Hello there.

Seven days ago, at this time of the day I was taking my last meal at the house of my grandparents. I then took all my stuff, tightly packed in my luggage and bags and took the Beaudry metro up to St-Henri. A 15-minute ride depending on how good the transfers go. I have, since then, lived in the St-Henri quarter. It’s been a very different life living around here with people (I got used to living by myself and was quite comfortable with that idea, but I’m enjoying being around people here just as well). It’s not my own little place and I don’t have my own dresser and desk and room. It’s hard to believe but I do all my teaching prep. sitting at the kitchen table with my (thanks dad) laptop. It’s kind of funny to get my printer out of its (original!) box eveytime I want to print something out. So life has been different, but I’m glad I get to experience living here.

It’s neat to get to live in different areas of Montréal. Well, I know I haven’t seen very much of the island at all, but it’s interesting to see the differences in between Downtown and St-Henri. For sure, it’s obvious you might be thinking. But for a little girl like me, it’s fun to see.

Downtown, you see a lot of stuff you don’t want to see. You’re surounded by restaurants, coffee shops, bars, stores of all kinds, beggars (begging for money, for your signature, and all sorts of other things). You see a lot of people with a lot of money and that is where you see the “fashion” concentration. I was personally sick of the way people dressed. Not because it was not appropriate, but simply because, I don’t know, it’s just not … not nice. I don’t know how to translate my feeling.

St-Henri is poorer. Mostly residential with a few shops here and there, but mostly for stuff like doing your laundry, small libraries and little reataurants. Lots of families. People seem to enjoy life because they don’t have anything better to do. They use their ressources and that’s it. People have BBQ’s on Saturdays when it’s nice and invite family and friends, people play tennis and basketball in the parks and that’s the beginning of summer for them. I think this portrays “les Québécois” better than what you see Downtown. Well, it all comes down to the same anyways: the pursuit of our own hapiness to our best and for some they have little ressources, that they only difference.

Anyways, that was an update on me and on the life here in Montréal.