Canada facts – movietime

Where are all our movie lovers? People who’re always up to date with the newest movie and practice binge watching as a professional sport? This blogpost will definitely be something for you 😉

Is it New York or our beloved Vancouver? Maybe you’ve seen Vancouver in many movies you’ve watched in the last years 🙂 But did you recognize that it isn’t New York or Seattle but Vancouver? Might be difficult so let us have a closer look ;).
Firstly, I’d like to tell you a short story about something that happened to me during my time in Vancouver. Back in 2017 on my way to my daily language classes on W Hastings street, Vancouver Downtown I saw camera teams everywhere. The people weren’t allowed to cross the street – except us language school students. It felt like being a celebrity for like 5 minutes 😉 So I continued walking straight to the language school building to not disturb the shooting. Right before entering the building I turned around and saw Ryan Reynolds on his motorcycle ready to shoot the movie Deadpool 2. Pretty cool and exciting moment. Believe me – here’s the evidence photo.

So that’s it from my own experience; let’s continue with some popular films and series that take place in Vancouver.
How many movies were filmed in Vancouver? Do you know any of these movies? I’m pretty sure you will…
Beside Deadpool, there is one of the most successful movies you’ve probably seen or at least heard of. Getting a little naughty we can talk about 50 Shades of Grey. Have you noticed the huge building called ” Bentall 5 tower”? In the movie it’s transformed into “Grey Enterprises” where many scenes take place. Maybe you’ve had dinner at Peckingpah BBQ in Gastown (like I did) or visited the Fairmont Hotel. Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele have been there as well. 😉 It’s true; in the movie it seems like everything takes place in Seattle but as in mentioned before it’s often not like this; this movie is a good example for Vancouver which stands in for Seattle.

The famous action blockbuster I, Robot with Will Smith is also shot in Vancouver. You can spot filming locations of the futuristic city in the movie by the Marina City Towers, Wrigley Building and Pier 94.
There are famous movie locations at every corner. Even right on the arrival at Vancouver International Airport, you can spot a well known movie scene. This place was featured in the horror classic “Final Destination” as New Yorks JFK Airport.
Love is in the air – movies such as Always be my maybe or one of my favourite movies Love guaranteed are being filmed in Vancouver too. It’s pretty cool watching movies in which actors enjoy their time in Downtown or on a walk in Stanley Park. If you haven’t seen this movie it’s highly recommended by me.

Surely you know the Twilight Saga? Also this one was filmed at different locations in British Columbia especially Vancouver and Tofino – of course as it is typical for these movies, mostly in the forest.
Certainly, there are many more great movies but some series you might know are shot in Vancouver as well. The famous classic Suits as well as Arrow or Riverdale found their perfect filming location in this Canadian city.
Hope I could give you some “that’s amazing oh I didn’t know” moments 😉
Enjoy watching you favourite movies or series and if you already visited some of the filming locations – let me know!!!

We’d love to see you at tonight’s pubnight:) 6pm at The Beaver pub!
Cheers

– Tatjana

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

Canada facts: Packing list

Who doesn’t know this situation? Packing your bag and what happens: 10% useful stuff and 90% “you never know”
So, let me try to help fix this problem 😉
Let’s start with the basics

• your favourite clothes; of course for the girls including your favourite dress. Also keep in mind if your host organization requires any formal or business clothes.
• sweater, for cosy summer nights at the bonfire, or for those chilly fall nights.
  …and do not forget to bring rain clothes. They might not be fancy but as I can assure, very helpful at nearly any time of the year.
  Since I think the basic items are known to everyone, I would like to give you a few more tips for a successful trip without missing something important.

1. Take care while using or buying a sim card. Sometimes it can be really expensive to buy one in Canada (especially data). Inform yourself about the conditions of your phone provider in your hometown. It depends but maybe it’s easier and cheaper to buy one before starting your trip.
Map.me: In order to save mobile data or to avoid costs, it is useful to use offline maps such as maps.me. Simply download in advance. Maybe you don’t need mobile data at all; Vancouver offers a lot of free wifi networks.

2. Don’t forget your laptop/computer. Check with your host organization whether they provide you with a laptop. Maybe you’d rather work with your own laptop? Sometime a tablet is not quite enough….

3. The most important thing to charge all your electronic devices? The adapter. Pay attention that you need different adapters in different countries; Canada and the US use the same adapter and have the same voltage. In addition, it may be useful to have a multiple usb charger if only one plug is available (like in some Homestays or older hostels).

4. From my own experience I can recommend buying body care products like shampoo or shower gel in your hometown. It might be twice as expensive in Canada.

5. Your medication. It may be difficult to get your needed medication in another country without a local prescription.

6. Perfume or cologne: this may sound a bit weird at first, but in Canada some companies do not allow strong smelling perfumes or colognes. So better use a neutral one.

7. Everyone likes to get a souvenir. And so does your future hostfamily. Think about something that is typically for your home country. I’m sure they will like it.

8. Needle and thread: Maybe a button will come off of your favourite dress or shirt. It may be helpful to have needle and thread at hand.

9. Necessary documents: Make sure you have ALL your necessary documentation including immigration documents, letters of offer, homestay info and all health documents such as vaccine certificates and PCR test results either digitally or in paper form or both. Also download any required apps (such as ArriveCAN)

10. And last but not least another reminder to not forget to take enough face masks with you especially on your flight. There are multiple places to buy one in Vancouver but it can be helpful taking a additional one with you. Also don’t forget checking the current pandemic restrictions including all the necessary documents.

Do not pack:
There are also a few things you should avoid packing:

• do not take too much alcohol with you; it might be cheaper in your home country but paying all the extra fees is not worth it
• this is also the case with tobacco: only 10 packs are allowed
• some things you cannot bring at all such as some meat or vegetable products.
  For further information have a look at the Canadian government website:
  https://travel.gc.ca/returning/customs/what-you-can-bring-home-to-canada#alcohol

Have a great weekend 🙂

– Tatjana

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

Client Testimonial

Timo, Germany

Well, there I was. Once again on a plane heading to Canada – Sipping my tomato juice, which is ‘plane’ better at high altitude, while gazing through the 17 1/8″ x 20 5/8″ window. Yet Canada looked like a layer of thick, dense clouds. Seriously though, I couldn’t wait to catch a first glimpse of my beautiful new home, British Columbia.

During my one-year stay in Edmonton during grade 11, I was often told to visit Vancouver. When someone would ask me about my thoughts on the city I would respond ‘If Whyte Avenue is Edmonton’s most exciting street, well then Vancouver must be Canada’s Whyte Avenue’.

I couldn’t wait to see this place!

While still in German High School I started planning my best possible way to spending time in Van City. Luckily it didn’t take me too long until I came across INTERNeX. Their help was crucial for me to say the least! Going through the whole visa/internship application process can get really exhausting. It’s great to have some professional back up, unless you like throwing pity parties due to frequent frustration.

And then…Boom!! While having a barbecue with my friends on July 11^th, I received Mr. Wells’ email saying I got an internship placement with an NGO. Without trying to exaggerate and in respect of my friends hating to see me leave again – my excitement spilled over and captured everyone’s feelings.

Now, two months after being on that plane to Canada, I can say that living here In Vancouver has been an incredible experience so far. Through my internship I have networked my way around the NGO sector and I had the chance to attend enormously informative panel discussions and workshops. Above all that, it doesn’t even seem like I have arrived at the tip of the iceberg yet. There’s a lot more to come. And hey, didn’t you always want to wake up and ‘SpongeBob-Style’ walk your way to the office thinking ‘I’m ready! I’m ready!’?Well I do that five times a week. And needless to say, I even find time to explore Vancouver’s stunning surroundings.

Look at my picture from when I went zip lining in Whistler! It’s only one shot of a whole library of great experiences, at great places, with great people, and last bot not least – with InternEx. Thanks guys!

Cheers Timo

INTERNeX International Exchange
International Village,
Suite 2077, 2079 – 88 West Pender Street
Vancouver, Canada -V6B 9N9-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

Client Testimonial

Sarah, Germany

Before I came to Vancouver on the beginning of October, everybody told me, it will be very very rainy the whole two months I will stay there. So I started my trip to Vancouver expecting a lot of rain and spending most of the time inside. Actually, I had such a great nice and sunny time in Vancouver until now and my time is almost over. I could enjoy the incredibly amazing nature in Vancouver by hiking, running and walking through the beautiful Parks in Vancouver.

My first hike was the Grouse Grind, up to Grouse Mountain, and I still don’t know what I was thinking when I decided to wear Chucks and Jeans on this day to do the Grouse Grind, that was the most stupid idea I probably ever had! I stood at the starting point and saw a lot of people in sport clothes doing some stretching and preparing for the hike. I felt a little bit afraid because of this situation but I decided to pervade this hike even if I had to do it in Chucks and Jeans. I actually arrived the peak with a good feeling because I had a lot of fun while hiking and the view on the peak was amazing!!

That was one of many exciting and awesome trips I had in Vancouver. But the very best trip was my tour through the Rocky Mountains. Although I spent much time in the bus, I had a great time with funny people. We enjoyed the amazing landscape while sitting in the bus and in the evenings we relaxed in hot tubs and hot springs before we went out for party in pubs and clubs with nice locals there. On the last day, we actually could go to Lake Louise for skiing or snowboarding. There were many people and only one run was open, but we really enjoyed the time in the snow and now I can say, I was snowboarding in the Rocky Mountains. I think that’s pretty cool :P. The whole trip was just awesome!

Of course, I didn’t spend the whole time having such nice trips, I also had to work. Work was very fun though, because I had to dress up for a Halloween event in the Stanley Park and played with really cute little kids dressed up for Halloween as well. Oh I will never forget those adorable little pumpkins, strawberries and ladybugs.

Halloween itself was crazy! It was very hard to find a costume that covered more than only the necessary parts of my body. When I finally found a costume I went to a party at the Blarney Stone with INTERNeX and had a lot of fun there with great live music and funny games. So thanks to INTERNeX I could meet a lot of other students I spent a lot of time with after I met them on the events, which INTERNeX organized.

Although I’ve been staying in Vancouver for only two months, I experienced so many things in this short time and it was an amazing time. The people are very open-minded and that makes it easy for you to find people, with who you can enjoy your time.

For me, Vancouver is one of the most beautiful cities in the world and I would recommend going there to everybody.

So I am very sad that I have to leave soon and I will never forget my time in Vancouver.

Cheers Sarah

INTERNeX International Exchange
International Village,
Suite 2077, 2079 – 88 West Pender Street
Vancouver, Canada -V6B 9N9-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

Client Testimonial

Ellen, Denmark

After what felt like a thousand years of school, I was in desperate need of a break. I needed to experience something new and exciting. I’ve always wanted to travel; the only question was where to? I wanted to have the opportunity to use and expand my English vocabulary as well as something outside of Europe (because I’ve never been before). Several months back I heard about Internex through another travel organization called ‘Travel ALOTT’. It was recommended to me by acquaintances, who had had wonderful experiences with both agencies before. One of the destinations that were offered was Vancouver. I was immediately smitten by the idea of going to a place as beautiful as Vancouver along with tons of things to do. And I must say, I have not regretted my decision since.

When I arrived in Vancouver Internex was there from the beginning. I think it was on my third day here that I joined the orientation meeting at the Internex office. Everyone was very welcoming, friendly and helpful. My stay in Vancouver involved getting a job, so finding one was essential from the get go. No sooner than the same day of the orientation meeting I had my first (and only) job interview. So far my stay has consisted of a lot of work, but I’ve also had time to experience Vancouver first hand. Trips to Stanley Park, through areas like Chinatown, Gastown as well as shopping on Robson. I’ve also participated in some of the events that Internex have offered such as: watching a violent game of hockey, seen a B.C Lions game as well as some of the weekly pub nights. I’m definitely also planning on going on some of the big monthly trips! Even though I think I’ve gained a lot of experiences these past 2 and a half months I still have sooooo much I still want to see and do. I don’t think it’s possible to be bored in Vancouver!

Even though this trip is mainly for fun and for the chance of a school break, I’m positive that I’ll learn and gain a lot on a personal level as well. Hopefully (Actually I’m absolutely sure of this) I’ll return home with memories and friendships for a lifetime.

Cheers Ellen

 

INTERNeX International Exchange
International Village,
Suite 2077, 2079 – 88 West Pender Street
Vancouver, Canada -V6B 9N9-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Email: pr@internexcanada.com