the newspaper University of Toronto’s independent community paper
Since 1978
Volume August
XL
Issue I 31st 2017
Masthead
Cover Alina Butt & Janna Crawford
The Most MeticulouslyPlanned Year of Your Life is Anything But insights on arbitrariness of
the newspaper University of Toronto’s independent student paper since 1978 Editor-In-Chief Alina Butt Managing Editor Natalia Herran Senior Copy Editor Rebecca Gao Business Manager Kelly Chan Public Relations Coordinator Gabbi Gard Design Editor Rel Ryann Visual Content Editor Noah Kahansky Web Editor Adam El-Masri Comment Editor Maxim Basu Music Editor Chantel Ouellet Arts Editor Joyce Wong Mascots Honeybee, Flora and Fauna, Miguel and Paco Contributors Maxim Basu, Alina Butt, Janna Crawford, Benjamin de Boer, Ted Fraser, Rebecca Gao, Samantha Hazard, Chantel Ouellet, Barbod Pournajar, Jaime Redford, Rel Ryann, Joyce Wong
All U of T community members, including students, alumni, faculty, and staff are encouraged to contribute! the newspaper is published by Planet Publications Inc., a non-profit corporation
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the newspaper turns 40 and a mid-life crisis ensues. by the newspaper staff
Dear reader, You are stumbling across the newspaper in the midst of its midlife crisis. Having recently turned 40, it can be found lying crumpled and yellowed with age on a curb after a long night on the stands with only two or three pairs of hands having passed over its waiting and willing pages. But that’s really all it needs, and if you’re willing to help take care of it, we’d love to have you! Here’s a list of open positions waiting to be filled…
Distribution Coordinator News Editor Online Editor Design Editors Copy Editors ... and contributors of all kinds!
your first-year experience
by Ted Fraser
Stumbling through the door on move-in day, you lay your eyes on an equally dishevelled figure unpacking his bags. Meet your roommate. After rolling the dice with the University of Toronto’s notoriously eccentric student body, it looks as though your ballsy gamble has paid off. He doesn’t call Toronto “the 6ix,” nor does he look like a complete serial killer—you’ve lucked out. After a brief introduction and a sigh of relief, you unload your binders, sticky notes, planners, books and calendars—anything to lessen stress and improve organization. However, first year is anything but controllable. It’s a year dominated not by thought-out decisions and common-sensical outcomes, but by chance events and murky, subconsciously-led randomness. Lifelong friends are determined by dormroom algorithms, favorite professors by the width of their jaw and grades by the font on a worksheet. Back to your roommate. He and the other possiblylifelong friends you’ll meet in first year came about not because of fate or charm, but proximity. Consider this study: in the late 1940s, a university housing complex was set up in response to the tsunami of war veterans returning to the U.S. Located near M.I.T., the Westgate complex housed hundreds of students and their families. A team of opportunistic psychologists saw this as fertile ground for a relationship-grounded study, and initiated a research project. They found 60 per cent of residents cited their best friend as someone three doors away or fewer. Only four per cent had a best friend living four doors away or more. They found the most popular residents were those located near a high-traffic area, like the stairs, elevator or washroom. Why? Familiarity breeds attraction. The more you see someone—even just catching a glimpse of the side of their head—the more you’re attracted to them. Consider this supporting study: a psychology professor hired three women to sit in on his 100-person lecture. Woman A went five times, Woman B went 10 times and Woman C went 15 times. All they did was sit down and blend in with the other bored undergrads. At the end of the semester, the prof showed the class pictures of the women and asked them to grade their familiarity and attractiveness. Woman C ranked first in both categories and Woman A ranked last in both.
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Lifelong friends are determined by dormroom algorithms, favorite professors by the width of their jaw and grades by the font on a worksheet.
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the help
Tales from the Frontline
Conquering depression as a student by Barbod Pournajar
There are many ways to describe what depression feels like. It has been described to me by friends as being a pit, a cavernous hole of darkness into which something pulls you deeper and deeper. As an incoming student, you ought to know that you will have this feeling once—the feeling of being overwhelmed. by Joyce Wong
The same phenomenon will penetrate your social circle. Sitting at the front of the class and absentmindedly turning around may scare a few, but in time it will nurture a subtle, class-wide affection for you. Say you’re in that aforementioned psychology class, and your friend (from a few doors down, of course) asks you how you like it and how you’re doing in terms of grades. “The professor’s kind of a grouch, but smart enough, I guess. I’m getting decent-ish grades, too.” Let’s dissect that statement. Despite being the gaudy, stringent institution that it is, university is plagued by the same arbitrariness that’s present in relationships. People with long noses are seen as more intelligent, while those with circular faces are seen as gentler and kinder. You internalize this Pinocchio-looking prof and regard him as more intelligent. His ‘grouchiness’ could be genuine, but it could result from having a non-circular face. And your grades? You and Pinocchio both influence them, but so does Microsoft Word. Varsity Blues live and die by the pen. The majority of students attach their self-worth to marks, scholarships and GPA. Hours of tutoring, hundreds of coffees, thousands of dollars. But, once again, factors that tiptoe around our conscious state-ofmind are in play. A class was unknowingly split into two groups. Group A received every handout in a suitably sized, easy-to-read font. Group B received every handout in Comic Sans and a very small font. The cursed Group B fared better on tests and the exam. They had to strain to understand the worksheets. The students focused harder, and the information was ingrained deeper than the privileged Times New Roman-users of Group A. It’s easy to account for the anxious, foreign rush of university life by revving up organization and planning, but don’t fall victim to the trip-wired logic of Organization First. Far from smooth sailing, your Freshman Journey is one plagued by submarined factors including noses, doorways and even Comic Sans.
You’re going to wake up one morning and everything is going to feel heavier. Your backpack is going to burn into your shoulders, your legs will drag and your mind will wander to a thousand different destinations, never settling. I’m now entering my fourth year of university, but merely two years ago, I felt this pull. It’s hard to describe what it felt like, because no words, arranged in any order, will be able to aptly capture how it felt. The only way I have attempted to describe it is as though you are lost at sea and in the faint horizon, you can see the shoreline. Beautiful green trees, brown peaks sticking out above the waves and you keep on swimming as best you can towards the shore— towards safety. But something pulls you under. You put off your school work and say it isn’t important, or that it can wait, or that you’ll get to it. The stress adds up and eventually, the house of cards comes crashing down. You start alienating yourself from your friends and significant other, and you meander through the school year in a cocktail of self-loathing and self-pity. But remember that university is physical as much as it is mental. You’re going to spend many hours hunched over in the dark, dank libraries of the University of Toronto. Whether it be the behemoth that is Robarts, the sleek Bora Laskin Law Library or perhaps Gerstein Science Laboratories—wherever you may be huddled over the
blue glow of your laptop or a stack of books, it’s going to take a toll on your body. And if your body doesn’t feel good, then how do you expect your mind to feel good? Therefore, to keep your mind healthy, we’re going to have to keep your body healthy.
So first, get out of your mind and into your body. Often times the depression that I had was mental, meaning it was built up in my head. Small situations would be built up into some gigantic monolith in my head, an immovable rock that I could not push. What helped me overcome this mental blockade was rigorous exercise first thing in the morning. I know it’s going to be hard getting up early in the morning when it’s cold outside and your bed is warm, but what’s worse: slipping into a depressive episode that you might not be able to get out of, or spending 30 minutes to 45 minutes sweating? The short term will feel dreadful, but in the long term you’re going to have a stronger, more resilient mind.
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organization system that fit my needs.
Fourth, eat well. Being a university student means you’re going to eat some less-than-good food, often coming in the forms of burgers, fries and other foods that are not optimal for maximum brain function. Junk food is going to make you feel like junk, and sometimes it is going to be an outlet for your anxiety or depression. But, if you eat well you are going to feel good. A study done by the United States Library of Medicine and National Institute of Health found that individuals who consume more fruits and vegetables will, on average, be happier individuals. So, eat well. For an easy fix of vegetables, visit the Howard Ferguson Dining Hall for lunch. They have an extensive salad bar that charges $1.50 per 100g of vegetables, and you can easily get a ton of fresh veggies at a great, studentfriendly price.
Second, get out of your mind and onto paper.
Fifth, discipline equals freedom.
Write about how you feel, and if you’re self conscious about writing, then remember: only you are going to read it. The things you will write in this journal are for your eyes only, so pour out your soul onto the page. This doesn’t have to be a novella or several paragraphs— just jot down how you feel and why you think you feel that way. If there’s a nagging thought in your head, write it down. Now it doesn’t have to be in your head anymore, and it goes from being out there in the ether into something tangible, something you can grapple with and defeat.
This saying was introduced to me by ex-Navy Seal and all-around badass Jocko Willink. If you have the discipline to get up in the morning, put in the effort to exercise, organize your day and smash your tasks, then you’re going to have mental, physical and spiritual freedom.
If you can’t get started or if you feel like the words are hard to put on paper, then put the pen down and think. Remember, I’m not asking you to write a book, just jot down how you feel. That’s more than enough to get the ball rolling.
Third, organize. Your mind is a complex web of interwoven thoughts that seem sporadic and often times erratic. To add onto the stress of remembering homework, lectures, assignments and all the other responsibilities a student has will only make your life more erratic and unstable. Organize everything. Use whatever method you like to organize your thoughts and your days. I personally used the Bullet Journal Method and the Five-Minute Journal (both of which can be found online). There are many tools at your disposal: whiteboards, calendars, post-its and notifications. However, I later developed my own
I’m going to have to admit that these solutions are superficial and are based on my own experiences with combatting depression. Sometimes depression can’t be fixed by simple exercise. Sometimes you don’t know why you’re depressed. I certainly didn’t know why I was depressed until I talked to someone. As a University of Toronto student, you are immensely lucky to have institutions that are designed to help you combat depression and greater mental health issues. If you do feel depressed or anxious during the school year, you can visit the Health and Wellness Centre’s website, where all information pertaining to workshops and services are available. I hope that all you incoming first year students— and upper year students—have a great year, and I hope that if you do feel down or depressed you’ll remember these words. Get up, dust yourselves off and get after it.
I use a three-step method for organization: First, I sit down on Sunday night and write down all the tasks, events and goals I have for the upcoming week. Second, I organize these into three different categories defined by coloured post-it notes (pink for tasks, green for events, red for goals), and I place it on my whiteboard. My whiteboard is divided into three rows, where each row stands for one day out of that upcoming week. This way I can compartmentalize the whole week into the first three days, and after those three days are done I can review what tasks were completed and not completed and recalibrate for the second half of the week. Third, when I complete a task, I rip that post-it note and stack them together. After ‘x’ number of tasks have been completed, I reward myself with the dirty things in life: pizza, alcohol and endless episodes of The Office. Illustration by Rel Ryann
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the city
the cookbook Sailor’s Pasta (Macaroni-po-Flotski) Enjoy this easy-to-make pasta dish that is originally from the USSR. It’s cheap and delicious!
brief on psychogeography
Ingredients • Pasta • Lean ground beef • Tomato sauce • Fried onions (cut about 2 large ones) Optional: Spices, salt, pepper, herbs, cheese
a tactic for dis- and re- orientation by Benjamin de Boer
AXIOM Cities have always been confusing places to live. The natural landscape is left distorted by a built environment informed by social and political norms. Urban environments are not merely arenas where social struggle takes place, but places by which each player in a conflict attempts to better the other. As such, the landscape can be considered an important aspect of the practice of power. A critique of said landscape is a critique of the extension of power itself. This is true at all levels of life, from the terrifying operations of the nation-state to the individual paranoia of the lonely student.
Gloss a) From 1953 to 1960 the social revolutionary group Situationist International developed Unitary Urbanism as a critique of their contemporary urban environment. Not only were the cities themselves targets of critique, but so were other urban theorists of that period. The critical engagements by structuralists fell short of providing revolutionary insight to individuals on a relatable, everyday level. To overcome these shortcomings, such as relying too heavily on universalizing models and concrete theorems, the Situationists developed a tactic called psychogeography. This strategy deploys the individual as an agent, capable of using the simple embodied practice of the “derive,” which means drift, in order to re-situate oneself in their urban environments. This approach to geography emphasizes the individual’s own understanding and awareness of place and encourages playfully engaging with the surrounding environment. Briefly put, the drift can be taken quite literally. Let the body and mind uncouple from the rigidity of routine, the violence of fixity. Let yourself float, wandering through this luminous, whirring machine nerve centre of culture and capital.
Gloss b) On the theory end of this, experiments in derive contributed to spatial and urban theory by showing the growing fragmentation of the city and the undoing of its dynamic, organic power under fierce subordination by capitalism and spectacularized mass media. By providing a curiously innovative synchronic account of the historical process of a disappearing socio-structural harmony, psychogeography was a way to engage with one’s urban environment in a creative way that went beyond critique by developing a methodology to combat this change.
Gloss c) But what does this have to do with the vulnerable student body, tired of abstract theory and transplanted into a new spatialized political cadaver? Despite being very quick and conceptual so far, this discussion will hopefully show how it basically has everything to do with our position as vulnerable forms of life. Toronto is a magnificent sphere of inclusivity, but it still resists our collective desire for comfort in the form of friendship and confidence. Beyond the intellectual fear of global political discord, there is a much more personal fear of being lost, being unwelcome and generally being unfamiliar with-and-to the city. Psychogeography’s historical use has shown us why it is helpful, but more importantly supplies the canon of tactics that can be developed, meaning how this fear is to be overcome by letting friendship and belonging bloom like a strawberry bush, a tumbleweed, an algae. But I digress—let’s now take a look at some fun methods to creatively throw oneself into the city to overcome the anxiety of dis-orientation by further dis-orienting ourselves.
Flexi-syllabus of drifting strategies: Algorithmic Walking Pick a starting position—it can be arbitrary or intimately connected with the self. Choose a function to follow and a movement to apply this to. This could be the movement of your body or a duration of time. Follow this function as such—let your movement through the city be guided by parameters of your own design, not elements entirely out of your control such as deadlines or efficiency’s sake. Examples include first-right-second-left, a spiral, or walk north for 26 minutes.
ition of your house there with your house here. If that doesn’t work, try some other place you have an attachment to such as a school or library. Use your familiarity with your hometown and its map as a device to extend your familiarity over your current situation. An uncommon, coincidental similarity between these two places will foster a silly engagement with your new home, stirring up old memories and creating new ones. The ghost of your past will haunt your future confidence over this city. Hui-clos There are lots of dead ends and short-stops in Toronto. Oftentimes, these alcoves have a unique stillness to them because they don’t receive a lot of continuous traffic. Fight the commuter rush through impracticality. Let your body wander down a pointless road and then have to turn back up, wasting time and energy for the sake of exploration. Urban Acupuncture Ever feel inexplicably uneasy in certain spots around the city? We sometimes know why, but other times massaging out the cause of said impulse takes a while. There are stressful points around the body of the city just as there are across all our freaked-out, overworked, exquisite corpses. Make note of these places and open yourself up to the comfort levels of others. Understand that certain peoples’ feelings of unease in the present are motivated by past traumas that you may not have any understanding of, or might not even be able to understand. Still, discuss issues you have with streets, crosswalks, corridors, classrooms and all the people in them. The act of fostering selfaware engagement is often a perfect starting point for larger societal therapy. Think of ways in which positive change might be enacted through your immediate surroundings!
Conclusion
Route S&M This is similar to algorithmic walking strategies, but with variable flexibility. This has less to do with ascribing limits on what your body does regardless of your environment and focuses more on being choosy over the environment. Try taking only alleyways one day, or forcing yourself to find new unconventional or even inefficient routes between a common A-to-B priority. Place Translation A friend of mine once told me how subjective translation is. It is more of a personal process than one of scientific overcoding. In translation we find trance-elation, a heightened state of awareness akin to meditation. To achieve a place trance-elation, try printing off a map of your hometown and superimpose the pos-
Method 1. I didn’t provide proportions because it’s not that important! Make as much as you want. Open up your package of ground beef. Place it into the saucepan, stirring on medium heat. Do that until the meat gives off juice and begins to boil. This takes about 10 minutes. Turn the temperature to low heat and continue to stir. You will do this for around 45 minutes. 2. In a different saucepan, fry the sliced onions. Then, add the onions to the meat. 3. Pour your desired quantity of tomato paste onto the meat. Always stir. 4. Add your spices—salt, pepper, preferably coriander and oregano. 5. In a separate bowl, cook the pasta. 6. When the 45 minutes are up, turn off the temperature. You’re done! Place your desired amount of pasta onto a plate and mix the meat with the pasta. Add herbs and cheese.
These walks can be used as haecceities, an event without clear comparison, beginning or end—queer engagements, if you will. They are somehow in space by feeling out of time, resistant to time’s instrumentalization. They defy the dominant view of optimizing our lives within a built environment conceived in order to put us to work. Do not be afraid of exploring, of engaging with our shared built environment. Like the weather, the city impacts all living within it, yet it affects us in different ways. Celebrate these differences. Explode outwards into new unforeseen directions. Walk with strangers and invite others to explore our common home on the sidewalk.
If anyone wants to go on weird walks, • •
follow and DM @tenderentropy on Instagram. for a reference sheet, get in touch at benjamindeboer3@gmail.com.
Sweet and Sour Chicken This delicious recipe is courtesy of some website I can’t remember. It serves four—leftovers are everything. Ingredients • Half of an 8 oz can of pineapple chunks (save the juice) • 3 tbsp cornstarch • 1 1/2 cup and 2 tbsp water, divided • 1/4 cup and 2 tbsp white sugar • 1/4 cup white vinegar • 4 boneless chicken breasts (cut into one-inch cubes) • 1 cup and 2 tbsp self-rising flour (or all-purpose flour mixed with 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder and 1/2 tsp of salt) • 1 tbsp vegetable oil • 1/4 tsp salt • 1/8 tsp ground pepper • Half of an egg (just beat it and use half of the mixture) • Vegetable oil (for frying) • Rice and any vegetables of your choice Optional: A drop of orange food coloring Method 1. In a saucepan, combine 3/4 cup of water, sugar, vinegar, the pineapple juice and the food colouring. Heat until it boils then turn off the heat. In a small bowl, mix 2 tbsp cornstarch and 2 tbsp of water together. Then, stir the mixture into the saucepan until the sauce thickens. 2. For the batter, combine the flour, 1 tbsp of oil, 1 tbsp of cornstarch, salt, pepper and egg. Gradually add in 3/4 cup of water and mix. Coat the chicken in the batter. 3. Heat up the vegetable oil for frying in a wok or deep saucepan. Fill it with oil enough to submerge the chicken completely. Fry the batter-coated chicken for 10 minutes or until they are golden brown. 4. Serve chicken, pineapple chunks and your choice of veggies over rice and pour the sweet & sour sauce over top. Enjoy.
Vegetarian Quesadillas I won’t claim that these are authentic, but they’re definitely cheap, hella tasty and make plenty of servings depending on how much you stuff your ‘dillas. Ingredients • 2 tbsp oil • 1 pack of large tortillas • 1 large red onion, diced • 2 green and/or red peppers, chopped • 3 cups of spinach, rinsed and chopped • 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed • 1 tsp cumin • 1 tsp oregano • Shredded or cream cheese (or any dairy-free substitute, if you swing that way) • Salt and pepper Optional: Avocado(s), cilantro, salsa, lime juice Method 1. Add oil, onion and peppers with a pinch of salt in a large, deep skillet over medium-low heat. Sauté for 15 minutes until softened and translucent. 2. Mix in black beans, cumin and oregano. Continue cooking for five minutes. 3. Add spinach and continue cooking for a few minutes until spinach wilts. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat. 4. Place one tortilla in a large, shallow pan that has been lightly oiled over medium heat. 5. Spread out about one-fourth of a cup of cheese on top of the tortilla (or if you’re using cream cheese, spread it on the tortilla before placing it in the pan). 6. On half of the tortilla, place some of the bean/ veggie filling and any of the extras (avocado, cilantro, salsa, lime juice). 7. Using a spatula, flip the empty side of the tortilla over the side with filling. Cook for about five minutes, then flip and repeat. 8. Slide it out of the pan and onto a plate. Cut it in half. Devour it. 9. If you’re eating alone (like I always am), put any leftover filling or quesadillas in a tupperware container to save for later. ¡Buen provecho!
the student’s cookbook simple and sweet recipes to get you through the year by Maxim Basu, Samantha Hazard and Rel Ryann
Collage by Jaime Redford
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the travel
the music
NEED A PLACE TO VISIT AFTER UNDERGRAD?
VISIT GREECE.
Not your average economically-depraved nation destroyed by the EU. by Maxim Basu
... if you still have the urge to backpack across Europe and other Continents (after visiting Greece, of course), our team at the newspaper put together a list of the most popular routes to take (courtesy of StudentUniverse Travel):
London to Amsterdam In this spectacular train journey, you’d visit: London, Paris, Rome, Florence, Munich and Amsterdam, all in the span of 14 days.
Rome to Amsterdam The next popular package is 23 days long and it utilizes train, bus and metro. It’s well-suited for travellers wanting to see Eastern Europe, as you’d visit Krakow and Prague as you make your way through Italy, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
London to Istanbul This plan utilizes the train through Central Europe en route to the Middle East. In 25 days, you’d visit: London, Paris, Zermatt, Vienna, Bucharest, Sofia and Istanbul.
Auckland to Wellington I know, this isn’t Europe. However, this seven-day trip is one of the most popular in the world. The lineup has tourists make their way through New Zealand by private bus and visiting: Auckland, Raglan, Lake Taupo national parks and Wellington. The most conscientious backpackers usually spend around $70-100 per day in Western Europe and $40-70 per day in Eastern Europe. Traditionally, hostels offer backpackers the cheapest accommodations. In London, Paris and Amsterdam, hostel prices range from $20-45 per night. HostelWorld.com is a great booking site to start your search, but don’t forget to visit Airbnb.com to see if any rental apartments are available too! Lastly, CouchSurfing.com is a popular and free way to travel throughout Europe.
On a warm summer day this summer, I was sitting in my backyard, sipping coffee and scrolling through social media. Like so many of us, I was comparing my life to everyone else’s. Then, I experienced a terrible feeling that teenagers nowadays refer to as FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). Some of the people I went to high school with were posting amazing pictures of themselves backpacking across Europe. They were visiting so many countries! Their Instagram accounts were flooded with pictures of France, Ireland and Scotland. I was “genuinely happy” for them. If I had the chance to go to Europe, I’d go to Greece. Surrounded by four magnificent seas, the nation is made up of hundreds of islands, clear water and sandy beaches. The people are known for their friendliness and hospitality, and the nation offers an incredible ancient culture, diverse food options and stunning landscapes. The flight time from Toronto is approximately 10 hours, and a round-trip will cost you about $1,200. The best time to visit Greece is during Spring Break or after August—that’s when all of the tourists are usually gone, it’s not that hot outside (during peak heat season in July it gets to over 45 degrees Celsius!) and Greek people celebrate many of their festivals, such as Ancient Olympia, in the fall. Some of you might have reservations about Greece. I know, you think that the nation is facing an economic disaster and right-wing nationalism is taking over the country. The GDP is down by 13 per cent since 2008, it’s likely to fall another seven per cent this year and everyone’s jobless. However, the economic state of the nation should actually be a motivating factor for tourists like you and me. Compared to other financially ruined nations such as Portugal and Spain, which attract millions of tourists, Greece gets approximately 25 per cent less tourists annually. By going there, you’d be helping the local economy, thus performing a public service. If you look past all the bad stuff, you’ll see that Greece is the perfect place for a 20-somethingyear-old: everything’s cheap, there’s a ton of history and the night-life is amazing. Food and local attractions are a bargain: check out the Acropolis of Athens, a temple dedicated to the Gods built in the 5th century BCE. After that, take a selfie with your friends by the Parthenon, Athens’ defining landmark. My favourite museum by far is the National Archaeological Museum of Athens—all of the monuments of Olympia are stunning. Definitely see all of the touristy stuff and museums; however, don’t be a complete n00b. If you’re there, it should be go time. I’d visit all of the craziest places, and you should too! Definitely choose to stay at The Pink Palace in Corfu. Painted fully in pink and situated by the sea, this magnificent building is infamous for its
parties and drinking. The hostel has a ‘booze cruise’ event in which the majority of party-goers dance naked and play drinking games. Additionally, weekly toga parties, happy hours and theme nights in which you can dress up as characters from Greek mythology attract thousands of tourists annually. The Pink Palace has received universally positive reviews on TripAdvisor. Users describe it as “the best place by far!” having a “pretty sweet complimentary dinner plan.” Beds are “amazing with fluffy pillows.” Indeed, the hostel has over 300 beds and there’s a good chance you might not end up in yours. Just saying... I like concerts and history, and I bet you do too—lucky for us, Athens has combined our interests into the perfect stadium: the Technopolis. Situated in a refurbished natural gas plant in the city’s former gasworks and dedicated to a Greek composer by the name of Manos Hatzidakis, the building has been a major cultural and entertainment venue since 1999. The stadium has a 19th century feel to it and it feels amazing being there. Who wouldn’t want to feel like a factory worker during the Industrial Revolution? The Technopolis holds annual concerts, live events and is also home to a museum. Before going, check the venue’s events calendar—there’s a good chance your favourite European band is playing there! The Drunk Sinatra bar is definitely on my list for the night. Go back a few decades by listening to soul and jazz music in this downtown bistro of Athens while gazing at a giant photo of Frank Sinatra. How cool is that? During the 1960s, Frank Sinatra had a major following in Greece, especially after his 1962 concert in Athens. At the time, his style of jazz and blues captured the imaginations of central and southern Europeans with songs such as “Fly Me to the Moon” and “New York, New York” becoming known by many people. Americanism came to characterize change and hope—a desire for a better tomorrow. The spirit of Sinatra looms at the bar (not literally). Breakfast, brunch and dinner are all served here as you go back in time. Lastly, on your way back to Toronto, do not forget to visit Astir Beach. Located in Glyfada, the beach is one of the most popular in the world. At this beautiful seaside destination, the aesthetic harmony of the blue sea surrounded by the green leaves of the palm and olive trees are sure to catch your eye. With no shortages of picnic areas, cocktails and world-class DJs, you’ll feel like you’re on top of the world. The beach is open year-round, 24/7. Greece is a neat place, with boundless attractions and opportunities. Get a group of your friends (first make some at U of T, which is hard to do), save some money and once you’re done your undergrad career, go to Greece. You won’t regret it!
How I Learned To Just Love Popular Music, Goddammit Or, the time I went to a Shawn Mendes concert and genuinely enjoyed it by Rebecca Gao
Like many great stories, my Shawn Mendes Experience™ began with a dream. Sometime in midJune, I had an extremely vivid dream that I was dating international pop sensation Shawn Mendes. For the most part, I don’t remember the actual events or narrative of the dream, but the feelings I had for the popstar were residual. For the next month, I talked at length about Shawn Mendes—how I wanted to see him in concert when he came to Toronto and how incredibly in love I was with him. It was, for the most part, a joke. My friends and I laughed about the impossibility of #Shawnbecca and lamented the loss of a truly iconic celebrity couple. My boyfriend, not knowing how absolutely unhinged I was, joked that I was going to leave him for the singer. My co-workers, after seeing that I left my Facebook logged in at work, liked all of Shawn Mendes’s pictures as a joke. My life had become one long set-up where the punchline was me dating Shawn Mendes. However, somewhere deep inside the many layers of irony and self-deprecation was a real fear. I was scared of liking popular music. Not just popular music itself, but the connotations that it carried. As a young woman, anything that is perceived as being “popular” or “girly” is seen as inherently frivolous and stupid. Liking a pretty-boy popstar from Pickering was potentially a huge hit to the cool-girl exterior I had built for myself. The joke was able to continue on for so long because it concealed the fact that I was a fan. When I listened to his music, I was able to justify it. “Oh, this? No, I’m just building my brand as a fake Shawn Mendes fan. I don’t actually listen to this dumb shit.” Then came Thursday, August 10, the night that Shawn Mendes’s Illuminate World Tour swept into Toronto. At the height of my “fake” fan phase, I had reached out to the newspaper’s music editor, Chantel, and asked if we could get press passes to the concert. After nearly a month without much development, I received a frantic message from Chantel at 3 P.M. If I wanted to, I could go to the Shawn Mendes concert that night at 8 P.M. I was suddenly conflicted. I had talked for at least a month about going to the Shawn Mendes concert, but it was all a joke. At the same time, I had begun to genuinely enjoy his music. I almost said no to the ticket when I realized that I was being ridiculous. Why was I so scared of being seen at a Shawn Mendes concert? My fear of seeming “basic” momentarily outweighed the joy I knew that I would derive from the concert. So, I told Chantel that yes, I would be able to cover the show, and that night I went to the Shawn Mendes
Illuminate World Tour. And goddammit, I had the time of my life. Though I knew that he was a big star, I don’t think anything could have prepared me for that audience. Not only was this the first show I had ever gone to at the Air Canada Centre, but it was also the first concert I had ever gone to alone. Immediately after the show started, I could feel the energy in the ACC reach a near-explosive level. The atmosphere was unlike anything I had ever experienced, and I was living for it. The moment that “There’s Nothing Holding Me Back”—the opening number of the set—began, my cool-girl shell cracked. There I was, in all my girly, popular music-loving glory, happily swaying along with kids half my age. In that moment, there really was nothing holding me back. The show itself, fangirl moments aside, was great. Despite the huge venue, the production was relatively scaled back. There weren’t explosions or huge props or set pieces, which I’ve come to expect from most concerts. Instead, the simplistic projections and gorgeous lighting served as the perfect background, and somehow made the ACC feel much more intimate than it is. The lack of huge production pieces also served to make Mendes’s talent the main attraction. He didn’t need all the grandeur that the ACC could provide in order to fill the venue. Mendes’s vocals were absolutely on point and he never hesitated to show off that he could, in fact, sing. He belts along with his fantastic band in some of the more upbeat and rowdy numbers, showcasing that he’s got the confidence to carry an arena tour. He was also able to bring it down in his acoustic numbers (of which there were many) to remind us of his genuine musical abilities that will hopefully translate into a long-lasting career for the young singer. I went to the Shawn Mendes concert and genuinely enjoyed it. The music was great, the atmosphere was intoxicating and Mendes was even dreamier in person. At the end of the night, the older man who I sat beside (another journalist, I believe) gave Mendes a standing ovation. He had started the night like me—a little confused as to how we ended up there, but willing to go along with it. As the night continued, the actual quality of the show and the great music cracked even the steeliest of audience members. I’m no longer scared to admit that I’m a Shawn Mendes fan. Though it does infuriate the part of me that wants to be “cool” and “hip” and “edgy,” I think that this experience has taught me that I should unabashedly and unapologetically love what I love, other people’s perceptions be damned. As Mendes sings in his hit song “Life of The Party,” “we don’t care what them people say.”
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7
THE
NOT-BORING STUDY PLAYLIST
(what the cool kids listen to) by Chantel Ouellet
Studying can be so boring, but it can be made better with a great playlist. Yet everyone has heard that studying to music with lyrics is rather ineffective. This doesn’t mean, however, that you have to cozy up in Hart House Library with some Mozart (although you can, and to be honest those are great vibes too). After frequenting many a hip coffee shop in this city and Shazaaming the shit out of their moody electronic jams, I have created a new study playlist. A not-boring study playlist, if you will. A study playlist that makes you feel edgy and cool while you’re studying. It’s honestly quite the feat. Check out the tracks below to get you started.
The Best I Could Do Young Marco The Create from Culture Creation Fatima Yamaka Cover Up Awanto 3 2ND 5YSTEM Mark Du Mosch Ezra Flume You can also find the playlist on our Spotify
@thenewspaper
... I should unabashedly and unapologetically love what I love,
other people’s perceptions be damned.
”
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