Thunder Bay is a city with a lot of nature, it’s full of trees, lakes and natural parks. During the winter, the snowy landscapes are beautiful and the lakes freeze. It’s a really good combination of the outdoors and city life, since there is also a more urban area with stores, cafés, and shopping.
During this year, I have been involved in several sports. I joined my high school cross country running and Nordic skiing teams, as well as tryouts for soccer and track and field. I have met lots of people that have joined different clubs, such as the Chess Club and the Technology Club, but these depend more on the high school that you go to. I have taken part in several volunteering opportunities, such as helping to serve food at a Church, directing the parking lot at a Christmas Event, putting together a set for a music event at school or helping my host family out with their pizzeria. Thunder Bay offers a wide range of activities for young people to do, from swimming in a lake during the hot weather and go for hikes to going shopping, going to the movies, arcades, pools, gyms, hanging out at friends’ house, etc.
From the beginning, it wasn’t hard to make friends since the high schools organized events for the internationals to get to know each other and make friends. In addition, being international always catches the attention of the local people and students, so they will probably approach you with questions about your origin or hometown. Making friends shouldn’t be a hard process if you are open to new and different people and are willing to start conversations, even if it feels awkward at first. The relationships with teachers have been gratifying, because they are very close to the students in terms of help and assistance helping us pass and get good grades. There is no one time where teachers have refused to help students, and I really appreciated it because during the school year, you are going to spend a lot of hours with them.
When I came to Thunder Bay, my English was good, I could understand almost everything and could have conversations with people around me. Now, almost ten months later, I can say that my English has improved in terms of understanding, writing, and speaking. I’m really glad to say that I can watch movies and shows on English without having to put the subtitles on in most of the cases. It really helps if you are willing to talk to people and have long conversations with your friends and host family. You have to talk a lot, even if people ask you to repeat yourself a hundred times because of your accent or pronunciation, it is very rewarding if you lose the fear to make mistakes.
My favorite classes have been Drama, Gym and Art class. Here in Thunder Bay, the educational system is very different compared to the Spanish one that I have experienced. In Spain you can only pick subjects that you are going to need in your graduating year to get the marks that you need for universities in that field. For example if you want to study medicine, you are encouraged to take a block of subjects related with the medical field, such as Biology, Chemistry or Anatomy. In Thunder Bay and for what I understand in Canada, you have so many more options to select from while still taking what you need for graduation.
My host family has been really good with me and has taken me to do lots of different activities. I didn’t travel around Canada, but I have been lucky to go to my host family’s house by the lake and enjoy swimming and spending time with them. They have been like a second family to me and we have been through all kinds of experiences together. My favorite experiences were definitely going to camp with my host family, helping them with the pizzeria, practicing new sports with the school and overall being able to speak English with everyone. Meeting all the internationals and taking part in the school play as well as singing in a concert we’re other experiences that I will never forget. I have learnt how to speak up for myself and manage situations by myself that my family or other people would have taken care of back in Spain. I have also learnt how to enjoy spending time by myself and start conversations even if it feels awkward.