Candidate Exposé – Lukas Hug

New week, new candidate – rather a new “old” candidate.

I am happy to present the story of Lukas, our previous INTERNeXer 🙂 glad he shared all his special memories with us.

Today it’s all about Lukas, a 25-year old student from Germany. During his time in Canada he did his bachelor degree in economics but now he’s already finishing his master’s degree in Finance and Accounting in Munich. Originally, he’s from the Black Forest. Additional fact 😉 – in his free time he likes to play soccer by the sea.

First things first, he enjoyed his time abroad very much. Since he wanted to work and live abroad for his entire life, the day Timothy visited his university and did a presentation about the programs INTERNeX has to offer, made Lukas’ decision. In this context a huge thank you to the INTERNeX team for making this opportunity possible for him. He did a practicum with a wealth management company which is a common company especially in Canada and the US. Primarily his tasks were to organize and taking part in networking events mostly to get new clients as well as recruiting and consulting tasks. He also did some office organization jobs which definitely sounds like an interesting and varied workday.

Furthermore, he enjoyed being in a multicultural department with 4 guys from France, England, Poland, and Russia helping people to invest and save money with e.g., retirement plans or providing support in insurance tasks. There’s not only one thing that was the best about his stay in Canada, it’s a collection of memories. He really enjoyed being surrounded by friendly open-minded people who are always polite and tolerant. Because of this it was always easy to get to know new people from all over the world. For him it was not only about improving his language skills, but also getting work experiences in an international atmosphere. Another interesting fact he pointed out is the difference in financial planning between Germany and Canada as well as the different processes being used. This practicum helped him a lot to see finance from another point of view.

From the first moment on, Vancouver was a big adventure for Lukas. It all started with waiting for 5 hours at the immigration office because they were so busy. After that, he was able start to enjoy his stay with a BBQ at Kitsilano Beach organized by his host family. It was a great chance to get to know each other.

He enjoyed many of the INTERNeX events such as almost every pubnight on Wednesday. Additionally, he participated in a soccer club which is a funny story…. On his way to a hiking trip to grouse mountain he just spotted some guys playing soccer. He watched them until one of them asked him to join. He didn’t wait to be asked twice. From this moment on he was part of the team and participated in the training and games every week. He also enjoyed all the hiking trails like Garibaldi Lake or Grouse Mountain where he enthusiastically enjoyed the amazing view. However, for him, the Rocky Mountains trip was next to his trip to Victoria to meet some friends, for sure the best experience.

In his words he gave 5 out of 5 stars to the INTERNeX Team, his experiences, and the whole stay in Canada!!
Thanks Lukas

Have a great week 🙂

Cheers,

– Tatjana

INTERNeX International Exchange
2005-689 Abbott St., Vancouver, BC, V6B 0J2
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

What to Do on the Weekend?

Wow…How is it possible that my first week is already over? I was able to collect so many new impressions and I kind of still can’t believe I’m in Canada now. But I am really relieved and glad that my jetlag wasn’t too bad. That’s why I’m ready to explore Vancouver and if you don’t have any plans for the weekend yet you should keep on reading as I’m giving you some ideas what you can do in the next few days. 🙂

Tomorrow is gonna be the first INTERNeX trip I planned for you guys and for this occasion I chose Granville Island. I think it’s good to start with and it’s supposed to be one of the must-go places while being in Vancouver. The main reason why lots of people go there is the public market where you can get loads of food. Besides fruits, fish, cheese and more we can check out several shops. I also got the hint to try out “salmon candy” – it’s a must for all fish lovers! (Even if I don’t like fish at all, I’m thinking about trying it out!)

We meet at Yaletown-Roundhouse Station at 2:30 pm and afterwards we’re going to take the aquabus to get to the island. So I hope to see some of you tomorrow!

 

 

 

Another event you can check out this weekend is the Vancouver International Dance Festival. It celebrates its 20th anniversary in march and offers lots of shows and dance classes. Some of them are even for free. If you’re into dancing this might be something for you!

For those of you who just feel like going for a relaxed walk – you should check out Queen Elizabeth park. It’s a nice spot to explore some gardens or just catch some views and I guess it’s a good place to watch a sunset.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Cheers,

– Alina

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

Alina’s First Pub Night

My very first Pub Night with the INTERNeX family!

Yesterday was my first time at Pub Night and I still can’t believe how many of you INTERNeXers were there. First of all, I want to thank you for such a warm welcome! Obviously I didn’t get the chance to talk to everyone, but I’m pretty sure I will get to know all of you shortly and I can’t wait! When I tried to take a group picture, I realized I had to take two, from each end of the table, because I couldn’t get everyone into one. 😀

So last night we went to the Beaver. It’s a really nice Pub on Granville Street, which I was told is THE street downtown to go out. And actually I was pretty impressed by how much was going on there on a Wednesday night, because where I come from it’s not common that a street is still so crowded late on a weekday. We started our evening with some food and drinks and because we became more and more people over time the waitresses had to add another table again and again.

Later at night we played bingo. I was really excited because it was a music bingo and I haven’t played it before and some of you couldn’t even wait for it to start. It was so much fun even though I didn’t even know most of the titles of the songs but others did and then we just helped each other. Great team work guys! Three of us even won a price. They got a pitcher and a shot for free. Lucky you! I definitely want to come back to the Beaver because I really want to win too. 🙂

After that a part of the group continued their night and went somewhere else afterwards, but others just headed home since they had to get up early this morning.

So a couple of us could take the same skytrain back home and this ride was a little adventure for itself. We were standing there and all of a sudden the train made an emergency stop. It was actually fun because we fell onto each other kind of like dominos. And even the door opened a little, but fortunately nothing happened and we just stopped for about a minute and then we could continue our ride. We just didn’t expect it at all. 😀

All in all I had a really fun night and I’m even more looking forward to the other Pub Nights and of course our trips on the weekends.

Furthermore, I can’t wait to get to know all of you more and spend lots of time with you guys!

So have a great day and see you soon!

Cheers,

– Alina

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?

How nice to have a long weekend ahead of us thanks to Family Day! 🙂

So you might be wondering how to spend your weekend and if there is something special going on. Of course there is…!

The Fan Expo from February 15 to 17, clearly is a good choice on the weekend for all pop-culture lovers. As one of British Columbia’s biggest events in that field, the Vancouver Convention Centre will be flooded with comic book fans, cosplay fanatics, video game enthusiasts or simply movie fans. Don’t miss the chance to get an autograph and/or photos with celebrities like Brendan Fraser and Christina Ricci, as well as don’t miss to check out the live entertainment and activities offered. Tickets are available online.

For all the culture lovers out there, there is also Black History Month Family Day going on at the Mackin House in Coquitlam. They celebrate African culture in Canada with a Family Day weekend event. Enjoy food, live performances, an interactive drum circle, crafts, and a presentation by the African Descent Society of BC on February 15 starting at 12 pm. As admission fee, an individual donation should be given.

And for the Oscars were just taking place in Los Angeles last Sunday, this weekend offers the best chance to catch up on all the remarkable and worthy movies that were awarded like e.g. the Korean first time winner of the “Best Film” category “Parasite” – a historic moment of itself. Manifold cinemas in and surrounding Vancouver offer screenings of this movie, e.g the Cineplex located in the International Village Mall.

Also, being concerned with Family Day, keep in mind that not every store might be opened on Monday. While smaller businesses will likely be closed or running shortened hours, the bigger malls and stores like the Canadian superstore will remain open and give you the opportunity to still get some groceries in case your fridge looks sad after the weekend.

This being sad, it’s going to be a great long weekend – predictions look well, we should be able to catch some sunlight, too!! Have a magnificent time and hope to see you all for our next Pub Night at Malone’s, as always, on Wednesday at 7 PM!!

Cheers,

– Felicitas

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?

Another week is over and gives us the great opportunity to explore the beautiful city we get to live in.

As you probably already noticed, this weekend is all about the Chinese New Years festival. Wherever you go, you will find the red lanterns and probably some Chinese signs with a rat on it. Obviously, Chinatown will be hosting the most spectacular events, this weekend. But you won’t be able to escape it any other place in town either ;-).

As the Chinese culture is a very important part of Vancouver´s community, I strongly recommend walking around with your eyes wide open. There are many cultural differences, which we might not always understand. But all the myths and story’s (yes, I’ve done some research), are beautiful and remind me why I love travelling so much. It gives you a different perspective, you don’t just get to learn facts, but also feelings and the meaning that are transferred through ceremonies, traditions and beliefs.
However, instead of buying a ticket to Beijing, we get to go with a way cheaper option instead. The festival starts off today (January 24) with a ceremony at the Buddhist Temple, which is the largest one in North America. So, besides the celebrations this weekend, it might be very interesting to see and explore.
Followed up by Saturday, which is the actual New Years Day! As the tradition wants it, you have the chance to see the famous Lion Dance at the River District. I don’t really have words to explain it, as I am not an expert myself (obviously). But just give it a Youtube search, trust me it is a very interesting thing to watch! And last but not least there will be a big parade happening on Sunday.
And this is were the INTERNeX gang will get together again (Sunday, January 26). Apparently together with 700 other people, that also decided to join the INTERNeX community. Seems like we’ve gone very big all of a sudden :D. (For the ones that don’t know what I am talking about, just check out the Facebook event.) We will meet up in front of the International Village Mall and from there we’ll try to find the perfect spot to watch everything that is going on. Afterwards we will explore the Chinese Gardens. And besides the fact, that is quite beautiful around there in the first place, we also get to see some unique shows and of course fantastic Chinese food that will be on sale. I am just hoping our 700 new friends, don’t have the same idea.

As you might see I am super excited to see all of this in person, to see the stunning costumes and the slight insight of a very different culture and I am very happy to do it together with you guys!

But no matter if you are celebrating the year of the rat this weekend or not, I hope you have a fantastic one.
See you all soon!

Cheers,
— Nadja 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