Hockey, Mc Donald's, Movies ... a typical Canadian Saturday night

On Saturday we first met for watching a Hockey game of the Bisons (team of the University of Manitoba). There weren't as many people in the sports hall, the ambiance could be a bit better. Still we enjoyed an exciting ice hockey game and had some fun with the team mascot of the Bisons. Unfortunately the Bisons lost the game ... enjoy some pictures of the hockey game in the photo gallery.

Afterwards we went again to the CinemaCity, for nobody did like going to a social. Yet, almost all the movies started at midnight, therefore; we decided to have some dinner first. The nearest fast food restaurant was Mc Donald's, so we decided to have a burger there.

Have you ever seen the selection of food in a "Canadian" Mc Donald's??? Yes I know I'm crazy (still I'm not a fan of this fast food chain) ...

Thanks to Olivier ;)

Afterwards we went back to the movies; we decided to watch "The Weatherman". I like Nicolas Cage's strange behaviour ... the movie was good ... but I didn't like the end because the message was quite simple and gave no answer to everything what happened during the movie (open end).


Sunday I played badminton, started updating my blog and did some accounting homework. My school term is almost over, thus it remains one and a half week and on December 15th, 16th and 21st I will have my final exams. Yet, I should have enough time to prepare these exams without being stressed out ...

The Flu Shot & Jeans Searching

Yeah I'm so lazy now ... I update my blog irregular :( ... but still I work hard to keep you informed :)

Yes, on Monday I just did nothing useful, surfing on the net, and enjoying my free time. Before I went to bed I studied my Accounting schedule - SHOCK - I just saw that I was two weeks late with my homework ... yeah that's why it was time to get serious and catch up ...

On Tuesday I had to get my flu shot ("Grippeimpfung"), I don't know if it's a good thing, but the risk to get it is high (bus to university is usually crowded ...) and I prefer to avoid it if possible. Now it was really funny, because you have to get the flu shot at the grocery store ... between eggs and cough drops ("Hustenbonbons") and not as habitual at the doctor's practice ("Arztpraxis"). And the best - I also had a discount with my member card of the grocery store and was able to collect some air miles, isn't that cool??? :)


On Wednesday I got some phone calls because of my upcoming birthday, besides nothing special happened. On Thursday I went out to do some shopping, particularly I was looking for new jeans. But my legs are too short for Canadian norms ... I was not able to find any fitting jeans in the adult department, yet I found some Lewis jeans in the kid department ... and I got them for a special good price (kids price!): $22.95 - Yeah, isn't that a nice advantage of buying kids stuff??? And for the next time: I will buy adult size and bring them to a taylor, that should work (and I also will get the colour I like!!!) ...

On Friday I met some other students for having dinner together ... and to celebrate my birthday (my birthday was actually on Thursday). I got some nice gifts: a 2006 Calendar with pictures of Canadian landscapes, a cribbage board game (including the cards), and also a t-shirt of the University of Manitoba. Yet, don't feel bad if you forgot my birthday, usually I use to forget all the birthdays too ...

Find some pictures of Friday Night in the photo gallery.

Presentation: Switzerland Business Culture

For my international mgmt class we had to prepare a presentation on the business culture of Switzerland - probably funny for you guys :)

Download it here

My cheapest movie ticket I've ever bought & Planning a trip for Christmas *Updated*

On Saturday I asked my friends for going to the movies, lots of people told me that there is a cheap and good cinema - the CinemaCity (actually there are two cinemas under this "brand"). Usually the movies are a bit older, that means they pass to that cinema as soon as they are not showed anymore in the main movie theaters, yet who minds? Actually the popcorns (something more than $3) are more expensive than a ticket (depends on the showtimes, between $1.50 and $3.25) ...

We saw Northern Country, I think it's quite a good movie. The story should base on real facts and is about a woman with two kids, who gets beaten by her husband. That's why she decides to move out. Yet to feed the kids she needs a job, so she starts working in a cole mine ... all female staff are confronted to sexual harrassment. The situation gets worse and the story ends finally in court ...

Sunday was badminton as usual, ok I had a hard time to get off because of a short night and was finally late at Badminton, for I had to find a free parking lot first :( Looks like everybody likes sport on Sunday mornings ...

After badminton I had lunch with one international student at the cantine of the university residence. Was good to have a full meal (especially because my cooking skills are not as great anymore - I have to change my mind again!!!). Afterwards we met for planning our christmas trip ... I got the idea to travel by car to Calgary and rent there a small cottage for a week ... the problem is that we are late and I don't know if we are able to find something that is awesome (American English, eh?) ... I will keep you informed ...

I also got the opportunity of taking some pictures of the University of Manitoba ... enjoy them in the photo gallery!

I got my insurance & a Manitoban Driving Licence *Updated*

This was a busy week, thus many things happened. On Monday night it started snowing, we got about 30 cm of snow in 24 hours. On Tuesday Canadian Life changed :) Traffic almost came to a standstill, buses were running late (a women at my bus stop was waiting the bus for about one and a half hour), lots of university courses were cancelled ... libraries and cafeterias closed earlier ... all that because of 30 cm of snow ... yes, I was really surprised, yet yesterday still the major of the city complained about the very slow cleaning of the streets ... on the other hand, why taking life so serious, it works also without such a hurry *smile*

my view out of the window (Tuesday morning)

On Wednesday I got my insurance coverage for the car and I also exchanged my Swiss Driver's Licence against a Manitoban Driver's Licence. Was funny to give away my Swiss Licence ... I'm more and more Canadian now :)


Because of the bad road conditions, I wasn't sure if I should go out for a trip with my car (I wasn't allowed to drive before). Anyway, I went to Canadian Superstore doing some grocery shopping and I also bought some equipment for my car. Against my expectations it was not as challenging to drive on the frozen snow, yet I know that I have to be careful ...

On Thursday I had to prepare for my economics exam the next day. On Friday I went playing badminton, afterwards we went to a "House"-Party (not the music!) ... they organized a party for their last days in Winnipeg (they just came here for a term). They transformed their house into a party house - was cool, probably over 30 persons were dancing to music ... the house was crowded and the ambiance was great. Also a good opportunity to meet new people - there was a big surprise:
I talked to a guy and he told me that he will go study to Switzerland. I was really surprised and asked him, what university he will go to ... the answer was ... University of Applied Science in Winterthur ... and the next point was ... Business School! So funny, I couldn't believe it ... I met just this guy who is going to my home university in Switzerland! He was really excited and told me that a former exchange student that went to Switzerland really enjoyed her stay in Winterthur! His name is Nick, and he will stay in Winterthur for the second term ... would be funny if you will see him soon ...!!!

It's getting colder *brrrhhh*

Hey it's snowing again, and that time we will probably get more snow. Today was really cold ... average day temperature (for today) was near zero, for the first time (since I'm in Canada) I saw that slops ("Pfützen") were frozen. I'm happy to have a car now, the "Winnipeg weather nightmare" seems to start ... (I'm joking :) ...!!!)

On Thursday it will be cold ... brrrhhh ... but it will be much colder soon ...

On Saturday I got my car in Selkirk, fortunately my roommate gave me a ride to pick up the car. Arrived in Selkirk we had first traditional Canadian breakfast: eggs, toast, fried potatoes, bacon, pancake with maple syrup and tea - tastes great and is not as expensive ($ 6). Afterwards we went to the previous owner of the car, had to complete some paperwork and finally I got the car. Yet I was not able to insure the car, I was just allowed to drive it home. Hopefully I will get the car insurance soon ...

Yesterday I was playing badminton, and in the afternoon I spent some time on the computer and on my homework. Next friday is my second economics exam, it will be my last midterm exam. So I still have to stay studious ... :)

Crazy Friday & I finally bought a car ...

Finally I found a car, I will get it tomorrow in Selkirk, that's about 45 min. north of Winnipeg. I bought a red Ford Focus 2002, the car looks as new and is still under warranty. I'm really excited, now I'm ready to discover Canada ... :)

(picture as it was published on the internet)

This week passed really fast, because we had just 4 days of school. Today (November 11, 2005) is remembrance day, almost all stores are closed and also there are no classes. Many people wear red poppies (an artificial red flower) as a sign of remembrance. Excerpt of Wikipedia:

"Remembrance Day or Armistice Day is a day of commemoration observed in the Commonwealth of Nations and various European countries (including France and Belgium) to commemorate World War I and other wars. It is observed on November 11 to recall the end of World War I on that date in 1918. Remembrance Day is specifically dedicated to members of the armed forces who were killed during war, and was created by King George V of the United Kingdom on November 7, 1919 upon the suggestion of Edward George Honey."

My day started late, I just get off at 11:30. Then it was time for cleaning my room and doing some laundry. Afterwards I did some homework and at 5:45 p.m. I left home to join my friends for having japanese food. It was my first time having Japanese food (with the exception of Sushi) and some of my friends were afraid that I probably would not like raw fish. However I like Japanese food ...

Thanks to Shinya for the picture

Afterwards we went to "Toad in the hole" - thats an authentic British pub at Osborne Village and enjoyed a beer. Finally we didn't feel like going home, and so thanks to the idea of some of my Asian friends we went to sing karaoke. We spent two funny hours, everybody was relaxed and at the same time excited ... it was cooooool!!!

Thanks to Shinya for the picture

After midnight we decided to go home, unfortunately because of Remembrance Day the buses were running on a sunday schedule - of course we forgot that. We were 6 persons, and that was to much for one taxi. So another crazy guy as well as me, we decided walking home. After a "hike" down Pembina Hwy we reached University Campus one and a half hour later - that was an exciting experience! So I finally got home at 02:40 after having a short ride on my bycicle and was happy going to bed.

On Thursday I got my midterm exams back, I did well; thus, I'm happy with the grades. Also on Thursday my roommate gave me a ride to see my car (that I've bought now). My roommate did a great job because he was negotiating the price and also helped me examining the car.

Tuesday and Wednesday were daily business as usual. School, homework, looking for a car ... on Tuesday night I met other students to prepare a group project for International Mgmt. Our topic: Business Culture in Switzerland ... isn't that a lovely topic? *smile*

Again I have to look for another car ...

I was doing some research on the Chevrolet Malibu Model 2000 today and the reviews are bad, really bad! Just see yourself: Link1 or Link2. I thought that I had found a car, but it looks like I need more time and I have to look again through many more ads.

Still looking for a car, baking pizza & inviting some friends

Today was a busy day, even if it was a Saturday :)

I get off at 8 to have a look for the newspaper and the car ads. My roommate helped me a lot again, moreover he did many phone calls to find a car for me. I found a really intersting ad, unfortunately the car owner is not in the city and I have to wait until Monday or Tuesday to see the car.

In the afternoon I started preparing two baking sheets of pizza and suddenly I got the idea that I could invite some of my friends. So we had a good time, some good pizza (self-praise I know!), played different card games and enjoyed our Saturday night ...

Writing exams, buying posters and studying car ads

Tuesday was a really busy day, I had to write two midterm exams: International Mgmt and Financial Accounting. The first exam was a multiple choice questions exam, we had first to write the test alone and then as a group - what looks a bit strange to me. At night I had my Accounting exam, the exam took two hours and was pretty severe, especially the multiple choice questions were tough. I will probably get the results next week ...

Wednesday I started looking seriously for a car, unfortunately I haven't found the right one, but I'm sure that will happen soon ...

Yesterday I bought some posters to "pimp up my room" *smile*, I think it was a good idea because it gives a better ambience.


Yesterday I also bought the Auto Trader, thats a Canadian magazine with lots of ads of used cars, I was studying the booklet the whole night. Today my roommate made some phone calls for me and at one point I was thinking that I found the right car for my needs. By mischance we heard that the car was a former accident vehicle, and so I have still to look for other cars ...