How was the weekend? – Artsy and wet

The long weekend is over and a short week lies ahead. How did you spend your time?

Were you with us at the art walk on Friday? Even though it was a classic Raincouver winter night with breezy temperatures and light rain I really loved what I’ve seen and learned on this guided tour, e.g. some mind blowing AR installations which you could access by scanning a QR code on your phone. My favourite was one that let you see some paintings around you and as you walked closer it seemed like you were IN the painting! I saw beautiful skies with Northern Lights even though I was just standing at Canada Place. Another one of my favourites was a mural which itself already is impressive, but if you scan the QR code next to it and point your camera you’ll be able to see the mural move! There were many more interesting facts and stunning art along the way, if you haven’t been I’d recommend you check it out! It’s by donation, so make sure you show your appreciation by at least $10 for the guide which is super inexpensive for what you get. 🙂

After the walk some of us grabbed a drink and some food at the arts hub located at the Vancouver Art Gallery. The entrance is free and there’s still lots of events going on.
To top it off we danced at the VMF After Dark x AfroQueer YVR: Black Rave which had an all woman DJ line-up with taste makers of the Vancouver Drag scene. I’ve never been in a space with so many cool people at once and I loved every second of it, you could tell the energy was nothing but positive. 🙂

Saturday was a rest day for me and Sunday I met some friends for brunch at a restaurant on Commercial Drive. If you look for good food in a cool area that’s the place to go to! Commercial Drive offers a lot of great restaurants, especially amazing Italian Pizza and Pasta, but really you’ll find almost anything there! Afterwards we went bowling and of course had some more food. 😀 In order to get rid of all those extra calories we went to go snowboarding on Grouse Mountain early Monday morning. Unfortunately it was raining a lot resulting in us being completely soaked after a couple of hours, not the most fun I must say and really cold! After a hot coffee we decided to go back home, take a hot bath and just prepare for the week ahead of us. I will try again another time with better weather. 😉

I hope you stayed nice and dry while enjoying your weekend activities! Can’t wait to hear about it at Pub Night.

Cheers,

Laura 🙂

How was the weekend?

Wet and cold. This past weekend the weather wasn’t really screaming summer, but to be fair, we are in Vancouver. On Saturday we had our bike ride through Stanley Park. When I checked the weather report in the morning I was excited because it said it was just going to be cloudy, but I should’ve known better. Pro-tip: Never trust the weather report in Vancouver and always be prepared for rain.

Once we started riding along the seawall it started raining lightly. Not ideal for a nice bike ride, but we were a tough group and nothing was going to stop us from going. En contraire, Beatrice actually told me she likes the rain. And I have to admit, the weather created a moody atmosphere, that suits Canada. The mountains covered in fog, the pine tree tops disappearing in the clouds. It was very peaceful and another good point was that the seawall wasn’t too crowded. We rode along the water and beaches on our right, and the flowers and trees on our left. After we returned our bikes we wanted to reward ourselves! Tatjana had the great idea to get ice cream and it was delicious.

In the evening I met an old friend. Martin from Denmark, once was a candidate at INTERNeX and decided to visit Vancouver again. Of course I had to see him, so we went out for a few drinks at a brewery in Olympic Village. It was really nice to catch up and to hear all about his life in Denmark. He’s now doing fashion photography and his pictures are awesome! Recently he worked with a big fashion company in Europe. I love that INTERNeX connected us years ago and that I got a chance to meet him again. 🙂

The next morning however, I felt the cold wetness in my bones from the day before and I needed to rest. Thankfully a day was enough to make me feel better, so I’m prepared for all the fun things we’ve planned for this week! Tomorrow we are going to watch ‘Top Gun’ at Second Beach in Stanley Park. Meeting is at 8pm, so we get a good spot, plus we have enough time to watch the sunset. 🙂 Wednesday we’ll meet for our beloved pub night, 7pm at Mango’s.

I hope to see you all tomorrow or Wednesday!

Cheers,

Laura 🙂

How was your weekend?

After shutting down the computers at the office on Friday afternoon, the weekend could start. We decided to behave like real Canadians this night, which means only one thing: watch hockey! So, Nadine and I headed to the sports bar Malone’s to meet some of you. At the moment, the playoffs of the Stanley Cup are broadcasted literally every day and as you can imagine, the pub was crowded. Everyone was following the intense game of one of the two Canadian teams in the competition, the Winnipeg Jets. Some fights later, we as well as the Jets could celebrate. We took it easy and called it a night after a few drinks.

The view outside the window on Saturday morning did not seem that promising. Time to escape cloudy downtown and take a walk in a tropical forest. That is possible in Vancouver? Yes! The Bloedel Conservatory is located right at the Queen Elizabeth Park. It feels like entering another world, warm and colourful. While walking around, Nadine, Angy and I could spot many exotic birds and plants. All information about the beautiful parrots and trees are mentioned in a guide that you receive when entering. Outside of the conservatory, I could enjoy a beautiful view of Vancouver and a little park with many flowers that are starting to flourish now. At the other side of the park, the preparation for the night began.

 

We planned to visit the event that was happening later: the Spring Light Festival. As it was still too bright and early, we used the time to visit the Oakridge Mall, before heading back to the park. Lucky as we were, it started to rain the moment we walked out of the mall. However, we were happy to meet some of you hiding under your umbrellas. We followed the path that was guided by lights in all kinds of ways. It was nice to see the cherries and lanterns highlighted in colourful spotlights. After a while, the ground became all muddy and we were completely soaked, so we decided to warm up again. Famous place to do so is the pub Bourbon where we danced the night away.

I admit that it was quite tough to get out of bed on Sunday morning. But there was a good reason to leave the house again. Of course, I wanted to meet you for our tour in the Rogers Arena. A guide welcomed us in the empty hallway and we entered the heart of the stadium. But something was different than the last time I was there to see a game of the Canucks. There was no ice! Since the season is over, it already got removed so that the concert season can start. The tour continued to the media and press box, the hall of heroes and the luxurious suits. As a highlight of the tour, we could even enter the locker rooms of the guests (quite basic) and the Canucks (not basic at all), where we could still spot the gear of the famous Sedins. I was impressed by the diverse places you can see a game from and the huge organization behind the scenes. Since everyone was hungry after this exhausting tour, we visited Malone’s again for lunch and hockey, of course.

I had another great weekend with many of you! See you Wednesday at Steamworks Brewpub for our weekly PuB NiGHT!

– Kerstin

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 – Kerstin Berger

I am Kerstin Berger, 23 years old and I am from Germany. I just graduated from university and I always wanted to come here once, so now was actually the perfect timing.

I found Internex through a German agency, which offers internships all over the world. Internex and mostly the girls from the PR-team are doing an awesome job! I am participating in the practicum program because I didn’t’ t want to do the work and travel program. I think the general program of Internex is really good since you get to meet so many people and doing all the trips together makes the time here just awesome.

I am placed at a recruiting company in Vancouver and I think it is pretty okay so far. I think it is more HR though, while I actually wanted to do something in accounting. I had an interesting project here that turned out to be a big project for the company. It made me feel pretty good that I was the one who ran it. I think you need to have a bit of a HR background though for this Practicum. So this is not a part of my university programs since I already graduated, but the experience will be useful for my career goals.

In Vancouver I live in a shared apartment where I have a private room. I found it on Craigslist, which is a platform to buy and sell or offer almost everything. For example you can find houses there, second hand ski materials and even pets.

My first impression of Vancouver was RAINcouver haha, I am glad that the rain is gone by now. I realize now how beautiful the city and the whole country is. During my stay I attended most activities and trips organised by the PR-team, but sometimes I was occupied with my other job at a bar. When I attended, it was always a lot of fun with cool people! I attended many pub nights, I went to the Richmond Night Market, cycling in Stanley Park and I went to the Rockies with them. The PR-team did a really good job, so thank you girls!

What I like most about Vancouver is that you have mountains and beaches in one city, so mostly the nature. The most memorable things I did here was the Big Rockies trip and road trips with friends. This experience inspired me to travel more and I think South America would be very interesting to go to.

Internex was helpful for me to get friends here, which I think is one of the most important things to have when you are abroad for a couple of months. I would totally recommend Internex to others.

The first thing I will do when I get back home is giving my family a big hug.

– Kerstin

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 – Alyn Engelhardt

My name is Alyn Engelhardt, I am 22 years old and lived my whole life in Viersen, Germany. It is a small town next to Düsseldorf and Cologne. I just graduated from university with a Bachelor of Science in Business Chemistry.

Before continuing with the Master in Business Chemistry I wanted to do a break from university to get some practical experiences by doing an internship. I chose Canada because I was always interested in the nature of this big country and the mentality of the citizens. In addition, I heard that the companies in Canada are really small, that it is not even unusual to know its entire staff. This means, it is more familiar and you might get the chance to get a better overview and learn more than in a big company.

In Germany I worked with an agency, I sent them all required documents and they sent it to Internex who got in contact with me. I was convinced that it is easier to find an internship with an agency that already knows different companies and has experience in working with them.

I was part of two different programs. I stayed for 12 weeks in Vancouver. The first two weeks I went to a language school to do a language course (Business English). Right after that, I started my internship for ten weeks. I chose this program to get some practical knowledge. Right after high school I went to university, which means, I never got the chance to see how a company works.

I am doing my internship at a (non-profit) community engagement organization.

“It is a signature initiative designed to spark, nurture and restore community connections. More than a single place or program, it assembles the hearts, minds, and talents of diverse communities to promote inclusive, intelligent, and inspiring dialogue.”

I am the first international intern they have, but they already had a lot of experience with work students and volunteers. It was an amazing time. They organise different events for people who are interested in community issues.

Communication and teamwork are the most important characteristics you need at this internship. Everybody needs to know what the other is working on and what is still missing; otherwise the events might not become successful. You should be good in organizing, and be flexible in general. Plans might change right before the event. You should also be creative; SFU Public Square loves new ideas.

This internship is not part of my education. Actually, event management does not have that much to do with the education I had, but still I can say I learned a lot. I learned to be more flexible and what good teamwork can look like. Also, I learned a lot on personal level during my internship.

I lived with a host family in Vancouver, organised by the language school. I shared the basement with another student. We had our own living room, kitchen and a bathroom. A host family is a great opportunity for people who are not used to live alone.

When I arrived, my first impression of Vancouver was: Now, I know why they call it Raincouver. The weather was really bad. It rained a lot in March and April. But I refused to buy an umbrella. In May the weather got so much better, so we were finally able to enjoy some outdoor activities.

I attend nearly all pub nights organised by Internex. It is a nice opportunity to meet new friends and to plan weekend activities. We always had a lot of fun and saw different corners of Vancouver Downtown. Besides the pub nights I attend other events like visiting the Lighthouse Park or Fly over Canada. Other places I traveled to are the Rockies, Vancouver Island with a friend I met on pub night, Bowen Island, Seattle, Whistler and soon I will travel down the westcoast of the USA with some friends I met at the pub nights. Furthermore I did a lot of activities like watching an ice hockey game, celebrated St. Patrick’ s Day, went to a boat party and I did lots of hikes.

What I like most about Vancouver is the mentality. There are so many different opportunities here. On one side Vancouver is a city, but it is also surrounded by beautiful nature. One thing I had to deal with was the bad traffic. I think it is not working for so many people. It really feels like you live in a big city with millions of inhabitants. Busses are passing by because they are already to full and in the rush hour everybody is stressed out.

I have three big highlights of my stay here. The first is th event I helped organize during my internship. As second a beautiful hike I did to a crushed airplane in Tofino. And last but not least a stay at the first nations hotel in Chase during our Rockies trip with Internex and Discover Canada Tours. My stay here and the entire experience didn’t really inspire me to travel more, since I already did that, but I might want to see the East of Canada as well now.

I would highly recommend the services of Internex. This agency has great contacts with different companies. In addition if your organise everything through Internex, you will get to know new friends because of the events and pub nights they organise.

When I get back home I will buy some good German bread.

– Alyn