Montreal

As Montreal is in the province of Quebec, which has its own immigration policies, persons wishing to work in Montreal will have to go through two processes, once with the Quebec government, then finally with the Canadian government. If you are employed with a foreign company which has a Montreal office, you can seek a transfer. You can also seek a job with a Montreal employer and they can sponsor you for a temporary work visa. If you are a skilled worker see CIC website you can immigrate based on your own skills.

The North American Free Trade Agreement NAFTA allows skilled U.S. and Mexican professionals to obtain Canadian work visa provided they are qualified in certain professions. The American Consular Services website (http://www.amcits.com/pro...) provides an up-to-date list of qualifying professions.

If you are an U.S. Citizen aged 18-30 and a full-time student, you can obtain a Canadian work visa valid for six months through BUNAC (http://www.bunac.org/usa/...). Students from France, Britain, New Zealand, and Australia can also benefit from BUNAC work programs. As well, if you obtain a degree from a Canadian university, you are eligible to remain in Montreal and work for up to one year.

For anyone else, the Immigration Canada CIC website (http://www.cic.gc.ca/engl...) explains a number of ways foreigners can legally work in Canada.

Student jobs include babysitting, painting during the summer, and moving furniture in June. McGill and Montreal universities are always in search of research subjects and so are Montreal's many biotech firms. Montreal also has many call centres, which constantly seek to hire new employees and offer flexible working hours.

language classes

Montreal is a popular destination for language-immersion programs in French and English. Many schools arrange accommodations — either in dorms or with a family and provide cultural programs with trips around the city and beyond. Prices are usually higher for non-Quebecois and higher-still for non-Canadians. Most are located in Downtown and the Old City.Intensive, non-resident programs are also offered by the YMCA and Quebec government.

universities

Montreal is home to one of Canada's oldest and most prestigious universities, McGill University. McGill is consistenly ranked as one of the top 20 universities in the world, but not each faculty. It is a university with a huge endowment fund. Concordia University is the city's other English-language university, the largest East of Toronto, and has over 40,000 students. Though Concordia lacks a medical school and law school, it still has a world class business school and their arts & sciences programs are top tier. Its student population is generally more multicultural than McGill's and the school's origins in and continuing emphasis on adult education make it popular for mature students, since it holds many graduate-level courses at night. Reputation aside, McGill is teacher focused and Concordia is student focused. Both universities are research focused.

The Université du Québec à Montreal UQAM and the Université de Montréal cater mainly to Francophone students. The Université de Montréal is the second largest French-language university in the world, after the Sorbonne in Paris and is one of the largest research institutions in Canada. The Université de Montréal has two affiliated schools, Polytechnique Montréal engineering, and HEC Montréal business school that offer undergraduate and graduate studies.

Université Laval and Université de Sherbrooke also have campuses in the Montreal area. Every university, with the exception of Laval, lends its name to a subway stop to indicate the university's approximate location. For example, the Guy-Concordia subway station, located at the intersection of Rue Guy and boulevard de la Maisonneuve ouest, is no more than two minutes away from its namesake university Concordia.

NASCAR Nationwide Series

€” circuit gilles villeneuve also hosts an annual race, currently known as the napa auto parts 200, in nascar's second-level nationwide series every august.

Formula 1 Grand Prix

€” circuit gilles villeneuve hosts a race of so called 'pinnacle of the motorsport' almost every year. the best drivers of the world compete during a three-day event which gathers about 100,000 spectators and is considered one on of the classics of this discipline, (http://www.formula1.com/r...).

 

An interactive map of the cycle path network is available at the Vélo Québec website. (http://www.velo.qc.ca/fr/...) Particularly pleasant places to cycle and skate include:

 

During the winter, many parks offer the possibility to do cross-country skiing with groomed paths.

Parc Maisonneuve and Jardin Botanique

€” no ski rental.

Kayaking

€” just off the shore of the park in lasalle are the lachine rapids. huge waves, fast water, and loads of fun for kayaks. lessons are available on site in the huge eddy formed by the peninsula. annual surf rodeo competitions at "big joe" formerly called and sometimes still referred to as "beneath the wheel" by old schoolers. other famous play waves on this set of rapids on the st. lawrence river are, istambul and constantinople, pyramid, slice and dice, black and decker, as well as hmf on the other side of the islands. for those seeking less of an adrenaline rush, there is always the bunny wave la vague a guy upstream near the bike path at park rene lesvesque. rafting these same rapids is also a fun option.

River surfing

€” although the saint lawrence river is frozen nearly solid for four to five months out of the year, the waterway has become a magnet for aficionados of this new sport. unlike their oceanic brethren, river surfers ride the standing waves in fresh waterways. the saint lawrence has two main hot spots for the sport: habitat 67 is close to the bridge between montreal and ile des soeurs, the site of the 1967 expo and the montreal casino. this wave is also know as expo 67. the surf 66 boardshop at the 1952 rue cabot offers lessons.

Festival Mondiale de la bière

(http://www.festivalmondia...) — annually, in early june: five days of tasting beers, ciders, and other beverages from all over quebec, canada and further afield. 2004's event boasted over 340 different beers from 130 countries. there is no admission fee but you can buy a souvenir sampling mug for about $8 and samples typically sell for three to four tickets $1 a ticket for a 150-200 ml sample. there are also scheduled musical performances and food kiosks. the festival can get very busy at peak times friday and saturday evening of the event, so it is advisable to arrive early to avoid possible long queues.

Fete de St-Jean-Baptiste

€” june 24th is quebec's national holiday fãªte nationale. during the evening, a huge show takes place at maisonneuve park. this is the show to go to hear made-in-quebec music. free. street parties can also be found all over the city.

 

International Festival of Film on Art - organization devoted to the promotion and presentation of the finest productions on art and media art. A ten-day competitive festival, it is the most important annual event of its kind in the world. FIFA has become a focal point for artis and artisans from the art and film communities, as well as for art and cinema enthusiast.

 

Montreal has a bewildering variety of festivals, ranging from one-day ethnic fairs to huge international productions running two weeks or more. They are generally held in the summer and autumn, though increasingly they can be found throughout the year. Here are some of the larger ones:

Montreal International Fireworks Competition

In la ronde amusement park in parc jean-drapeau, 514-397-2000, [email protected] (http://www.internationald...). this fantastic festival features full-length fireworks displays, accompanied by orchestral music, by national teams from about a dozen countries around the world. although the hot seats are inside the la ronde theme park, the fireworks are visible from pretty much any clear space or rooftop in the centre of the city. pedestrians can watch from jacques cartier bridge, which is closed from 8pm on fireworks nights. another good spot is the promenade west of the old port. $35-45 seats in la ronde, free everywhere else. saturdays 10pm from mid-june to late july, plus wednesdays 10pm from mid-july on.

Free skating

Lac aux castors beaver lake, in the parc mont-royal.

Year-round ice-skating

1000, rue de la gauchetiã¨re metro bonaventure.

 

Winter skating

In the old port vieux-port in front of the bonsecours market and many parks.

Free skating

Connected ponds of lafontaine park, in plateau mont-royal.