I think I have actually heard « tire-toi une bûche » before! But it was as a child, visiting our annual Fête du Voyageur historical re-enactment, and certainly not in any normal day-to-day setting. I’m just happy that an American author (who quite likely has never been to Montreal), writing for an overwhelmingly-American audience, recognized that we have separate cultures in the first place. Meanwhile, one thing I haven’t seen mentioned anywhere yet is ArriveCAN[1] and/or eTAs[2]. If you’re trying to enter Canada right now you must use the ArriveCAN system before you get to the border, or you’ll likely be denied entry. That means doing it before you get on the plane, not after you land. Anyone entering Canada using a Canadian or American passport should not need an eTA (Electronic Travel Authorization, sort of an e-visa), but pretty much everyone else does (e.g. passports from Mexico or anywhere in the Caribbean, in this case). Absolutely check this out for yourself, links are below, I am not guaranteeing in any way the accuracy, nor the durability, of what I’ve written here. References: [1] COVID-19: Use ArriveCAN to enter Canada - Canada.ca<https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19/arrivecan.html> [2] Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) - Canada.ca<https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/visit-canada/eta.html> General info: Visit Canada - Canada.ca<https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/visit-canada.html?outside> Official landing page: Welcome / Bienvenue | Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada / Affaires Étrangères, Commerce et Développement Canada (canadainternational.gc.ca)<https://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/> I already wrote all of this up for a conference based in Ottawa, that sees a large qty. of int’l visitors from around the world: BSDCan 2022 - Travel<https://www.bsdcan.org/2022/travel.php#mozTocId145341> Travelers from the US generally don’t have the kind of issues at customs I’ve described there. -Adam P.S. ArriveCAN is a pain to Canadians, too, I can’t just pop across the border for shopping trips whenever I want any more without planning for it in advance. Yeah, I know, first-world problems… Adam Thompson Consultant, Infrastructure Services [MERLIN] 100 - 135 Innovation Drive Winnipeg, MB R3T 6A8 (204) 977-6824 or 1-800-430-6404 (MB only) https://www.merlin.mb.ca<https://www.merlin.mb.ca/> [cid:image002.png@01D8614A.053D7EA0]Chat with me on Teams<https://teams.microsoft.com/l/chat/0/0?users=athompson@merlin.mb.ca> From: NANOG <nanog-bounces+athompson=merlin.mb.ca@nanog.org> On Behalf Of J EMail Sent: Friday, May 6, 2022 8:00 AM To: Nanog News <news@nanog.org> Cc: nanog@nanog.org; nanog-announce@nanog.org Subject: Re: 10 Do's + Don'ts for Visiting Québec + Register Now for N85! On Thu, 5 May 2022 at 08:57, Nanog News <news@nanog.org<mailto:news@nanog.org>> wrote: 10 Do's + Don'ts for Visiting Québec NANOG 85 Meeting Will Take Place Jun. 6 - 8 in Montréal We are delighted to cross international borders in our mission to grow, inspire + profoundly build the Internet of tomorrow! Montréal is Canada's second-largest city and is known for its melting pot of diverse culture, established universities, enthralling art, food, history + festivals. It has been called one of the world's "happiest locations" as an estimated 45,000 immigrants relocate to the city every year. For those who don't call Québec home, we have prepared a list of cultural "Do's and Don'ts" to help you quickly acclimate + thrive in this foreign destination. READ MORE <https://www.nanog.org/stories/10-dos-dont-of-visting-québec/> I have lived ten minutes from Quebec and two hours from Montreal for a long time, I have never encountered either item 1 or item 2. Of course, there might be a place that won't take a credit card, but your credit card company will charge you a fee and be happy to use a terrible exchange rate as will restaurants if you pay in US cash. Consider getting cash from your bank account at an ATM at a bank once you land although there are fees there as well. If you are a TD bank customer, TD is a Canadian Bank and that will eliminate a fee. As for culture, smoked meat, bagels (they are different) and poutine should be on this list.

On 08/05/2022 15:28, Laura Smith via NANOG wrote:

but poutine most certainly is not. A culinary abomination that deserves to be confined to the history books.

It is but the refined variant of 'cheesy chips & [british] gravy' and no-one will convince me otherwise, especially at 3am following four hours of swearing, sweating and more swearing in a data centre. Poutine uber alles. -- Tom

Sun, May 08, 2022 at 02:28:56PM +0000, Laura Smith via NANOG:

On Friday, May 6th, 2022 at 13:59, J EMail <70ford500@gmail.com> wrote:

...

poutine should be on this list.

God no !  There are many great things about Canada and Québec .... but poutine most certainly is not. A culinary abomination that deserves to be confined to the history books.

The table linens were starchy white. The cutlery gleamed. The menus were sumptuous. My hosts and I, in one of the better restaurants in the Netherlands, pored over the abundance that was on offer. I made my choice, a straightforward one: a steak. "And how would you like that done, sir?" asked the somewhat severe waiter. "Well done," I replied. He looked blankly at me. "That is not possible," he said. "Choose something else. Fish, perhaps." Possibly the English accent was a give-away. At least he had taken one step back from "Fish and chips, perhaps." Herein lies one of the great realities on this earth, one that this pompous waiter and all too many in our world fail to grasp. Beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder. What is nectar to one palate may truly seem as poison to another. .... To each his or her own. And so in the world of food I dismay at the invariable sneer that accompanies the words "British food." It happens all too often here in the US, a nation that of course have the world such sophiscated dishes as peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and the hamburger. ... Dr. Charles Bamforth Beer Is Proof God Loves Us: Reaching for the Soul of Beer and Brewing

------- Original Message ------- On Sunday, May 8th, 2022 at 21:31, Stephen Fulton <sf@lists.esoteric.ca> wrote:

If you are not from Canada and do not speak French

I speak French, but the European one. I struggled to make myself understood because I was speaking with the "proper" accent and mannerisms (e.g. rolling of R's), both of which are brutally murdered by French Canadian speakers. So I switched to speaking English. Worked out well, and I never saw the "chip on shoulder" that Stephen alludes to (although I'm aware it exists, having been briefed by Canadian friends).

Definitely try the smoked meat sandwich I recommend asking for 'medium fat' used to visit Montreal frequently pre pandemic On Sun, May 8, 2022 at 9:22 PM Randy Bush <randy@psg.com> wrote:

once upon a time at an ietf in ville de québec, i was out to dinner with a crew of fellow researchers all french, well one belgian. i can usually read a french menu, but was having serious problems so sought help from my dinner companions. they were struggling with the same parts i was.

randy