The exchange rate between the Canadian Dollar and the US Dollar is tied to the price of oil, somehow. Canada is, of course, an oil exporter. Canada is a resource exporting country altogether- actors, oil, lumber, electricity, minerals, Celine Dion.
Two years ago we faced 0.95CDN to 1.00USD. Last year the two dollars faced parity (1 to 1). There's no way to tell how things will go between now and summer but the CDN is now at 0.85 to 1.00USD. That is very good and means we get a 15% discount on what money we spend in MTL. KT and I have priced the trip (see below) at parity. Many things, like airline tickets will be bought with USD here in Lubbock. Other things, like your apartments, will be 15% off if this situation holds. So a 500$ (you put the dollar sign after the cost in CDN money to show it is different from USD) will actually cost you $425. That's nice, no?
Some good money news for a change. Additionally, we may be the only tourists there this coming year. We'll see. Comments & questions are enjoyed.
Friday, October 10, 2008
First Info on the MTL 09 Program
The program will be roughly for the months of June and July.
You'll be able to return to home easily by August 1 OR stay there as long as you like (and money holds up). We'll take days off in the middle for July 1 (Canada Day) and July 4. We cannot start early because the Canadians are in our studio space until about May 26th.
Our studio space is in the Attic at the School of Architecture at McGill University. McGill is in the heart of Montreal, was founded in 1832, and before WW2 was in the Ivy League. It is arguably Canada's best university, or as the t-shirts say, "Harvard is the USA's McGill".
The program will cost you approximately $5500 total in living and program fees (everything but tuition). That means food, transportation to and from, transportation around, housing, visits to Ottawa and Quebec City, and educational materials. The program fees you pay to the university will be limited to right arund $1000. The rest will be paid, as you need it, out of your own pocket and in the way you want to pay it- i.e.- if you are a booze hound you pay for booze or if you only eat at McDonalds you only pay for McDonalds or if you want to live posh or cheap you decide and you pay when you make the deal.
Housing is in apartments in the city. You find your apartments on Craigslist. You make the deal for yourself. You can rent a room in an apartment with people from Montréal or you can find classmates who want to go in and share. We've never had ANY trouble with this method. It is easy. People in Canada don't like lawyers and don't use them to solve their problems like we do. We have signed over 30 leases over the last five years and ALL of them have had not one problem. It is all student to student exchange done via email just before or after Spring Break. The only thing you may find tough about these arrangements is that some people may snore, others may stink, others may be angry drunks. That is the case in any program.
Academically, the program will be run and taught by Brian Rex, who has run the MTL program for 6 years now, and Kentaro Tsubaki, who will run the program after this final year of Rexness. The courses will be: ARCH4601 (Urban Design Studio) and ARCH4000 (Architecture Elective).
Everyone who has gone to the city in the last five years has gotten a bicycle to get around on. We see so much by using a bike. Cycling is not required nor is it something that we expect of you but it does seem to be the best way around. Some of the clumsiest and most unbikey people have found themselves expert pedlers when they finish.
You'll be able to return to home easily by August 1 OR stay there as long as you like (and money holds up). We'll take days off in the middle for July 1 (Canada Day) and July 4. We cannot start early because the Canadians are in our studio space until about May 26th.
Our studio space is in the Attic at the School of Architecture at McGill University. McGill is in the heart of Montreal, was founded in 1832, and before WW2 was in the Ivy League. It is arguably Canada's best university, or as the t-shirts say, "Harvard is the USA's McGill".
The program will cost you approximately $5500 total in living and program fees (everything but tuition). That means food, transportation to and from, transportation around, housing, visits to Ottawa and Quebec City, and educational materials. The program fees you pay to the university will be limited to right arund $1000. The rest will be paid, as you need it, out of your own pocket and in the way you want to pay it- i.e.- if you are a booze hound you pay for booze or if you only eat at McDonalds you only pay for McDonalds or if you want to live posh or cheap you decide and you pay when you make the deal.
Housing is in apartments in the city. You find your apartments on Craigslist. You make the deal for yourself. You can rent a room in an apartment with people from Montréal or you can find classmates who want to go in and share. We've never had ANY trouble with this method. It is easy. People in Canada don't like lawyers and don't use them to solve their problems like we do. We have signed over 30 leases over the last five years and ALL of them have had not one problem. It is all student to student exchange done via email just before or after Spring Break. The only thing you may find tough about these arrangements is that some people may snore, others may stink, others may be angry drunks. That is the case in any program.
Academically, the program will be run and taught by Brian Rex, who has run the MTL program for 6 years now, and Kentaro Tsubaki, who will run the program after this final year of Rexness. The courses will be: ARCH4601 (Urban Design Studio) and ARCH4000 (Architecture Elective).
Everyone who has gone to the city in the last five years has gotten a bicycle to get around on. We see so much by using a bike. Cycling is not required nor is it something that we expect of you but it does seem to be the best way around. Some of the clumsiest and most unbikey people have found themselves expert pedlers when they finish.
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