Här kommer den fjärde delen av intervjun med Farees och Vincent! Den handlar om hur det är att leva i Kanada, enjoy :)

19. Why should you live in Canada? What do you appreciate most about Canada?

Vincent Mai (VM): People are nice, there is a lot of space, a lot of nature,  an awesome cultural diversity, one of the highest life levels, perfect winters (cold and sunny), no major society problem, ... I’m sure it is one of the best countries in the world to live in!

Farees Nathoo: (FN): I think the balance between the lifestyle and the cultural diversity makes Canada one of the most vibrant countries in the world.  Canada is really an amazing place, with geography ranging from tundra to dessert!  I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. 

20. Why shouldn’t you live in Canada?

Vincent Mai (VM): The only reason I see is because you’re an overly-convinced Québecois (as some of my friends are).

Farees Nathoo: (FN): I think you need to be quite tolerant as a Canadian, of other people’s backgrounds, traditions and practices.  Without this, the cultural diversity can be very difficult to navigate. 

21. What is life like for the young? Do students work a lot during the semesters, summers? Is it easy to get a job?

Vincent Mai (VM): It is totally possible to get a job. Most students do work during summers, and a lot also do during semesters. Even if university studies are not as expensive as in the US (and especially in Québec where we only pay 2600$/year), most of us need to work to get enough money to study. It is considered normal that parents let their children pay everything once they’re out of home, and therefore most of the students coming from out of Montréal must also pay accomodation and food by themselves. No choice but to work!

Farees Nathoo: (FN):  Almost everyone finds a summer job here, it’s a type of rite of passage! Some will work during the school year, and it is pretty easy to find a good student job. 

22. What kind of charity work do people do?

Vincent Mai (VM): Canada gives a lot of money when other countries get catastrophies. For example, we just sent several millions to the Philippines.

As charity work is concerned, it’s not as popular as it might be in Sweden, especially for local actions. At least, as I can tell from my experience. I guess we prefer buying our good conscience with money than to work by ourselves? Still, some of my friends went in Africa to help building a well, but I think it was at least as much for the trip than for the charity work :P

Farees Nathoo: (FN): I think I have a bit of a different answer than Vincent here, probably because Ottawa as the capital city has bigger concentration of national charities.  I think it’s quite common to volunteer with an international development organization or NGO, or with a local charity such as a homeless shelter. 

23. Do people usually study at university? Is it common to, for example, go backpacking before studying at university?

Vincent Mai (VM): Not as much as in Sweden, but yes, there is a high proportion of people going to university. Once again, it depends in which province you live, though. In Québec, I know it is around 10% of the population that has a bachelor degree or more.

It is well seen to travel during your studies (as an exchange student, for example), but I’ve never met a Canadian backpacking before going to university. It’s not like Australians.

Farees Nathoo: (FN): For the generations growing up, university or some type of postsecondary education is almost essential.  Backpacking or travelling here is less common, but it is slowly starting to catch on!

24. Which is the national sport? Do most of the people practice sports?

Vincent Mai (VM): Strangely enough, our official national sport is la crosse, a sport I’ve never seen played and never heard about. However, the real national sport is ice hockey. We are also good in curling, although no one really cares in here neither. It just gives us two gold medals every winter Olympic Games :D

People do practice sports quite a lot, whether it’s going to the gym or playing hockey, skiing, paddling (we’re good at this too!) or playing soccer. We also play Canadian football, that is very similar to American football.

Farees Nathoo: (FN): Lacrosse is the national sport, but not overwhelmingly popular.  The two most played sports here are hockey and soccer, and if Canadians don’t play one these two, they will often ski or go to the gym! We’re also quite famous for our speed skaters and kayak/canoeing athletes. 

25. What do people do on their spare time?

Vincent Mai (VM): Hum, a lot of things and nothing in particular :P I don’t know, play music, watch movies, play videogames, see the family... During winter, snowball fights and outdoor hockey.

Farees Nathoo: (FN): This is a bit of a tough question, we do much of what you do! It’s all up to what you’re interested in. 

26. Do you celebrate advent in Canada?

Vincent Mai (VM): I’m not sure about what is advent (I think it is a religious celebation), but I guess it means no? Or maybe it is just my family who does not. I say I’ll refer you to Farees’ answer :D

Farees Nathoo: (FN): Haha, he passed off a question all the way from Montreal to Ottawa.  I think you mean the Advent season prior to the Christmas.  This is definitely celebrated in churches but doesn’t have a massive public presence.

If you mean the advent of spring, we celebrate this by shedding off our parkas, starting to walk to work instead of skiing or skating, and general being less miserable under the mountains of snow.  Just kidding… maybe.

27. Is it easy to find apartments? Is it expensive?

Vincent Mai (VM): All I know about the subject is in Montréal, but here it is quite easy. That’s not like in Lund! You usually can find a good apartment in two or three days of searching, for between 300 and 500$ a month (1900-3200 kr).

Farees Nathoo: (FN): Finding apartments in Ottawa is a little tougher because the city is bigger and there are 2 fairly big universities in the city centre.  Rent here usually starts at $500, and can go up to 800.  3200 to 5000 SEK)

Spännande att veta om ni tar er igenom intervjudelarna ;) Jag kanske har blivit så Kanadablind att det mest är intressant för mig att lära mig mer landet. Killarna är oavsett nyfikna på att höra vad ni tycker om intervjun, så lämna gärna en kommentar eller skriv till mig om ni känner för det :)