First Days of Class

Over the past two days I've attended my first classes.  As far as I can tell, my professors seem well-informed and approachable and the material explores my interests, so I'm quite happy.  My semester's central theme of study is the environment.  All of my classes relate back to this theme, they just approach it from different angles (economics, aboriginal peoples, societal interactions, critical issues, and Canadian policy). 

Once my classes for the day were finished, I headed over to a friend's apartment for a home-made dinner of portobello mushrooms stuffed with a mix of zucchini, tomato, onion, cheddar cheese, and balsamic vinegar...so good!  I also met some more awesome Mt. A students!  After dinner we all headed over to Mount Allison's First Class Bash concert featuring: The Colin Grant Band, The Danks, and headliner Classified. 

There were two main downsides to this event: 1) drunk frosh everywhere (yes, I am sad to say they behave the same in Canada as the U.S.) 2) because of foreboding forecasts the event was moved from being outdoors to indoors (in Convocation Hall of all places).  Still, I got an introduction to three very different styles of East Coast Canadian music, which is known for being very good.  My favorite was The Colin Grant Band, a really fun acoustic Celtic fusion group: http://www.myspace.com/colingrantmusic.  I wasn't crazy about The Danks, but apparently their indie/rock genre is more representative of the Sackville music scene, which is surprisingly well developed for a small town.  Finally came Classified, a well-known rapper from Nova Scotia whose song "The Maritimes" is especially popular in this area: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5qyDAkwhUk...look for the little down arrow and click on it to expand the window for the lyrics.  Here is a short glossary of key Maritime terms from the song:

Alexander Keith's - Nova Scotia brewery.

Donair (pronounced "dough-nair") - A Mediterranean-style pita-bread sandwich similar to a gyro, except that the meat is beef, not lamb.  Any restaurant that sells pizza likely sells donair too.  Basically, it is a pound of spiced beef, slathered in a sauce that's mostly cream and sugar, sprinkled with "the works" -- usually diced onion and tomato -- and wrapped in a big piece of pan-fried pita bread that's also been drenched in sauce for good measure.  

Mooseheads - a CHL ice hockey club in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League based out of Halifax, Nova Scotia.  Moosehead is also Canada's oldest independent brewery, crafting premium beers since 1867.

Bluenose - Nova Scotia boat, an enduring symbol of the Maritime spirit. 

Prince Edward Island potatoes - the Prince Edward Island potato has a flavor that is unique because of the Island's rich red soil.  They are supposedly excellent quality potatoes.