A few months ago, EC Montreal was approached by the Study Travel Magazine because they were writing an article about Quebec as a destination to learn a language.  We were asked to get the opinion of a few students as well as comments from the school Centre Director. The 5 questions asked were: What do students from your country most comment on about Quebec in general? Why do they choose to go there to study English/French? Once they have arrived there, what do they most like about the area? Which specific aspects of life there do they most comment on and why? Any surprises? We received the magazine in the mail today and were delighted to see EC Montreal featured in the article on studying in Quebec!!  The student interviews were not included, however, our Centre Director’s quote was featured! Below is what our Centre Director, Elisa, as well as our 2 amazing students replied to the interview questions: Elisa Gazzola Centre Director The province of Quebec is a little misunderstood as a destination to learn English or French.  The first impression is that it is too French to learn English or not French enough to be fully immersed in a French environment.  The province of Quebec is indeed a French speaking province; however, Montreal is the exception.   Personally, I believe Montreal is the ideal destination to learn either language.  Our students can be fully immersed in the language they are learning and still get a taste of another language; essentially, students get 2 languages for the price of one!  Montreal is the 2nd largest city in Canada yet it has a small town feel to it.  This is mostly due to the fact that all attractions are centralized and we have one of the best transportation systems in the world.  St-Laurent … Read more

Mariana Tourinho Borges is a 17-year old student from Brazil.  She has been attending high school in Montreal for the past year.  During her summer break from school, she wanted to take French lessons.  Her homestay host, Nadia Battani, who also hosts for EC Montreal, encouraged her to come check out EC! Mariana came to visit the school and participated in a free trial class.  She fell in love with EC Montreal immediately!  She signed up for 8 weeks of French studies.  Last Friday was her last day of classes.  She was so sad.  She is resuming her high school classes next week.  She said that because she will be in Montreal until January, she will come by to visit us and will participate in some of our evening and weekend excursions!! Mariana could not leave without sharing her comments with the world! Well, I just have good things to say about EC Montreal. Now, in the end of my course here, I can say for sure that I couldn’t have chosen a better option to spend my summer.I met so many people, from all over the world, I really learned a lot, not just French but about so many different and interesting cultures.. The people here are just the Best ever! It was, for sure, the best experience in my life… I Love it and I can not wait to repeat it!

Crescent Street is one of the most frequented streets in Montreal!  It is only a few short blocks away from our EC Montreal school! Crescent Street’s annual summer festival is taking place this weekend, from August 22 to August 24.  This festival is Montreal’s best patio event! The street festival will include music, food and dancing.  It is definitely the place to party this weekend! The forecast calls for warm & sunny weather all weekend long!! There will be a stage at the centre of the event with shows that will keep you dancing! The action will take place from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. on all 3 days on Crescent Street between de Maisonneuve and Sainte-Catherine Street! EC Montreal will be part of the fun and hope to see all of you there!

Montreal’s annual world film festival begins today!  The festival will take place in different areas of the city, the Quartier Latin, Cinema du Parc, Le Parisien and the Imperial Theatre.  There will be special movies under the stars showings at the Quartier des Spectacle, outside of Place des Arts. The first outdoor showing will take place tonight, August 22, outside Place des Arts.  The movie will start at 8:30 p.m. Everyone is encouraged to bring a blanket or their lawn chairs and enjoy the award winning films included in the 2013 Montreal World Film Festival!  Unlike the Toronto Film Festival, which features mostly American films, the Montreal World Film Festival celebrates the best in international film! The festival will go on from August 22 to September 2.  EC Montreal will surely participate in this yearly anticipated event!

The latest chapter of the X-Men movie series just wrapped up filming in Montreal!  The cast and crew have been here for several months.  There is no place like Montreal in the summertime!  It is no surprise that the cast and crew fell in love with our beautiful city! Many EC Montreal students have had the excitement of spotting celebrities in Montreal!  Hugh Jackman and Jennifer Lawrence have been hanging out all over the city.  They have been seen having a coffee in the Mile End or shopping in music shops right downtown Montreal close to EC. The members of the X-Men loved the city so much that they felt the need to give something back to Montreal!  They felt so welcomed by Montrealers that they couldn’t leave without doing something special!  They decided to donate a cheque of $10,000 to Montreal’s super hospital!! Montreal is in the middle of building a super hospital.  The hospital combines such storied health institutes as the Royal Victoria Hospital and Montreal Chest, along with the Montreal Children’s Hospital and Shriners’ Hospital for Children. There will also be a cancer centre, research institute and Centre for Innovative Medicine, which will integrate research and teaching alongside patient care. Thank you cast and crew of X-Men!  We have enjoyed hosting you during your Montreal filming adventure!  

EC Montreal staff and students were in for a treat today.  We transformed the student lounge into a beach!  We had golden palm trees, surf boards, beach balls and inflatable toys! We had hotdogs roasting on the grill and tropical drinks set up at the bar!  Each student that entered our beach area was greeted with a hawaiian lay.  The beach boys were playing in the background and the staff and students were enjoying each other’s company! EC Monreal loves to give our students these wonderful opportunities to interact with each other to practice their language skills and to make friends! The EC Montreal team loves the Wednesday social activities!  We look forward to them every week!

Montreal is considered the gastronomy capital of Canada.  Second to New York City, it has the most restaurants per capita.  In Montreal there are over 6000 restaurants, so you can get a taste of cuisine from around the world! Through the different gastronomy sessions at EC Montreal you can learn the secrets of world famous cuisine while developing your own culinary skills in an English or French environment.  These hands on sessions will give you the skills needed to become a Montreal chef in your own home! You can find some sample sessions below: World Cuisine: Your taste buds are going to travel to Japan, Italy, France, Thailand & Spain! 2 hours of cooking followed by 1 hour of eating! Follow the Chef to the market: Do the grocery with the chef at the market, cook and enjoy! 1.5 hours at the market, 2.5 hours of cooking and 1 hour of eating! Pastry Delirium: In love with pastries? Cupcakes, macaroons, cookies are waiting for you! 2 hours of baking & beautiful cake box to go! Fancy Tapas: Learn to make the most festive little bites! 2 hours of cooking, 1 hour of eating!  Includes 2 glasses of wine! Cocktails: Learn how to prepare your favorite cocktails during an original and friendly happy hour! 2 hours of preparation & 3 cocktail tastings! Mixology: Under our mixologist’s supervision, learn how to prepare classic cocktails and invent your own version. 2.5 hours of preparation & 4 tastings! Cocktails Passport: A country, a liquor, a brand, a cocktail…follow our daily destination… Rum to Cuba, Tequila to Mexico, Gin to England… 2.5 hours of preparation & 3 tastings! A visit to Montreal would not be complete without participating in EC Montreal’s English or French plus Gastronomy Programme!!

September is the beginning of harvest season in Quebec.  It is apple picking time and the start of wine making!!  As the leaves begin to turn into vivid, fiery colours, we are reminded that cold weather will be fast approaching!  We take this opportunity to spend as much time in the outdoors as possible.  We take trips to the majestic Laurentian mountains enjoying nature and plucking the ripe fruit off the trees.  We visit vineyards and have fun wine tasting parties!! Our EC Montreal free activities will include the much celebrated apples and grapes!!  How does an appletini bar sound?!  We will transform the student lounge into a cocktail bar and give our students a great opportunity to mingle with each other! We will have an Apple Festival serving all types of foods made from our wonderful Quebec apples; apple pancakes and apple pies to name a few – my mouth is watering in anticipation!! At the end of the month we will have a wine tasting party!  We will pair some lovely Quebec wines with different fruit and cheeses.  Many will be surprised to know that we have vineyards in Quebec and we make some pretty good wine!! We have to include a fitness class to maintain some balance. In addition, throughout the month of September we will be hiding an apple a day in the school.  Find the apple, answer the skill testing question and rush over to the office to claim your prize! There is definitely no such thing as September Blues in Montreal!!  Oh what a sinful month we look forward to at EC Montreal!!