Merci, Maurice Richard

Just a warning... you'll be hearing a lot about what I learn (or don't learn) in school over the next few months!

One of my favourite classes this term is Aspects of French Canada - a course that takes a deep dive into understanding and appreciating Canada's francophone community and culture. We've looked at identity, language and so much more that really makes me wonder how the French language will be maintained in future decades in Quebec and in other areas in Canada.

I had to watch the movie "Maurice Richard" today for one of my assignments. I watched this movie a few years ago as a hockey fan, but this time I watched it from the perspective of a French student, examining the role of French hockey players in the NHL, a league and sport dominated by the Anglophone community. What did I get out of this movie? So much more than you would ever think and nothing related to hockey itself. I have more respect for one of Quebec's - and Canada's - greatest hockey players, Maurice Richard... I regret not knowing his impact on the sport and in the French community prior to this movie. Did you know that French hockey players faced discrimination in the league in its early days? Me neither. They were viewed as second class to the English players, coaches, general managers and NHL management just several decades ago. I felt like diving through the screen to defend Richard and all French players whenever a comment about their French identity was hurled on the ice. Case in point? Sean Avery's character, Ranger player Bob Dill smirked "Come here, damn Frenchman" to Richard to trigger an on-ice fight (...let's just say many hockey fans would enjoy watching this scene - around the 6:40 mark if you're not a fan).

So how does this affect us now? About a month ago, the city of Montreal were in a major uproar when the Habs replaced their head coach with a coach who speaks only English. This movie reminded me of why Habs fans reacted that way and I empathize with them... what a slap in the face to have an English coach after years of "progress", having French coaches behind the bench who can communicate with players, the media, and the fans and respected the French language and culture. While one could argue that Montreal is a bilingual city and the language of hockey is English, it's more so the history behind the make-up of the Montreal Canadiens management team and respect for the French community that one of the mandatory requirements of this coveted coaching position SHOULD be a solid grasp of both English and French.

My first hockey-related post isn't about the Maple Leafs... eek!! I promise this will change... go Leafs go :)

And the Oscar goes to...

One of the items on my bucket list this year is to watch all the films nominated for Best Picture (before or after the Academy Awards... in case you're wondering about the details I put into my lists). I've already seen two of these movies, both of which I thoroughly enjoyed and hope to see the rest soon and place my prediction! Who do you think will win for Best Picture this year?

This is how close Clooney was to me at TIFF... I was too excited.

• The Artist
• The Descendants - I saw The Descendants at last year's TIFF... my friend and I waited in line very early that Saturday morning to score seats at the Elgin/Winter Garden Theatre just to see George Clooney in this highly anticipated movie about a father reconnecting with his daughters after his wife passed away (she also had an affair while married to him, but that's another story). I found Clooney to be "very human" and realistic in this movie if that makes any sense. It was a very serious movie, but had the right balance of humour, making it easy for someone like myself to enjoy it. Oh, and I absolutely loved the Hawaiian scenery.
• Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close  
• The Help - I saw this movie after reading the book by the same name and I absolutely loved the plot and the message it was trying to convey. I actually teared up while reading the book and didn't think I would let out any tears while watching it in theatres, but surprisingly I did - even though I knew the ending. It was the right balance of humour and how racism dominates southern society. I thoroughly enjoyed Emma Stone's portrayal of Skeeter and am always one to root for the underdog. All together now... you is smart. you is kind. you is important.
• Hugo
• Midnight in Paris
• Moneyball
• The Tree of Life 
• War Horse

This was the scene as Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie pulled up for the TIFF premiere of Moneyball... so intense! Since my friend and I were volunteering that night, we couldn't check out the movie.

Hello world!

Times Square... how I started off the New Year!

My name is Yen. Je m'appelle Yen. Me llamo Yen. Now that you know I'm Yen, we're off to a good start! I have always wanted to create a personal blog, but never got around to it... until now. While heading to the Big Apple for New Year's about a month ago, I made a new bucket list of tasks I want to accomplish this year (I don't like to call them New Year's resolutions since I tend to break them within the first month!). One of the items is creating a blog to document my interests, my experiences, my thoughts... Et voila... that's how "the world through yen" came to be!

So you might be wondering what I'll be talking about (I'm actually curious myself...) but I have no plan in mind but hope to share what I'm learning/not learning in school, book and movie review, insights on current events, travels, how I manage to top 2011 (which was an awesome year by the way), random adventures and experiences... just whatever life has to throw my way!

Hope you join me on this adventure!