one year
Tomorrow (Jan 24th) it will have been 1 year since I moved to Montreal. It is also Dan’s first day of school at Vanier college. I also discovered it is the most depressing day of the year. Hmm. On that cheery note, let’s continue…
Last year it was freezing cold and this year it’s just cold (about 5 to 10 degrees warmer). Last year our appartment and the metro were roasting hot (above 25 degrees) but this year quite chilly (more like 18). Last year there was a lot of snow, but rain and the odd day above 0 have cleared off most of our snow. Last year I didn’t know much about Montreal, and this year I know a little more, at least.
Things I have learned:
- The city uses salt to keep the roads from getting icy. This causes just about everything that touches or gets near the ground to get salt stains, including your shoes, pants, and bags. By the end of winter it seems to be on everything and I’m sure is responsible for some of the leaky ceilings in the metro. I am also quite certain its horrible for the environment.
- The city plows the sidewalks with a mini-plow. You can see the wheel tracks!
- You have to make an appointment 3 months in advance to get your driver’s liscence here. There is one office for the entire central island and it is not easily accessible by public transit.
- You can get from Lucien L’allier metro station to Place des Arts by foot using the underground pathways, but it will take longer than walking on the street and you will probably get lost numerous times (I haven’t tried it myself).
- Garbage day = furniture hunting day
- Glass bottles are not allowed in the Jazz festival
- Despite the fact that monthly metro passes are available 6 days before the end of the month, everyone but me buys them on the first day of the next month. This causes havoc at your favourite metro station!
- There are good used rercord/book/clothing stores here and often the clothing is quite good. You have to take your time to find them, though.
- Almost everyone is very fashion conscious here. Things that are in style this year include non-symmetrical shirts (usually one shoulder exposed), long knit scarves, initial handbags and Chinese slippers. Of course, having the right hair, coat, handbag, clothes for your ethnic group/culture/trend group/neighbourhood/school/workplace/ etc. is a must as well. A lot of people also wear these strange little backpacks which I have never seen before. They are essentially a nylon bag with a drawstring on the top which has two cords that go over each shoulder and look back to the bottom.
- Many schools have uniforms
- There are actually some all-girl schools, and although I don’t know of any, I am sure there are also some all-boy ones too.
- The cheese is not dyed orange here, but all you can buy for block cheese from the major brands is “very mild cheddar” or mozzarella. If you want old cheddar, you have to buy the expensive stuff. But the expensive stuff is gooood.
- It is hard but not impossible to find good coffee
- It is not hard to find a pair of underwear that costs $120 or a corkscrew that costs $300
- Yet in contrast, almost everyone (to varying degrees) uses a depanneur and a dollar store for their day-to-day shopping. You can get almost anything at the dollar store for $1 (e.g. plates, glasses, mops, cleaning cloths, plastic containers of all sorts, decorations, packaged food) but don’t expect high quality products! I have become addicted to one dollar store product. It is a small glass jar that is about 250 mL large and has a rubber ring and seal at the top. I use them for spices.
- Some days the traffic on the roads and on the bus/in the metro is crazy and other days nobody is around. There does not apear to be any logical pattern or explanation for it. It just happens.
- In the east it seems a little more “débranché (unplugged) than in the west. Some people still listen to tapes in their walkmans on the bus and have dial-up connections to the internet.
- One can find some surprisingly exotic foods at the local fruiterie (e.g. garam flour, grape leaves)
- There are so many places to buy groceries in Montreal that if you were to visit each one in the city you would probably never finish in your lifetime!
- Many people move on July 1 since most leases expire this day. Everyone has a lease.
- Your landlord is required to give you a tax receipt for the portion of your rent used for heating costs.
- It is hard to find an apartment for rent.
- In order to use a library, you have to prove you live in Montreal by brining a letter with your name and address on it.
- The taxes are really high, including property taxes. E.g. $250 per month municipal tax for a 2 bedroom condo.
Welcome to the city!!!