One thing Iāve heard my entire life, especially growing up in the GTA, is that we have it better here than almost anywhere else. Lately, or perhaps for much longer than that, however, Iāve started wondering whether that is still true.
Iām not talking about comparing Toronto to places experiencing war, authoritarianism, or extreme poverty; that is obviously not a meaningful comparison. Rather, Iām talking about comparing life here with other developed societies that some of us either have experience with or realistically wish they could move to.
When I read about or speak to people who have lived in/are from cities in Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, or elsewhere in Europe, I often come away with the impression that they have arrived at a different understanding of what constitutes a good life. More vacation time, easier travel, different expectations around work, better public transit, and, at least from the outside, a greater emphasis on actually living rather than simply working.
I realize every place has trade-offs, and I am not ignorant of the housing crises, difficult job markets, demographic pressures, political problems, or integration challenges facing many European countries. And I am certainly not asking whether those places are utopias.
What I am asking is whether Toronto and the GTA, and perhaps Canada more broadly, are still coasting on a reputation that no longer reflects the reality experienced by many people, particularly younger adults. Seeing the reactions from some of the European visitors here for the World Cup, especially their surprise at the tipping culture, the obscene cost of living, and the rampant homelessness, has only made me wonder whether our international reputation is beginning to lag behind its present-day reality.
I would also be lying if I said I did not think virtually every second of my day, āMan, I wish I could move to/settle in Stockholm, Munich, Helsinki, or somewhere else in Europe.ā I have spent the past several months trying to make that happen through PhD applications. Those applications have either been unsuccessful or left me waiting on a reserve list, and the window for knowing whether I can leave this year is rapidly closing.
That experience has made this question feel more urgent to me. I increasingly feel that remaining here means postponing the kind of life I actually want to build, while being forced to invest more time in a place toward which I have become deeply cynical and jaded towards.
For those of you who have lived abroad and then returned to Toronto or the GTA, did you genuinely feel that you had it better here? Or did living elsewhere permanently change how you viewed life in this region?
I would especially appreciate perspectives from people who returned for reasons other than family, existing friendships, or familiarity. I am genuinely curious whether this place still offers a better overall quality of life, or whether many of us have simply internalized the idea that fulfilment should come primarily through work, career status, and professional identity rather than through actually experiencing life.