The Cosmopolitan Blog

I’ve been searching for other “cosmopolitan” related blogs, and so far, i hadn’t had much success, i found the twist on cosmopolitanism a little disturbing on so many blogs, very “agenda-pushing”. But Juan at Global Culture takes his globalization efforts very seriously, and they are extremely commendable. I’ve subscribed to his feed and will report back when i get a chance to read more about his blog.

In the meantime, he reports here on the top 10 most liveable cities, with criteria such as infrastructure, airport, crime, education and health. Munich in Germany is no1, which, having been there for a few days, makes a lot of sense (but I wasn’t there long enough to be able to critically comment on this).

The good news is that Montreal is no12. At first, i was surprised that it wasn’t in the top 10, but now that i think about the criteria, which seems very fair to me, i realize that there is a lot that we can do to improve… yes, for sure, repairing our highways come to mind (anyone living here will know what i mean, with the trouble we’ve had lately), but i was thinking more along the lines of a switch in mindset which i wish most fervently for this city. I can’t imagine that Montrealers wouldn’t want to become a city with an even greater cosmopolitan reputation, but i fear that they don’t understand what this involves and why the city’s growth is stunted right now… I mean, we could have the speediest and most efficient healthcare system (I wish) and the world’s most pleasant airport, but until english-speaking tourists don’t feel like they’re been frowned upon for speaking English (yes, i was in Old Montreal the other day, and saw how a frowning Tim Horton’s waitress spoke rudely to my english-speaking cousin until I spoke French and watched her whole attitude change) or laughed at for attempting to speak French (i never knew the true meaning of “condescending” until i came here)

Francophones need to be proud of the culture of Quebec, but not in an arrogant insecure way of feeling they need to impose it on each and every individual. Anglophones need to shut up and listen a little more and start appreciating the francophone culture for what it is and understand that it’s the francophone element that makes this city truly unique, so they should stop trying to make it resemble the rest of Canada, it doesn’t, and that’s a great thing. I realize i’m going on a tangent here but i wanted to point out that i am still waiting (yes, open invitation here) for a francophone separatist to sit down with me and explain to me clearly how Quebec as an independant country would work, and i mean, i want facts, figures, economic plan, and no emotional propaganda about how it’s all about the culture. Aaaah, now i remember why i use a pseudo, the joys of anonymity (not an invitation to out me, i’m pretty sure it’s not that hard to find out my real name).

Ok, back from my tangent… Congrats Montreal for being no12. This is an amazing city. Most of the time, whether you’re a tourist or a resident (francophone or anglophone), Montreal is one of the most pleasant cities to be in, for it’s culture (museums, theaters, yearly opera subscriptions that are affordable for everyone), for it’s social aspect, restaurants, bars, nightlife, green parcs, water sports… Now, if anyone’s interested, why not try to make the top 10 next year?