Exchange Report – Ben Farnworth (studying towards a Bachelor of Management Studies)
In January 2012, I embarked on an exchange to the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. I thought it was an
unprecedented opportunity to travel while studying and receive credit for my Waikato degree. I wanted to
experience another culture, broaden my perspective and meet new people. I chose Canada because I had friends
there, and the close proximity to the States made it attractive.
This was my first time overseas besides Australia. Right until the day I left New Zealand, it hadn’t sunk in that I was
leaving and would be living in another country for five months. It was a surreal experience. When I caught my first
sight of land on the flight between Auckland and Los Angeles it felt more real and tangible. The Californian coastline
beckoned and this new world I had only heard about in the movies I was now to experience firsthand.
My first impression of Canada was the cold. It was dark and chilly and hovering around zero degrees when I arrived
at Calgary International Airport. It was a rude awakening after leaving midsummer New Zealand. Initially, I wanted
to hop back on the plane and fly back to NZ. I had spent 29 hours on the plane, and I’d arranged for some people I
never met before to pick me up from the airport.
The Calgary winter was drab, and the city had two colours, white and brown. The grass was brown because it had
died in the snow. Apparently it was a very mild winter – so if I was shivering I assumed it was nice day by Canadian
standards. My second week in Calgary, the thermometer read -33C, but with the wind-chill it was in the -40s.
Widespread snow disrupted traffic and snow plows were out in force clearing the roads, and laying out salt and
sand. I bundled up in a balaclava and a ski jacket, with waterproof hiking boots. One night I got lost down town in
minus 30 without gloves. I was very grateful when I finally found the bus stop and arrived home safely.
If anything I was under prepared for the harsh climate in Calgary. If you are going on exchange, gear up for the
winter. Invest in some icebreakers, waterproof hiking boots, a windbreaker, and a beanie (a tuque as the locals call
it). A parka and balaclava are also useful in the coldest days. In the middle of winter, fashion sense goes out the
window. Functionality is more important than fashion.
The first few days in Canada I toured up to Northern Alberta. The landscape was barren and icy, making the roads a
little treacherous at times. The house we were staying at had a 'zoo' of stuffed animals which I found fascinating.
There were moose, caribou, and even a wolf. The guy I was staying with was a keen hunter so it wasn’t uncommon
sight to see bear hide hanging from the garage. While in Canada though, I didn’t see a lot of wildlife. Squirrels were
much smaller than I envisioned. They looked like a cross between a possum and a small cat. Rabbits were massive
and would stand or sit motionless like statues on the grass. I also saw chipmunks in the rocks during a hike up Heart
Mountain. During Easter weekend, I went hiking with a friend in Kananaskis we took bear spray to ward off
unwelcome bears.
Although it was surprisingly cold, it was the perfect season for ice skating, ice hockey, and snowboarding. During my
first week I went hot-tubbing with some friends in an outdoor pool. Every now and then, a warm wind from the
mountains, called a Chinook, would sweep across the city, and the temperatures would soar to 7 or 8 degrees. All
the snow would melt, and things would return to normal for a few days or weeks before plummeting back below
zero. Calgary is only 2 hours away from Banff and Lake Louise (both popular tourist attractions), and the majestic
Rocky Mountains.
Living away from friends and family forced me to break out of my comfort zone. I couldn’t rely on my existing
network of friends, so I tried to keep my social calendar full. I figured I was only in Canada for a limited time so I
need to make the most of it. People were very welcoming, showed me around, introduced me to their friends and
gave me rides around the city. This experience made me a more confident person.
Canadians are very polite, well-mannered, helpful, and friendly. They try not to offend people. In some ways,
moving to Canada felt like I had never left New Zealand. It felt like a bigger version of New Zealand. Once you get
beyond the accent, which takes about half an hour, the people there are very similar culturally to Kiwis. The first
things people bring up when I mentioned I was from New Zealand was 'Lord of the Rings', and 'Flight of the
Conchords'. It was fun when people tried to guess where I was from. Australia was probably the most popular
guess, but Britain and South Africa were quite common.
It took me a while to decipher the Canadian idioms. After a while I picked up a few phrases. “Right on,” “for sure”.
I learned to add Rs to my words to make myself more understandable to the locals. After a while I realised that I had
stopped using a lot of Kiwi phrases, they had disappeared from my vocabulary. New Zealanders have a much
stronger British influence than the Canadians. They think 'fortnight' is a very old-fashioned English word that you
might find in a Lord of the Rings novel. Canadians love people with accents, and they seem to have a thing for
Australia and New Zealand. They see it as very exotic. Having an accent made it very easy to make friends. While I
was there I decided that the best souvenirs were friends so I really made an effort to get involved on campus and at
church. On campus I was involved in a Christian club as well as the GIG (Guys and Girls into Guitar) which organised
open mic nights during the semester (at the student bar).
The classes in Canada were very similar to what I had encountered at Waikato in terms of course content. Two of my
papers didn’t have a final exam, so there was an emphasis on internal assessment. As I was in the business school,
group work was an integral part of the assessment. Internal tests are called midterms. Every paper had at least one
midterm, which would fall anywhere from one month into the semester till just before final exams. The school year
was more compressed than it is in New Zealand. Mid-semester break, or Reading Week as it’s called, is only one
week long. I used this week to go snowboarding and also to study as I had a midterm just right afterward so I didn’t
do anything too crazy or ambitious. Also there is no such thing as study week before final exams so you have to be
on your game because they come up quickly. In Canada I found there was more emphasis on internal assessment
than at Waikato, and the work load is pretty constant throughout the semester.
At the University of Calgary (or U of C as it’s known) bus fares are included in your tuition, which meant traveling
around the city was practically free. The city has a population of around 1.2 million, and as there are no natural
constraints on the city’s expansion, it covers a vast geographic area. Although the public transport system is
extensive, it is also very time consuming, so a car is really a necessity. For example a trip that might take 10 minutes
in a car, may take up to 1.5 hours by bus or train. When my sister came to visit me in Canada, we rented a car to tour
Banff National Park. Driving on the right hand side of the road for the first time was nerve-racking, but after a couple
of hours it felt second nature.
Because I was there for less than 6 months I didn’t need a study permit or visa. However, if you are travelling to
Canada via the U.S.A. you need visa to pass through the States. Getting a visa was easier than I thought. If you are
New Zealand citizen, you are eligible to apply for a Visa Waiver which is done through the Electronic Travel System
Authorization (all online), and costs only US$14.00. It is valid for two years and allows you to travel to the States for
up to 90 days at a time.
Banking in Canada was relatively simple. Because my bank (Westpac) had connections with the Bank of Nova Scotia
Bank I was able to withdraw cash from ScotiaBank ATMs for free. I ate out a lot at the university. Some vendors
accepted my debit card others didn’t. Canadians pay for things in cash a lot more than we do in New Zealand, which
took some getting used to, as finding an ATM was sometimes impractical. Things are generally cheaper in Canada
than in NZ, petrol is around CAD$1.20 a litre. The New Zealand dollar buys roughly 80 Canadian cents.
10 things to see and do
1. Banff (go to the Old Spaghetti Factory restaurant)
2. Snowboarding in Sunshine (Banff National Park)
3. Lake Louise (Banff National Park)
4. West Edmonton Mall, Edmonton. Once the largest mall in the world, now the largest in North America, it’s a
must see. The mall has a theme park and a water park. The water park has a myriad of death-defyingly high
water slides, and the world’s largest indoor wave pool.
5. Calgary Tower, Calgary
6. Stanley Park in Vancouver. The walk around Stanley Park is 10km and the views are awesome. It looks like
the Marlborough Sounds.
7. Ice skating or playing hockey in an outdoor rink.
8. Watch the Calgary Flames (professional ice hockey team) play at Scotia Bank Saddledome.
9. Have milkshakes at Peter’s Drive-in. Peter’s is an iconic local fast food joint that has been operation since
1962. It’s a local legend.
10. Go rafting down the Bow River in Calgary
I would highly recommend an university exchange. My time in Canada was an amazing experience. The opportunity
to meet new people, make new friends, see new a different part of the world, and study at another university is
something I’ll remember for the rest of my life. It was also a time to reflect on what makes me a New Zealander.
Until I went overseas I never really thought of myself as a Kiwi. I think I grew as a person during my time overseas,
and I learned how to find my feet in unfamiliar situations. I'd like to thank Waikato Management School and the
Waikato University Exchange office for making this possible.