How was the weekend?

Orcas, stunning sunsets and beautiful evenings with friends… Is there anything that sounds better to you? That’s exactly how our last four days went.

Let’s begin with Thursday. We met early for our pickup, got to know the other people that joined the trip to Vancouver Island and started our tour. After a short break at the grocery store – where we bought the necessary goods for breakfast and lunch – we took the Ferry to Vancouver Island and enjoyed the good weather on the deck and played ‘cards against humanity’. The 1.30h ferry ride passed by so fast and we started our journey to Tofino. On our way to Tofino we stopped at three different  locations. We went for a hike, saw  a waterfall, enjoyed our lunch in the sun and went swimming! Well, not everyone went swimming cause the water was freezing cold, but at least it was refreshing. As soon as we arrived in Tofino we went to a small restaurant and grabbed dinner. At the Hostel we moved into our rooms and went to the pier to watch the sunset 🌅. You would never believe what we saw there! It was an Orca family swimming really close to the pier right into the sunset, that was just unbelievable and truly magical. Afterwards we came together in a nice bar and had great conversations before  just falling into our beds after this long and exciting day.

On Friday we had some free time and we were able to book different tours like whale watching, bear watching, kayaking or surfing lessons. All of us booked one of those tours and really enjoyed it. In the evening we met at a restaurant where we started telling all the stories of our eventful day. Back at the hostel we played a few rounds of pool and some card games with the group to top off the second amazing day on the Island.

Saturday morning started early when we headed to Victoria. On the way we made some stops. One of them was Cathedral Grove Rainforest where we saw an 800 year old tree. We also visited the village of Combs with heritage constructions, gift and antique shops. Fun Fact: In the village of Combs goats live on the roofs. At the last stop on our bus ride to Victoria we were at a lake where we jumped into the clear refreshing water. Arriving at the Hostel we ate dinner and strolled through the city. Some of the group went to a bar, the others went back to the hostel for some awesome chats and card games.

The next morning started with a short optional bus tour through Victoria with our guide. The guide gave a lot of interesting historical facts about the city and places to go for our free time in the morning and noon. We definitely used our spare time by visiting the parliament of B.C., Beacon Hill Park (there are a lot of animals e.g. turtles, ducks, deers, squirrels and peacocks) and Chinatown. In Chinatown we ate something and watched the lions parade of a local group with traditional clothing and dances. In the afternoon we headed back to the bus and drove the ferry. At 8 p.m. we arrived in Vancouver and everybody started their way home.

It was such a beautiful weekend. We’re still impressed by the stunning things we were able to see. What did you do on your weekend? Tell us about it next Pub Night 🎉. We hope it was as great as ours.

Cheers,
Anna & Chiara 🙂

How was your weekend?

Beloved Monday is here and it is time to talk a little about what went down during the weekend. Ice Hockey, Hot Springs and Seattle; for me it was one the busiest weekends in my life but it was totally worth it!IMG_20190315_190624.jpg

Weekend started off with a Canucks game at Rogers Arena. It was my first ice hockey game here in Vancouver and as I had assumed the atmosphere was very similar to our games in Finland. I was accompanied with Sara and Carolin who I met two weeks back at our orientation. The game was entertaining although we didn’t get to see any good fights (the part I was most excited about). Sadly Canucks lose to New Jersey in the end with penalties but we still had a great time with the girls.

On Saturday I was facing a super long day. We headed to Keyhole Hot Springs with few friends of mine. Day started off with a four-hour car drive including one hour of driving the bumpiest road I’ve ever seen. In case you don’t have a jeep don’t even think of going because the car won’t survive. After the drive it was time for the hike and since none of us had been there before we got lost at first. In the end we managed to find our way to the hot springs and it was time to step into the steaming hot water. After chilling in the ponds for couple hours and making some new friends it was time to head back home. You have to hike back before it gets dark since the trail is pretty challenging already during daytime (also there are bears and other animals in the area). On our way home we decided to stop by for dinner at Whistler, which was pretty much half way. It was my first time in Whistler and by the short time we spent there it seemed like a Winter Wonderland.

img_20190317_123723.jpg

Sunday Funday in Seattle! The INTERNeX gang headed to Seattle on Sunday with a tour organized by West Trek. Buss started from Vancouver Downtown at 8 am. It took about an hour to get to the boarder where we had our passport check and then about two hours until we arrived to Seattle. First we had a quick tour with the West Trek guide and after that there was about five hours time to do what ever. The guide listed us the main attractions such as the Space Needle, MoPop Museum, Gum wall and the first Starbucks. We also checked the Seattle Great Wheel which was only 16 dollars and absolutely amazing. All in all St. Patrick’s Day treated us very well and the sun was shining the whole day.20190317_042411_0

Hope you all enjoyed your weekend and the amazing weather!

This week’s PuB NiGHT will take place at the Beaver bar @8pm on Wednesday.

-Jasmin xx

INTERNeX International Exchange
International Village,
Suite 2077, 2079 – 88 West Pender Street
Vancouver, Canada -V6B 6N9-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

The Ultimate Tofino Experience

Now that we are well and safe back in Vancouver it is time for another adventure. Last time we saw the beauties of the Rocky Mountains, so know it is time to discover the greatness of the ocean. From May 17th till May 19th we will enter Canada’s surf capital, Tofino.

Tofino attracts surfers, nature lovers, campers, whale watchers, fishermen, kayakers or anyone just looking to be close to the nature. The water is fairly constant at 10C year-round, which makes Tofino an all year-round place to visit. Beaches stretch over 35km having enough space for all water sport activities. Just North of Tofino the Maquinna Marine Provincial Park is located with its natural hot springs, a popular tourist destination.

We will departure Vancouver around 7:00am and make our way to the Ferry, which we take to Vancouver Island. At Vancouver Island we will make some stops, Englishman River Falls, Coombs Market, Cathedral Grove and will drive through the Pacific Rim National Park to our Hotel the Jamie’s Rainforest Inn where we will enjoy a campfire with marshmallow roast. The next day you have the time to choose between some optional activities such as, surfing, bear or whale watching, kayaking, hot springs, biking or just relaxing on the beach. For dinner we all will gather together for a nice BBQ dinner. On the third day you can enjoy your day by doing one of the previous mentioned activities or just relaxing and in the later afternoon we will make our way back to Vancouver were we will arrive approximately 10:00pm.

The price for the trip is $300 and includes everything written above, expect for the optional activities. If you want to join the tour make sure you pay (CASH) by no later than Friday 9th May 12:00pm. We will receive soon a list with the prices for the optional activities and will post them in another blog post for you. If you sign up for the trip at the office, please also tell us what you would like to do during the trip and we will arrange this for you. Click here to join the event on Facebook, so we know who is going!

We hope you are joining us to Tofino and make it another wild weekend. 

 

Are you in to experience a new adventure with your friends here in Canada? Than head over to our Facebook to join to event and come to our office before Friday 9th of May 12pm to pay

 

INTERNeX Canada: Smart Save Vancouver

Ok, all the people know, Vancouver is an expensive city. But with our “Smart Saver” guide, you can take notes about our little tips to keep your budget safe. Today, we are going to talk about cheap places to buy souvenirs.

In every trip there are three fundamental things to do:

–       Enjoy and try to visit the most places as possible

–       Take pictures to show to the people how amazing is your trip

–       Buy souvenirs for the family and friends

But sometimes souvenirs can be really expensive… and a lot of people usually wait to the last moment, inside the airport, to buy gifts. But come on, this is not very correct and you know that.

But firstly, which kind of souvenir are more commons?

–       A cap or a t-shirt with Canada written on it.

–       Something with a maple leaf

–       Something with a reindeer or a bear

–       Something with the Canadian Flag

And secondly, where can you go to buy them?

Canada Store: It’s a super cheap supermarket. There is some cool stuff that you can buy there! And after Canada Day they have amazing discounts, so take advantage of them!

$5.94 Reindeer and bear toys

$7 Plastic cups

$7 Water bottles

$0.94 Canadian cup and $2.44 Kids water bottle

It’s impossible to find in Downtown, but you can check the different locations here.

But if this store is pretty far away for you, there a lot of shops in Downtown. Water Street (Downtown) is a fantastic place to buy souvenirs!

Smiley’s, 355 Water Street

Cheers!

Clara.

INTERNeX International Exchange
Suite 200 – 211 Columbia Street
Vancouver BC -V6A 2R5-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Phone: +1 (604) 662 8149
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

INTERNeX Canada: How to scape from a bear!

In Canada, there are approximately 25,000 grizzly bears occupying British Columbia, Ontario, Alberta, the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, Nuvanut, and the northern part of Manitoba.

If you should happen to run into a bear or you find yourself face to face with a bear, do you know what to do? Read on, because here are some interesting tips!

  1.  First of all, keep calm! Most of bears try to avoid people, so you should not be afraid.
  2.  If the bear doesn’t seem dangerous or agressive and is far away, just make as much noise as you can. You’ll let him/her know your presence: talk loudly, make noise,etc. (but don’t whistle)
  3.  Keep your distance, but if the bear is closer, stop and  don’t panic! Remain calm and try to look as large as possible. Then, try to back slowly and speak softly.Beer deterrent
  4.  Carry bear spray! Yeah, it sounds funny, but it actually exists. It’s a special pepper spray and is an invaluable deterrent!! (Take care, it’s a good deterrent, but the scent of its resin can actually attract bears)

Just watch this funny video, it’ll help you a lot !

P.S. Just keep in mind guys: Do not feed bears guys! It’s illegal in all of Canadian and USA National parks, and bears will associate humans with easy food!

Best,

Mercedes

INTERNeX International Exchange

Suite 200 – 211 Columbia Street
Vancouver BC -V6A 2R5-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Phone: +1 (604) 662 8149
Email: pr@internexcanada.com