HEC Montreal

For Poutine: La Banquise, for awesome and cheap Sushi: Sago Sushi on St. Denis, for chocolate fondue: Juliette et Chocolat, for clubbing: anywhere on St. Laurent, if you like more alternative places: Foufounes éléctriques on Ste. Catherine and many more...

The university tries to convince you that you're better off getting your housing through them, but you usually end up paying more (except maybe in the dorms) than if you had looked yourself.

Other exchange students are a great social network, if you don't want to be left out, register on facebook and be available on msn (I refused the latter, I only had Skype. I did ok, but really, everyone has msn, so if you want to stay in touch, you may not have a choice).

I wanted to improve my French a bit, mainly learn some business/academic vocabulary, at which I succeeded. Other than that I didn't improve much, since I usually spoke English with most people, especially my roommate. Also, Québécois French is pretty weird, so if you do not want to be made fun of in France, better not adapt the Québécois French too much;-).

Bank transfers are way too expensive, so your best bet is to use your bank debit card from home and withdraw cash at one of the main banks' ATMs (Banque Nationale, etc., for example at HEC's main building). Withdraw large amounts at once, so you don't have to pay the fixed fee your bank charges you at every withdrawal too often. But be aware that you only get 20-dollar bills, so you might be walking around with a pretty thick wallet.