Places to live in Sherbrooke, areas to avoid? I'm moving (apartments, neighborhoods)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm moving to Sherbrooke for school, and I need to start looking at apartments. I'd just like to know which areas of the city to avoid safety wise, both in regards to apartments as well as just places not to walk around.
I'd also like some recommendations on areas to look at. Are the apartments downtown (I'm not actually sure if this downtown Sherbrooke hah) safe? I'm referring to the area near the train station at the bottom of the hill?
I have a vehicle so I'm open to commuting a bit, but ideally something closer to Bishop's would be nice. It must be outside of Lennoxville though, as one of my main reasons for moving here is to practice speaking French.
Are there any areas concentrated with younger people? Maybe closer to the U of Sherbrooke? (I'm aware that this isn't very close to Bishop's though.)
My goal is to eventually live and work in Quebec after school, as I'm bilingual, but I still could use the practice. So with that in mind, could you also maybe recommend areas that are maybe more French concentrated, or would there not be many differences as long as I stay out of Lennoxville?
Thanks.
Edit, hah, also, what about jackets in the winter. Can I get by comfortably with a leather jacket and a hoodie underneath, or should I get a real winter jacket? I don't spend much time outdoors.
I should clarify that my price range is up to $500. By tracks I didn't mean quite that low, but instead more up the hill. It just seemed like a nice area being near a grocery store and downtown.
Living in Sherbrooke while attending BU isn't advisable. You're going to feel very isolated from the other students and may be kept out of the loop when it comes to parties and other things going on closer to campus. I understand you want to practuce your French but with a car you can venture into Sherbrooke anytime you want, plus you can take French classes.
By the way, Sherbrooke itself (besides Lennoxville) is almost entirely Francophone, so if you do decide to move there instead of Lennoxville you'll be surrounded by French. In terms of neighbourhoods, no "bad" area comes to mind. That's a judgement call that will be easy to make when you start looking at apartments.
In my opinion though, nothing beats living on campus. Your experience will be much more rewarding on many levels.
I see what you're saying, but to me it's an acceptable trade off given my goal of working in Quebec after school. I just can't risk not being perfectly fluent (I used to be) by the time I graduate (and ideally earlier so that I can get better summer placements). I don't think taking french classes would be enough, and I'd like to be in Sherbrooke so that I'm encouraged to develop a social circle within Sherbrooke and do my day to day stuff within it.
I'm also looking to spend as much time as possible interacting with the French population in Sherbrooke just so that I can get more practice, so I don't plan on spending as much time socializing with those that would speak in English. Obviously I will, and I'd like to given that they'll be the people at school, but my plan is to spend the overwhelming majority of my time socializing in French.
Thanks for the reply. It's nice to get another perspective.
Last edited by loudpipeswildcat; 12-05-2013 at 06:36 PM..
I see what you're saying, but to me it's an acceptable trade off given my goal of working in Quebec after school. I just can't risk not being perfectly fluent (I used to be) by the time I graduate (and ideally earlier so that I can get better summer placements). I don't think taking french classes would be enough, and I'd like to be in Sherbrooke so that I'm encouraged to develop a social circle within Sherbrooke and do my day to day stuff within it.
I'm also looking to spend as much time as possible interacting with the French population in Sherbrooke just so that I can get more practice, so I don't plan on spending as much time socializing with those that would speak in English. Obviously I will, and I'd like to given that they'll be the people at school, but my plan is to spend the overwhelming majority of my time socializing in French.
Thanks for the reply. It's nice to get another perspective.
I'm not up for the challenge considering how it might affect my GPA :P
Edit: That's a good idea though. I think I'll look in to taking a summer course there. At least to see where I am.
Can you recommend what you'd consider academic level articles in French (websites)? I'd just like to see how far I can get without having to run to a dictionary. I guess it's a good sign that I can't find such a site as yet haha :P
Thanks
Last edited by loudpipeswildcat; 12-05-2013 at 09:36 PM..
Note also that Lennoxville is not 100% anglophone either and 50% of the population or more there is francophone these days. So there will be opportunities to use French there as well, especially if you don't spend all of your time on the Bishop's campus.
Edit, hah, also, what about jackets in the winter. Can I get by comfortably with a leather jacket and a hoodie underneath, or should I get a real winter jacket? I don't spend much time outdoors.
I can't really advise you on specific neighborhoods but Sherbrooke is very safe. I love the north side of the city (around Domaine Howard) but that's not very convenient for Bishop's.
I'm not sure where you're from but a leather jacket and hoodie probably isn't enough. I'd get a real winter jacket
I'm not sure where you're from but a leather jacket and hoodie probably isn't enough. I'd get a real winter jacket
It's definitely not enough. OP, get a proper winter jacket and don't worry about fashion, get a poofy looking thing that will keep you warm. Get a good pair of thinsulate gloves with fingers on them (none of this mittens nonsense) and a warm tuque at the minimum. Own some sweaters to and maybe a pair of long john's. It doesn't matter if you don't plan to be outdoorsy, that's what you need for occasionally walking around, clearing ice off your car, and getting to school. Speaking of your car, you'll need windshield wiper fluid, an icescraper/brush and ideally some traction aids in case you get stuck in the snow. Be very careful when the first snows come, winter driving is a skill that needs to be learned and developed. Get a boots or shoe boots for the winter, running shoes are not acceptable footwear. If you did plan on spending lots of time outside doing winter activities, you would also want snowpants and a balaclava but since you don't these items are unnecessary.
It's definitely not enough. OP, get a proper winter jacket and don't worry about fashion, get a poofy looking thing that will keep you warm. Get a good pair of thinsulate gloves with fingers on them (none of this mittens nonsense) and a warm tuque at the minimum. Own some sweaters to and maybe a pair of long john's. It doesn't matter if you don't plan to be outdoorsy, that's what you need for occasionally walking around, clearing ice off your car, and getting to school. Speaking of your car, you'll need windshield wiper fluid, an icescraper/brush and ideally some traction aids in case you get stuck in the snow. Be very careful when the first snows come, winter driving is a skill that needs to be learned and developed. Get a boots or shoe boots for the winter, running shoes are not acceptable footwear. If you did plan on spending lots of time outside doing winter activities, you would also want snowpants and a balaclava but since you don't these items are unnecessary.
Oh yeah and winter tires are mandatory if you have Quebec plates on your car. From Dec. 15 to Mar. 15.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
