Hello my Follower,

so here the report von my weeks in January. After the first week in January, i worked in a Seniors Centre in South Granville. It was a nice time. This Centre is not a Home for old people. No! It is a meeting and activity centre for seniors 55+. Only vlounteers are working in this Centre for no money. They have activities like “Music and Opera Appreciation”, “Mah Jong”, “Amaryllis Singing Group”, “Seniors Create Theatre Project”, “Bingo” and other activities. For the Health, you can join the “Walking Group” or “Osteo athritis Fit” or “Stretch&Strength” or “Message Therapie”. Also there are classes for French, English (beginner and intermediate) and also a Spanish class. For all the spanish people in Vancouver, they have a spanish day on Wednesday with volunteer cook chefs from Mexiko. This day in the week, i was helping in the kitchen to clean the dishes, because on this day, we have more than 32 seniors only to eat and this means a lot of dishes to wash. Yesterday, i was alone in the kitchen to wash the dishes, it was so many work. ^^

But the best thing is, i dont have to pay for the lunch on Wednesday, because i help with in the kitchen. And the lunch is ever here so delicious. On Tuesday, (Wednesday (only for spanish people)), Thursday and Friday is Lunch day here. The volunteers pay only the half of the price: CAD $3,50 and can also eat with the seniors. The lunch is cooked fresh evertime and everytime they have new kinds of lunch. In the price for the lunch is a Salat or soup, a hot meal and a desert like a cake or an ice cream. I enjoy it everytime when i have the chance. But tomorrow is my last day here in the centre. I am very sad to leave this centre with the fantastic food, Nice people, lovely volunteers and also my colleagues.

My Work was not so fantastic. The most of the time, i set up rooms or drink tea or clean dishes. But also with the time, i found out to use my “free” time with doing other stuff or making paper flowers for Valentinesday or sell things in the internet. Or talk with my colleagues.

My one colleagues is saying this about her work in the Centre: “mhhh.. This centre offers really important services and support to older adults. People come here to connect with people. I am a practicant student from social work. I am doing for the centre: The other colleagues and i will be help delevop resources and informations for one of the centres programs.

I loved it there and i miss the team work and the hours there to work and to eat the deliciouses food for lunchtime.

On my last friday in there, It was the friday for Valentinsday, we had also a concert by the Vancouver´s songbirds, i baked my favorite cake: “Russischer Zupfkuchen” or the english name: “(russian) chocolate cheesecake”. I couldnt taste it, then as i came back from the concert, the cake was not anymore there. No piece of the cake was for me there. Bad! But I got a card of “Thank you” from the Centre and the member. It makes me sad to read it again. But i am so thankful for the time there.

For you: a lot of HANDMADES FLOWERS by MYSELF

 

 

 

The Vancouver Songbirds Concert was amazing and thanks for all my friends they are visited the concert. (Photos come later)

One thing to the Centre, they take a lot of work for the celebrations for Valentines Day or Halloween or Chinese New Year. To Chinese New Year, we had a Festival with traditional dance and musics and on Monday after Chinese New Year, we had a lunch. It was so amazing and perfect. But we had to wait a little bit too long, because the cook didnt look at the time and hadnt cooked for so many persons.

Dec 29

I left early my homestay house.

After i have been driven to Lonsdale Quay by bus, i went to Starbucks and bought a hot chocolate with an italien baquette. Then i took the seabus to Waterfront. In the hall of waterfront station, i saw a girl sitting on.the ground. After i went outside to look of the bus for the trip arrived, but it wasnt, i asked the girl, if she wait also for the bus for the trip. She said yes and i was sitting for a moment with her, but in the next moment we had to search an other place for sitting because an office man offered us. So we wait on a bench of more girls. The Name of this girl is Isadora and she is in the same group with all the others brasilian friends as i am. The next girl, which arrived, is also in the group and her name is Rebeca. We waited together until i saw the bus and we went together outside, where we meet the other brasilian friends and my friend Marianna from my last business class and friends from my grammar class. Together with all my brasilian friends, we went to the bus and checked in and gave all our packages away. At …. we started from outside of waterfront station.

The first stop was in Hope, B.C. .

It was so wonderful and surprising to see Hope in the winter time. Because in the last time, i had seen the village, was in the summer time. Now was winter and also beautiful. I took.my friends after the washrooms, to figures of wood, i remembered it since 4 years.  Then we went together to the moose café, where we bought each a hot drink like me a hot chocolate, the best i ever drank in Vancouver bzw in canada. Also i bought a yoghurt parfait with cereal and ice cold fruits. But we took it only and ate it or drank it in the bus, because we didnt have time. But we werent the last one that come to the bus to late. After that we drove a long time to a view point. Do you know that Canada have a desert-not the food after dinner? It does. It is before the rockies start. There is not enough water and nothing you can plant there. In this desert, there is the city who call Kamloops. In this city, with Cowboys and all this stuff as in a city in desert in the states, we ate our lunch. We stopped at a shopping mall. But i ate my cereal with milk from home. Then we drove again long time until we arrived in a small city for buy salat for dinner and then tayna and i bought alcohol: peach liquor. After that we drove to our camp. Then we changed rooms and then we ate our dinner and after that we had a bo

nfire with marshmallos and chocolate and cookies.

So when we marshmallos over the fire is good. You take them between 2cookies and one piece of chocolate and them enjoy it. You could enjoy the party in the house, but i and three other people was sitting on the bonfire and i took photos with my new camera.

Dec 30th, 2016

Next morning, we have to go up at 8 to eat breakfast. The breakfast: one burned toast with.butter and jam or peanut butter, cereal (the rings) with cold milk. Drinks were juice but also you could make your own hot drink with hot water chocolate pulver or coffee pulver or tea.

At 8:45 am was the time to meet to leave the golden cabins. But some people were to late so they had to sing a song or dance. Later we drove to lake louise. I booked Ice skating so we went together to the shop and went ice skateing. It was beautiful on the ice of the sea to skate.

The time was running and our guide give us a timelimit from one hour, but i was longer on the ice,

because in the end i met my friends and before i skated with a new guy, a korean guy and new german friends. And i made a lot of pictures.

So, after i went to the bus and before i had made hurry the brasilian friends, i heard that our guide isnt here. So, i spoke with the new german friend and we were eating

while we waited until he cames. More than 45 minutes, he was to late. He had to sing again.

Then we drove to Johnsten´s Canyon with a small way to a frozen waterfall.

It was fantastic. But on the way to the waterfall, i fell because it was so slippery.

The bad thing of this fall was that i was holding on a railing and then my shoulder went out of the normally bone and over minimum 20secs i couldnt say anything, because it was hurting so hurtful. And a friend ask me in these sec. If all ok? But i couldnt answer and then i said under tears, it is ok because my shoulder was now there, where it should be normally. But after that my shoulder was in pain the whole days.

After that we went to Banff. First we looked after our new hotels while the normal hotel had burned and a fire. So, we couldnt get in. After that we went to the Gondola to see thesunset.

At 4pm we arrived. It was so stunning! And the view was wonderful and we had for the second time sunshine.

But it was to cold to be outside more than 3 minutes. The first time i was longer outside and then i had to go inside, because all my fingers and my face was frozen. I couldnt move my fingers! After one hour we took the gondola down to the station and our bus. We took a lot of picture and played Titanic:) on this mountain. As we were back we had to wait for the others and then we were droven back by the busdriver to our hotel. But before we picked the people up, who didnt come with us to Banff Gondola. Then they got us off by our hotel,

where we got.our rooms. This time i didnt change and stayed with Joy, Roselyn and Rebeka. Short time after arriving, we took showers and wore new clothes and then we went.to a Pizzeria.

The Poutine with morzarella and the pizza was amazing. Then we went back. As our guide tell us at which time we had to get there, i wasnt listening so.we were sitting in the hall more than 30 mins. I was understanding: 5:30 pm but he changed the time to 5:50pm. So after Tay bring me our alcoholic drinks, mixed in a red bull bottle, was it no more so long to wait. But our guide was also to late.

Together, our busdriver drove us to a pub, where we celebrated until 10pm. But i didnt drink anything, because i didnt have any interest and i had the feeling a drank enough. I talked in the pub with some brasilian friends also with, i called her “grandmother“, because of her age.

After 10pm, we went together to a popular night club.

But we have to wait outside more than 30 minutes. Because of a show before we came. As we could inside, we laied all our clothes on one place, because we had to pay much, if we gave it away. So we didnt do it. After a half hour my german friend was going home. And also other friends. I was going with Rebeka at 1:35 am

at we were on the hotel at 2am and slept at that time. Maybe you are asking, why we didnt drive with our bus? Because he was only driving us one way to the pub. The way back to the hotel we have to walk.

Dec 31st, 2016

At 7:30 we met without breakfast and they, our guide and the others from

the other hotel, picked us up and we stopped for a short time by tim hortons to get our breakfast with orange juice. My breakfast was a bagel with philadelphia and a cookie.

The first stop on.this day was the lake minnewanka. It was frozen and so we walked on.it. it lays between mountains and in the middle of the lake is a boat station, but i cant explain why it is in the middle of the lake. So some people a sled to sleding down. I enjoyed and made a lot of picture with my two lenses.

Because of that we were on.time we stopped on the road to take wonderful.pictures from the two jack lake. But only few people was going out of the bus.

The next stop was banff to drop off the people they arent want to go to Banff Hot Springs.

Then we drove there and enjoyed the hot springs. I took my gopro with me. It was fantastic. But i didnt show you the picture from the hot springs, its private. So, after we enjoyed the bath 15 mins longer we drove at 9:45 am to the city and we have 2 hours to shop and eat lunch. We went to Beavertail

and enjoy this meal.

Then we went to the frozen river and i made a snow angel on the river. We, i mean a new friend and me, went to go around and look, but on the way back, i was going alone because i wanted to shop a t-shirt & band-aid and he wanted to make picture and he wanted to hurry up,

because we would meet at the bus in 10 mins. I arrived by the bus before him.

On.the bus on the way, we had fun, slept and listened music.

But we made a quick stop at the Emerald Lake. It was also frozen

For the dinner, we arrived in a diner.

The drinks were wonderful: coca cola, ice tea

or sprite but the food was so terrible. My dinner was cold and it was spagetti bolognes. But very terrible. We all were so angry after that diner. And that we could buy alcohol for the evening was not to make our mood better. So we arrived angry in Golden cabins and i was a long time in my room with my other roomates until we went outside at 10:30 pm. But our heater in our room didnt work, so i figured out another heater and we warmed us up in the room before we went outside.

Also we built a snowman, it was very Difficult of the snow but we got it:

Then we were first looking by a drink game then we were sitting on the bonfire until we counted down for the new year and we drank chapagne. Then we, only 5 with me from our groupe was watching the little fire work.then we heard that sometimes you can.see the northern lights from 1-2 am. So we went for one hour to our cabins and then we went outside and wait on the bonfire. But it was to cloudy, but i waited until 2:30 am and then our guide was saying that it makes no sense to be outside and waiting“ so, i went to my bed.

Jan 1st, 2017

In the morning at 8:10 we stood up and i and roselyn went to snowshoeing.

but before we had eaten one toast. Then we started at 8:30am to walk

for an half hour

and then we went to the breakfast and ate a cereal

footloops. Later, we went back to the cabin

and put all our stuff together. We met at the bus at 9:45 am but we had to wait until 10:30 am because Tay and Isa slept to long and they had to dance after that they arrived in the bus. I made a video from that:D

Then we visited Kamloops to eat lunch by mcces. I ate a special burger.Then our guide bought a little cake for someone who her birthday was on january 1st. Then.we sang for her happy birthday. Between Kamloops and Roger´s Pass,

we played a game as a quiz and if you won you got a t-shirt from Tim Hortons.

Later we arrived on a special station from roger’s pass. And there we took

our groupe photo. Then we stopped one time for visiting washrooms. At 7pm, we arrived in Vancouver. I said goodbye to everybody then i went with Joy to waterfront station and to the seabus. Thanks for the Trip

And sorry that it comes so late, it was very hard to write that all and to find the time to write that, because since January 2. Week, I am in the Volunteer Experience Program and i had a lot of things to do….

• Grouse Mountain
• Sunrise and Sunsets
• Vancouvers Island
• be with friends

Dec 23rd 2016.  Last school day before Christmas. After we had watched a film and eaten together breakfast in the class, i went to a friend’s house to make pralines as a present for my family with them cookies (Sternchen-Plätzchen), that i had made the evening before and some lindt schocolate. We made together, me and this german friend, a lot of pralines and then i needed more than an hour home. On the next day, i stood up early and skyped with my mum and my family after that i went to a holy church-catholic.

But wonderful and old with a gospel choir and some textes from the Bibel. After that i went to London Drugs and Dollerama to buy some presents. Then I went back home and in the evening the family from Penny came to eat turkey and all the stuff. It was sooo delicious and i was wearing my blue short dress.

Also for all family member, i had some pralines and cookies with schocolate

. The evening was wonderful, but they leave us early. After the boys were sleeping, Penny, Grant and me cleaned all the stuff and got some presents in the paper. Then we sat together, also with Pennys Brother, and later at 23:30 o’clock i went to the church messe near my homestay and went for not really good music and a short messe to the catholic church. After Midnight i came back home, maybe i watched a film and then i slept until 2pm-Wtf!

But my family didnt know if i stay home or went to whistler. Because first i had a plan to visit whistler with my german friends. But at midnight, i write them that i want to have a lazy and relaxed christmas day with my family. After 2pm, I went downstairs and Grant was very surprised that i slept until that time. Doesnt matter. I have eaten my breakfast and went to my room. Before i did that, my homestay family and i picked the present for me and i for them and we gave them eachother. There were happy. Also i played with them the new plays, that they got. (- i have to remind the grammar:D -).
Dec 25th 2016, we ate dinner with Grants Family.

What do you think was the meal? Right, we ate Turkey and all the stuff. It was sooo delicious. But after i went to my room and save in the internet the Camera canon rebel T5 and bought them.

I have a new camera!!!!!

On this Evening, we were sitting a long time together and talk until 11pm then we play a game. It was wonderful with money, but i didnt lost money because a didnt have money and the other gave the money for me-thanks. So, now to the rules. You have 3 dices with the symbol: R=Right, L=left, C=middle and x=you can save them. Also all the player have each 3 coins. You have to roll the dices, how many coins you have so many dices you have to roll maximum 3 dices. When you roll them and you got one L, another R and the other x, means you have to give one of your 3coins to the left neighbor, one to Right and one you can save. So all the players roll the dices, but you can never lost because this rules are for everybody. So in the next round, maybe you got one coins from your left neighbor back then you have now 2 coins, so you have to roll 2 dices. When you have any coins then you have to wait for the other players. When someone roll C= the coin is had to put in the middle of the table by the player.But the coin is now lost. The goal is to be the last person with a coin and to roll the dice with x. Then the player get all the money or whatever. We had play 1 round for testing, then the second with 5dollar but we played 2 rounds until one win the 6x5dollars and then we played 3 round to get 6x2dollars.
Then i went to bed.

Dec26, i left the house at 5:40 am with cereal to get the bus at 6:08 am(the first 240 bus from W15th street and i live at W27th street, so i had to walk). Then i also had to walk from the busstation to the bestbuy. Then it was Boxingday and i wanted to buy my camera because i was worried that we camera wouldnt arrive before i left for my trip to the Rocky Mountains. So i bought it with a bag and to them a battery for free (only the battery was for free). Then i arrived at 8am at home and slept a little bit until 2pm and then i tried my new camera. Then i was very lazy.
The next day, dec27, i met a friend in waterfront station and we ate together than i went to the Capilano bridge.

But my smartphone didnt work, so, i cant show you pictures but it was wonderful with this lights, but cold. Dec28, i went with the same friend to Granville Island and a other friemd show me to work with the camera. Then Jasmin and i went to the queen elisabeth park to go to “Bloedel Conservatory“ and then to a Ferris wheel. After that i went for the last time to the christmas market. …

Hey, I dont want to write a lot about the December in Canada. But this is Important: Normally they dont have snow or only for a few days snow but now we have since the end of November snow in Vancouver. It is so unbelieveable for a lot of people in Vancouver. `Normally they have plus grades and rain. So, this to the wheather. This December was not normaly and not for me december! I miss you, my family. But I baked to times cookies: Vanillekipferl and Marmelade-Stern Plätzchen.

Best Wishes

So the last time, i wrote, was before my birtjday. So i start with my birthday. On the thursday before my b-day, i had driven with a friend, her name is Sharon, and the school to a premium shopping center near Seattle. We arrived at 12pm and celebrate my birthday with the happy-birthday-song. After they have sung the song, we went shopping in the center. Totally i payed 150€. At 5am, we drive together at Vancouver, where Sharon and I went to a Starbucks and Washroom. On November 25th at 9am we went to each class and in the first break at 10:30 my class and i celebrated my bithday with my cake, which i baked on wednesday nov. 23rd. And with the same song as in the night. I got a card from my class-it was wonderful. But at 11:15 am we had a fire alarm, and i had to lost my things in the class. The firealarm was starting because the restaurant under this campus had a problem with smoke. Bad Luck.
Doesnt matter! At 11:25 we went to our room back and finished our lesson. Before i celebrated with my friends in the evening, we (Sharon and I and the singing club) has a concert at the 25th-celebration-ILSC (our school). After that we sat together and celebrated both my birthday and our concert. So a nice morning.
At 3pm, i went at home and slept for thirty mins, and missed 2 busses, when i slept. Then i got from my homestay family a canada cup from starbucks and eat 2 pieces of pizza. Later i took the bus and seabus and met a friend on waterfront station. Together we went to the irishpub. From all my friends that i invited, were only 3 friends there. Very bad. But we have a wonderful evening in the “The Blarney Stone“. At 12pm,we went at home and at 1am i slept at my home. This to my birthday.
On the next day, i slept to long and i miss a friend to bring her to the airplane-sorry. And then on the same day, my family bake me a wonderful cake with citrus-fantastic! And my presents from my friends and family from Germany, I get them on my birthday, when i came from the singing club.
On this weekend, we went on sunday to the family from Grant and ate there fantastic.
So, this was my Birthday-weekend.
Sincerely Carolin

Hey my Followers.

Sorry, that i write so late. But my weeks are very hard and full of English. In the morning, I leave the house at 7:45 am. After I take the bus 241 Vancouver to the stop Granville St to Georgia St, I am from 9 am to 4pm at the school with now Business English as the 1st lessons, Grammar at the 2nd  and Pronunciation at the 3rd Lesson. So, sometimes i have after 4pm some activities like “Ice Cream Tasting” or “Singing Club”. When I have activies, I am at 6 pm at the earliest time at home, but sometimes later than 6 pm. Before I have make my homework, I eat maybe with my homestay or maybe not. After the Homework, I talk to Josh or go to sleep. Every day the same timeplan. So, I am very Sorry. So now to today. Today was the Rememberence Day, a wonderful Parade, aremember Day for alle the veterians, that never comes back, because there are died as a veterian. I am so tired. I tell you tomorrow more about this wonderful day and show you photos.

Caro

Hey, i am fine. I am sitting in a park in North Vancouver and write for you this post. So, yesterday was a Halloween Party and we were in 4 clubs, but i drunk only after the 4th club. I drunk a Sprite and ate a piece of pizza and after that my friends and i went seperatly at home. In the morning, i woke up at 10 o’clock. I spoke with my family and then at 14:15 i went to a walk on the upper Lonsdale and after i phoned with someone i love the place more and more. I found a new place for me, when i am worried about something. I want to send you a photo but it doesn’t work from smartphone. Maybe at home. But i have to learn english. We would write a test tomorrow. So wish me good luck. Now the sun is away and my fingers are cold. Maybe i go a little bit through the park and then i’ll go at home-maybe… . But first i try to send you a picture again. Bye bye.

My first week ist done. “And i am sitting here in my boring room, it just another rainy Sunday afternoon. I´m wasting my time, i got nothing to do. I´m hanging around…” (Fool´s Garden-Lemon Tree) Everyday, i have an Earworm from that song so why not here in this Blog. Now, i´m hanging really around but I have to learn english because i write a test on Monday. But i don´t have the pleasure to do it and i want to write you from my first week in Vancouver. On Monday, i didnt have only Communication. I have every day (Mo-Thursday) from 9 to 12 a.m. Communication, from 12 am to 1 pm a big break, from 1pm to 2:30 pm Vocabulary and from 2:45 to 4pm Grammar. On the first days, i found that Grammar was very boring, but on the third day, it was very hard and on Thursday ist was okay. But i dont have friends in the Grammar Lesson and the people are not so good as in the other Lessons. And in my Communication class are the most wonderful persons. With these wonderful persons, I were in Granville Island. An hour later, I meet my friends, after an Meeting for my Volunteer practice, on 555 Richards St in Vancouver. We went after a short break to a Mall to ate something. I ate a Thai Meal ($10) with rice noodles and chicken. We travelled with a Skytrain to the Metrotown and went shopping, but i didnt found anything like the other. Then we went with the skytrain to Vancouver and after a Pizza, who i met a girl from Germany which make “Travel and Work”, we went to “The Cambie”. This is a Bar and Restaurant. Entrance only from 19+ years old and they controlled the ages. We three met there many friends from April and my friend Riho and I drang beer from 2 pitches in 2Hour. (in one pitch ca 3 Liter). But the beer taste like water. At 8 o´clock we went at home, because i didnt have a key for my homestay and we were exhausted from all the walks and from the day. An hour later, i came to my homestay and Penny and Grant sat with me together and talked about everything. At 11pm I went to sleep. This was my Friday. AH, Fridays I have only Communication. So now, in 10 mins i m going to learn english Vocs and Grammar for the test tomorrow. Have a good day.

 

Hey my friends,

After 10 h 35 min, i am landed good on Vancouver Airport, but without sleep. Then i walked to the passport control and from there to information and then to “immigration du canada”, because it is from my study permit/visum. So after that, 5 mins ago, i was waiting for my bags and i must wait ca. an hour. Then i went out of the Airport and meet my Homestay-Mother Penny Archer. We drive an hour. On this hour, we spoke mostly and fluently with more and  less vocabulary. After we come to there house, i gave that my gifts and we ate. After the meal, i take a shower and went to sleep. I was soooooooooooooo tired, that i sleeped on my smartphone. After an hour i wake up and took my smatphone beside. On 18. okt. 2016 (Time in Vancouver) at 12 am at midnight (from 17.okt at the 18. okt), i woke up funny and awake, we would say: “hellwach”. But i have 6 hour to sleep. But on the end, after to go downstairs to toilette, i sleep only 3 hours.

So on the next Day (today), i have my first school day and i make it short: after an Orientation, i went to a test with answer questions only on english, after that i must choose courses and after that, at 10:45 i have my first lessons: Communication. I have even learnt new friends from Korean or all asian… . So i come at 17 o´clock at home. i am so tired. I have school everyday from 9 am to 4 pm. So more Informations comes later, i must go to my bed and sleep.

Sincerely Caro