Candidate exposé – Rieke Wilkens

Hello, my name is Rieke. I am 18 years old and from Germany. In my future I am planning to work as an event manager.

Canada is a beautiful country with a lot of different places and nature. For my mom it was also important that it is safe where I am going. I did a practicum for three months in Canada. I chose it because it leaves a good mark on my CV for the future. I really enjoyed my practicum. The people were very nice!

kanada rieke

I worked at a non-profit organization that focuses on sports and organizes events as well. I enjoyed working at the museum because I could speak a lot of English and I talked to many different people. To work at the museum it is important to be friendly to every customer.

I lived in a homestay in Richmond. INTERNeX placed me there. My first impression of Vancouver was amazing! All the people from different cultures, the high buildings and all the parks in the middle of the city. Now I am back in Germany and it feels like a dream to see all the pictures I took, because it surprises me every time.

I attended many of the pub nights and trips. I’ve been with INTERNeX to Victoria for example. The trips were always a lot of fun! I’ve also done a lot of hiking! Deep cove, the grouse grind, Lighthouse Park, Lynn Canyon and Joffre Lake were amazing. The longest trip I did was to the Rocky Mountains. With INTERNeX I took the ferry to Victoria and we went to Whistler and did the bungee jump together as well. In Vancouver I’ve been to Stanley Park, Gastown and English Bay Beach for example. An activity that everyone has to do when they come to Vancouver is definitively watching an ice hockey game, which I did as well.

I liked spending a lot of time and going on trips with the people from INTERNeX. The Rocky Trip was also a highlight of my journey. My only difficulty was that the legal age is 19 in Vancouver. So I couldn’t go to every pub night and go out in the evening. The most memorable thing was the trip to the Rockies.Rieke

The first thing I did when I was back in Germany was eating German food.

This trip inspired me to travel more because I met a lot of people from different countries and they told me a lot about their culture. Maybe I will go to Brazil and visit my Brazilian friends.

INTERNeX helped me find accommodation and a lot of friends through the weekly pub nights. I would definitely recommend the service to others.

– Rieke Wilkens

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

Candidate Exposé – Chris Jason Wakely

Hi, I’m Chris and I’m 24 years old from New Zealand. Since returning to New Zealand, I’ve decided to take up some study.

20170813_094539I guess I’ve always wanted to come to Canada, so doing the practicum helped me come across. I went through a practicum program and website, they set me up with the experience and they put me through to Tim. I chose the practicum to gain some further experience and have the opportunity to see how Canadians are first hand.

I was working at the film festival. VIFF is kind of self-explanatory. It’s a great place to see how movie festivals are made behind the scenes. For this job you need to be flexible and have a willingness to learn new things. It is quite useful for my career aspirations, as it shows I can mingle into different crowds and become a fully integrated part of the team.

The services of INTERNeX really helped me solidify my knowledge and meet some great people. I have many connections throughout the world that I can turn to whenever. I sure did attend the several activities, pub nights, trips and events INTERNeX was organizing! These activities were great to get to know the other interns and to see the greater areas that Canada has to offer. I went to the Rockies, mountaineering, hiking, surfing, beer drinking, quite a bit of Greater Vancouver and BC.

ChrisVancouver is great as there is always something to do, whether it is a trampoline park or simply cycling around Stanley Park. The difficult part of Canada was the return home, and having to say goodbye to so many people. Vancouver felt like a metropolis. It’s really busy but a part of me feels at home there. I also found my former place of residence through the Internex team. They placed me in contact with my Landlady and she was able to set me up in her property.

By far the most memorable thing is my trip to Vancouver Island. The first thing I did when I came home was getting some sleep and see what has changed (not much has changed tbh). This trip had really inspired me to travel more. I wish to travel to visit those I connected with in their home locations.

– Chris

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 Through the Looking Glass -Destination Ireland

“Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.” By Miriam Beard
I really like this quote, because I can actually feel myself changing every time I go out to a different place. It’s an incredible feeling!

Welcome back, Amiel here. After talking about Australia and New Zealand last week, let’s dig a tunnel right through the center of the Earth back to Europe.

Ireland, the country where you can find a leprechaun’s pot of gold at the end of the rainbow or get 3 wishes if you manage to catch one. It’s a magical with lots of myths and an amazing culture. I’m sure you’ve already heard about or even might have seen Riverdance. It’s a breathtaking theatrical show with traditional Irish dance and music.
There’s also the capital city Dublin, home of the famous Guinness Brewery. Speaking of Guinness, here’s a fun fact! Did you know that the Guinness family moved to Vancouver and built the Lions Gate Bridge in 1937? And this is only one of the many connections Canada and Ireland share. Even more than 14% of the whole Canadian population are of full or partial Irish descent.
Ireland is one of my favorite countries I’ve been to in Europe. It has many beautiful coastlines and places to visit and the people are extremely friendly. You should go check it out some day and let yourself be enchanted as well.

If you want to know more about a placement in Ireland, have a look at the INTERNeX website at www.internexworld.com
Next, we’ll be going back to the Americas. More specifically, to South America, Colombia.

 
Sláinte

INTERNeX International Exchange – PR Coordinator
work + live + learn

pr@internexcanada.com – Email
www.internexworld.com – Web
www.internexcanada.com – Blog
www.facebook.com/INTERNeX – Facebook
www.youtube.com/user/internexcanada – YouTube
www.twitter.com/INTERNeX_Canada – Twitter
www.instagram.com/internex_canada – Instagram
www.flickr.com/photos/internex – Flickr

INTERNeX Through the Looking Glass -Destination Australia

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” Mark Twain, author of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer really had a lot of inspirational things to say about travel.

This Sunday evening is about Australia the neighbor of New Zealand which we covered in our last destinations post.

Australia aka Down Under, a paradise for surfers. Almost 90% of the country’s population lives along the coast where you can find them Perth in the west, Darwin in the north, and Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne in the south east.

So, what is there to know about Australia? There are 6 different climate zones from equatorial to desert to temperate. Combined with the extreme changes in weather and the isolation of the continent for so many ages explains the great number of unique plants and animals that live there. Remember the Tasmanian Devil from Looney Toons? Yea he really exists! The real ones don’t look quite as crazy though.
And what about the people? Australians are seen as one of the most easy-going and down-to-earth people of the world. This lets you meet new people and make friends quite easily.
Mixing all the beautiful and interesting sights Australia has to offer with the mentality of the people makes one hell of a cocktail of fun! There is so much to see and experience.

My tip: heed Mark Twain’s words and “Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Next up? The magical island of Ireland.

Cheers!

 

INTERNeX International Exchange – PR Coordinator
work + live + learn

pr@internexcanada.com – Email
www.internexworld.com – Web
www.internexcanada.com – Blog
www.facebook.com/INTERNeX – Facebook
www.youtube.com/user/internexcanada – YouTube
www.twitter.com/INTERNeX_Canada – Twitter
www.instagram.com/internex_canada – Instagram
www.flickr.com/photos/internex – Flickr

INTERNeX Through the Looking Glass -Destination New Zealand

What’s up? Amiel here and well, it’s Hump Day! Time for another of INTERNeX’ destination! Last week I already talked about Germany and the USA and now we’re going to check out New Zealand.
But first a little inspiration from JRR Tolkien:

“Remember what Bilbo used to say: It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.”

The first time you leave home is a bit scary. The second time you’ll probably still be little nervous. And after that? It’ll be hard for you to stop trying to leave.

Sooo, New Zealand. Many call this place the most beautiful country on earth. No wonder the producers of The Lord of Rings movies decided to film here.
Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city is also where INTERNeX has its second headquarters aside from Vancouver and this is where they also offer all three programs: Practicum, Hospitality and Ranchstay.
Since I live in Germany, New Zealand has always been that country on the opposite side of the world. That’s why as a traveler it’s one of the places I yearn to go. This increased even more when the movies of The Lord of the Rings came out. Which LotR fan doesn’t want to visit The Shire or the Mountains of Mordor?
However, New Zealand has way more to offer than that. For example biodiversity! Did you know that only 4% of the island’s population is human?

It’s a paradise with much to see and do. Unfortunately, I haven’t had a chance travel there yet. Nevertheless, it’s definitely a place to put on your bucket list! A short vacation is most likely not enough to see everything you want to see though which is why I think the best way is to combine it with a practicum that enables you to experience New Zealand for a longer period of time. I’m doing the same right now for my stay in Vancouver and the memories I’m making here with all the people I got and get to meet are unforgettable!

Once again we’re at the end for today. Our next destination? Australia!

Cheers!

 

INTERNeX International Exchange – PR Coordinator
work + live + learn

pr@internexcanada.com – Email
www.internexworld.com – Web
www.internexcanada.com – Blog
www.facebook.com/INTERNeX – Facebook
www.youtube.com/user/internexcanada – YouTube
www.twitter.com/INTERNeX_Canada – Twitter
www.instagram.com/internex_canada – Instagram
www.flickr.com/photos/internex – Flickr