Week one is done!

Last blog of week one! After the first week, I am feeling just peachy with my co-op at the Port Authority. The process that I went through was probably not the recommended, nor the best way to secure a co-op position. To be completely honest, I did the classic “all the eggs in one basket” and completely lucked out and actually got the job. I put my application in and...waited. I was nervous, and went into the office three times to see if any decisions had been made. On the third visit, I was given an interview, and after the interview I was offered a job. The wait was terrible, but the result is awesome. The port has been radical so far, and I have no complaints thus far (only a week, I know). The funny thing is that I already have a very good lead on a co-op position for next summer, apparently I am trying to not repeat the last minute one basket thing the second time around. I don’t really know exactly what my “dream job” is yet, although I have some ideas. Truthfully, I don’t know yet how directly my Port co-op will relate to my dream job, but I think that all the things that I learn will help me learn a lot in an indirect way. Week one done, week two, here I come!

Blog 2!

I will be spending this summer wandering the docks of the Port of Nanaimo, as a wharfinger for the Nanaimo Port Authority. Despite popular belief the Port of Nanaimo is not a government operated business. We operate under the umbrella of Transport Canada, but as an independent operator, so no...people who come into the office do not actually pay my wages and they don’t have a constitutional right to be mean. The Port is a fairly large organization that consists of roughly 8 wharfingers, 4 maintenance staff, about 4-6 harbour boat patrol people, and about 10 more people in the main office who range from secretaries, to accountants, to the harbour master. Initially I thought that this seemed to be a large amount of people at work, but once I actually realized how many different areas and locations that the Port of Nanaimo is responsible for the number of people justified itself. We deal mainly with transient boaters, most of whom (I have heard of a percentile around the 80% mark) are American boaters. We also have a commercial base, some local boaters who moor in the harbour annually, and the rough number says that roughly 450,000 people walk the boardwalk each year.

Week one!

Hello Tourism Studies, welcome to my summer blog! I will be spending this summer working right in Nanaimo’s downtown, patrolling the harbour as a Wharfinger (pronounced war-fin-gher!) for the Port of Nanaimo. Today was day one, and all I am sure of is that this summer is going be very interesting. The job entails everything from responding to radio call-ins requesting moorage in the harbour to getting out the scraper and cleaning barnacles off the dock posts. Throughout the summer I will be posting on my weekly experiences (good and bad), and telling the most interesting (good and bad) anecdotes from each week. My co-op is actually a late start as it is already the middle of May. My summer thus far has consisted of a trip to LA, and a trip to Lacombe...one is sunny, the other is in Alberta. On to the job itself; today was training day, and it was a lot to take in. I think that the tasks that I will be required to perform this summer will use some of my abilities, and will hopefully help me to develop some of my “weaker” skill sets. Everyone that I work with seems to be very cool, and they all seem to have a very good balance between having fun at work, and gettin’er done. I hope to be able to learn from everyone, and also to contribute my own little bit of unique input to the office. The port itself is very directly involved in the organization and management of the inner harbour. However, as a wharfinger I am involved much more in the tourism side of the port, helping guests plan trips, suggesting attractions and points of interest to visitors. By the end of this summer, I hope to have garnered some very solid experience helping tourists build itineraries that match their needs. Start of week one...I’ll keep you posted!