I asked my Papa for more information he said he didn’t know much because his own father passed away when he was only eleven.

With little information on my Dad’s ancestors, I turned my focus to my mother’s paternal family. I asked my cousin Wayne if he could help..Luckily there are many files on the Allen families at the Dufferin County Museum and Archives.

It seems that my Great Great Great Great Grandparents, William Allen and Margaret Buchanan were both born and raised in Scotland.  Their journey to Canada seems interesting to me. After marrying and having  children in Scotland, they travelled through Ireland, where they had at least 2 more children on route to England, where they made their way to Canada.

My Great-Great-Great Grandfather's census he filled out in 1881.

William and Margaret had a son, Richard Allen. Richard was my Great Great Great Grandfather. He was born in Ireland in 1810. Richard would have been a young boy when he came to Canada

With his parents and siblings about 1820. The Allen’s were among the first settlers in Mono.  Seven generations we are still in the area.

Newspaper article my cousin e-mailed me, about the death of my Great-Great Grandfather.

Although it is difficult to research Ireland’s public records, as most were destroyed by fire during the Irish Civil War, there are many factors of the time that would be valid reasons why the Allen’s immigrated from Ireland.

1816 Ireland was called the “Year without a summer” or the Poverty Year,  Ireland was hit with heavy rains and freezing temperatures that ruined wheat, oat and potato crops.  This resulted in a terrible famine that led to disease. There was a major typhus epidemic between 1816 -1819. It is estimated that 100,000 died in Ireland during this period.

Many Irish immigrants left for America and Canada to build a better life in a new land free from disease and natural disasters. Irish immigrants looked to the prospects of employment, wealth and a better standard of living. Many found employment in construction, coal mining and the railroads. My ancestors were farmers both in Ireland and in Canada. It is my conclusion that they too wanted a better, healthier life and to prosper in farming in a better, new land.The Allen’s farmed mostly on the 4th line of Mono for 4/7 generations in Canada.  Many records I found show that many Allen’s lived well into their 80’s and 90’s  I’m not sure they would have had the same longevity if they stayed in Ireland. Ireland suffered another potato famine (1845-1849), also known  as the “Great Hunger”, which claimed the lives of 2 million due to starvation and disease. If my ancestor’s had stayed in Ireland it is most likely they would not have survived another potato famine and my grandfather’s generation would not have been born, I am grateful that they came to Canada so I could have a life.

When comparing Canada to Ireland now, I’ve found the cost of living overall in Ireland is higher than in Canada, but wages are also higher in Ireland. According to Find the Data, Canada ranks 11th in the world with a population of 35.5 million and Ireland ranks 44th with a population of 4.62 million.  However, when comparing the size of the countries Ireland is more densely populated.  Also Ireland has a higher population of younger people. According to Trading Economics,April 2016, the unemployment rate in Ireland is 15.3 %.  Whereas, Canada’s unemployment rate is 13,1 %.  So, based on these statistics I would likely be an unemployed, younger person in Ireland. My status would be the same.  In Ireland they go to school approximately 2 years longer than Canada. I would be ok with that since I like school. Europe-Cities, states there are cities with medical card holders or cities without medical cards, Medical Card-holder cities are entitled to free health care.  Similar to Canada, except,  for the most part, we all get free health care.

I am glad I live in Canada, but someday I would love to visit Ireland.

Here  is my work cited page.

Where I Would Live

For my project I chose to research my Austrian roots. My Oma immigrated to Canada in 1953 and my Opa in 1950. They were living in poor conditions as Austria was still recovering from the second world war, so they came to Canada looking for opportunity. They each wanted to get out due to a limited amount of family left thanks to the war. Canada represented new opportunity and a rich country to gain a job and look for suitors. From what I have researched, Austrian kids nowadays are actually very similar to us. They listen to electronic music, and watch the same movies, even in English. Which they speak as a second language. Currently, Vienna is ranked one of the highest grossing places to live in the world. This is due to its high affordability, which hints at an easier lifestyle in a stable economy. Life as an Austrian teenager  would be nice because it also has easily accessible transportation and very cheap for one Euro a trip. Austria is one of the most prosperous Countries in Europe, and can be seen as a free market economy. The schooling system is similar with kids starting preschool and kindergarten very early, having nine compulsory years of school (grades one-nine) and terminates at grade thirteen. Austria has a strong health care system and Doctors are posted in many locations, remote or bustling. All the Country makes contributions, similar to in Canada. If I lived in Austria I would live in a teen-friendly environment with accessible transportation. I would take the bus or maybe taxis to a school with very similar grades to Canada where I would learn to read and write in both German and English. The transportation on the bus would be extremely affordable, and with Austria’s great economy I could take it anywhere and everywhere. I would start kindergarten at the age of five and enter grade one at the age of six. High school would begin when I am fourteen, and I would finish at eighteen. I would start paying my taxes once I turned eighteen and either have a job or be moving on to postsecondary education. Whenever I was injured or in need of health care, I could visit a hospital with ease and little to no complications due to the social health care system. Once I finish postsecondary I would find an occupation and try to find a wife and settle down and have a family. Austria is still a very traditional Country, and my Parents and family would want for me to have a spouse and continue on the family name. All in all, I found Austria was a Country very similar to Canada now and I found if my Oma and Opa had stayed there, I would be living a similar life to what I have here in Canada. I enjoyed researching this very much and would like to visit my origin Country of Austria sometime in the future and see what it would have been like.

References

Web Site Web Page View live Web page Archive & annotate page

"The Austrian healthcare system." justlanded.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 May 2016.     <https://www.justlanded.com/english/Austria/Austria-Guide/Health/     The-Austrian-healthcare-system>.

Interview

Copeland, Sonya. Instant messenger interview. N.d. (Formerly Sonya Hutter) My     Mother and the Daughter of my Oma and Opa

Web Site Web Page View live Web page Archive & annotate page

"Economy." Austrian Embassy Washington. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 May 2016.     <http://www.austria.org/economy/>.

Web Site Web Page View live Web page Archive & annotate page

"Educational Systems." migration.gv.at. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 May 2016.     <http://www.migration.gv.at/en/living-and-working-in-austria/     children-and-education/educational-systems.html>.

Magazine Article

Millvile, Katie. "A Look at Life in Austria." Teen Ink: n. pag. Print.

Ryley Nevills

Ms. Kurtz

ENG 3U

May 29, 2016                       

                                                                   Life without a kilt:

                                       How immigration changed my attire

If my ancestors hadn’t immigrated to Canada, I might be writing this blog in a kilt, with the haunting sounds of the bagpipe playing in the background…well, not actually, but my life would definitely have been different from what I know.

As you can probably guess, my ancestors immigrated to Canada from Scotland in 1953. Specifically, my mom’s grandparents immigrated from Glasgow, Scotland to Hamilton, Ontario, bringing with them 3 of their 6 children; the other 3 were grown and married by 1953. The 3 children they brought with them included my maternal grandmother Sheena Brown. The older siblings eventually followed their parents and also immigrated to Canada a few years later. My maternal great-grandma, Mary Brown, was actually born in Ireland but was raised in Scotland and always considered Scotland to be home. My maternal great grandpa, Robert Brown was born in Glasgow. My mom’s paternal grandparents were both born on the east coast of Canada and their families had been settled there since the late 1800’s. My dad’s paternal and maternal grandparents all have Scottish roots, so the common denominator here appears to be Scotland which is why I will focus on my Scottish roots for the purpose of this blog.

My maternal great grandfather, Robert Brown, owned his own business, a limo service, in Glasgow, in the early 1950s. However, unemployment was high in Glasgow in 1953, ranging from 28-30% (Scottish Affairs, Hasard , 1953). This factor and a weak economy led to poor business for Robert Brown and he had heard from friends who had immigrated to Canada that there were better financial opportunities to be had across the pond. He heard about a steel company in Hamilton, Ontario who were looking to hire and who offered good wages and benefits. Since things were looking bleak in Scotland, Robert decided to make the move in the hopes of providing a better life for his family. Meanwhile in Canada things were booming. The following excerpt from a magazine article describes the atmosphere of that time period:  “After a decade of depression and 6 years of war, Canadians are bursting with optimism in the 1950s. It is a time of prosperity and mass consumerism for most. Products Canadians want are readily available, and Canadians have the money to buy them, and they do” (Vincent, 2001). No wonder immigrants were attracted to Canada during that time period, and my ancestors were no exception. So Robert Brown set off for Canada, solo and by ship, in search of a job and a home in the new, promised land. A few months later he had secured a job at Stelco, where he continued to work for 25 years, before his eventual retirement. He purchased a home, and sent for his family.

Although it took some time, the family settled in to their new home and became accustomed to the Canadian way of life. My great grandma found employment at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Hamilton and the kids were enrolled in school and within no time had lost their Scottish accents. The major push/pull factors in the decision to come to Canada included 1) the ability to provide a better life financially for the family (push); 2) the 3 children and numerous extended family left behind in Scotland (pull); 3) the excitement of the prosperity and future job opportunities for the children (push); 4) the business that my great grandfather had to leave behind (pull). However, the decision was ultimately made to immigrate to Canada and the move was a successful one for my ancestors, but what would my life now look like had they remained in Scotland?

One difference would be the ability to get a part time job. As the charts above show, the unemployment rate for young people in Glasgow is substantially higher than it is here in Canada. In addition, the cost of living in Glasgow is for the most part higher than it is here in Toronto, but wages are not higher, therefore one would assume that the overall quality of life would be somewhat less.

Indices Difference
Consumer Prices in Glasgow are 12.32% higher than in Toronto
Consumer Prices Including Rent in Glasgow are 0.36% higher than in Toronto
Rent Prices in Glasgow are 23.18% lower than in Toronto
Restaurant Prices in Glasgow are 35.04% higher than in Toronto
Groceries Prices in Glasgow are 2.91% lower than in Toronto
Local Purchasing Power in Glasgow is 5.54% lower than in Toronto

Also, had my ancestors remained in Glasgow, I would now be living in a city of over 600,000 people (UK population, 2016)  instead of a town of about 40,000. That would mean a different lifestyle entirely, faster paced and more hectic. No four wheelers, no dirt bikes, no fields. The most popular sport in Scotland is football (aka soccer) and ice hockey and box lacrosse are not popular, so the sports I’ve played for my entire life I would never have been exposed to. Finally there’s the kilt issue…2 of my great uncles who were married in Scotland were married in kilts, piped down the aisle in bagpipes. If I lived there, that might have been my fate one day, so I can honestly say I’m very grateful to my great grandpa, Robert Brown, for taking the chance and coming to Canada, where men don’t wear kilts, even on their wedding day!

Works Cited: 

http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/compare_cities.jsp?country1=Canada&city1=Toronto&country2=United+Kingdom&city2=Glasgow

                                

http://www.scotland.org/about-scotland/sport/sport-in-scotland/

          

http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1953/apr/23/unemployment-scotland

Vincent, Mary, Canadians At Work, Home & Play, 2001

  http://www.tradingeconomics.com/canada/youth-unemployment-rate

          https://www.google.ca/search?q=youth+unemployment+rate+in+glasgow+chart&biw=1920&bih=902&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjA_b-D6oXNAhXi6IMKHRzuDusQ_AUIBigB

   http://ukpopulation2016.com/population-of-glasgow-in-2016.html

Sheena Brown , personal interview, May 2016