Why I Came Back to China After 5 Years in Canada

Why I Left Canada and Returned to China Hello everyone. I’m Wuhan Deluo, Kevin. It’s been more than half a year since I left Canada. Today I want to talk about why I came back to China. I immigrated to Canada in 2021. Back then, I had high hopes for this country. All the online videos and information painted a perfect picture. It was described as free, beautiful, fair, with friendly people and a sound social system. Some online users even called Canada paradise. At that time, China suffered from heavy smog, and the pandemic was in full swing. People were confined to their homes and residential compounds, feeling extremely frustrated and longing for freedom. I also made this move for my son. He was nine years old, in the third grade of primary school in China. He was under huge pressure, almost doing homework until midnight every day, which felt exhausting. I was drawn to Canada’s child-centered education. I hoped he could live with less stress and have a better future. With all these thoughts in mind, I pushed myself to study English, passed the IELTS test, and successfully immigrated to Canada. So why did I end up leaving? It’s a lot like marriage. There is always a gap between fantasy and reality, and paradise does not exist on earth. Admittedly, Canada is a great country, a dream destination for many people. That’s why you can see immigrants from all over the world there. It offers fairness, open educational philosophies, clean governance, a social system that helps ordinary people settle in, and comprehensive social welfare. But it also has many downsides. When the economy goes downhill, those flaws become hard to ignore. Many say people leave Canada because of the weather. I don’t agree. Climate is only a minor factor. There are places in China with similar weather, yet people there don’t get depressed as easily. I believe the main reason is the pressure of making a living. Simply put, everything is ridiculously expensive, and prices keep spiraling out of control. Housing is the biggest burden. You may earn around 2,000 Canadian dollars a month, yet your rent is also around 2,000 CAD. I don’t think there is another place on earth like this. And for 2,000 CAD in Vancouver or Toronto, you might only get a basement suite. In China, if an average person earns the equivalent of 1,000 CAD monthly, rent would only be about 200 to 300 CAD for a full, separate apartment. No shared housing, no worries about noise insulation. Then there is the cost of owning a car and vehicle insurance. For an ordinary car like a Civic or Corolla, monthly insurance premiums of 400 to 600 CAD are common. By comparison, the annual insurance for a BMW 3 Series in China is roughly 600 CAD. It feels like daylight robbery. Grocery prices are even more shocking. After returning to China, I can eat all kinds of fruits and vegetables freely, dine out at restaurants without worrying about cost. There are abundant choices at low prices. In Canada, fruits and vegetables felt like rare luxuries. Local Canadians told me the country was not always like this. It used to be much better. Housing was affordable, and many rentals only cost a few hundred dollars. I believe them. But I have to focus on the present. My current quality of life matters most. Life is unpredictable. I want to live comfortably right now, free from depression and stress. I cannot wait for Canada to improve. I am just an ordinary person, and I don’t have time to wait. I need to live my life. Thank you, Canada, for granting me my PR card. You gave a Chinese person a completely different life experience and once brought me incredible warmth. But I want to survive and live a better life. Just like migratory birds seeking suitable habitats, I chose to leave for now.