I travel a lot. I was in Thailand when the pandemic first hit (Dec 2019). Flew back to Canada because I foolishly listened to Trudeau say "it's time to come home."

Fast forward to Dec 2020, I had enough of the lockdowns and flew out to Mexico to stay with my friend that also left Canada in 2019, but didn't listen to Trudeau and just stayed in Mexico the entire time (overstayed his visa, but that's another story...)

Didn't need a test to enter Mexico or board the plane. No quarantine. Masks are optional, bars and restaurants fully open. It was quite a sight to see people out and about, having fun on the streets, kids running around. Very happy atmosphere in the air.

I flew back to Canada on Jan 6th, a few days before they started the covid test requirement and mandatory hotel quarantine. On the way back I had a layover in Texas, and the border agents were super cool, chill and fun. Kept cracking jokes about me and my girlfriend, and why I hadn't married her yet. Definitely put us at ease.

Then entering Canada, completely opposite story. No welcome home back to Canada. Everyone we encountered was cold with a sour look on their faces. We kept getting grilled about why did we go to Mexico, don't we know there's a pandemic blah blah. Luckily no ticket and didn't need a test at the time either.

But that whole experience led me to eventually leave the country for good. Seeing the outside world and how other countries are moving on from covid, and actually use common sense when dealing with it, opened my eyes to how backwards Canada is.

The worst part is the majority of the nation seems to support these measures and actively blames the unvaccinated and the travellers for any rise in "cases" and "deaths". How dare you go and get a haircut, bigot?

We all know the economy is fucked. Any future prospects the younger generations have is fucked. Smart people, young professionals are leaving in droves - and for good reason.

And yet, the government doesn't seem to give a shit about that at all. All they care about is covid, covid, covid.

I myself left Canada in March, spent time in the Caribbean, and now heading to Europe. Convinced my parents to sell their house and move with me as well as my sister, her husband and my newborn niece.

Those of you who remain, I wish you luck. I know some of you don't have a choice, and I know I'm incredibly privileged to be able to pick up and leave.

But all I want to say is that if you have a chance, seriously consider it. I come from a war-torn country that was ravaged by socialism. Believe me when I tell you, all the signs are there. It will only keep getting worse from here.

I travel a lot. I was in Thailand when the pandemic first hit (Dec 2019). Flew back to Canada because I foolishly listened to Trudeau say "it's time to come home."

Fast forward to Dec 2020, I had enough of the lockdowns and flew out to Mexico to stay with my friend that also left Canada in 2019, but didn't listen to Trudeau and just stayed in Mexico the entire time (overstayed his visa, but that's another story...)

Didn't need a test to enter Mexico or board the plane. No quarantine. Masks are optional, bars and restaurants fully open. It was quite a sight to see people out and about, having fun on the streets, kids running around. Very happy atmosphere in the air.

I flew back to Canada on Jan 6th, a few days before they started the covid test requirement and mandatory hotel quarantine. On the way back I had a layover in Texas, and the border agents were super cool, chill and fun. Kept cracking jokes about me and my girlfriend, and why I hadn't married her yet. Definitely put us at ease.

Then entering Canada, completely opposite story. No welcome home back to Canada. Everyone we encountered was cold with a sour look on their faces. We kept getting grilled about why did we go to Mexico, don't we know there's a pandemic blah blah. Luckily no ticket and didn't need a test at the time either.

But that whole experience led me to eventually leave the country for good. Seeing the outside world and how other countries are moving on from covid, and actually use common sense when dealing with it, opened my eyes to how backwards Canada is.

The worst part is the majority of the nation seems to support these measures and actively blames the unvaccinated and the travellers for any rise in "cases" and "deaths". How dare you go and get a haircut, bigot?

We all know the economy is fucked. Any future prospects the younger generations have is fucked. Smart people, young professionals are leaving in droves - and for good reason.

And yet, the government doesn't seem to give a shit about that at all. All they care about is covid, covid, covid.

I myself left Canada last March, spent time in the Caribbean, and now heading to Europe. Convinced my parents to sell their house and move with me as well as my sister, her husband and my newborn niece.

Those of you who remain, I wish you luck. I know some of you don't have a choice, and I know I'm incredibly privileged to be able to pick up and leave.

But all I want to say is that if you have a chance, seriously consider it. I come from a war-torn country that was ravaged by socialism. Believe me when I tell you, all the signs are there. It will only keep getting worse from here.