Candidate Exposé – Alan Bittencourt

My name is Alan, I’m a 22 years old guy from Brazil. Currently I’m studying Mechanical Engineering in Salvador – Brazil.

I always had a dream of living in another country and also the English became a necessary language in my future working area as a mechanical engineer, so I mixed a dream with a necessity and… I found Canada. I had to choose between some other countries and Canada, but I saw something more interesting in Canada and definitely I’m happy that I chose the best.

I didn’t choose INTERNeX, it was a partnership between INTERNeX and the company from my country. But if I had to choose, INTERNeX would be my choice. INTERNeX was extremely helpful introducing Vancouver to me and giving me support to find a job in my first days. I participated in the program Working Visa Holiday. I chose this program, because it gave me a working visa, giving me an opportunity to live in Canada by myself with my work, while I studied English and travelled in Canada. I worked at The Chopped Leaf in Downtown Vancouver. It was a salad restaurant which had a big variety of salads, sandwiches etc. The work wasn’t easy, because we didn’t have time to stop, but the good communication with the costumers and co-workers always made my work and my English better everyday. Working in a restaurant seems to not have a specific necessity of characteristics and skills, but it’s wrong. You need to be energetic, a good listener and always open to learn new ways to do things.

When I arrived in Vancouver I lived in a homestay for a month and after that I found a basement on a website which I stayed until my last day in Canada before coming back to Brazil. Cold and rain, that was my first impression about Vancouver, but shortly after I fell in love with every detail of Vancouver. I could check why Vancouver was one of the best cities in the world to live. Beautiful mountains behind the big buildings, green area, good people and multiculturalism made me impressed. The safety always made me impressed with Vancouver and Canada. As my first time living far from my family and in my own place, I had to learn everything about housekeeping and cooking and also mix working and studying, what made my routine sometimes too tiring.

I attended to several activities with the INTERNeX team. Every Wednesdays were full of good moments and unforgettable times. The Rocky Mountains trip stays in my mind everyday. Definitely my best moments in Canada, INTERNeX was present directly or not. If I make a real list of activities, it would have more than 20 pages. But my favourites activities were: Hiking, snowboarding, pubs, nightclubs, cycling and outdoor activities. I was always open to new activities though. In Canada I travelled through the Rocky Mountains and stopped in some cities like: Jasper, Banff, Kelowna, Kamloops etc. And also visited some cities to the north of Vancouver such as Whistler and Squamish.

The most memorable thing about Canada are the friends I made. I arrived in Canada alone and came back to Brazil leaving a family in Canada and spread in the world. I made friends I can count on them and they will be always in my best memories of Canada. The first thing I thought I would do when I came home was enjoying my family and the beach, but I just study everyday so far hahaha.

After this experience I definitely know that my travels will not stop. I didn’t decide yet, but New Zealand and England seam good places to travel, but for sure Canada will be one that I want to go back.

– Alan

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

What to do on the weekend?

It’s Friday what means that it is again time for our favourite time in the week, the weekend is coming up. Of course also this Friday we have a short overview about that, what you can do on this probably really sunny weekend in Vancouver.

Khatsahlano Street Party
The Khatsahlano Street Party is Vancouver’s biggest Music and Arts Festival completely for free on this Saturday! This festival offers you about 40 food trucks, 50 live bands and hundreds of merchants and vendors across 10 blocks (about 1 mile). For more information and the schedule just have a look here.
As you may know, we are going to this festival together as well. We will meet us at 12:30 pm at the Esso Gas Station at Burrad Street / W 4th Avenue. We will be happy to see you there!

 

Theatre Under the Stars
Theatre Under the Stars is located at one of the most beautiful places in Vancouver, this theatre is located in the Stanley Park. The summer shows are starting this Friday till the 23th of August. This year they perform the two musicals ‘Shrek’ and ‘Legally Blonde’, one musical a day starting at 8 pm. Complete Schedule.

 

Food Cart Fest
The Food Cart Fest is a perfect way for you to try every different kind of Vancouver’s street food. Try what ever you like at one of over 20 different food carts located at the Olympic Village every Sunday in the summer.  The entrance fee will be $2. If you like to go but you are not able to  go an Sunday’s or to the Olympic Village; the Food Cart Fest is also in Surrey on Saturday’s at the City Hall Plaza.

 

Beaches
The weather forecast for this weekend is making us very happy, it is supposed to be very warm in Vancouver, up to 27 degrees! So it will be perfect days for enjoying these days at one of Vancouver’s beautiful beaches. Mostly all of them are perfect for nearly everything you like: sports, just relaxing or tanning, swimming in the water or even a picnic at the beach. Vancouver has eight beaches which are directly at the open water: English Bay Beach, Jericho Beach, Kitsilano Beach, Locarno Beach, Second Beach, Spanish Banks Beach, Sunset Beach, Third Beach. We hope you enjoy the weather!

 

Soccer World Cup in Brazil
It is still world cup time! This weekend will be the last but also the most important and exciting weekend in the world cup! It time for the final on Sunday, 12 pm! Germany and Argentina will fight in the last match for the world cup trophy. Of course the INTERNeX PR-Crew is cheering for Germany, for which team are you cheering for? You should not miss the final, enjoy an exciting match and cheer for your favorite team. There are many spots where you can watch the final, it will be a great end of the world cup, even when you watch it in a city with so many nationalities like Vancouver.

 

We hope you will have a great and enjoyable weekend and may see you at the Khatsahlano Street Party or to watch the soccer world cup final on Sunday! Just have an amazing time while you are in Vancouver!

 

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

Soccer World Cup: Germany vs. Brazil

The world cup is getting more exciting from match to match. Now there are just four teams left in the competition for the world cup trophy. Tomorrow it is time for the first semi-final, Germany against Brazil at 1 pm. And of course we like to watch also this match together. The winner of this will be in the world cup final, so it will be a very exciting and important match, we are sure!

For this important match we decided to go to a place where we already have been to for a world cup match, we decided to watch the match at The Blarney Stone in Gastown on their 20 foot big screen. There won’t be an entrance fee but unfortunately there is a minimum of $10 per person which has to spend on food or drinks. During the match they will offer food and drinks, so everything should be prepared for an exciting match with hopefully the right score in the end.

Where?     The Blarney Stone @ 216 Carrall Street
When?       12:30 pm (match starts at 1 pm)

 

So let”s cheer and watch the match together!  Hope to see you at The Blarney Stone tomorrow!

 

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

INTERNeX Family Interview #4

What is your first name?
Patrick.

Where are you from?
I am from the Netherlands. More specifically it’s actually an Island in the South West, known as Zuid Beveland.

What languages do you speak fluently other than English?
Fluently?…just Dutch.

What position do you hold at INTERNeX? And for how long have you been working here?
I am the placement manager for the Paid Vancouver Placements and also a marketing coordinator. I have been holding this position for the past three years now.

What made you want to become involved with INTERNeX in the first place?
Well I started off as an intern actually and then I was offered a more permanent position once my internship had ended.

In what ways do you think INTERNeX is unique from other international placement agencies? What does INTERNeX specifically offer that no other company can?
Our motto actually highlights why we are unique; it says “Undersell and over deliver”. Yes we are a company that strives for profit; however, monetary gains are not our main driving force. Our entire team is dedicated to making our candidates better global citizens, so first and foremost we are all about our candidates. Secondly, I wholeheartedly believe that INTERNeX is always ahead of the market so we truly set the standard for this industry. We have led the way for other companies to realize that the path to true success is to customize the programs to the candidate not the other way around.

What changes within INTERNeX have you personally witnessed since you have joined the team?
Even though I have only been a part of this company for the past three years I have seen an innumerous amount of changes. However, I will highlight the ones that I see as the most important. First and foremost, our company, our systems, and our staff have become more professional. Since our expansion in terms of our international reach our work load and ultimately work hours have extended so no more leaving the office early to catch the hockey game haha. Secondly, in terms of our candidates the amount of things that they can participate in besides from the program in which they are placed has exponentially increased. And with this increase in activities I have really witnessed the fostering of a true community amongst our INTERNeX clients.

Where would you like to see INTERNeX in the next 10 years? Do you have any New Year’s goals for the company?
Well I would like to see INTERNeX as a global brand for our industry. We can set the standard on a global level and introduce our personalized services to the rest of the world. I would also like to see us sending Canadians abroad so we address both sides of our international exchange markets. And on a more personal side I am really invested in expanding and successfully promoting our wildlife/environmental volunteer program.

Tell us one interesting thing about yourself that not a lot of people know?
When I was twenty years old, my father, my uncle and I climbed a mountain in Africa. This mountain was called Mount Kilimanjaro and it’s actually the highest peak in Africa at 5,895 meters (19,341 ft). It took us seven days to climb this mountain because if we went any quicker we would have suffered from altitude sickness, which can actually result in death if you do not take the time to acclimatize.

If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be and why?
Hmm well there are many places that I would love to travel to but being a tourist in a country and being a resident are two very different experiences. But I would love to live in Pantanal, Brazil and open up my own eco resort.