As promised in our Blog on Tuesday, InterNations is pleased to introduce the remaining newly implemented Communities! Below you will find information about the city the Community is in and a bit about their respective Ambassadors.

Bodrum, Turkey

Originally a small fisherman’s town, Bodrum became popularized by a select few Turkish intellectuals around the 1950s. Today it is a favorite destination for tourists and was able to profit from the real-estate boom that took place over the years. Bodrum quickly became the site of considerable foreign and domestic real-estate investment, especially for Turkish and Western European investors. It is no wonder that Bodrum has been such a hit, with its whitewashed houses, blooming oleander bushes and subtropical temperatures, who wouldn’t want to move here?!

Along with InterNations Ankara Community and the Istanbul Community, the InterNations Bodrum Community, is very excited to have earned an official place in the long list of InterNations Communities. With almost 200 members, the Bodrum Community is off to a good start.
Bodrum’s InterNations Ambassador, Susan Marechal from England, is quite a jet set person! Having lived in numerous different European countries, she is the perfect fit for bringing InterNations expats together in Bodrum.

Calgary, Canada

Calgary is the largest city in the Canadian Province of Alberta, with around 1.3 million inhabitants in the metropolitan area. Initially an oil mining town, Calgary is well known for its rugged Western style. As it originally profited from the energy sector, which slumped in the 1980s, Calgary had to reconfigure its economy. This proved successful and Calgary has been profiting greatly from the tourist sector, the high-tech manufacturing industry, as well as being aided by the boom in oil prices of the former decade.

The InterNations Calgary Expat Community is proud to have 244 members from 44 different nationalities, and is quite happy to have become its own official Community! Calgary boasts an international flair with a high volume of multicultural events; concerts, film festivals, fine arts exhibits, ethnic food festivals, etc. are the norm here! Plus, who wouldn’t want to live in a city ranked the world’s cleanest in 2007 and placed first as eco-city in 2010?!
The two InterNations Calgary Ambassadors, Yuan Gloria Shang and Kimberly Rafuse, are extremely pleased to be able to get to bring the globally-minded Calgarians and expats together. Yuan, who loves networking and travelling, is from China and moved to Calgary in 2006 for work. Kimberly is a Canadian native, originally from Ottawa, who moved to Calgary in 2010.

Denver, United States of America

Nestled in a valley in front of the Rocky Mountains, Denver is the capital and most densely populated city of Colorado. Known to most Americans as the “the Mile-High City”, because it is exactly one mile above sea level, Denver attracts many tourists annually. Despite its being so populated, Denver residents not only enjoy the breathtaking scenery surrounding their city, but the many parks and green spaces that the Denver city council has incorporated into the cityscape fit in beautifully with its reputation as being a very active and outdoorsy city!
Thanks to its geographical location, Denver has attracted many telecommunications companies, mining and energy companies, as well as being home to many fast food chains now spread out across America, such as Chipotle Mexican Grill and Quiznos Subs.

Making the InterNations Denver Community official, was a welcome step forward for 333 InterNations members stemming from 50 diverse nationalities. Already having had some quite successful Events, such as at the swanky Wine Loft or the tasty Washington Park Grill, the Denver Community is looking forward to mingle with global minds as an official InterNations Community!
The InterNations Ambassadors also bring quite an international flair with them: Scott Bernard from Ohio lived in Germany and Singapore before moving to Denver, and Martina Reimer from Germany, lived in France and Belgium, before calling Denver her new home in 2009.

Manchester, United Kingdom

Manchester is known for being the world’s first industrialized city, the site of the world’s first railway station, and of course, the famous premier league soccer teams, Manchester United and Manchester City. Having begun as the leading center for manufacturing, Manchester’s economy is now largely service-based. It is still however ranked the second-best place to do business in the UK.
Apart from its economy, Manchester offers some beautiful and very cross-the-board architectural styles, from Victorian to contemporary. It is also surrounded by six nature reserves, which offer its residents a good escape from the hectic and often smoggy city life.

With 250 members from 49 nationalities, it is high time that the InterNations Manchester Community becomes official! The Ambassador for the Manchester Community, British-born Bilal Bham, who has Indian roots, is pleased to be able to let the official international mingling begin! Having lived abroad in Germany, Poland and France, Bilal is well aware of what it is like to be an expat. Therefore he can let his experience help him make the transition for the Manchester expat members a more pleasant and less turbulent one.

Ras al-Khaimah, United Arab Emirates

Literally meaning “the top of the tent”, Ras al-Khaimah is located at the north end of the Arabian Gulf coast, and is one of the seven United Arab Emirates. This once small fishermen and pirates’ nest rapidly expanded into a larger city. Artfully blending ancient traditions and modern life, Ras al-Khaimah offers a peaceful sanctuary to its residents and visitors.

Economically speaking, Ras al-Khaimah, since it never produced much oil, is the UAEs largest cement producer and also had the first pharmaceutical industry in the Gulf region.
Due to the rather unusual climate for this region, Ras al-Khaimah has, as many Emirates, succeeded in drawing a high degree of tourism to its banks. With abundant vegetation, as well as the lagoons alongside the emirate, Ras al-Khaimah offers a diverse habitat of flora and fauna.

The InterNations Ras al-Khaimah Community has been active as a Local Group for quite some time before officially becoming a Community. InterNations Ambassador Celine Mambode, originating from Mauritius, has been living in Ras al-Khaimah since 2008. As head of HR for the Swiss Federal Institute in Ras al-Khaimah, she is happy to extend her human resourcing skills onto expats in Ras al-Khaimah. And with 87 members from 36 different nationalities, she has her hands full!

Photos courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

InterNations members from Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Croatia, England, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, India, Israel, Scotland, Slovakia and Turkey got together in Vancouver in February – an amazing evening in a sold-out prime Saturday location reserved exclusively for InterNations members. Awesome occasion!

The Vancouverites models from several agencies were also present and some of them joined InterNations on the spot! Business cards were exchanged and new connections were created in a evening of fun, networking and friedly conversations.

Stay tuned for a new fancy venue for the upcomming events: A major trendy place in Coal Harbour (close to the new Vancouver 5 stars hotel Shangri-La) and another location in Yaletown are under negociations to provide a private area to InterNations members – where no one else is allowed to host private parties!

Special thanks to our Local Ambassador Sal Barguil for the report about the event and to both him and Cheryl Maguire for taking the photos.

To see more pictures of this event, please visit the InterNations photo album.

Members & friends of the Toronto InterNations community met in the Dublin Lounge at the Irish Embassy Pub & Grill on the chilly evening of the last day of February. The mood was light and mellow. The members were in great spirits, maybe because it was Friday or maybe because the company was cheerful and ready to kick-off the weekend. We had some new members in attendance and also recruited some other members from the after-work crowd in the bar. Everyone chatted and networked while enjoying some drinks (some were glad to have a pint or two of Guinness) and pub-fare.

Overall the event was a great success with lots of positive feedback and an evening that was enjoyed by all. A lot of the members are looking forward to the next event in the Spring as well.

Special thanks to Anjali Benawra for the report about the event and for taking the photos.

To see more pictures of this event, please visit the InterNations photo album.

On Wednesday January 28th, the Toronto InterNations chapter visited the newly renovated Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO). Designed by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry, a $276 million project has transformed the AGO into one of the most distinguished art museums in North America.

With a spectacular new building and extraordinary works of art, the newly transformed AGO is now a preeminent international cultural destination. InterNations members wandered about the multi-level gallery, stopped to rest at the Espresso Bar, and browsed the gift shop for one-of-a-kind gifts.

After members had a chance to regale themselves with art, culture and beauty, they gathered in the oasis of the private Members’ Lounge where they got to know one another a bit better. They were then treated to a special guided tour of the archaeological dig that took place during the renovation. The evening was capped off with drinks in the new AGO restaurant FRANK, also designed by Frank Gehry – casual and chic with modern Danish furnishings and a contemporary art installation.

Special thanks to Ana Manao, our InterNations Amassador in Toronto, for this report and the pictures!

Despite the awful weather and the busy season, quite a few InterNations members braved the elements as well as their own schedules to gather for some shared holiday cheer on the Thursday before Christmas. One member even came from as far away as Kitchener-Waterloo to join IN Ambassadors Ana Manao and Anjali Benawra and the crowd at Six Steps Restaurant. In the warm ambience of the lounge, with its dark hardwood floors, Tiffany glass lamps, and candlelight, they simply relaxed and basked in the cosy, seasonal atmosphere.

The latest InterNations Get-Together turned out to be an evening of fun, networking and meaningful conversations where embassy attachés, the Chinese-Canadian media, professionals from the financial sector and brains from the local high-tech community mixed and mingled in a casual, friendly environment – pampered once more by the courteous and attentive staff of the SandBar in Granville island.

The expats from Armenia, Brazil, China, England, Germany, Israel, Indonesia, Malaysia, Scotland, and Taiwan as well as several guests from most Canadian provinces were honoured to have a representative of the major Chinese newspaper in Canada present: Journalist Lili Su from the Ming Pao Vancouver will be featuring the evening in upcoming editions in both Vancouver and Toronto.

The Attaché for Foreign Affairs from the Republic of Indonesia – Mr. Reza Reflusmen – also attended the gathering, promoting tourism in Indonesia. With Bali as the perfect picture postcard island, many of the guests would actually be quite pleased to spend the holiday of their dreams there.

Many thanks and kudos to Ambassador Sal Barguil and the whole Vancouver community for a very successful event!

(You can have a look at the complete photo gallery over here.)

When the members of the InterNations Toronto Community set out for their second Get-Together, not only the location chosen by our Ambassadors Anjali Benawra and Ana Filipa Manao turned out to be ultra-cool. In order to reach the Pravda Vodka Bar, a trendy themed highlight of Toronto’s nightlife, the guests from India, Albania, Britain, Switzerland, China, Portugal, Germany, Romania, Pakistan and South America had to brave freezing temperatures, a sudden snowfall, and slippery roads first.

Once they were safely arrived, however, they had the opportunity to warm up with a Martini cocktail and some oysters as hors d’oeuvre. The mood was pleasant, with lots of chatter and laughter, as the members were gradually getting more comfortable with each other when they had the chance to meet for the second time. Only the designated drivers might have been a bit frustrated at not being able to taste selected labels from the venue’s large vodka cellar; but they, at least, escaped the hangover on the day after…

(The rest of Anjali’s photos is here.)

Last Thursday, on the crisp and beautiful autumn evening of October 22, our new Toronto Ambassadors Ana Filipa Manao and Anjali Benawra invited the members of their community for drinks at the well-known Roof Lounge of the Park Hyatt Hotel. In the intimate atmosphere, full of old-world charm, they chatted and got to know each other better, lingering by the fireplace and making new friends. Despite the spectacular sunset over the city skyline, it was rather cold outside. Inside, however, the warmth of friendliness and companionship was definitely palpable.

(You can see more of Anjali’s pretty pictures here.)

With piano music in the background and an outstanding view of the False Creek marina from the SandBar – the first InterNations Mix & Mingle Vancouver was a blast! Expats from India, Malaysia, Germany, Brazil, the Russian Federation, Nepal, England, Wales as well as most Canadian provinces joined our new Ambassador Sal Barguil for a night of funny stories, jokes, a high-quality venue with friendly, welcoming staff, and a very relaxed atmosphere – ‚nice vibe‘, as one of the German members commented.

Nonetheless, the evening also offered lots of excellent opportunities for networking – business cards were exchanged, and new members joined InterNations on the spot. Now there remains just one question to ask: When will the next Get-Together take place?

Thank you, everyone, for attending – and stay tuned for more great times ahead!