Difficult when you're an immigrant. I moved to Canada for this reason, and though the tech scene is great here (Toronto at least), it sucks how everyone here talks about how "terrible" the tech scene is wants to move to SF instead. Feels like a never ending cycle.
People will always find things to complain about. Toronto isn't SF when it comes to tech (nowhere is), but it still has plenty of opportunity. Don't listen to the complainers. Just focus on becoming a good SWE for now, then worry about maximizing your earnings.
