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BlogStaff Spotlight: Kanae on Discovering New Dishes, New Habits and New Hobbies in Montreal

Staff Spotlight: Kanae on Discovering New Dishes, New Habits and New Hobbies in Montreal

Written by E-QIP123 on March 12, 2020

As a language school based in the (unofficially) bilingual city of Montreal, E-QIP is, naturally, host to people from all around the globe—and it’s not just students that we welcome from abroad. 

The diverse team that runs E-QIP includes a mix of newcomers to the city, temporary transplants and those who’ve called Montreal home for most or all of their lives, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. 

Many newcomers join E-QIP’s team as interns, like Kanae, who has been interning at the school for several months. Originally from Tokyo, Japan, Kanae (who also spent time in Thailand as a teenager) has been in Montreal for roughly a year and a half, and, like many of our interns, first got to know the school as a student—in Kanae’s case, in the French department, although she’s also studied English in the past. 

“Using English at E-QIP every day helped me to get used to using spoken language in an English speaking environment,” Kanae says. “I think I feel more confident when I speak English than I was.”

Here, Kanae shares some of her favourite Montreal experiences, finds and flavours, as well as her advice for language students of all levels—plus her advice for using Netflix to practice your target language! 

What is your favourite thing about working at E-QIP?
I like the people at E-QIP. They are always very nice and supportive, especially when I’m struggling with languages, as I am not a fluent English speaker and I’m also a French beginner. 

What makes E-QIP different from other languages schools?
E-QIP, in my opinion, is a very "student first" school. We are offering several types of learning courses to suit every single student, and also several activities, not just studying in a classroom but going outside to have real communication with friends and local people. I think E-QIP provides exactly what students need: to learn language from their perspective.

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What's on your bucket list?
I want to be able to speak fluent English and French. I wish to help people in Japan who are struggling with language, as I am in the same situation now.

Have you picked up any new interests or hobbies since coming to Montreal?
I’m now interested in ice fishing and dog sledding which I rarely can do in Japan. I also like to go the marché, where I can find the local food culture.

Do you have any favourite dishes that you've tried here in Montreal, or any new favourite foods that you've discovered?
I like poutine, smoked meat sandwiches and bagels, of course. I also like bloody caesars, which I had never tried before I came here, and which is a famous cocktail in Canada, and I like to go to local breweries, too. Also, I didn’t have any habit of going to brunch with my friends when I was in Japan, but there’s much more of a brunch culture here, so I like to explore some restaurants to try the brunch menus. 

In your opinion, what is the importance of language learning for adults?
In my opinion, there are three things: 1. Do what you like in the language you want to learn; 2. Keep having curiosity; 3.Keep learning and use what you learn.

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Language Learning With Netflix: Kanae’s Advice
When I watch movies or dramas on Netflix, I watch them with Japanese subtitles first to help to understand the story clearly, then I watch with English subtitles to know how they speak. I sometimes take notes for vocabulary or phrasal verbs I hear for the first time. There are so many Youtube channels to help people studying English. Some of them are living abroad and show how they speak English in daily life and some of them are teaching pronunciation or explaining English expressions by using Netflix content. I try to learn from them and use it in daily life here.

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