Differences in Accommodation

I’ve talked before about new things in Canada. I even briefly talked about residence in my post on ‘The Pep Rally and Other New Experiences in Canada’ but this time I want to talk in a bit more detail about my experience so far with student accommodation in Canada.

I’m unsure if most of this stuff is specifically Canadian or if it’s just stuff I missed out on back in the UK. My first year accommodation was a very small group and it was university accommodation but it was off campus. There was just four of us for the first semester and five for the second semester. This was great when we were getting along with each other however if we had arguments and when we fell out it quickly became difficult and awkward. In second year I lived in a house with two other students, I did try to get along with them but sometimes people just don’t get along with each other.

And that brings us to this year. If you know me you probably know that I was hoping it would be third time lucky with my accommodation.  Well I think it has been third time lucky.

I live with a group of eight (including me) that’s more people than I’ve ever lived with before but so far I think it is working out well. There’s a fun dynamic starting to develop between us. Even simple stuff like this morning I sat at the table with one of my suitemates whilst having breakfast and we chatted whilst we ate. It feels like we actually interact more than the people I’ve lived with previously. And it’s just good to spend time with my flatmates instead of it feeling like a chore.

Just generally living in student accommodation over here is a lot more of a sociable experience than it ever was for me in England. As I mentioned previously it’s fairly common to just wander into other people’s suites and hang out with each other. I can’t quite decide if that’s because of where I lived, because it’s just the Canadian way or because I have become more confident and now actively seek out opportunities for socialisation.

It’s not just socialising, even the things within the accommodation itself are different…

·         There’s a laundrette to do your washing in. I’ve just lived in places that either have washing machines or we could rent a washing machine for.

·         There’s a store on the ground floor. We have our own little corner shop! It’s kind of expensive but it’s useful to have if you just want to pop out and get something.

·         There’s themed residences. I live in International House which is a mix of international students and Canadian students.

·         Our residence attendant actually interacts with us! In first year I think I saw our residence attendant about twice throughout the whole year, over here we have weekly floor meetings.

·         Weekly floor meetings. That’s another new one, maybe not the most exciting thing but it’s nice to get to see everyone.

So in conclusion, the residence experience in Canada so far is different but I’m enjoying it.