On November 6th, I attended my dad’s work at YVR, also known as the Vancouver International Airport. His official title is the Food and Beverage Director. With this job title, he has the responsibilities of doing and recording budgeting, profit and loss statements, financial performance, recruiting, management, training programs etc. While at his work, I got to explore all of the different restaurants around the airport, as well as his office. Many of the restaurants, as well as his office, are post-security. This means we had to go through security in order to get to where he works. Employees who work in post-security location actually have a separate entrance where they go through there own form of security, in order to go along with their day in their many different restaurants and stores, all of which I got to see during Take Your Kid to Work Day!

Here are some photos from my day at YVR

In the last photo, you can see behind the scenes of a Starbucks under renovation! It has been closed for around 4 months, but is supposed to reopen this month.

1. What did you hear, see, smell, and feel in the work environment on Nov. 6th?

Vancouver Airport has tons of sights, sounds, and smells. You can hear the constant sounds of planes taking off and landing, along with the noise of thousands of people talking in all different languages and accents, the announcements, and the sound of the airport itself. The terminal is full of lots of people rushing to their gates, the smell of coffee and fast food is everywhere, with a different restaurant around every corner. You can feel the excitement of people starting their trips and the joy of people coming home. If I had to describe how all my senses feel in the airport, I would simply put it as a sensory overload, as everything is happening all at once. 

2. What about the environment would motivate you to wake up every day to attend work? Why?

The airport’s energy is amazing. There are people from all over the world with their own stories. Every day’s a new adventure, you never know what’s going to happen next. With my dad’s work specifically, one minute you are creating spreadsheets and schedules, the next you are hiring new people for one of the many restaurants, then you could finish off your day by opening a new restaurant. There’s always something going on or some problem to solve, and I think that would give me some form of motivation, knowing that there is something different to do every day.  

3. What about the work environment would discourage you from waking up every day to attend work? Why?

I’m not a big fan of crowds, so working at Vancouver International Airport wouldn’t be my ideal job. The constant sea of people and the noise would most definitely overwhelm me, especially if I were to be already overwhelmed by my work. I prefer quieter, less chaotic environments. These would be the main reasons that would discourage me from waking up every morning to attend work.  

4. What is ONE thing you found interesting about your workplace visit? Why?

One thing that stood out to me during my visit to the Vancouver International Airport was the incredible diversity of people. Travellers from all over the world, everyone with their own unique stories and cultures, go through the airport every day. It’s so cool to see where everyone is going or what they are doing. Another fun thing I noticed was the number of sports teams that were traveling. It was an interesting thing to try and guess what sport they played!