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I'm so tired lately and I don't know why. I've been sleeping much earlier and taking naps in the afternoon, perhaps its over sleeping or I'm still jet lagged?
The weather in Montreal is fairly humid and hot. Coming from Seoul, this isn't bad at all, but compared to Edmonton, its much more humid than what I'm use to. The other day it rained, and I didn't expect it to be such heavy rain. I don't think I packed enough appropriate clothing if the weather plans to pour showers on this city.
Tuesday
Today was the French placement test and I never finished a test as fast as this one or leave so many blanks. I skimmed through all the grammer and vocabulary questions, about 70 questions in total and only answered three near the beginning of the test. I could've left right away, but I decided to just put my head down and rest a bit before getting up. Little did I know that a bunch of people would get up right after the test had started (lots of beginners I presume). Out of the three questions, I got one right and my oral was horrificly down the drain. I managed to figure out what he was asking near the beginning: the origin of my last name, which province I'm from and which city I lived in... I replied my answers all in ENGLISH though haha. The rest was history and I had no clue what he was saying. Basically, it was a short interview to say the least.
I actually don't mind being placed in beginner 0 because I really don't think I'm capable of learning anything more, so hopefully I am enriched in plenty of French in the weeks to come. My schedule is pretty much classes every morning and then there are required workshop activities you can choose from throughout the week. By the end of the five weeks we should have completed 50 hours of workshops, which ranges from visiting museums, to exploring different areas of montreal, and even just playing a game of soccer... in French if you choose that option.
One thing I've been really happy about, non-French related is FRUITS! I'm so happy to be back in the land of cheap and abundant fruit options. University de Montreal is close to an area/metro station call Cote de Neiges where there are line up of restaurants, cafes, and groceries selling lots and lots of fruits. Hooray=)
Wednesday
Classes started today, and as expected, I'm in beginner zero! French is without a doubt difficult: my pronunciation is off and its so hard to memorize all these different accents, masculine/feminine grammer business, and everything else in general. Having said that, although its been nine years since I last took French, I feel my brain is slowly recognizing all this information having learned it as a kid. I guess I retained more than I thought haha.
So mentioning about rain earlier on in this post, I had my first soaking session. We were walking back from grocery shopping when the gray skies decided to pour buckets on us. We had stopped in front of a building hoping to wait it out, but it kept coming, and it became heavier too. Next thing you know, the wind joined in the water fight. So we opted to run for it and got a free shower in the process. It's not something I'm use to because the rain was wet, but it wasn't cold or anything, and it made the air feel more moist and humid. Note to visitors: ALWAYS carry an umbrella on you or prepare to get soak!
Today we explored St. Laurent, a street that divides East and West of the Montreal island, and respectively, divides the dominant Francophone and Anglophones areas. We trekked at least 8-10 blocks down this street, and for a portion of it, uphill. Roaming through giant European-ques cathedrals, graffiti-art-on-buildings, a block of shady businesses contrasted with the next block of fancy restaurants with open patios, we were were on the look out for our first poutine in Montreal. Thanks to google map, we found PatatiPatata, a teeny place at the end of the block known for their diner-like menu and artsy exterior. We settled for the Patatine, their twist on poutine with the addition of saute peppers, mushrooms, onions, and an olive (yes, just one, which acted as an 'accent' if there is such term for food). I can't wait to savour more good eats in Montreal!
Coming from Seoul, I shouldn't be complaining about walking, but I've been walking a LOT lately. I feel like its almost the same, if not more than what I did in Seoul in one day. It so happens that my dorm is on a hill like it was when I studied at Yonsei, and the building I need to get to for French everyday is about a 15minute walk, which explains all the trekking back and forth and walking up steep hills and taking many many stairs. Exploring new places like today also required much leg work and I can't wait to shower and sleep tonight.
P.S. my express package with my camera charger arrived, so from now on I will have photos to justify this exciting city =)
The weather in Montreal is fairly humid and hot. Coming from Seoul, this isn't bad at all, but compared to Edmonton, its much more humid than what I'm use to. The other day it rained, and I didn't expect it to be such heavy rain. I don't think I packed enough appropriate clothing if the weather plans to pour showers on this city.
Tuesday
Today was the French placement test and I never finished a test as fast as this one or leave so many blanks. I skimmed through all the grammer and vocabulary questions, about 70 questions in total and only answered three near the beginning of the test. I could've left right away, but I decided to just put my head down and rest a bit before getting up. Little did I know that a bunch of people would get up right after the test had started (lots of beginners I presume). Out of the three questions, I got one right and my oral was horrificly down the drain. I managed to figure out what he was asking near the beginning: the origin of my last name, which province I'm from and which city I lived in... I replied my answers all in ENGLISH though haha. The rest was history and I had no clue what he was saying. Basically, it was a short interview to say the least.
I actually don't mind being placed in beginner 0 because I really don't think I'm capable of learning anything more, so hopefully I am enriched in plenty of French in the weeks to come. My schedule is pretty much classes every morning and then there are required workshop activities you can choose from throughout the week. By the end of the five weeks we should have completed 50 hours of workshops, which ranges from visiting museums, to exploring different areas of montreal, and even just playing a game of soccer... in French if you choose that option.
One thing I've been really happy about, non-French related is FRUITS! I'm so happy to be back in the land of cheap and abundant fruit options. University de Montreal is close to an area/metro station call Cote de Neiges where there are line up of restaurants, cafes, and groceries selling lots and lots of fruits. Hooray=)
Wednesday
Classes started today, and as expected, I'm in beginner zero! French is without a doubt difficult: my pronunciation is off and its so hard to memorize all these different accents, masculine/feminine grammer business, and everything else in general. Having said that, although its been nine years since I last took French, I feel my brain is slowly recognizing all this information having learned it as a kid. I guess I retained more than I thought haha.
So mentioning about rain earlier on in this post, I had my first soaking session. We were walking back from grocery shopping when the gray skies decided to pour buckets on us. We had stopped in front of a building hoping to wait it out, but it kept coming, and it became heavier too. Next thing you know, the wind joined in the water fight. So we opted to run for it and got a free shower in the process. It's not something I'm use to because the rain was wet, but it wasn't cold or anything, and it made the air feel more moist and humid. Note to visitors: ALWAYS carry an umbrella on you or prepare to get soak!
Today we explored St. Laurent, a street that divides East and West of the Montreal island, and respectively, divides the dominant Francophone and Anglophones areas. We trekked at least 8-10 blocks down this street, and for a portion of it, uphill. Roaming through giant European-ques cathedrals, graffiti-art-on-buildings, a block of shady businesses contrasted with the next block of fancy restaurants with open patios, we were were on the look out for our first poutine in Montreal. Thanks to google map, we found PatatiPatata, a teeny place at the end of the block known for their diner-like menu and artsy exterior. We settled for the Patatine, their twist on poutine with the addition of saute peppers, mushrooms, onions, and an olive (yes, just one, which acted as an 'accent' if there is such term for food). I can't wait to savour more good eats in Montreal!
Coming from Seoul, I shouldn't be complaining about walking, but I've been walking a LOT lately. I feel like its almost the same, if not more than what I did in Seoul in one day. It so happens that my dorm is on a hill like it was when I studied at Yonsei, and the building I need to get to for French everyday is about a 15minute walk, which explains all the trekking back and forth and walking up steep hills and taking many many stairs. Exploring new places like today also required much leg work and I can't wait to shower and sleep tonight.
P.S. my express package with my camera charger arrived, so from now on I will have photos to justify this exciting city =)
Labels: Montreal
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