What to do on the weekend – Canada Day Edition

This week is short, which means it’s already weekend, and it’s a special one! Tomorrow is Canada Day, the national holiday which celebrates the anniversary of Canadian Confederation from July 1st, 1867 where the three separate colonies of the United Canadas, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick were united into a single Dominion within the British Empire called Canada.

There are a few options to celebrate Canada Day:

You could come celebrate with INTERNeX at Wreck Beach. The weather will be sunny and there’s a big party going on. Everyone is welcome to join. Just make sure you bring enough food and drinks with you since the beach is not too easy to access with it’s 490 steps. The walk is worth it though, from here you can see the most beautiful sunset in Vancouver. The vibes are immaculate. It’s definitely something you have to see for yourself, but be aware: at this beach clothing is optional, so it’s nothing for sensitive eyes. 😉

Another option would be Canada place. Each year there’s a bunch of food trucks, live music, and entertainment. Performers include Johnny Reid, The Boom Booms, Omega Mighty, and many more.The event at Canada Place is the second largest Canada Day celebration, next only to those in Ottawa, Canada’s capital. To be honest though, it seemed very small to me when I went. If you look for a parade, jazz concerts, street performers, and craft activities, Granville Island is the place for you. It’s a little more family oriented than other locations, but still a fun place to visit, even on regular days.

I think in general you just need to go outside and you’ll find a celebration somewhere! Your dress code should be red and/or white, the same colours as the Canadian flag, for the full experience. 😉

There’s also another side to Canada Day that I want to talk about. It attracted a negative stigma among some Indigenous peoples in Canada and their allies, who feel that it is a celebration of the colonization of Indigenous land. That’s because prior to European colonization, present-day Canada was inhabited by Indigenous peoples, with distinct trade networks, spiritual beliefs, and styles of social organization. You’ve probably noticed signs in and around Vancouver that refer to the Indigenous peoples and their language. This topic is very complex and takes some time to explain, but I think it’s important to spread awareness and talk about different sides of this country. If you are interested there’s lots of things to learn!

Here are, for example, some links for you to check out about Indigenous languages in BC:
https://maps.fpcc.ca/languages
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WugI6-XUzA

I think it’s good to acknowledge the different feelings Canada Day sparks amongst the population. For many, it isn’t about history though, it’s a day to celebrate people, diversity, and inclusion in a beautiful country, and that’s what I like to celebrate!

Whatever you decide on, I’m sure you’ll have a great weekend, and an even better Canada Day! 🙂

As for a few others of us, we’ll go to Las Vegas on Sunday for even more celebrations! But that’s a different story. I’ll tell you about it once we’re back. 🙂

Can’t wait to hear about your weekend!

Cheers,

Laura 🙂

Candidate Exposé – Lisa-Marie Hartwig

My name is Lisa-Marie Hartwig. I am 21 years old and I live in Stuttgart (southern Germany). I am studying Business Administration in the Service Sector Management of Non-Profit Organizations.

I wanted to experience a new country and I wanted to strengthen the general and specific knowledge and skills that are necessary for the work in NPOs or NGOs. At the same time I wanted to do this on an international level.

I found INTERNeX through the information event of the DHBW. I did the practicum program for 4 weeks. I chose this program together with a co-student. I liked it very much. I was placed at a small environmental organization with really cool people. The work was monotonously but we knew that before. The skills you need to have for this job are endurance, speed and attention. This was not a part of my university program. It was a voluntary decision from me. My employee didn’t mind. But it is useful for my résumé.

I was at a home stay from INTERNeX. My first impression from Vancouver was that the city is ugly. I was a little bit disappointed because many people were jealous. It was really cold in my room and I had a long bus drive to the city centre. I am not in Canada anymore. What I liked the most about the city and Canada was the neatness of the people.

I attended a lot of the activities from INTERNeX. I liked them very much because of different people you meet there. I was at Stanley Park, the Lookout, Harbour Centre, Robson Street, North Vancouver, Richmond, Lynn Valley Park and drove to a lake outside Vancouver. Visiting Sunshine Coast at the place of a colleague was the most memorable thing I did in Canada.

The first thing I did when I came home was having a dinner with my boyfriend and my parents. In Vancouver I thought I would travel more in the future, but since I am back in Germany it is the same daily grind like before. I would totally recommend the services of INTERNeX. They managed to call a taxi for the airport. And the introduction presentation was really helpful. The organized events were great and helped me to arrange my evenings.

– Lisa-Marie Hartwig

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 Canada: Casual Friday – Into The Wild!

Hello guys,

Today I want to share a story about a movie I saw. In The Netherlands I used to work in a cinema house. One day we had a art movie on our program from the USA. The title is Into The Wild. It’s tells a story about a young guy that wanted to enjoy the freedom and the wild. He took his car from Atlanta (eastcoast) all the way to the west (Seattle, Vancouver) and up through the Yukon to Alaska. This is based on a real story what happened between 1990-1992.

The movie inspired me to do a lot of travels in Northern-America. It really shows the beauty of the Northern American continent. From the mountains in California to the endless plains in the middle of the States.

This guy named Chris Mccandless used some amazing and interested expressions from books that he read during his 2 years of travel. A few examples of his quotes:

 

“…there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.”

“If you want something in this life, reach out and grab it.”

And this one:

“It is important in life not to be strong, but to feel strong, to measure yourself at least once.”

This gives you an idea of the guy where this movie is about. To give you a better idea check out the trailer below:

I heard from a lot of people that they were amazed by this movie. I can only say; check it out sometime, it’s definitely worth it!

Great weekend everybody

Cheers,

Jelle

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: Canadian Goose!

I’m sure everyone can agree that one of factors which makes British Columbia the most beautiful place to live on earth is its nature. You can see Mother Nature at its finest with breathtaking sights of the mountains, forests, lakes, and most of all, the animals that live here in BC. And whether you have been taking a walk around a lake, a park, or even staring up at the sky, you most definitely will have seen our famous Canadian geese. These birds look so adorable that you just can’t help but feed them your leftover snacks. Although, they can be seriously annoying at times when they come to steal your food!

But how much more does an average Canadian know about the Canadian goose? Well, probably not a whole lot. So I did a little bit of research and here is what I’ve found:

Some of the interesting facts according to the The CornellLab of Ornithology…

Latin name: Branta canadensis

• the oldest known wild Canada Goose was 30 years 4 months old!
• when these birds find a partner to be with, they choose accordingly to their own body size, what is known as “assortatively” mating. That is a bit different the way people find their partners, because we think that love can come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, right?
• they build nests on the ground and can lay anywhere from 1-12 eggs
• Canadian geese have 13 different sounds or calls they can make for different reasons!
• When they fly, these birds coordinate what is known as a V-formation, which is basically forming a v-shape with the leader of the pack at the front (you most likely have seen this) for air resistance
• they are devoted to their partners and remain monogamous, which means they will be with the same partner for the rest of their lives! Talk about loyalty and dedication!

Cheers,

Flora

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

Casual Friday – Gastowns Steam Clock

What is the story of the Steam Clock? Nobody really knows, that is why I want to share with you today an article by Will Woods. He is a tour guide here in Vancouver and gets a lot of questions about the Steam Clock but that question is one he has difficulty answering, that is why he investigated this story.

Let’s get our facts on the table. First of all, while Gastown is old, the clock ain’t. Built in 1977, it’s not even reached middle age yet. Secondly, while it uses steam power, it also requires three (three!) electric motors. By my reckoning any device that requires three electric motors is stretching the definition of ‘steam-powered’ to its absolute limit. Thirdly, it is styled to look like a 19th century antique rather than representing any actualdesign aesthetic of the late 70’s – further draining it of authenticity.

As I led my tour groups through Gastown, it bugged me. Why is this clock here? Aren’t there more interesting sights and relics in the city that should be more celebrated than the Gastown Clock? Are we letting down our city’s visitors by drawing them to it?

So I decided to dig a little deeper…I decided there had to be something interesting about the clock. I started by stepping back in time, to Gastown-before-the-clock. 1967 to be precise.

In the late 60’s Gastown was a much edgier place than today. Many of the buildings were derelict or provided slum accommodation for low-income people. Gastown also hosted a burgeoning counter-culture movement as hippies were drawn to the area, attracted by its cheap rents and cheaper drugs.

The mayor of the time was Tom “Terrific” Campbell. A strident pro-development mayor with an eye fixed firmly on the future. Campbell had bold plans for Vancouver. Protecting the city’s heritage buildings and its low-income Eastside communities was not in those plans. Working with urban planners, Tom developed a proposal to totally reconfigure Vancouver’s downtown. Swathes of Chinatown, Strathcona and historic Gastown were to be demolished to make way for a giant freeway.

Vancouver is notable amongst North American cities precisely because it does not have a freeway running through its centre. Cities including Toronto, Seattle and Chicago all have freeways running alongside their downtown waterfronts. Tom Campbell wanted a similar freeway system in Vancouver, including a third bridge from downtown to the North Shore. In fact right now The Museum of Vancouver has an excellent exhibit showing the plans and models of this never-built freeway system.

So what happened? Why doesn’t downtown have a 12 lane freeway? Well, it turned out the people who happily lived in Chinatown, Strathcona and Gastown in 1970 preferred not to be forcibly evicted from their homes to make way for a giant road. Surprise huh?

A concerted community campaign led by the residents of Chinatown put a stop to Tom’s terrific plans. The only stretch that got built was the Georgia St. and Dunsmuir St. viaducts, demolishing a neighhourhood known as Hogan’s Alley. In 1970 this part of town housed Vancouver’s black community and unfortunately the rearguard action by the Eastside communities came too late to save it. But Gastown, Chinatown and (most of) Strathcona were saved.

Today, the City of Vancouver is actively seeking proposals on what to do with the viaducts. My favourite suggestion is to build a park, perhaps honouring one of Hogan’s Alley’s occasional residents – Jimi Hendrix. He would visit his grandmother Nora there in the 1950’s and 60’s.

But what does all this have to do with the steam clock you might ask?? Good question. Following the saving of Gastown, the government started to invest in the area. Funds came in to refurbish the historic buildings that had fallen into disrepair. Businesses started to return and tourists started to feel welcome.

By 1977 the regeneration of Gastown was largely complete. Conscious the area needed a focal point to draw people in, store owners banded together and funded the clock. It’s steam theme a reference to the industrial past of the area, where steam pipes once ran underground powering machinery.

The inscription on the clock celebrates the restoration of Gastown. Interestingly the inscription does not make any specific reference to Tom Campbell’s unsuccessful freeway plans. I wonder if it was felt politically imprudent to embarrass a former mayor who had only been out of office for a few years, by drawing attention to his failed plans. I would be interested to hear from anyone who was part of the 1977 committee that funded, built and inscribed the clock who may know more!

So now every time I look at the clock I imagine Gastown as a bare patch of concrete, permanently in darkness, as cars thunder overhead on a giant elevated freeway. And then the clock doesn’t seem so bad after all.

Source: Will Woods is founder and Chief Storyteller at Forbidden Vancouver 

Cheers,

Petra

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