Angelique
My name is Angelique. I am 19 years old but I will turn 20 in
1 week. I come from Quebec City and I live with my parents.
I have 1 brother and 2 sisters. One of them has 3 children. Their names are Coralie, Edouard and Florence. They are very important to me. Also, I have a Chihuahua. His name is Rocky. He looks like a little husky. He will be 2 years old and
he is a part of my life. I love him as if he could be my child. When I was younger I played soccer for 12 years and I played rugby for 1 year. I love snowboarding during the winter.

 

 

Samuel
Samuel is 25 years old and studies in chemistry at University of Montreal. He would like to become the CEO of a chemical plant company. His favorite english expression is ‘’Drink like a fish’’. This expression means drinking a lot of alcohol all the time. The thing that he likes the most about Vancouver is the open-mindness and the calmness of the Vancouverites.  He also likes hiking, Asian food and the beaches.

Hamza
My name is Hamza, I am 26 years and I’m from Morocco. I’m a student at the University of Laval, and I am studying Civil Engineering. I’m in love with the city of Vancouver, it’s a very great city because they have a lot of beautiful landscapes and the people are very open and friendly.

Josée
Josée is from Quebec, she studies in art (bachelor)  at the University of Laval in Quebec. She chose to participate in the Explore program in order to improve her English and to have the opportunity to visit new places. However, she thought that there were too many students who spoke french outside of class. Moreover, the program allowed her to meet new people. She thought that the other students in the group were outgoing and funny, and that there was a good connection between them. When she finishes her studies, she wants to work as an art teacher. Her main hobby is boat sailing because her parents have a private lake and she likes using their boat for sailing.

Audrey
Audrey is from Laval in Quebec, she is 19 years old and she studies at the University of Laval in nutrition. She is an active person; in fact, she practices many activities such as running, swimming. According to her, the Explore program is a amazing opportunity to learn English because being surrounded by native anglophone speakers in Vancouver allows any Explore participant to practice the language.

Louise
Louise is a psychology student at the University of Quebec in Trois Rivières, where she is from. She will graduate at the end of next year, after that she plans on moving out to Montreal to pursue another degree in the sexology field at the University of Quebec in Montreal ( UQAM). She thinks that the Explore program is a good way for her to ameliorate her english, but she says that life in Vancouver is very expensive and that she can’t afford every thing she wants. Nevertheless, she mentions that the group is tightly bonded together and that every student gets along well with each other.

Frederique
After a year studying biology at the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM), I decided I will move to Rimouski to study in ecogeography at the University of Quebec in Rimouski (UQAR) next semester. I  enjoy Vancouver so far for its ecological side, for its very open-minded population and its proximity with nature. I already know that I am going to miss the peacefulness of Wreck Beach and the awesome people I met here

Laurence
My name is Laurence. I am 20 years old. I come from Quebec. I have two sisters, Justine and Sandrine. We have the best relationship ever, we are like a team. I study in administration at the University of Laval. My favorite sports are cheerleading, gymnastic, swimming and snowboarding. My hobbies are cooking, playing cards, watching TV and series, and reading. I went to France, Cuba, San Francisco, Alberta, Calgary, Florida (Walt Disney), Las Vegas… Later on in my life, I would like to go to Australia, Corse, Italy, Alaska and return to France.

Samah
Samah is 24 years old.  She was born in Algeria and now she lives in Montreal since 2 years.   Her first language is Arabic, but she did all her study in French so she also speaks very well in French.  She wants to improve her English because she needs it for her future job.  She is doing a Master in International management.  Her favorite hobby is to draw especially cartoons or faces.  She is an artistic person because she likes art, music and movies.  Her favorite meal is pasta.   You need to learn more about Samah because she is an open-minded person and she is really kind and funny.

Patricia
Patricia also known as Pat is a really cool person.  She is little but she is always happy.  She is 22 years old and she comes from Levis.  Her sign of astrology is aries, her birthstone is diamond and her colour of birth is red.  She is a very creative person.  She studies in graphic design in Quebec City.  Her qualities are passionate, generous, funny, loyal, and honest.  Her major default is that she is too perfect.  She loves cat, but when she was young she had a fish.  She is single, so you can add her on facebook or twitter as you wish.  She is always down for a great dinner by the beach and she enjoys flowers.

Camille
Camille also known as Camilla is very beautiful and funny. She is studying at University of Quebec at Trois-Riviere to become a teacher in physical education and health. She loves nature and sports. Her favorite sport is soccer and she is very good at it. If you need a personal trainer she is the best for you! She also loves running and cycling. Camille is smart, smiling, honest, lighthearted, calm but she can also be a party animal. She likes to do activities and she is always ready to do something no matter what.  Everybody loves to spend time with her because it’s simple, fun and full of memories to share with.

Marc-André
Marc-Andre really loves his name, but he prefers that you call him Mark like Mark Zuckerberg.  Mark looks a bit like Zuckerberg physically and mentally.  He studies in business informatics so he is a little bit geek (in a good way) and his dream in life is to become famous like Jonny Depp.  One day he will probably own the world and he will take control of the life of everybody just by using his computer.  His favorite desert is wild waffles.  His favorite colour is green because he has green eyes.  He is a shy person, but when you know him he is a really interesting person, you can have good and fun conversation with him.  Finally, his favorite movie is Inception.  He really likes to watch it again and again.

Jimmy
Jimmy is a simple, positive and funny guy who lives in Levis, near  Quebec City. He’s studying in business/accounting at Laval University. This nice man likes reading and travelling. He also likes sports, especially football. His friends said that he is a very kind guy, always laughing for any reasons. He did Explore to improve English and to go out of his comfort zone. He also wants to see the world, so coming in British Columbia is a good beginning I guess. For the next, one of his desires is to visit USA. All I can say to him is “Let’s do it man, break a leg!” which means “Good luck”, an idiom that he taught me.

Louise
My name is Louise and I’m from a small town in Gaspesie. I lived in Trois-Rivieres for 3 years and I will move to Montreal after Explore. I am almost finished my degree in Psychology at UQTR and I will continue in Sexology at UQAM. I like to visit new places and try new things like bungee jumping even if I’m scared of heights. I’m always ready to do something interesting because I’m not in Vancouver to sleep (I always say that I will sleep when I’m dead!). It’s the second time I came to British Columbia and my favorite place here is Whistler. I just fell in love with Whistler! I want to travel as much as possible but I should get my passport first. Funny fact about myself is that I prefer being anywhere else than being at home, this is why I think : “Home is where your heart is, not where your house is!”.

Carolanne
Hello my name is Carolanne, I’ll talk about me. I am 21 years old. I have 2 brothers and 3 sisters. I got my high school diploma in 2010 after I enrolled in CEGEP in human sciences, but it was not the right field for me so I left school and returned in 2014  to pursue secretary studies in Drummondville. I finished my course in August and I’ll go for a certificate in human resources. I currently work at CSSS Drummond, the hospital of my city. I love travelling; as a matter of fact, in 2010 I went to Africa for 3 weeks. I would like to go to Australia and California. The reason why I participated in the Explore program is because I have many difficulties in english and I wanted to improve this language for my personal interest and for professionnal reasons.

Nicholas
My name is Nicholas and I am 19 years old. I was born in St-Georges de Beauce and now I live in Sherbrooke, because I study mechanical engineering at the University of Sherbrooke. I have a 24 year-old sister named Claudia. I love playing different sports, but my favorite ones are soccer, skiing and volleyball. Also, I used to play drums when I was young. I really like to travel and discover new places which is one of the reasons why I wanted to participate in the Explore program. However, the main reason is because I will need to be proficient in english in my future career and I want to be able to communicate easily with anglophone coworkers and be taken seriously.

Nelly
Where are you from? This is the first question that people ask me when they see me! Born as a half-blood child from a Chinese mother and a Malagasy father (from Madagascar), I share two cultures at the same time. And it is something that I am proud of. Most of the time it helped me to be open-minded and to be eager to learn about other cultures and it must be seen in my personality! I love to discover in general: cities, people, culture, food,… and I am curious about everything. According to me, life has to be something shared and with the Explore Program I am quite satisfied. I would like to travel around the world and be able to feed all of this eagerness in me.

 

Tania

My name is Tania. I am 21 years old. I study at HEC Montreal in administration. I want to be an entrepreneur for the rest of my life. I am now completing my Bachelor in logistic operations management. I have a lot of hobbies. My first hobby is sport. I practice figure skating, cheerleading, soccer and running. I also love to travel. My next destination will be Asia or Europe this year when I will participate to a student exchange.

I chose Explore for many reasons. Indeed, I need to improve my English if I want to run a great business and travel around the world. I also came to Vancouver to explore the city. There are so many activities to do here such as hiking, biking, climbing, etc. Moreover, the landscapes are awesome! I think that my favorite activity is going to the beach to watch the sunset, relax, and be with my new friends.

Marie-Isabelle

I live in Montreal and I study at the University of Montreal. I have a bachelor degree in communication, a certificate in journalism and I am currently completing a certificate in philanthropy. I used to travel a lot because of my family. Indeed, some of them live all around the world so I go visit them in Ecuador, Thailand, Dubai, France and Spain. During my free time, I like cooking, going out with my friends, watching some TV shows and spending time with my sisters. I have four sisters aged 5, 16, 26 and 35. After the Explore program ends, my next goal is to find a job in Montreal related to my field of study. I would like to work in the media or in an organization to do fundraising.

 

Jean-Simon – Surf in Tofino

Going surfing in Tofino was without a doubt the highlight of my Explore trip. I had never gone surfing before this trip so I was so excited to do some. I decided to sign in with the morning group because I wanted to do surfing as soon as possible. When we arrived at Cox Beach, one of the best places in Canada for surfing, the group and I were amazed by the view and the spot. We were lucky to have a sunny day and pretty warm temperatures. We also had the chance to have courses before getting into the water to help us. Once in the sea, at the beginning I had struggled getting on my board but I did love the challenge. After a couple of minutes, I was able to stand up on my board. It was an amazing feeling and I always wanted to surf bigger waves after that. I would have done surfing for the entire day. I recommend this activity to explore participants.

Isabel Garcia

Isabel is 26 years old and she is from Bogota, in Colombia. She is a nurse and Canada is the first place she visited outside of Columbia, but she would like to visit Machu Picchu in Peru, Cuba and Europe in the future. She enjoys jogging and aquatic sports and she also likes music groups such as Coldplay and Choquib Town. Her favourite food is (of courseJ) Latino food but she also loves sushi. In Vancouver, her favourite beaches are Kitsilano for the amount of activities and Wreck Beach for the quietness at certain days and hours of the week. Her favourite English expression is ‘’Someone’s heart was in the right place’’.

 

Chloé

My hometown is in Gatineau. I’m studying law at University of Ottawa. I would like to travel to different countries, especially Greece and Indonesia. In my free time, I like to read books, ski (if there’s snow), etc. The perfect day in Vancouver so far, is when I was in Tofino, surfing and lingering on the beach. The song that accompanied me the most during the Explore program is « Waves ». I’m an ambitious Chloé and like to achieve my goals perfectly. Therefore, I like the English expression that I took away from the most exciting class-Barb’s class: « Hit the bulls eye ».