Montreal, Quebec (May 25-29 2012)
My first international experience at the University of Cincinnati was certainly a memorable one. In Montreal, Canada, I grew as an international citizen and as a member of the Kolodzik Business Scholars community. I, along with around 24 others, traveled up into Canada with the intention of gaining cultural competence and confidence when traveling abroad. You can almost think of this as a "starter trip", in order for us to want to travel abroad more through our college careers.
One of the main ways I explored Montreal was gastronomically. We ate food with origins from Spain, China, Eastern Europe, France, and Germany. We ate at a different type of restaurant each night, and even though I may not exactly have a stomach of steel, I was somehow able to stomach everything that the trip threw at me. The last night was probably the most memorable in terms of a meal because of the entertainment. We were treated to a regalia by several men in pirate costumes. They showed us different puzzles, made raunchy jokes, and made themselves at home with us. I would be lying if I said I was not skeptical when we first entered this tourist-ey attraction in the Old Montreal sector, but I left full of smiles. These men knew how to entertain.
Stomaching Spanish paella is one thing, but being able to handle a mob of protesting students is quite another. I was unfortunately cut off from my night exploration group by a riot of Canadian students protesting a rise in tuition in the area. There were policemen on horseback, and whistles being blown. I was scared, and was forced to hide inside of a nearby Tim Horton's. Other nights were more enjoyable as I explored the nightlife of the area, and even had the enjoyable experience of going into the Montreal Casino! I only lost a total of two dollars while there for a total of two hours. A decent deal, considering that one of my compatriots lost around two hundred...
I stayed at the New Residence Hall at McGill University. The great times in that hotel will stay for me for years to come. Located directly over the "underground city" of shopping centers in Montreal, we had easy access to foreign shops and museums. I may not have gotten into the modern art museum I so desperately wanted to see, but I was able to go to the Montreal Science Museum. It was there that my inner child came out as I got in line with little kids to try to surround myself with massive bubbles, or to try out the different contraptions that demonstrated the various laws of science. I never was very good at physics, so the fact that a pulley had so much affect on leverage was news to me!
The Jean-Talon markets was another memorable moment. This was where I truly got a "taste" of what Montreal could be. There were free samples of fresh produce all around me, as well as fine cheeses. I walked around gathering fruit for a massive picnic with my fellow Kolodzik Business Scholars, and did my best to order various fruits in my lackluster French. This city, with a mountain centerpiece (which is, by the way, the origin of the island-city's name...MONTreal) demonstrated the quality that can come from a product, and was an inspiration I could take home with me. A street performer on a unicycle was incredible in Old Montreal...a man who was able to juggle fire and keep me gasping for air after every trick. A single man can keep the affections and attentions of a whole crowd of people. A single man, or a single place, can certainly entrance and woo a person. This is what Lady Montreal did for me, and definitely set itself as the welcome mat to the explorations I plan to undertake as my years at UC continue to gracefully fly like a noble Canadian goose. (What a great simile!)
Just as an explanation of the above photos...yes...I did try to dance. I believe I almost broke the poor girls foot when I stepped on it trying to learn to tango...
One of the main ways I explored Montreal was gastronomically. We ate food with origins from Spain, China, Eastern Europe, France, and Germany. We ate at a different type of restaurant each night, and even though I may not exactly have a stomach of steel, I was somehow able to stomach everything that the trip threw at me. The last night was probably the most memorable in terms of a meal because of the entertainment. We were treated to a regalia by several men in pirate costumes. They showed us different puzzles, made raunchy jokes, and made themselves at home with us. I would be lying if I said I was not skeptical when we first entered this tourist-ey attraction in the Old Montreal sector, but I left full of smiles. These men knew how to entertain.
Stomaching Spanish paella is one thing, but being able to handle a mob of protesting students is quite another. I was unfortunately cut off from my night exploration group by a riot of Canadian students protesting a rise in tuition in the area. There were policemen on horseback, and whistles being blown. I was scared, and was forced to hide inside of a nearby Tim Horton's. Other nights were more enjoyable as I explored the nightlife of the area, and even had the enjoyable experience of going into the Montreal Casino! I only lost a total of two dollars while there for a total of two hours. A decent deal, considering that one of my compatriots lost around two hundred...
I stayed at the New Residence Hall at McGill University. The great times in that hotel will stay for me for years to come. Located directly over the "underground city" of shopping centers in Montreal, we had easy access to foreign shops and museums. I may not have gotten into the modern art museum I so desperately wanted to see, but I was able to go to the Montreal Science Museum. It was there that my inner child came out as I got in line with little kids to try to surround myself with massive bubbles, or to try out the different contraptions that demonstrated the various laws of science. I never was very good at physics, so the fact that a pulley had so much affect on leverage was news to me!
The Jean-Talon markets was another memorable moment. This was where I truly got a "taste" of what Montreal could be. There were free samples of fresh produce all around me, as well as fine cheeses. I walked around gathering fruit for a massive picnic with my fellow Kolodzik Business Scholars, and did my best to order various fruits in my lackluster French. This city, with a mountain centerpiece (which is, by the way, the origin of the island-city's name...MONTreal) demonstrated the quality that can come from a product, and was an inspiration I could take home with me. A street performer on a unicycle was incredible in Old Montreal...a man who was able to juggle fire and keep me gasping for air after every trick. A single man can keep the affections and attentions of a whole crowd of people. A single man, or a single place, can certainly entrance and woo a person. This is what Lady Montreal did for me, and definitely set itself as the welcome mat to the explorations I plan to undertake as my years at UC continue to gracefully fly like a noble Canadian goose. (What a great simile!)
Just as an explanation of the above photos...yes...I did try to dance. I believe I almost broke the poor girls foot when I stepped on it trying to learn to tango...