Trilingual Birthday

Bonne Fete-Happy Birthday-Feliz Cumpleanos

Today is my birthday--and I'm celebrating it here in Canada by studying for a final! Last night the whole TMBA group went to eat at The Keg--an awesome restaurant in downtown Moncton--to celebrate my birthday. It was so great for us to have a really nice meal all together. It will probably be our last meal all together before the spring semester. I was treated to wine, dinner, dessert, and a UdeM hoodie. But my favorite moment was the group singing me "Happy Birthday" in 3 languages! You can't get that from just a regular MBA program...

Have a wonderful day!!!

WOW! Can you believe this semester is almost over? My last class at the Universite de Moncton was yesterday. Now only two finals--Wednesday and Friday--and its over. This semester went by so fast and I've had so much fun here in Canada! I'm sad to be leaving it in 11 days...there's so many more things that I wish we could have had time to do up here--like the Bay of Fundy, Hopewell Rocks, snowboarding, etc. But I'm also very excited to see everyone at home!

I know that I have two "A's" so far (which I'm very proud of), and I'm very anxious to see how these next two finals go to determine my grade for those classes. Yesterday we had lunch with the Dean, Assistant Dean, and the head honcho of the MBA programs at UdeM. We had a very nice lunch at Graffiti's. It was great to get together and hear their feelings on how the semester went. The faculty up here has been so warm and welcoming. Their openness really helped foster a great learning environment and made it easy to go to them with questions or concerns. Big thanks to them for being so wonderful!!

Now, back to studying for my last two finals!

Adding to my list...

I have a few things I'd like to add to my list of "Things I Find Funny in Canada" from a previous post...

• I saw my first moose...dead on the side of the road!


• Runners will still run in 2 feet of snow (witnessed this today)...pure dedication!


• No salt on sidewalks...does everyone have spikes on their shoes or what?


• Bus system still runs even when the roads have not been plowed yet


• Snow plowers clear driveways, not just streets!


• People wear ice skates to work...ok, just kidding about that one, although it might not be a bad idea!

Where's the SnowBird Report?

The first snow in Moncton is much different than the first snow in Bowling Green. We had our first snow this week--about 6 inches! I'm pretty sure this was the same day that I saw every Facebook profile from Bowling Green saying it was snowing there too. So while the dusting MIGHT have stuck a little bit on the ground in BG, we got a heap of it! It felt very strange going to class with this much snow...in KY I would be anxiously watching the SnowBird report to see what all was cancelled! The university had not put salt or anything on the sidewalks so they were complete sheets of ice. Couple that with the hill I have to walk up to get to class--not a safe combination!

Last night we went to a Junior Hockey League game...guys 16-20 years old participate in this league right before they get drafted by the NHL. So it was a lot of fun...well, minus the part where someone's head got slashed open by a skate! When we were leaving the game, you could tell from the sky that another snow storm was waiting to unleash its fury! I woke up this morning to what looks like 2 feet of snow. I say "looks like" because I haven't actually been out in it...my inner KY self has kept me inside the safe quarters of my room just like I would if it had snowed 2 feet in KY; while I know that normal Canadian citizens are going about their normal lives--because this is normal to them! I've said it once, and I'll say it again: it looks like its going to be a cold winter!

While its so white and pristine outside, I know the ice is there...let's just say that beauty can sometimes be treacherous!

The Adventure to Mont Tremblant

Warning: This is a long story...

Fall Break provided a little bit more adventure than any of us expected. Ten hours of driving to get to Montreal was enough, but we had no idea that our journey had just begun!! We spent the first couple of days in downtown Montreal. Such a beautiful place teeming with people! And lots of great shopping! The wind was intense there, so the extreme chill in the air was almost painful. None of us were prepared for that much cold...and then it started snowing. No big deal, not too much snow...in the city. But as we started to drive towards the mountains to reach Mont Tremblant, the snow in the air got thicker and the ground got whiter. We were definitely not equipped for this unexpected encounter with snow--no snowshoes, no heavy coats, no shovels, no ice-scraper, and of course, our rental van wasn't equipped with winter tires! As we reached the top of the mountain where our cabin was, we realized the snow was pretty deep--about 18 inches (or more in some places)! It was very hard to find our cabin's driveway and as we pulled into the drive, through a large snowbank (at least 2.5 feet deep), our van got stuck! At midnight! With no other occupied cabins nearby! As we were using our MBA brains to plan how to get the van unstuck, Genevieve realized we were at the wrong cabin! So, us girls started walking in the deep snow to find the correct cabin. This was straight out of one of those "20/20" specials where you see the abandoned hikers lost in the snow and an avalanche comes down and buries them alive...I will admit, I was scared! My imagination was going wild. With the thick snow clouds covering the moon, there was nothing to guide us, only pure white all around...very easy to lose your sense of direction! We finally find the correct cabin, only to realize there was no power!! And the lighter we found (by using our cell phones for light) was out of fluid...so we couldn't even light a fire in the fireplace! The boys ended up giving up on the van, so we had to go search for them to show the the way to the correct cabin. We decided this crazy nightmare would go away much quicker if we all just went to sleep and we would at least have sunlight in the morning. The power ended up coming back on the next day...and we had a wonderful fall break there. We had lots of studying to do (a huge midterm was the following week), but also had a lot of fun building snowmen, having snow fights, and visiting the ski village.

How's that for a Canadian experience?

Coming Soon, but Never Soon Enough: Fall Break...

Next week is fall break. WKU, learn from UdeM and give students a whole week for fall...that would be so lovely! Our group is packing our bags and heading west...west to Quebec!! I'm very excited about this trip. People say its beautiful. We will be staying in downtown Montreal for a couple nights, and then traveling up north to stay in the scenic mountains for a few days. I believe this is where a lot of Quebec-natives go vacationing to snowboard in the winter. We're staying close to a small village (the way they described this to me reminds me of those small ski resorts in Colorado). I don't think there will be any snow when we're there. Although, the weather forecast for Moncton has snow in it for Wednesday (yes, THIS Wednesday!). This is the perfect time to figure out if my Ugg boots are waterproof...before we get a big snow! Be ready for tons of pictures from Fall Break, Quebec-style!

Oh, and you know that huge paper I was stressin' about? I got a 99%...

YES!!!!

Things I Find Funny in Canada...

After my last post, and a week full of papers, exams, and assignments, I feel its time to infuse this blog with a lighter vibe. This brings me to things I find funny, odd, or downright hysterical in Moncton. So here goes the list...

• There are no haunted houses in Canada (In fact, when I asked someone where the nearest haunted house was, they responded by saying, "Well, I've heard that there's a building about 30 minutes from here that some people have seen a ghost in the window...")
  


• WalMart closes at 10pm!


• Public transportation has Wi-Fi (side note: the bus system is in no way comparable to that of NY or Chicago where every businessman rides the bus or subway...)
  


• The gym does not have fans
  


• There are no concession stands at athletic games...only snack machines
  


• Most stores close EARLY on Saturdays


• Tanning beds are not in abundance


• Subway has lobster meat subs...not sure if that fits into Jared's diet plan
  


• Every car is a stick shift


• 1950s Doo-Wop music is played in the public bus


• People will wait in a drive-thru line for an hour to get a Tim Horton's regular cup of coffee


• Most people don't speak French or English as their first language...its more like Franglish


• There is not a food court on campus


• The local drugstore carries Smashbox cosmetics (an ultra-fabulous brand)
  


• They put gravy on their french fries (ok, I've actually started liking this...)


• Their zoo does not have polar bears (yet you can find a polar bear a few hours away in the wild...)


• Buildings do not have air condition


• EVERYTHING is more expensive than in the States

I might add to this list as I travel around the city via bus, so stay tuned...

A Pause from the Topic Summary Paper

I'm supposed to be taking this time to write my 2,000-word Topic Summary paper for one of my classes. But, those of you who know me well, know that I get easily distracted from writing papers. I do not like writing papers. They are not fun. They are not me. Its something that I despise doing ever since my sophomore English teacher in high school never had anything good to say about my writing style. Or better yet, my senior year of high school when I had the same exact teacher and she called me on the last day of Christmas break and told me I would not be able to graduate because I had failed to provide a couple of quotes on some lousy notecards that I was supposed to turn in with the paper...and this was AFTER she had met with me and told me everything was perfect to turn in. And on a side note, YES I graduated, but only after I worked extremely hard in two hours to find every single quote in every single reference book and write them down perfectly on the notecards. And even after I did that, she still would not raise my grade. She just deemed the paper "Acceptable" so that I could graduate on time. That grade on that paper cost me my full ride to WKU (by .2 pts in my GPA).

Yes, I'm still bitter...and I still hate papers, but I'm done with my rant.

So, I'm pausing from writing my topic summary to thank everyone who has been keeping up with me and reading my blog. You can subscribe to this blog by entering your email address in the "Subscribe via Email" box and an email will be sent to you notifying you when I have made a new entry. Also, I really enjoy reading your comments, so please feel free to comment!

Ok, back to the paper...T minus 1.5 hours.

Here Comes Jean-ny Appleseed

Its that time again that happens every year. There is a slight crisp in the air that could only mean fall is here (the crisp is more like a bite here in Canada though...). The leaves are turning colors, people are starting to wear boots, and I'm getting that feeling I get every year...the need to go to Jackson's Orchard and get an apple cider slush. Except there's not a Jackson's Orchard here. So I was very excited when a family from Moncton wanted to take us to an apple harvest farm (same thing as an orchard) to go "apple picking."

This family has been doing activities with the students of the TMBA program for the past few years. I'm not really sure how they got involved with the program though, because they do not work for UdeM. The man, Jean (pronounced like John...hence the title of the blog), is an English teacher at a high school in the area. The lady is a director for a small college (by the way, Canadians don't ever say "college") in the downtown area. They also have a tutoring business that keeps them very busy afterhours. They have an adorable six-year old that would only speak to me in French (so I had to pretend to understand her!). This family has planned about ten activities for us to do throughout the semester--so about once a week. Jean is also teaching us some basic French (which is a HUGE help!).

The orchard was definitely not on the same level as Jackson's--no apple cider slushes, no popcorn, no petting zoo, etc., etc., etc. Well, no petting zoo unless you count the 20 chickens that were just roaming around that you could catch and pick-up (in all their dirty, chicken-poop covered glory). The apples were so cheap here! Probably the only thing in Canada that's cheaper than in America! Fifty cents per pound. I got about 15 apples for $1.90! And I love apples. Hopefully, we can go to this other orchard sometime soon that actually makes their own apple wine. I can't wait to see how cheap that is! It was a nice, fall adventure for us...especially since the Mexicans have never been to an orchard! No public orchards in Mexico...just your own private garden.

We go TreeGO!!

One adventure that I have neglected to write about, was my favorite adventure so far! A couple of weeks ago, the business student council arranged a trip to TreeGo (you must check out their website to understand the awesomeness that is TreeGo: http://www.treegomoncton.com/). This place is built in a park and consists of multiple obstacle courses built high in the trees. So we're talking swinging log "bridges," tons of ladders (I hated these), tight-ropes, and of course zip lines--all within five course levels of difficulty! You're harnessed in at all times, but you are responsible for your own safety (you better believe that I checked MANY times to make sure I was hooked on my zip line properly before zipping away!). And YES, I made it through all five courses! The balancing, the climbing, the pulling with your body weight will definitely let your body know of the muscles you didn't know you had! The next day I was so sore...but I love that kind of sore. It proves your pushed yourself and you accomplished something!

Man, I love this place! The guide told me it takes $500,000 and about 4 months to develop a TreeGo...any takers for the Bowling Green area???

Mexican Dinner Night

This past weekend we declared "Mexican Dinner Night!" Two of the Mexican MBA students were Culinary Business majors, both working in catering and restaurant management before making the journey to Canada. They spent all day on Saturday grocery shopping and picking the perfect ingredients to make a gourmet Mexican meal. First up was the appetizer: a minced mixture of shrimp, fish, onions, and tomatoes spread on a corn shell. This was a very interesting dish because it was not cooked in the oven or on the stove--it was cooked by the acidic lemon and lime juices that the seafood was marinated in. I'm a little bit weird about food--with certain textures, the way things are cooked, making sure everything is well done, etc. In fact, it would be in my best interest to be a vegetarian so I never have to worry about raw meat ever again...but I like chicken too much. With my weirdness of food being said, I was very hesitant about that conglomeration of an appetizer. Next up was the salad with an amazing peanut butter/honey/olive oil dressing. This was my favorite part of the meal! Maybe because of my love for peanut butter. Our main dish was Enfrequaladas (not sure of the spelling?) that was more or less enchiladas.

Most everyone loved the meal, and we are all very lucky to have those two in the group!

Surviving My First MBA Exam and My First Hurricane

It has been a while since I posted on here due to an ever increasing workload in my classes. I must admit that the MBA program is much more difficult than I expected. So I guess this is a great time to talk about my classes.

• Marketing Seminar: This class is solely discussion based. We discuss a lot about NAFTA (being that we are in the Trilateral MBA program). We also cover current events in all three countries, but mainly the United States. Companies spanning North America and their organization culture are also covered in detail through case studies.


• Organizational Management: Very different from the Organizational Management course I had in my undergrad that focused more on principles. The Canadian version consists mainly of linear progressions and is very mathematically based. (Much worse than Statistics.)


• Organizational Behavior: This is an application-based course taught in very much in detail. We cover everything from significant management philosophers, organizational culture, attitudes and personalities, and different types of organizations. This class is only until October 20, so its a very intense course with double the work. We'll put the blame on this course for taking me away from my blog work.


• My fourth class is another marketing course that will start on October 21. This course will also be a very intense course since it will only last 1.5 months. I don't know too much about this course yet; in fact, we haven't even been able to officially schedule this course because of some class conflicts that the university has yet to fix.

Last night, I had my first MBA exam in my Organizational Behavior course. It was considered the midterm (since the course is only a month long) and it was completely application-based (read between the lines: multiple essays). After long hours of studying, it was a great relief when I finished! This is by far the most difficult course!

On a bit windier note, I survived my first hurricane this weekend. Who would've thought there'd be a hurricane in the Maritimes of Canada? Hurricane Kyle decided to grace us with his presence, bringing us lots of wind and lots of rain. It wasn't as bad as they expected though. But this just goes down in the book of experiences in Canada.

Soccer & 1755

This weekend involved soccer, meeting students from last year's TMBA, a concert...and the lingering affects of Tropical Storm Hannah.

One of the students from Mexico (David) decided to join the UdeM soccer team...and it turns out he's a really good athlete! David had a game on Friday against Prince Edward Island (P.E.I. as it is known around here). David played almost the whole game, but UdeM ended up losing. Apparently P.E.I. is pretty good at soccer (and everything else. I hear their campus is immaculate). After David's game, Shannon and I met the rest of the gang at Isabelle's house. Isabelle was in the TMBA program last year. She had so many stories to tell us and pictures to show us. It got us all pumped up for our amazing program. In fact, Isabelle said she wished she could do it all over again with us.

After visiting with Isabelle, the whole gang walked to campus for a huge concert. UdeM brought the band 1755...a pretty huge deal around here (although I'm sure no Americans have ever heard of 1755). This was the biggest concert that UdeM has ever held! Around 3,000 people attended, and it was definately an experience. 1755 is an older band with strong Acadian roots and sing of Acadian pride. So, I'm thinking they are the equivalent to the band Alabama for the southern states. Shannon told me it was like celebrating their Acadian history...I guess like an Independence Day? Maybe. Their songs were all in French (of course; just like everything else here) and they had fiddles/violins and guitars on stage while waving around the Acadian flag (I'm thinking this description might have given you the perfect picture of what I was experiencing). Interesting. That's culture for you.

Today I did my usual run/walk around campus after working out at their "gym."

*Side note: Bowling Green Athletic Club, I've never loved you and missed you so much! With your top of the line equipment with nice little fans built in...and the many plasma TVs hanging from the ceiling speaking to me in English...and the Cardio Movie Theater...and my lovely Zumba classes. I guess you can see I'm starting to miss life's little luxuries that America gives us at no extra expense that we all take for granted.*

The weather was gorgeous today. Especially after Hannah's downpour came through on Saturday and Sunday. Here in Moncton, after it rains it is very nice, cool, and breezy outside. Much different from the humid, muggy, post-rain weather in Kentucky. So it was a great day to run outside! After I finished my run, I went to the bookstore to purchase my first book...stealing $200 out of my pocket so easily. Of course its my luck to have a class where the teacher decided to use a NEW EDITION book this year. You know what that means...NO USED BOOKS AVAILABLE. Which means that it was a very expensive $200 book. After finding out this information, I then had to stand in a line the equivalent to the one at Space Mountain at Disneyworld. How's that for putting a kink in my mood after a perfectly good run on a lovely weather day in beautiful Moncton. Maybe I should go for another run.

Onward to Bouctouche...and Wal-Mart

Who would have ever thought that getting to a Wal-Mart 5 minutes away could be such a long, difficult journey? I tried out the Moncton public bus system yesterday ($2.00 one way trip) to make a trip to Wal-Mart. Its not that I even really needed to go to Wal-Mart; its just sometimes you get the urge to go look around...or spend money. And Wal-Mart was the only place that I knew of close-by. I stood out in front of my dorm at the correct time in front of the sign that had the bus symbol on it with the number 5 (my bus). Wouldn't you know that Bus #5 DROVE RIGHT BY ME! So, I had 45 minutes to waste and decided I would take a walk around campus (something I tend to do when its pretty out because I must admit that their "gym" is not of WKU standards!). As I was walking back to my dorm, I saw #5 slowly approaching (earlier than when the schedule says he arrives). I caught the bus to Wal-Mart....so I thought. After riding on #5 for about 45 minutes, then transfering buses and another 15 minute ride I finally made it. So total travel time was approx. 2 hours for a 30 minute stop at Wal-Mart. Moncton's public transportation isn't the greatest, and sometimes (ok, all the time) I miss my car--but I got from Point A to Point B, and that's all that matters. Now I just need to plan my whole day around those very long trips (or just stop getting the urge to just go look around).

Today we went to Julie's home town of Bouctouche (pronounced like book-TOOSH), NB. Julie is also in the TMBA program who lives about 45 minutes from UdeM. Bouctouche is a town of about 2500 people sitting right along the coast--very quaint and very beautiful. Our first stop was a Mom-and-Pop restaurant that served Poutine, an Acadian food that is pretty much a boiled ball of potatoes with pork inside. Julie wanted each of us to try it since most of the Canadian's have Acadian ancestors. You have an array of condiments you can eat with it--such as brown sugar, molasses, ketchup, salt, or pepper (weird, ay?) So I'm kind of weird about food textures, and I must say that this took the gold medal on weird texture! Needless to say, I didn't like it. Not with brown sugar, not with molasses, not with salt (which I eat on everything), and not plain jane. So I have no need for the poutine. Our next stop was the beautiful boardwalk that Irving (the oil company) built along the sand dunes to preserve the natural environment. I still can't get over how preserved everything around the beach was. Very fresh and natural. The beach doesn't get cleaned of its seaweed. It doesn't have cans littering the shore. Not even volleyball nets or trash cans. Just a beach being a beach. And come to think of it, I don't know if I have ever seen a beach in such a natural way. We ended our Bouctouche adventure at Julie's mom's campsite. She, along with some of her friends, had kindly cooked us a full lobster lunch. She even had lobster plates that had instructions on how to eat a lobster! We each got a whole lobster, along with corn, bread, potato salad, and the works. In Canada, lobster is served cold (unlike most places), but it was surprisingly amazing! I guess people are right about the seafood up north--the best of the best! Shannon, another TMBA girl, found the lobster eggs quite the delicacy!

It was amazing to be out in the sun all day. It was a breath of fresh air and new energy. I'm starting to think I might suffer from a slight case of seasonal affective disorder. This could be a long winter.

The School Bell Has Rung

I think I am caught up with the blog entries from my first blog that died, so the date is correct on this entry! =)

Yesterday was the first day of class for UdeM. My first class didn't start until 6:30pm, but I, along with everyone in the TMBA program, had several issues with my schedule so I went to talk to the person in charge of the program. The system would not let me register for two of my classes because of time conflicts. You would think that the school would have all of this figured out before we arrived in Canada (let alone, by the first day of school), but they didn't! I am the type of person that has to have a list for everything, so this unorganization is driving me crazy. It seems like since I have arrived, I have had problem after problem. And when I go talk to someone they tell me to go to the next person, and the next person. You would think there would be an "end" person somewhere! And by the way, the time conflict issue is still not resolved! My class last night was Organizational Management. We will have two large assignments and two major tests. It seems to be a hard class, but the teacher is extremely nice! All of my classes will be taught in English (thank goodness!).

On a side note, I would highly recommend the next group of students to study the basics of the French language. Although Moncton is bilingual, every document I have been given at UdeM has been in French. This is very frustrating...especially if its not an electronic document where I can at least copy/paste it into freetranslation.com! Even the campus map is in French. This has been very frustrating for me. I have never taken a French class, so I'm not even the least bit familiar with the language. I was very excited about being able to take a French class up here (because I thought it would help tremendously), but I found out yesterday that the Introductory to French course is only given at night (its considered a "Continuing Education" course for adults in the community). And almost all of my business courses are at night. Another conflict. I'll get through it.

Parlee Beach & Downtown Moncton

*Post actually written on August 30*
Who would have ever thought that Canada has a beach where people actually go and swim??? Introducing Parlee Beach! One of the nicest beaches around (and claiming to have the warmest Atlantic water north of Virginia!). Parlee Beach is located about 25 minutes away from Moncton in an area called Shidiac, NB. Another claim to fame for Shidiac is having the largest lobster stature ever (pictures posted). Very good food in this area of Canada and a nice place to visit. I'm hoping that the group will want to go on lots of trips so we can all learn about the area!

I met the rest of the TMBA group yesterday: four Mexican students and four Canadian students. Yeah, I'm the only one from the States, and I have to admit, at times its lonely because everyone has their own culture and way of doing things. The program would be very exciting if there was an equal balance for all three countries. All the students seem very nice and eager to get started in classes. But first, we went out on the town last night to have a little fun! Downtown Moncton is a very nice place that has several restaurants that turn into little hangout spots at night. Its a really cool area; reminds me a lot of downtown Denver. We went to several places, all within walking distance from each other. It was a great way for us to kick off the program and start to know each other. Pictures of this are also posted in the slideshow.

Tomorrow is Labor Day (yep, they have Labor Day), and its a little bit different than our Labor Day. EVERYTHING in Moncton is closed on Labor Day, including the malls and the grocery stores (when they say Labor Day, they mean it!). Such a different concept because Americans usually go to the malls and grocery stores on that day for the awesome sales!

Arriving in Canada--my first destination

Let me preface this first entry with the fact that my first blog somehow disappeared in space, so I have tried to recollect the first few entries on the previous blog:

*Post actually written on August 29*
With the TMBA program, students will study in three different locations: Moncton, New Brunswick (UdeM); Bowling Green, KY (WKU); and Queretaro, Mexico (UAQ). First stop is Canada. I arrived in Canada about two days ago, and I would be lying if I said I had no problems. I was held at the border for over two hours because UdeM had not told me my residence address, and "border control" needed every type of document imaginable including my exact address before I could obtain my Student Permit. I had my passport, and my acceptance letter (which was in French, and strange fact: Most of Canada's Border Control could only speak English, so they couldn't even read my acceptance letter!). I thought I had everything I needed. Little did I know that they needed my exact address AND a bank statement saying I had enough funds in the bank for the program!!! So needless to say, those problems caused the delay, but I finally received my student permit (that costs over $100, by the way). Moncton is about two hours from the border, so we still had to drive a bit before we could end the exhausting day! After finally arriving in Moncton, we checked into a hotel downtown and did not move til the next day! The past two days I have spent going to the grocery and WalMart to get me ready for the semester. I have also met a few of the employees at UdeM and obtained my student ID, insurance (required), agenda, etc. Everyone seems very nice here!