Mariana Mazepa
Today the spotlight is on Mariana Mazepa who is currently working as an intern in our
marketing department. Among other tasks, she is helping out with some new
commercials we will be creating in a few months. Soon however she will be
returning to Ukraine. That’s right we have an international intern this year.
Mariana is in her 4th year studying marketing at
the Ternopil National Economic University in western Ukraine. Mariana was born
in Ukraine, but moved with her family to Canada when she was 6 years old. She
spent most of her youth in Canada attending St. Demetrius and St. Sofia schools
(both are Ukrainian heritage schools that are part of the Toronto Separate
School Board) and then John Cabot Catholic Secondary School.
After graduating high school Mariana wanted to experience a
culture change and decided to move to Ukraine to study “ever since I was very
little, I would visit my family in Ukraine every year for the summer break. I
enjoyed it very much, but I wanted to see what it would be like to actually
live there and to compare my life there to the one in Canada. Although the
first year was difficult for me with all the changes, I have no regrets about
my decision and feel lucky to have this experience and at such a young age,”
she says.
“Ukraine is very different from Canada, and I can definitely
say that I’ve experienced my fair share of culture shocks there, however it is
beautiful and the people there are very hospitable. To anyone who is of
Ukrainian background who has never been to Ukraine, I definitely recommend you
to visit,” Mariana adds.
People often ask her “where do you like it better?” or
“where do you want to live in the future?” to which she replies, “I can’t
really pick one that I prefer over the other. Ukraine will always be my home
and it will always hold a special place in my heart, but I was also raised in
Canada for most of my life and it too is a wonderful place, with so many
opportunities available.”
Mariana also likes to travel. Last year she visited about 10
European countries. The most memorable were “Monte-Carlo, Paris and Amsterdam
because of the beauty and differences in culture,” she says.
But get this, even though Mariana loves to travel, she is
“extremely terrified of flying” so you can imagine that with at least two
transatlantic flights a year since childhood, she must be very brave!
Other things that Mariana does include:
- Teaching English to children
- Baking (though not necessarily eating) sweets
- Practicing her make-up skills (she is a Certified Make-up Artist)
Where does Mariana see herself in a few years?
“I try to live my life by each day, and the most I prefer to
plan ahead is 3 years. In my opinion the most beautiful thing about life is its
uncertainty. Nobody really knows what the future holds for them, all you can
really do is work hard at your dreams, enjoy the journey, take whatever comes
your way, and hope for the best.”
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