A friend (he is from mostly warm and sunlit South India) who moved to Canada from California says he just can’t take that weather anymore. So maybe weather is a huge factor? You deal with that not everyday in your life but every hour..second and year round.

victoria itself is a sunnier, drier seattle. from LA or san diego is real different, but as you go north it all gets abuut the same.

if they went to toronto or montreal or something, that would be wildly different