Kanaalstraat or how to live your life

A place to share the world

By Margot Perrier, Piers d'Orgee and Camille Lepage

Kanaalstraat is university accommodation with a difference. A small and vibrant multi-national environment high on its own community spirit and infectious friendly atmosphere.
This big house is located near the windmill on the north east side of the city. This abode welcomes more than 30 Exchange students coming from Australia to Canada, and from Russia, Finland, France, Scotland, Czech Republic and many more.
As soon as you enter the house, you hear people chatting and listening to music in the kitchen. No matter what time it is, you will always find people hanging around in the corridors, having a laugh together, sharing a cigarette or a bottle of wine.

The Kanaalstraat housing itself is the perfect layout for student living. There is a courtyard in the centre of the premises which has been allocated a communal smoking and meet-up area and there is more often than not a friendly face to converse with. There are around three dozen residents in the building, many sharing rooms with fellow students. The size of rooms varies from large to massive and there are very few complaints about the condition of the accommodation; a rarity in shared living spaces.
A map on the kitchen window fully encapsulates the diversity within the house. Every tenant and visitor is asked to cross off the country they are from on the map. Europe is almost fully crossed out and there is someone there from nearly every continent in the world.

Students usually go food shopping on the very cosmopolitan Kanaal street. Once on the street you cannot tell you are in Utrecht anymore. Kanaal street itself is host to a collection of maghrebian shops that add a special character to the area. The smell of spices and mint tea replaces the stagnant smell of weed and beer of the city centre. Vegetables, fruits and bread are available everywhere and at very low cost, which is fortunate for the student allowance.

The hustle and bustle of the town centre is substituted by a relaxed and welcoming collection of quaint buildings and parks as well as a quaint stereotypical Dutch windmill.
When it is dinner time, people gather in the ground floor kitchen to help out the couple of volunteers who are cooking for everybody. In Kanaalstraat, dinner is sacred, it is the time where students share their grandmother’s recipes and traditional local dishes. All those meals are usually washed down with red and white wine or beer.
Surprisingly, there are no quarrels over dish washing duty, always a group of 2 or 3 people help to wash over 20 plates, oven trays and pans. If some remain unwashed after the party, the dish-washing fairy will take care of it during the night, and everything will be just like nothing happened on the next morning.
The rule is: everybody is welcome as long as there is a smile on their face when they come in (a crate of beer doesn’t go amiss either).

Once their stomachs are full of very tasty food and drinks, the music is turned up, tables and chairs moved, some people start dancing while some other are talking to each other. Of course, wherever there are students a party spirit can always be found. Kanaalstraat is no different. The scene is amazing, people from Russia, Australia, Czech Republic, Italy, Spain and Poland are chatting just like they knew each other from years.

The language barrier has been withdrawn, just like formal borders within those countries. Everybody is equal, and only want to learn more about their new housemates’lives. Discovering new culture, habits and traditions is why people chose this place. The happenings in Kanaalstraat are merely preamble to the whole Utrecht student experience. To anybody not used to travelling around and mixing with other nationalities, this is truly jumping in at the deep end.
Student life is hard, but someone’s got to live it

Holland, let's get it started

I'm now in Holland enjoying the pleasure of the dutch life and discovering the secrets of the dutch culture.

So far so good I shall say. I arrived in Utrecht on the 29th of August, and moved into my flat on the 31st. I live in a house with more than 30 people from all around the world (for one of our assignments i wrote an article describing my hall, I'll upload it later)

Not only was I disoriented by the jetlag (I landed from chicago on the 27th) but Holland is nothing like Chicago, France or England

.

First the language: when i arrived in Rotterdam, i felt confused, I wasn't expecting people to talk english nor french, i didn't know where to go to catch my train to Utrecht nor how Dutch people say the word Utrecht. In fact, saying Utrecht with an english/french accent but trying to sound Dutch is a lot harder than I thought.

Once in Utrecht and after a few days i realised that everybody talks English here, and if someone doesn't there is someone around who understands english.

Utrecht is small, houses are small, the canal is tiny (but very pretty), shops are little, but the Dutch are uncommonly tall!!! how can those giant people fit in such a tiny country where everything is pocket-sized.

What strikes me the most about Dutch people is their k

indness. I believed English people were very nice, that Chicagoans were even nicer. But Dutch people are lovely, warmhearted and always happy to help.

The culture, here is completely different, to me it's the country where nothing matters, nobody will pay attention to what you do, they are very chilled out and easy-going (unless you are on their way when they cycle). You can sit on the back of someone's bike, helmet aren't compulsory, you can smoke weed everywhere, drink alcohol in the streets, forget your pack of cigarettes on a table for 2 hours and find it intact when you come back. Basically, everything is normal and even the craziest thing seem unsurprising to them.

One of the first i did when i arrived is getting a bike. Public transport is very expensive (every i get on a bus you have to pay at least 2.20€). There are bikes absolutely everywhere, we always have to be careful when crossing a street: check cycle-path, cars, buses, tram, and then you can cross the road safely (hopefully)

My course is very interesting so far, lecturers are great. We get to do a lot of assignments, rather unusual but I'm not complaining, it's great to feel that you are actually learning something and doing something concrete.

My coursemates are lovely as well, we are not very numerous about 16 people in my class. Everybody seems to have the same state of mind about studies and partying. We get to know each other a little bit more everyday/night.

I'm thinking of going to Munich for the Oktoberfest, we are probably going to rent 2 cars and go there during a week end.

Last week

Right, I haven’t had the chance to write anything last week; in fact it was a very eventful week.

It was my first week during which I had to go to work everyday, though I still had something on every day as well.

On Monday my flatmates and I went for a few pints and some pizzas in an old looking bar, and then went to a 2$ Guinness bar. Was a good laugh again.

On the next day, I did manage to get up on time to go to work. By 5 o’clock I went to a meeting organized by FCC, which is the organization that regulates TV, broadcast etc. That was an open mic dealing with the merger of Comcast and NBC. Comcast is one of those powerful and influential companies that ruins media and make it biased and unreliable. Anyway, I read some stuff about Comcast before going there, this company is clearly full of shit, in such a conference back a few year and down to Washington, they paid people they found on the streets, to testify how great Comcast is, and how the merger isn’t a threat for anyone.

I’m sure they did exactly the same there: there were at least 70 people from Comcast who registered to talk, they were very smart, repeating themselves, looking up-their-arse, and quite confused with their speeches.

On the contrary, people who were against the merger, were a lot more involved in the cause and I could feel that they has no financial aim to attend the meeting.

On Wednesday, it was Bastille Day so I went out with Emma to a party organized in a bar, which wasn’t very interesting. We went to a French house party instead, and it was simply great! Loads of new people, most of them are engineers, and have been in Chicago for a year.

On Thursday, we had a roof top party at In These Times, I went there with Shane my roommate. I was expecting it to be awesome, but it was actually wicked, free pizzas and beers, a wonderful landscape and sunset, and many nice people. After a few hours we went to a pub around the corner with the few left. I met some really nice people there again!

Without getting into detail, on Friday and Saturday I went out again with the French, and both of those nights was amazing.

On Saturday I went into town, and then the beach, the weather was way to hot to cope with my hangover, wasn’t the best afternoon ever!

Anyway, we saw the filming of Transformer 3 again. They cordoned off the main street of Chicago to do so. We manage to see the main actor, the director and some other guys.

It’s funny cause we made a big fuss about that, whereas the American don’t really care. That’s just something normal for them. It’s amusing because, when we depict the USA in movies, it’s with huge buildings, helicopters in the sky and movies filming in the streets, but that’s actually how it is! For once it doesn’t not only happen in movies, that’s completely real!

My internship is still going very well, I have been working on my articles, and looking for information everywhere. I’m in contact with a retired U.S. Department of Labor Historian; he gave a lot of information and some more contacts to write an article on Labor Day in September. I have managed to gather papers from the US Historical Office based in Washington, which is awesome and a lot more accurate than stuff I can find online.

Unfortunately I think my article is only gonna be published online… so no printed byline for me yet! Hopefully next month will be the one!

(I going to add some pics shortly)

Time flies toooo fast!

Tomorrow, i have been in Chicago for 2 weeks, so one fourth of my all trip, which also means there is only 3 fourth to go!!!
I can't believe how fast time has gone.

Anyway, my intership is going well, I have been working on my article on friday afternoon,
I went to De Paul Library. De Paul is one of the best uni of Chicago. But unfortunately what I was looking for wasn't in that library but in another one downtown.
Nothing very exciting to be honest. Except that I was amazed by something completely random. It's 5.59pm, everybody was working on computers or reading some books, at 6.00 a voice said that the library is now close bla bla bla, within 2 minutes everybody left their computers and head to the nearest exit. It's so different in france and in the UK, usually, it takes at 15 min for everybody to leave and usually we also have reminders 15 mins or so before it closes.

Then, i decided to go to the park to read and chill out in the nice and warm sun. I went to Millenium Park, it was great, there were some couples (old or young) and some group of friends just enjoying the sunshine after a long week. I felt asleep on the grass and when i woke up there were hundreds of people around me. I thought: What's the fuck?! there is no sunshine anymore people. Go Home!!
There were people, who brought their small tables, with blankets, chairs, food wine and everything.... I guessed it was just a kind of habbits that people had during the summer. I asked a couple sitting next to me, and they explained that there was a symphony playing for free on the stage and that's why there was so many people.



Anyway I decided to go home, cause I had no table, nor chair, or wine... so no point staying!
Though, my lonely self went out for the first time on my own. My flatmates were working and so was Rachel, but i really want to get out there and meet some new people. There a Eurocircle party ogranized in a bar, I went there, thinking, if it's shit, nobody gonna force to stay and if it's great, then good! It took me 20 min to find this bloody place. Once in there, I knew I just had to wait for someone to come and talk to me. There was loads of men, so it wasn't gonna be hard to find someone to have a chat with.
In fact 2 minutes after i sat down and ordered my first an Italian guy came over, he was 50 something, but really nice person. He had travelled a lot and speaks very well French... He wanted to drive me home, but I'm not completely dumb and it was only 11. So I politely said no and he left on his own... bless him!
Another guy came to me and he introduced me to his friends and a French girl called Emma.
She arrived in Chicago 3 weeks ago, but doesn't speak a word of English, so it makes it obviously hard for her to understand what people... Anyway we went along, and those guys wanted to go to club called Rino. I was thinking,: awesome just like in Southampton!! ( I had a deep and long thought for everyone I went to Rhino with). (I was gutted that it wasn't called Koas, it would have made it even more awesome!!)
Nothing in common with our good old Rhino, it was 20$ gor men and free for girls. The guys gave it a miss while Emma and I went in. We met some people who had a table (opportunist? never!). They were actually very nice, I had a wicked time there and got fairly drunk!



That brings me to Saturday, just like I guessed when I went to bed, I felt pretty rough, and the heat wasn't helping at all. I was willing to go downtown and visit some touristic stuff, but after a deep reflection (it lasts approximately 2 seconds), I realized that it wasn't a good idea, and that the beach seemed a lot more exciting and appropriate for my state. The beach was nice, but not as warm and sunny as I expected it to be...
Anyway, the Beach has become one of my favorite places in Chicago: Tanned 6 Packs walking around, running and playing on the sand, I say Oh Yeah!! or OH YEAHHH!!!
(girls are pretty fit too btw).



Today, I went downtown, and this time I did do some tourist stuff. I wanted to do the 'art walk around the Loop' that my travel guide advised me to do. But I got stopped by, what i first thought was an earthquake (I had just woken up), by the filming of Transformers3. Just like I could give a shit about this crap, they had to be right where I wanted to go goddammit! Anyways, it looked so real! (http://www.wgntv.com/wgntv-transformers-street-closures-jul11,0,1827348.story)
As I mentioned, I thought there was an earthquake or something in the street, cause there war policemen everywhere and they didn't want me to take pics (on top of ruining my awesome walk, they don't want me to take pics!!! Can you believe that??? I could NOT!!!). I asked a policewoman what was going on, and she said to: "it's a filming" like I was coming from another planet.
I actually felt like that... Indeed it's not in Southampton nor in Angers that international movies filming are gonna take place.
I did manage to get come pics, cause I'm just that formidable:



We couldn't really see, but there is a camera on the rope that was moving up and down










Anyway, I carried on again my arty and delightful walk around the Loop (which was actually really disappointing, but I'm sure all the exciting stuff were on the streets that were cordoned off!)
I know that's kinda gross, a huge eye ball in the middle of the City, and it's actually really well done, with the blood vessels and everything...











That's a ceramic thing that Chagall did... it's not at its advantage, it's under a glass cover and it seems that the colors have faded out... which is a shame



















My arty walk ended by Millennium Park, by the fountains with the faces. The Spanish were gathered up there to celebrate their world cup victory, was fun to see... and I'm so glad Holland didn't win, cause it would have meant they were gonna take the piss out of the French for 4 years and I'm kinda going there in September! I do struggle to cope with such a shameful country... for real i do!



After that I just walked around the city, here are a few pics of things that grabbed my attention:
Some guys street dancing

(a mall)




















TheExcalibur thing is apparently a club... I haven't been in there yet, but I'm now planning to!
The Lamp is in the Victoria secret store.
Legomen and the mice are made of Lego, and are in one of the Mall i have discovered today ( see pics)

Chicken Wings are messy to eat and Original Clash book for $5.99!!

On Tuesday I went to a double gig at Kingston Mines, a very good club by Lincoln Park (apparently one of the most beautiful park in Chicago, i haven't had the opportunity to see it yet, but I won't be long before I do)

This club is very famous though it was in the south side of Chicago and moved over by Lincoln park a few years ago. In fact, GR, the bassist who invited us to the gig (yeah we got in for free again!), explained to us that all the jazz clubs used to be in the south side of the city, but the majority of them closed down and move to this area. Apparently it's linked to politics, I don't really know what he meant by that, and he didn't get any more explicit even when i asked him why...

I suppose it's because the south became dangerous (i have been told not to go there, it's where the bad reputation of Chicago comes from), and I guess people who can afford to pay $10 for a gig live in the north.

Anyway, the bar is made of 2 rooms, and two bands are playing alternatively. Gigs run til 4 in the morning. The first that we saw was GR's, as usual, there were very good, the music was very rousing, and you could feel a real harmony among the musicians. The singer who was also the pianist had a astonishing voice, he sang without a microphone, you could feel that he was really involved with song, once again I was speechless!

The second gig was really good too, the musicians and the singer had complete opposite attitudes, some were just playing like they were just chilling and taking it easy, the drummer had no emotion (i'm not sure it's a good thing), the pianist was very discrete i thought. The singer was incredible, once again, he was one of those that lives through the lyrics of their songs, who gives everything they have hidden deep inside them and offers it to the audience! He was paying the guitar at same time and he loved it, i loved it too! He started the show with a dry and ended it with one soaking wet!

Since my first gig I have always been tempted to get the CD of the bands i see, but they are always around $15/$20 and if I go to 2 gigs per week, it's a lot of money! I think i m gonna make a selection of the best ones and at the end of august buy those i like the most.

This place is also well-known for its food, I read online that they had one of the best chicken wings in town. I obviously had to try them. Indeed they are very nice, loads of BBQ sauce, good portion and pretty cheap as well but gosh so messy!! I had BBQ sauce all over my face and my hands! I swear if you are on a date, don't ever get BBQ chicken wings, or your date is gonna run away and for good!!! (unless that what you wanted...) They were worth the messiness though!

Change of subject!

My first days at work have been fine, it's great cause you actually contribute to the magazine and its content. Basically, some writers have sent us some articles, and we have to say what we think about them, if we think that they should be published or not, give the reasons, how it could be improved etc. It's not proper journalism, but it's still better than making photocopies and coffees (which is great cause I'm very bad at making coffee!).

As I said before I have got a few story ideas, and i discussed them with my editor. He liked 2 out of 5, and another one is a maybe. I have to write one of them by the 23rd of July, which doesn't give me much time and it's a subject i don't know much about, so it's gonna be loads of research to do. He knows some people that i could interview which is great, it will give my article more depth i hope!

After work I decided to go into town to get a book, went to border and I found the book i have always wanted to buy, but never did cause it was stupidly expensive, for only $5.99: THE ORIGINAL CLASH BOOK!!! Yeah!!!

I got foolishly excited!

Then I was looking for the media section, i asked a guy who worked there, and he was just like 'mmm you mean movies and music?' so i replied 'no I mean books on journalism, critical books on the media etc', he seemed so surprised. But I was even more discover their media section, among Twilight, Sex & the City and those stupid stuff that have nothing in common with media. Let's be honest they had less than 30 books dealing with this theme. I thought it properly sucked in a country like the USA that people aren't interested in what's going on with the media. I, now, understand why this country's media is so fucked up!

After that I went to Macy's (the American Debenhams/ Galleries Lafayette), nothing really exciting there, loads of expensive clothes and sales assistants looking down at you. Oh yeah they did have a fountain in the middle of the shop, was quite amusing!

Here are a few pics of where i live:

Yes, i did tidy it up before i took the pic, it's far from looking like this right now!

1st day at In These Times

I'm not only in Chicago to have fun and live the joy of being a tourist in a big city. I'm here to melt myself into the journalistic world of In These Times.
Here i am, sitting on my Futon after my first day at work! so cliche!

In These Times mag is about 20 min from where i live, so walked to get there under the early morning unbearable humid heat! wasn't the nicest walk in Chicago ever but i'm gonna have to get use to it!
Everything went well, the editor Joel Bleifuss seems nice, the people i work with as well, i haven't met the whole team yet though.
The newsroom is pretty old-fashioned but it's actually quite fun, there is old stuff everywhere, and it's even worse in my editor's office! I really wonder where all this crap come from but it's quite cool, I wouldn't mind having a home a bit similar to be honest. I'll to take some pics discretely one day.

I spent the first hours getting familiar with the intern's duties, style guide etc.
This week is an off-week as they just went into press, which means that there is not much to do, except reading articles that people sent us and give our opinions, whether or not it should be published. We have to write those comments on the top of each article. Some were very good and interesting while some were complete shit!
As usual, I believe I have probably been too opinionated compare to what the other interns wrote... (they usually wrote 2 lines when i write 15...)
I guess what i did is more constructive, I believe so anyway!


I have been looking at potential articles I could write, I've got few ideas but I have to discuss them with Joel first.

Tonight, jazz gig at Kingston Mines with Rachel!