Tell me about Montréal...

[melon]

I know nothing about this city, and the internet isn't very helpful.

Tell me all about it, but also tell me about the media/art industry there. Inquiring minds want to know.

Melon

 

[Dismantled]

I enjoy going to montreal

its clean and seems safe The old part is wonderful...they have a fantastic hotel called Hotel Nelagan..sp? its so romantic...my hubby took me there when we got engaged in July

the Bell Centre is a good place to see a show The Biodome is pretty cool....uuuuh...I have to think and come back.

we go there alot, are you thinking about a trip there melon?

 

[zoney!]

I really like Montreal.

It is a city made up of neighborhoods....the type of city you can explore for years...and not get tired of it. And feels very international...despite being in North America.

 

[melon]

we go there alot, are you thinking about a trip there melon?

A bit more dramatic than that. There's a good chance I'll be moving in that direction in the next couple of years. Long story.

That's why I'm interested in their media/art jobs out there.

Melon

 

[Dismantled]

I really like Montreal.

It is a city made up of neighborhoods....the type of city you can explore for years...and not get tired of it. And feels very international...despite being in North America.

yes I totally agree about the international feel

thats cool Melon

 

[kafrun]

Montreal is a big, beautiful city with great people. The music scene is incredible there too(think Arcade Fire). Oh, and the U2 crowds! WOW! I went deaf from the crowd on 28/11, not the music. It took me days to get my hearing all the way back, that show was madness!

One piece of advice though, don't ever drive in that city The drivers are nuts and the signs are terribly designed and placed. But that would just be my experience

 

[Zoomerang96]

politically speaking, on a federal level, montreal is the liberals stronghold. without it, they couldn't really count on more than five or six seats in the entire province.

montreal promotes leftist evils, such as europeanism, and the like. i highly doubt you'd like it, melon, and i'd recommend you look at moving to alabama - err, i mean alberta instead.

 

[zoney!]

MANitoba

The only downfall to Montreal...it is a vaction spot for New Yorkers.

 

[Zoomerang96]

which new york? new york state or new york the city?

cause i need to know

 

[zoney!]

which new york? new york state or new york the city?

cause i need to know

Last time I was there, I was THIS close (THIS CLOSE) to putting my hands around the throat of this older woman from the NYC area. I was going to squeeze until her wig popped off. She was being rude.

Yeah...tour buses and Amtrak trains. Straight from NYC.

But otherwise, its quite the charming place (Montreal...not the greater NYC area)

 

[Mr. BAW]

Last time I was there, I was THIS close (THIS CLOSE) to putting my hands around the throat of this older woman from the NYC area. I was going to squeeze until her wig popped off. She was being rude.

Yeah...tour buses and Amtrak trains. Straight from NYC.

But otherwise, its quite the charming place (Montreal...not the greater NYC area)

Anger issues...

I LOVE TORONTO !!! Maybe I'd love Montreal, maybe I'll go there next year...

 

[zoney!]

Anger issues...

Seriously!

I had to walk out of the hotel.

I will tell the story some other day.

 

[anitram]

Montreal is nice but cold like hell in winter.

The old quarter is interesting, European (complete w/ cobblestones) and has some really excellent restaurants. I actually prefer the old part of Quebec City to the one in Montreal, but that's not to say it's not nice. It's also great for walking around. McGill University has a lovely (if smallish) campus as well. Oh and I loved it up on Mont Royal, you have some amazing views of the city and the hiking around the area is nice, for an urban setting. Plus it feels like you're miles away from the city when in reality it's just at your feet.

ETA: I know a guy who went to Montreal on an internship which sounds somewhat similar to what you're interested in. He had a degree in Radio and Television Arts from Ryerson University (it's the polytechnic university in Toronto) and got an internship at the French CBC. He was also offered a position at the French version of MuchMusic, but said that when he visited there, he found it to be way too hectic and disorganized. Overall, he felt that bilingualism is a huge, huge, huge asset, certainly without which he would have gotten neither offer. But he came back to Toronto when his contract expired anyway.

 

[Canadiens1131]

Montreal, Montreal, Montreal....

European, North American, world culture, it all collides here. The city is amazing to get to know. The polotics with the English and French and separation go in a big circle round and round and round so basically just ignore them and enjoy the wonderful atmosphere.

In summer, you hear the Formula One cars roar around Parc Jean Drapeau out on the island, watch tennis, visit the Botanical Gardens, enjoy the breezy days and the warm nights, hang out downtown at the Jazz Fest - it's truly a magical time.

In winter, you ice skate on the St. Lawerence under the lights at the Old Port, you watch the Habs, you buy dubious amounts of alcohol, and you have friends over to your place and everyone ends up chatting and standing in the kitchen (kitchen is the main hub of any Quebec house party).

From drunken nights wandering through the Village wondering why you're there, hanging out with swanky folks in the Plateau, the quiet Anglophone charm of Westmount, the suburban-urban NDG, the multicultural (and that's an understatement) Cote des Neges, Montreal is a city of honeycomb communities that all blend together to create one melting pot of awesomeness.





Oh, and if a guy with a big winter coat points a banana at you and says "hey my brother from another mother" on Ste. Catherine street, his name is Hollywood. He is awesome and you should give him some money for being so awesome.

And say 'hi' to Spoon Man, he is usually playing the spoons to French Canadian music outside Ogilvy's department store.

 

[lmjhitman]

montreal promotes leftist evils, such as europeanism, and the like. i highly doubt you'd like it, melon, and i'd recommend you look at moving to alabama - err, i mean alberta instead.

i just got back from visiting montreal a few weeks ago, melon and i loved it.

yes it is very european, and the food is amazing! and anitram is right - being bilingual would be a decided advantage. in the city practically everyone speaks french and english. or they started out speaking french, and when they heard me mangling their language, they quickly reverted to english.

but really, it's a wonderful place in terms of the culture and the people. i may look into teaching there, but i have a feeling that there are so few english-only schools that, with my limited french, an english teaching position would be hard to come by.

 

[trevster2k]

Alberta ain't Alabama, it's Texas north. Conservative, cattle, oil, cowboys, all the same ingredients but they are rich thanks to the oil industry. They no longer have any debt, that's right, no DEBT. How big is the US debt, I don't think there are enough zeros. Canada's debt is an interest payment for the US.

Montreal is probably the most interesting city in North America but the traffic is insane, and the drivers too. Definitely a world-class city except for the '76 Olympics pricetag ( they are still paying for it) and Expos fiasco.

 

[melon]

ETA: I know a guy who went to Montreal on an internship which sounds somewhat similar to what you're interested in. He had a degree in Radio and Television Arts from Ryerson University (it's the polytechnic university in Toronto) and got an internship at the French CBC. He was also offered a position at the French version of MuchMusic, but said that when he visited there, he found it to be way too hectic and disorganized. Overall, he felt that bilingualism is a huge, huge, huge asset, certainly without which he would have gotten neither offer. But he came back to Toronto when his contract expired anyway.

Very interesting. I have a few friends/acquaintances who graduated from Ryerson, so I'm aware of its reputation within Canada for media.

I have 4.5 years of French under my belt, although now I'm a bit rusty. I can generally understand Radio-Canada if I have the closed captioning on, but if I have it off, I get overwhelmed very quickly...lol. I wish there was a way to get better in French conversation from where I'm at.

Melon

 

[Canadiens1131]

Very interesting. I have a few friends/acquaintances who graduated from Ryerson, so I'm aware of its reputation within Canada for media.

I have 4.5 years of French under my belt, although now I'm a bit rusty. I can generally understand Radio-Canada if I have the closed captioning on, but if I have it off, I get overwhelmed very quickly...lol. I wish there was a way to get better in French conversation from where I'm at.

Melon

The good thing about Montreal is just about anyone who is a native French speaker will know at least some English, due to the big anglo population, and all the tourism.

 

[MissVelvetDress_75]

I would love to visit Montreal.

 

[phanan]

I've been to Montreal twice. Once was in February, and I don't think I've frozen my ass off that much ever, and this is coming from someone living just south in New Hampshire!

But it's a beautiful city, and I love the food there.

 

[anitram]

I have 4.5 years of French under my belt, although now I'm a bit rusty. I can generally understand Radio-Canada if I have the closed captioning on, but if I have it off, I get overwhelmed very quickly...lol. I wish there was a way to get better in French conversation from where I'm at.

I know that McGill University (the English one in Montreal) has summer courses for anglophone kids who have been admitted into their September class. A girl I knew years ago took one of their immersion courses (I think it was 3-4 weeks full time in July or August) and said it was incredibly helpful and really brought her up to speed, and polished up her high school French so that she felt more comfortable once she moved there to study.

Maybe if you did a bridging course like that it would improve your skills and confidence level to what you need.

BTW, the guy who did an internship at CBC ended up coming down to Toronto and got a job at TSN, which last I heard he absolutely loved.

 

[Zoomerang96]

i'd also like to mention that the cbc is for leftists, marxists, and hippies.

no wonder they show it in qwabek.

bring canada back!

-harper

 

[Canadiens1131]

i'd also like to mention that the cbc is for leftists, marxists, and hippies.

no wonder they show it in qwabek.

bring canada back!

-harper

Needs moar oil and pandering to the US gov't.

 

[bono_man]

Montreal is my missus' (Naya) home town. Its a cool city with a edge to it that makes it interesting.

To an out-of-towner tho, it can be pretty lonely as the people on the street arent too friendly!

oh...the bagels are really good, swartz does a great smoked meat, i ate THE best carrot cake ever from some place in montreal (can you help me with that one naya?), and poutine sucks!!

 

[Canadiens1131]

and poutine sucks!!

Get...
Get
Get
Get...
Get
Get..
Get out of here now.

 

[trevster2k]

^

 

[Dismantled]

The good thing about Montreal is just about anyone who is a native French speaker will know at least some English,

yes very handy

except at Subway don't eat there.

 

[Dismantled]

OMG! tears


I want some of that

 

[Naya]

i ate THE best carrot cake ever from some place in montreal (can you help me with that one naya?), and poutine sucks!!

Its a Laurier BBQ (an institution in Montreal) . It is the best cake ever, it comes with a tub of icing you can spread on the cake...oh god its good.

And living in Australia I miss poutine so much! its so good!

 

[martha]

There's a good chance I'll be moving in that direction in the next couple of years.

I was in Montreal in 1984 for the F1 Grand Prix. I liked the town.