Mother and Son
Postcards from #Canada150
When I was a university student in Toronto in 1984, I had worked with Arthur Andersen for two summers in their Toronto office and I had asked if I could do the same in their Australia office. They granted my request and for approximately 3-4 months, I rode the train across the Sydney Harbour Bridge overlooking the Opera House every day to work.
The valuable international work experience I gained was always asked about in interviews. Personally, I learned how to live independently and in a different environment far from home, lessons that helped me succeed in later years.
After working, I travelled around Australia for three weeks before going back to Canada. I loved it so much that I went back a few years later to travel around Australia and New Zealand. I travelled from Canberra, the capital, to Darwin in the north, to the fascinating city of Alice Springs in the centre, then witnessed the beauty of the Great Barrier Reef, the majesty of Uluru, the ‘cool’ underground homes of Coober Pedy, and saw the crocs and other wildlife up close in Kakadu National Park. My memories of Australia have remained strong through the years.
Now the travel bug is passed on. My son Jeffrey, a university student, is planning to go to Australia to study, work and travel in 2018. I look forward to going back again to visit with my family when my son is there.
Contributor: Pamela Fruitman Gould
Occupation: Retired lawyer (BA, LL.B, MBA) and recipient of the 2008 Canadian General Counsel Award-Mid Market Excellence.
Hometown: Toronto, Canada
Working Holiday in Australia: 1984
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In early 2018, I will be going on an exchange to Griffith University in Australia’s Gold Coast. I just completed my second year of a Bachelor of Sport Management degree at Brock University in Canada. I chose Australia, the country my mom visited 33 years ago, with the same intention – to further my career development. It will be interesting to gain a different understanding of the sport industry from the perspective of another “sport” country.
I hope to intern with the Australian Open tennis tournament and volunteer with the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, which would create further connections and help develop my professional career in sport and business.
My family has travelled a lot, but Australia is one of the countries I have always wanted to visit. There are stories my mother tells us about places in Australia she was able to see and how “this” was amazing and “that” was beautiful and that she got to hang out with her best friends, the koalas. Now, I have the opportunity to follow in her footsteps and witness all the beautiful attractions that the country has to offer.
To go where my mother went 33 years prior, see all the incredible things she was able to witness, and have my mother’s knowledge of Australia as a resource will make my working holiday even more special and meaningful.
Contributor: Jeffrey Gould
Occupation: University Student
Hometown: Toronto, Canada
Working Holiday in Australia: Anticipated 2018
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Start your life-changing International Experience Canada (IEC) adventure today!
This is one in a series of stories shared by International Experience Canada participants from the 1970s to present to celebrate Canada 150.
IEC began in 1951 as a reconciliatory cultural exchange between Canada and Germany following World War II. Today, IEC supports Canada’s interests by administering Youth Mobility Agreements (including Working Holiday) with 33 countries and territories. The agreement between Canada and Australia started in 1975 and is currently reciprocal in the number of inbound and outbound participants.
