Great Escape CANADA and GREECE, ♣ SPEAKING

Great Escape CANADA and GREECE

Great Escape CANADA and GREECE, ♣ SPEAKING

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Student AThe Great Escape

Many people move to a new country in search of a new life. Do they always find what they are looking for? Here is a story of one British family who decided to emigrate.

Canada

The Clavy family and their two dogs, Bonzo and Doodah, moved from the suburbs of Birmingham to Canada two years ago. Marion, a full-time housewife, and Andy Clavy, a mechanical engineer with a machine supply company, now live with their two children, Matthew, 12, and Mark, 9, in a Stony Plain, Alberta, not far from the Rocky Mountains.

Marion: I still can’t believe we’re actually here. Do we really live in this big house, surrounded by fir trees, on four acres of land, just three hours’ drive from the Rockies? It’s the most spectacular scenery I’ve ever seen. Not that life in Birmingham was that bad. We were comfortably well‑off, but Andy worked 12‑hour days. He used to come home every night, have a shower, eat dinner, then crash out. I thought, ‘There must be more to life than this!’ We rarely spent time together as a family.

Then Andy was made redundant and given a pay-out of more than £200,000, so we took the plunge. We had always wanted to live in Canada, ever since we’d visited cousins here, so we applied. Our application took a nail‑biting eighteen months to be accepted and it cost £2,000. Then we sold our house, a semi with a pocket-handkerchief garden. Emigrating is an expensive business. It cost £1,000 just to fly the dogs here!

We didn’t know a soul when we arrived in Alberta, but in just a few months we had made plenty of Canadian friends.

It took time for us to get used to the way they come into your house and use the telephone and take drinks from the fridge without asking. But I’m less English about such things now.

Moving to Canada has made us a lot closer as a family. We do sports together, visit friends’ houses for barbecues, and go sightseeing in the Rockies. The children love their schools. They think it’s great not to have to wear a uniform. And the girls go mad for Matthew here because of his English accent – the phone never stops ringing.

I don’t miss much about England except the castles and the greenness of the countryside, but now we have the Rocky Mountains. I certainly don’t miss the English weather. Even in the winter here, when the temperature is –45 degrees, the sun usually shines and the sky is blue.

Andy: Before we moved, I was always too exhausted to do anything with Marion and the boys. Now I only work eight‑hour days. Marion and I have much more time for each other. Business is a lot more relaxed, too. You don’t wear suits and ties, and nobody calls anybody Mr. It’s all first names and T‑shirts and jeans. It took a few months to find a decent job, so for a while we had financial worries. But in the end I was lucky. Unemployment here is quite high.

I don’t miss anything about England except the cricket, and of course my family, but my parents have already visited us twice. My sisters are staying with us at the moment and having great time. Moving here is the best thing we’ve ever done.

Pre-reading Task

In pairs / groups discuss the following questions:

1. Has any of your friends or family gone to live in a foreign country? Why? Do these people have any problems about living away from home?

2. Close your eyes and think about your country. What would you miss most about it if you went to live abroad? Write a list and compare it with the other person(s).

Comprehension Check

Answer the questions about the Clavy family and then compare your answers with a person who read bout the White family.

1. Why did they emigrate?

2. Why did they go to that particular country?

3. What are the changes in the way of life for the children?

4. Were there any initial difficulties?

5. Have they had any money problems?

6. Are they any better off now?

7. Is the family happier?

8. What do they miss about their life in England?

9. How is the relationship between the husband and wife?

10. Do they still think that moving was a wise decision?

Student BThe Great Escape

Many people move to a new country in search of a new life. Do they always find what they are looking for? Here is a story of one British family who decided to emigrate.

Greece

Hazel and Barry White left England five years ago with their baby daughter, Daisy. They moved from their basement flat in north London to a two‑bedroom apartment overlooking the sea on the Greek island of Agastri. They earned about £18,000 between them in London, working in the hotel business. They have set up a watersports business in Greece.

Barry: Daisy was three months old when I decided we simply had to leave London. We weren’t unhappy in London, we enjoyed our work. But we worried that our child couldn’t run freely in the busy London streets. We wanted her to grow up carefree and in the sunshine.

Hazel and I had had a couple of holidays in Agastri and had made some Greek friends there. It’s very beautiful and peaceful. In Greek, agastri means ‘fishing hook’, and the locals say, ‘When you come to Agastri, you’re hooked.’ So we took the plunge, sold our flat, and moved. Our family and friends thought we were crazy.

A tourists sports business seemed a good way to earn a living in Greece, so with the money from our flat we bought waterskiing equipment and two speedboats. Later, I bought a yarka or passenger boat for fishing trips and picnics round the island. Running the business hasn’t been easy. Things are very bureaucratic here and sometimes this can be very frustrating. It took some time to get used to so many forms and officials, but I’m more patient now.

Also, I’ve found the Greek language very difficult. Fortunately, I understand more than I can speak,

so I get by. But Daisy is more Greek than English now. She’s absolutely bilingual and the only English child at her school. Living on Agastri is definitely better for her. She runs round the village and talks to everyone. Everyone knows her.

I don’t miss England much, mainly family and friends. I do miss the theatre but we get good movies here. I also miss sausages, Stilton cheese, and white thick‑sliced bread! But that’s all. I think Hazel has found it more difficult than me.

Hazel: I didn’t realize what a big culture shock it would be. It has taken me a long time to get used to the Greek way of life, especially on such a small island. Here the women aren’t treated the same way as men. They are expected to stay at home more, and in the winter they hardly go out at all. But people are very kind and generous. In a way, the community is like a big happy family, which is great, especially for Daisy, but it also means that everyone knows everything about you.

I have a few Greek women friends, but the language barrier was very hard at first. I used to visit their homes for coffee and sit for hours not understanding a single word. Our life here has certainly tested my relationship with Barry. The business has had some bad times. There’s such a huge difference between our winter and summer income, and money worries cause our tempers to fry! Next winter, I’m going back to London for a few months with Daisy – I miss my parents terribly. No doubt, I’ll be back here with Barry in the spring, but I’m not entirely sure. I sometimes have doubts about living here.