An unexpectedly short stay in Vancouver

After arriving at our host's place, it was initially difficult to find an affordable parking spot near the apartment. After a successful search, we were finally able to unload our belongings from the car. Our host was very friendly and even invited us for sushi dinner on our first evening. The first week went by quickly as we both started job hunting here. We even applied for some of the same jobs, such as renting RVs for German customers or working as kitchen assistants in various restaurants. The preparation, such as updating our resumes and finding a copy shop, also took some time. Additionally, we were lucky that our host had a free access card for various tourist attractions due to his work, such as the Look Out or the Fly Over Canada: a virtual flight simulation with moving seats and '4D' effects. It got colder when flying through clouds and you could feel the wind and water droplets on your face, for example at the Niagara Falls. The sense of smell was also stimulated, and you could smell freshly cut grass or grain during the harvest. Overall, it was an impressive experience, even though it only lasted about 10 minutes. We saw various places and sights of Canada, such as Vancouver, Toronto, maple syrup tapping, and the Rocky Mountains. I would recommend everyone to experience Fly Over Canada if they have the opportunity to visit Vancouver.

Vancouver is a relatively wealthy city, as unlike in Montreal, many expensive cars like Ferraris, Porsches, and Lamborghinis can be seen here. The cityscape itself also looked beautiful, with beaches along the coasts, many parks, and a lovely harbor with numerous sailing ships. However, the weather overall was quite poor, which is why Vancouver earned the nickname "Raincouver," as it rained almost every day. Some days had more rain than others, sometimes just for a few minutes.

The job application offensive paid off as early as the weekend, and I had a job interview at a maple syrup sales shop on Saturday. The next day, I was able to start working there and besides serving customers and restocking shelves, I also gained knowledge about the production and various processing methods of maple syrup. The range of products was huge: in addition to the classic maple syrup used for sweetening, there was also maple butter, maple liqueur, dressings, and coffees or teas infused with maple syrup. Of course, tasting the products was also part of the agenda to better inform customers.

Another unique job opportunity for the following week arose at a catering company, where I could make sandwiches in the early morning hours from 2 to 8 o'clock. I took this position because the job paid very well. There were four of us in the morning shift, each making 200-300 wraps and sandwiches daily. Luckily, there was free coffee, tea, and sandwiches/bread, so I didn't have to do much shopping on the side. So, I had a double workload in the first two days of the week, working at the catering company from 2 to 8 and at the maple syrup shop from 1 to 6 in the afternoon. Monday, in particular, was a very exhausting day as a large shipment for the season arrived and a total of 9 pallets filled with maple syrup and products of various weights had to be carried into the store's warehouse. The gym was unnecessary that day. Fortunately, the other job was only for this week because I can't imagine working nights the whole time, as it wouldn't be healthy for the body in the long run.

In the remaining time during the rest of the week, I rented a bike for the month to get to work faster and explore the city by bike. One day, I even rode the bike in the large Stanley Park, which couldn't be circled in just one hour. Stations for renting bikes from the provider were spread throughout the entire downtown area, and the first 60 minutes of riding were free. So, you only had to return the bike to another station in time. Unfortunately, there were no stations inside the park, so I had to go back to a station to refresh the time. The catering company was about 4 km away from my location, so I had a bike ride every morning in different weather conditions. Coincidentally, the catering company was in an industrial area where many expensive car dealerships were located. Now I knew where the expensive cars in the downtown area came from.

During the week, I received the opportunity from my future employer to start earlier. This would be on Monday of the next week in Calgary, which is a 14-hour bus ride away behind the Rocky Mountains. I accepted the opportunity, so the originally planned stay in Vancouver would be shortened to only 2 weeks. It was difficult to quit already after 3 great working days at the maple syrup shop with the nice colleague. But they understood the situation. On the weekend, I enjoyed my free time a bit and prepared for the departure. On Friday afternoon, I played beach volleyball with an acquaintance at the beach in nice weather. Saturday morning, I met another German who wanted to sell his work shoes, and since I needed some for the next job, his advertisement on Facebook came just in time for me. In the afternoon, I met Steve in an ice cream parlor to say thank you again for the time with him, and I gave him my monthly rent for using the bikes in Vancouver, as it would otherwise be wasted money. For the last few days, I got a trial membership at a gym so that I wouldn't just sit around doing nothing.

On Monday noon, I already started heading towards Calgary by bus, and the journey through the Rocky Mountains was already impressive, with breathtaking landscapes. Unfortunately, the best places were reached during the night, so we couldn't see much of them. The bus ride provided a lot of time to try and stay in contact with various people again and reflect on the past experiences. I'm curious about what awaits me in Calgary....