AV俱乐部

Why would you recommend going on exchange?
Going on exchange is just a great thing to do 鈥� you can improve your language, explore a new culture, and, best of all, you can not only make friends with locals, but also with people from all around the world - which again provides great opportunities for subsequent travel! And I think the AV俱乐部 in Halifax is a perfect place to go on exchange.

What did you think of Halifax, Nova Scotia?
I鈥檝e been to a lot of places in the world so far, but Halifax is definitely one of my favourites. It might not be as touristy or 鈥渆xciting鈥� as large and busy cities like Toronto or Vancouver, but believe me, it is a great place to live and study. What I love most about being here are the people and their lifestyle, and this one very true stereotype: Canadians, especially here on the East Coast, are just so friendly and welcoming that it instantly felt like a second home when I came here.

Why did you like it so much?
Everything is so close in Halifax 鈥� the waterfront, Point Pleasant Park (one of my favourite places!), the bars downtown,鈥� You can look forward to trying out Poutine and Beaver Tails (made out of pastry! I鈥檓 a vegetarian!), to going ice skating and skiing, or moose spotting (okay, you probably won鈥檛 see a moose in the city - only raccoons, if you鈥檙e lucky - but if you go to Cape Breton, you could). That鈥檚 all so Canadian, eh?

What is the workload at Dal like?
The workload is quite high, however (at least higher than I was used to from Germany), with lots of tests, homework, and group projects. So especially if English isn鈥檛 your first language, I think it鈥檚 just natural when you feel a bit overwhelmed at the beginning. Luckily, the teachers and staff are always very friendly and happy to help you with any questions or problems you should have 鈥� don鈥檛 be shy, just go ahead and ask.

Any advice?
One last piece of advice: As I said, studying here is hard, and (if you take it serious) you won鈥檛 have much free time. But at the same time, there should be more to your (exchange) life than university. There will come up so many amazing opportunities that you鈥檇 regret to miss out, I promise! One thing you should definitely do is travel across this beautiful country 鈥� rent a car and drive along the famous Cabot trail in Cape Breton, for example (moose spotting, remember?). If you鈥檙e afraid not to have enough time during the term, try to arrive a few weeks earlier or plan on staying longer. There鈥檚 so much to see, so much to do, you won鈥檛 be bored!

Also, to make your arrival at Dal a bit smoother (it鈥檚 the home of the tigers, after all), here is a school hymn for you to learn in advance (sung with lots of energy): 鈥淥NE, I am a tiger, TWO, a little bit louder, THREE, I still can鈥檛 hear you, FOUR, more, more, more,鈥︹�� (and then it goes from the beginning again 鈥� One, I am a tiger,鈥�). Enjoy your stay!