Knowledge Wanders
Wandering the great places…

Archive for May, 2010

31
May

How To Save Money For Your Dream Holiday

Posted in Travel  by callstar on May 31st, 2010

Why not clear out the house at the same time and get rid of all that junk and clutter? It’s nice to free yourself from all the rubbish that’s been following you around for years. Now it’s finally time to make a change. Here are some things you can do to save money for your dream holiday.

Make a list, room by room of all the items you no longer want or need. Put all the items into one area like the garage or spare room. Make a list of all the ways you can sell the items - online auction, garage sale etc…

Then start selling it items until they are all gone, start with the most likely way to sell all items - garage sale etc… then list anything else individually online or in the newspaper. Also you can see if anyone you know wants to purchase the items.

While you are selling the items, be sure to put all the money aside in a safe place (that’s if you’re not going to be tempted to use it) or give it to someone you trust like a parent or grandparent. Another option would be to put it in the bank in a high interest savings account and make the most of the amenities available to you.

Once you have sold all your items and collected the money then you can see what type of holiday you can have without breaking your budget or borrowing from future earnings.

Look around for last minute deals online, there’s tons and tons available… just Google last minute deals and you’ll be overwhelmed with a huge amount of wonderful choices.

Lastly, just don’t be stupid, use your common-sense when doing things. I know it’s a generic tip but you would be surprised the amount of people who don’t use their common sense daily. Just use it!

I hope you have enjoyed my Money Saving Tips

Saving Money Tips

Bachelor Party Cruises - Enjoy your Bachelor Party in style. Why not take a cruise on your last night?
Camel Riding Egypt - Riding Camels is a lot of fun, beware of the dangers and make sure you do quite a bit of research.

31
May

The Three Main Visa Options That Are On Offer For A Move To Canada

Posted in Destinations  by scottking on May 31st, 2010

According to figures provided by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, there are 265,000 visas available to be allocated in 2010. With the quantities for each individual visa varying depending upon the type of person that Canada is currently looking for (for example, more Skilled Worker visas are available than family visas, as although the country understands people want to move to be with their family, they also need to look at the future of the economy), it’s important to remember that whether you’re looking to apply for a visa that has an allocation of over 100,000 or one that has only a few thousand, competition is always going to be fierce.

The reason for this high level of competition is simple - Canada is a part of the world that is suitable for everyone to live in. Whether you’re a city lover or a rural dweller, love the sun or enjoy the cold, there will be at least one area of Canada is suitable for you.

If you’re contemplating a move to this part of the world, you need to ensure that you choose the right visa for Canada for you and although there are over 60 individual types of visa available, they can all be categorized into being one of three different varieties.

1. Family - if you have family who are already living in Canada on a permanent basis, then you have the opportunity to apply for one of the various family visas.

Whilst the most popular option for applying for a visa is for a child to be moving to live with their parents or grandparents, there is a visa for the opposite scenario, known as the Child-Sponsored visa.

Allowing for parents to join their son or daughter who is already permanently residing in Canada, the Child-Sponsored visa states that the child must fit several criteria but generally speaking, as long as they are a law abiding citizen in reasonably well-paid full time employment, there should be no major difficulties applying for this visa.

2. Business - the category with the least allocated visas with only 11,600 for 2010, the business visas that are available are somewhat vague in their criteria meaning that, generally speaking, if you have a business, you can apply for one of the business visas that are on offer.

With less than 12,000 visas available, though, you really will have to show that when your business is moved to Canada, it will benefit the economy greatly.

3. Worker - as with any major immigration destination, the main way to move to the country, aside from temporary holiday visas, is to apply for some type of worker visa.

140,000 worker visas are available to be issued throughout 2010, with the majority being available for the Federal Skilled Worker visa. To make an application for this type of visa, you must possess the necessary skills to fulfil one of the several vocational needs of the country, which range from medical occupations such as GPs and Registered Nurses to construction based vocations, such as plumbers and industrial electricians.

Global Visas are a world leading authority on Canada immigration and Canada visas for private individuals and corporate clients, providing the most comprehensive and up-to-date Canada work visa and visa for Canada advice. Visit GlobalVisas.com for more information.

31
May

Wanting To Move To Canada But Not Sure How? Let’s Take A Look At The Country’s Most Needed Skills

Posted in Destinations  by scottking on May 31st, 2010

If you’re contemplating a move to Canada, you have the option of over 60 individual visa types to choose from. Ranging from a visa that requires for your child who is living permanently in the country to sponsor your application to one known as the Entrepreneur visa, which although based on a points system, simply asks for you to have the necessary finances and business knowledge to be able to support yourself and anyone who accompanies you on your move, one of the most popular options is the Skilled Worker visa.

Like many other countries that have a thriving immigration policy, Canada has created a list of skills that are in short supply within the country. Known as the Priority Occupation List (POL), if you have the necessary skills on this list, you can expect to see your application be treated as a priority.

Fortunately for those people looking to apply for a Canadian work visa, the list of jobs on the POL that are needed in the country is extensive and covers 36 different vocations

As would be expected, some of the most prominent in-need skills on the POL are those within the health vocation. According to the last updated list on 25 November 2009, there are 8 individual health vocations that are in high demand, which are:

1. GPs and Family Physicians
2. Head Nurses and Supervisors
3. Registered Nurses
4. Licensed Practical Nurses
5. Audiologists and Language Pathologists
6. Physiotherapists
7. Occupational Therapists
8. Medical Radiation Technologists

Now whilst the health industry may be one of the primary industries on the POL, it is not actually the largest - the construction sector takes that title, consisting of 14 different occupational skill sets:

1. Construction Managers
2. Mining and Quarrying Supervisors
3. Oil and Gas Drilling and Service Supervisors
4. Petroleum, Gas, Chemical Processing and Utilities Supervisors
5. Electricians (excluding industrial and power systems)
6. Industrial Electricians
7. Plumbers
8. Welders
9. Heavy-Duty Equipment Mechanics
10. Mining Engineers
11. Surface Mining and Quarrying Drillers and Blasters
12. Crane Operators
13. Pipefitting Contractors
14. Heavy Construction Equipment Contractors

With 22 of the 36 occupations taken up by the health and construction industries, there’s no need to think just yet that you can’t apply for Canadian work visa and have it fast tracked if you don’t have any of the skills mentioned, as the remaining 14 vocations are all massively varied.

For example, if you’re a qualified and experienced University Professor or College instructor, then your application would be treated as a priority, as it would be if you were a Financial, Health Care, Computer and Information, Restaurant or Accommodation manager.

Leaving Financial Auditors and Accountants, Geologists, Geo Chemists and Geophysicists, Geological Engineers, Petroleum Engineers, Specialist Physicians, Chefs and Cooks, it is obvious that there is scope for a substantial amount of people to have their application fast tracked, making the possibility of living in Canada a reality within a matter of months, rather than within the standard two or three years.

Global Visas are a world leading authority on Canada immigration and Canada visas for private individuals and corporate clients, providing the most comprehensive and up-to-date Canada work visa and visa for Canada advice. Visit GlobalVisas.com for more information.

31
May

The Top 5 Places To See After Moving To Canada

Posted in Destinations  by scottking on May 31st, 2010

Alongside Australia, Canada has long been associated with being one of the top destinations for people to immigrate to. Featuring bustling cities that are popular tourist destinations, massive areas of natural beauty that are perfectly idyllic and enough quaint towns and villages to make you realise just how beautiful the country is, it’s no surprise that tens of thousands of people apply for a visa for Canada each year.

If you’ve applied for your visa, had it granted and are now planning on moving to Canada, once you get settled in the country you’ll want to explore and these 5 places should feature high on your list of places to visit as soon as you get the opportunity.

1. Vancouver - after achieving a rating of 98 out of 100 by The Economist in their 2010 World’s Most Liveable Cities index, Vancouver ranked in at the top spot, making it one of the first parts of Canada that you should visit.

Located in British Colombia, which dominates the south west of Canada, Vancouver is home to 578,041 people in its city area according to the 2006 census, with 2,116,581 people living in the wider metropolitan area.

2. Toronto - situated in Ontario, Toronto is the largest city in the whole of Canada, housing over 2.5 million people in 243.2 square miles of city alone, without taking into consideration the greater urban and metropolitan vicinities.

With a skyline that is dominated by the CN Tower - the world’s tallest freestanding structure up until 2007 - Toronto’s history is heavily influenced by its European settlers in the late 18th century, as shown by the fact two of the city’s districts are called Scarborough and York, both popular areas of England’s North Yorkshire county.

3. Calgary - thanks largely to its huge sports devotion, notably including the Hart Family, one of professional wrestling’s most prominent families, Calgary is arguably one of the most popular Canadian cities.

As part of the Alberta province which covers a substantial part of central and southern Canada, Calgary has the third most dense city population in the country, with 3,717.9 people living in each square mile.

4. Edmonton - situated only 200 miles north of Calgary, Edmonton was established in 1795 and is now home to 730,372 Edmontonians.

Having a similar climate to that of the UK, with average summer temperatures reaching just under 23 degrees centigrade (although winters are slightly colder, with averages dropping below freezing from November through to February), Edmonton is a popular destination with people looking to move to the country after getting a visa for Canada.

5. Ottawa - no list of places to see in Canada would be complete without mentioning the country’s official capital. Within the province of Ontario, Ottawa is second only in size to Toronto and is home to some fantastic areas of natural beauty, as well as stunning pieces of architecture.

With temperatures having been recorded as low as minus 38.9 degrees centigrade, Ottawa is one of the coldest cities in Canada. It is also the seventh coldest capital city in the world, due to the relatively mild summers that the city sees.

Global Visas are a world leading authority on Canada immigration and Canada visas for private individuals and corporate clients, providing the most comprehensive and up-to-date Canada work visa and visa for Canada advice. Visit GlobalVisas.com for more information.

31
May

6 Of The Most Popular Attractions In Canada

Posted in Destinations  by scottking on May 31st, 2010

You’ve applied for your Canadian visa, have your suitcase open and ready to pack and you can’t wait to go, however as the country is so vast if you want to see even a fraction of what’s on offer in one visit, you have to plan extensively.

These 6 attractions are some of the most popular in Canada and you should try, if you’re only visiting once, to incorporate as many of them as you can into your trip.

1. Niagara Falls - viewable from both America and Canada, it is widely accepted that standing in Ontario, Canada offers the best view of the 167 foot high waterfalls, for the simple fact that the whole Canadian part of Niagara Falls is a lot less commercialised than the American side, showcasing the area’s real natural beauty.

2. CN Tower - taking three years to build from 1973 to 1976, the CN Tower acts as both a communication tower and observation post and was, up until 2007, the largest freestanding structure in the world, a title which was taken away from the tower when the Burj Khalifa was opened in September of that year.

3. Rocky Mountains - although the majority of the Rocky Mountains is located within America, a substantial amount of this famous mountain range is situated in Canada, stretching from north east British Colombia along the border of Alberta until it enters northern Idaho and Montana in America.

Within the Canadian stretch of the Rocky Mountains is one of the most popular parts of the entire range, the Valley of the Ten Peaks and Moraine Lake, a crystal blue expanse of water that is something of sheer beauty.

4. Churchill - when you first applied for your visa for Canada, you might have had all sorts of different ideas about what you would see. However, it would be surprising if one of those ideas was a polar bear.

Located on the north east coast of the province of Manitoba, the small town of Churchill sees thousands of people visit each year to see polar bears - and beluga whales - all in their natural habitat.

5. Stanley Park - a combination of man-made products and natural development, Stanley Park is located in downtown Vancouver and covers an extensive 1.5 square miles. To put the size of the park into context, New York’s Central Park is 2.5 miles long and 0.5 miles wide and Stanley Park is over 10% bigger, making it one of the largest urban parks in the whole of the Americas.

6. Whistler Blackcomb - if you’re not a skier, then Whistler Blackcomb will not sound familiar at all. If you are a skier, however, then you’ll know just how highly regarded Whistler Blackcomb is as one of the world’s best ski resorts.

Situated in British Colombia, Whistler Blackcomb is one of the largest ski resorts on the globe, having over 12.5 square miles worth of skiable land and several high peaks, including its highest elevation point that is a staggering 7,349 feet high.

Global Visas are a world leading authority on Canada immigration and Canada visas for private individuals and corporate clients, providing the most comprehensive and up-to-date Canada work visa and visa for Canada advice. Visit GlobalVisas.com for more information.