Cold climate, warm memories

Not in Kansas

“In Montreal, everyone seems to come from every part of the world,” says American-born Amy Hernandez, BA 08.

Her new city is a long way — in distance and mindset — from Hernandez’s birthplace of Wamego, Kansas, home of the Oz Museum, which is dedicated to the world of the Wizard of Oz. After following the (yellow-brick) road northward, Hernandez was surprised and pleased to find the American notion of “melting pot” didn’t apply here. “In the States, you kind of assimilate into being American, upholding American values. But here, everybody can keep their own,” she says. “I really appreciated this patchwork of cultures because you can see through others’ eyes what their traditions are and who they really are.”

Hernandez, who’s now an assistant in Concordia’s Department of Contemporary Dance and a recently minted Canadian citizen, savours Montreal’s summer joie de vivre.

“We don’t have terraces in Kansas — it’s usually too hot or too windy. But in Montreal it’s just perfect, especially in the Plateau neighbourhood,” she says. “I try to look at Montreal from the viewpoint of a person I went to high school with in my hometown, and I always wonder: ‘What would they think of this amazing place?’”
 

Winter marvels

Of course, there’s no such thing as a free lunch; Montreal exacts its price through unpredictably wild winters. That reality often shocks foreign students during their initial snowstorm encounters. When I first woke up to 50 centimetres of snow in front of my window, I thought, “I was on a terrace baking in the Indian summer yesterday. What happened?”

Concordia’s International Students Holiday Party, organized by Advancement and Alumni Relations every December, is one way to help warm things up. The gathering pulls in some 300 international students who can’t make it home — often to warmer climes — for the holidays.

Veteran Montrealers learn to survive its sub-zero temperatures and enjoy winter through activities, from ice skating at the Old Port to day trips to sugar shacks. For Hernandez, though, the first January bit hard — she arrived from the American Midwest with only a thin wool jacket, her thickest garment. “It wasn’t until my second winter, after I received money from my parents and bought a heavy, fluffy coat, that I thought, ‘Winter isn’t so bad after all if you have good clothing and warm boots.’”

Another challenge — or appeal — for some is the French factor. International students without knowledge of the city’s official language can find it difficult to adjust. Hernandez, rather, tackled a degree in études françaises at Concordia after spending a year volunteering. “I really wanted to immerse myself in the culture and language, and since I didn’t know a word of French when I started my degree, I just threw myself into it. I wouldn’t recommend it to everybody,” she says, laughing. “But I have seen over time the great value of having both languages.”

Other influences, such as falling in love with a Québécois, helped coax Hernandez to plant roots. “He’s now my husband of eight years,” she says. The couple have two young children, and she feels it’s important both speak French, regardless of whether Kansas one day beckons. “I even looked for a French school there in case we had to move back. It is very important to me to pass that on to my children.”

She has no plans to return home, though. “Staying was just a progression for me, an evolution. I learned how to appreciate the Kansas I wanted to escape and the Montreal that I have an indescribable bond with.”
 

A challenge for any traveller is getting used to local foods. Yet for those who miss their mother’s cooking, Montreal offers many options. “The first thing that struck me was the number of cultural restaurants here,” says Mohammadi. “They even have Persian ones! When I first came, I thought, ‘Look at this gastronomic hub.’”

Unlike Hernandez, he wasn’t bothered by his first winter. “As Iranians, we learn to adjust,” says Mohammadi, who’s now president of Montreal web concern Global Access Group. “Winter in Montreal has never been a problem for me.”

The city’s bilingual demands weren’t a negative issue for Mohammadi — he saw it as a pleasure as much as a necessity. “The main reason I came here was because it’s the place where French and English meet — I was able to learn French and use my English,” he says.

And while Hernandez’s amorous tale of finding her love in Quebec is certainly sweet, it’s not unique. Mohammadi, who headed CISA in 1998-99, recalls a heart-stopping moment during a Quebec City day trip. “I was in charge of counting the students on the bus on our way back to Montreal. As I realized that we were 96 instead of 98, I started panicking,” he recalls.

Mohammadi learnt — days later — that the absent couple had previously known each other but became better acquainted during the excursion. “They fell in love, decided to stay and spend a romantic night in Quebec City. They ended up marrying, which is actually pretty common in CISA.”

From romance to professional ambition, each student who remains in Montreal has his or her own reason. I stayed to pursue a graduate diploma in journalism at Concordia, a step toward my lifelong dream of becoming a journalist. The city has done the rest. As Mohammadi puts it, “Although most of us come from different backgrounds, Montreal has this ability to attract like-minded individuals and bring us all together.”