Shelter: Roommates in Plateau apartment have international connections
An engineer from Switzerland, a lawyer who grew up in Asia and a TMR native with Romanian heritage share this furnished triplex.
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Jordan Matte is as smart as a whip. Twenty-five years old, the trilingual millennial won a scholarship to the University of Oxford, where he earned a master’s degree in public policy. That was on top of studying for a year in Spain (where he learned Spanish) and doing an internship at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C.
Matte, who works as an adviser in government and community relations for Via Rail Canada, is fascinated by other cultures and the world of transportation — something he attributes to his upbringing. He grew up in the Town of Mount Royal, but his grandparents on his mother’s side are Romanian. His grandfather was a professor in international air and space law, which sparked an interest in him as well, Matte said.
Matte’s two roommates, Thomas Lamoureux and Jérome Clavel, also have international connections. (They were not present when I did the interview.) Clavel is an engineer from Switzerland who is doing an internship with Pratt & Whitney, the global aerospace company. Lamoureux grew up in Asia and Dubai, and he recently became a lawyer.
The three 20-somethings share the top floor of a furnished triplex in the Plateau. It has three bedrooms, an open living/dining room, a separate kitchen, a walk-in pantry (it doubles as a laundry room) and a “very tiny” balcony.
Q: How did you end up in the Plateau?
A: Last September, I’d just come back from Oxford so I moved back in with my parents. By December, I’d found this place on Kijiji, and then Tom joined me. Jérome is the most recent member of our household. He took the place of an earlier roommate.
Q: You were telling me that you didn’t know Tom at all until you were doing your internship at the Canadian Embassy in Washington.
A: That’s right, but the strangest thing of all is that we’re actually related to one other! It turns out he’s a distant cousin of mine.
Q: What appealed to you about this particular apartment?
A: I connected with the vintage feel — the hardwood floors, the antique-style dining table and chairs, the Oriental rugs, the stained-glass panel above the door…
Q: You don’t mind living with somebody else’s furniture?
A: Quite the contrary! Our landlady owns the entire building — she lives downstairs — and she has very good taste. Tom and I brought a few things of our own though, things that represent our past history.
Q: Can you show me?
A: The two leather sofas in the living room, the glass-topped coffee table and the abstract paintings on the wall — all those belong to our landlady, but Tom brought the wall hanging.
(He indicates a large blue, gold and burgundy hanging decorated with Oriental motifs. It has a beautiful sheen, probably from silk thread woven into the fabric.)
Q: This is beautiful. Where did it come from?
A: Tom picked it up in Thailand.
Q: Do you have anything from your own travels?
A: I do. This is a little brass coffee set that I got in Kuwait. I found it in one of the souks in Doha.
Q: What about those masks hanging on the wall in the dining room?
A: Tom brought those as well. The dragon mask is from China, and I think the other one is from Indonesia.
Q: And the framed map?
A: It depicts New France, and it’s old. My grandparents were refugees from the Second World War, and this was one of the first things they bought when they came to Quebec.
Q: And you ended up with it?
A: Exactly!
Q: You said they gave you some other things as well?
A: They did. They’re in my room.
(On the way, we pop into the two other bedrooms, which Lamoureux and Clavel have decorated with their favourite bits and pieces. Matte’s room has a large sleigh bed with a night table on each side and a couple of shelves filled with knick-knacks).
Q: Did you put up the shelves?
A: No, they were here already, but the ornaments and the books are mine. This a beer stein from Bavaria, the pewter mug came from my grandparents and I bought the drinking gourd in Serbia, in Belgrade.
Q: And the icon?
A: Again, from my grandparents. It’s an Eastern Orthodox icon from Romania.
Q: Aha. I see you have a print of the famous skyline of Oxford church spires hanging above your bed.
A: I had to be very careful bringing that back with me. I was travelling to Montreal on my own, and after a year in England, I had so much luggage. It was tricky to carry it. I had to make sure I didn’t damage the print or break the glass.
When I look at this image, I can picture the exact place where I bought it. This picture is a nice reminder of my time in Oxford. I really enjoyed living there.
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SHELTER
Shelter is a weekly series featuring a conversation with tenants or condo owners.
Occupants: Jordan Matte, 25, Thomas Lamoureux, 27, and Jérome Clavel, 25
Location: Plateau Mont Royal
Size: 5 ½
Rent: $2,300 (split three ways)
Been there: December 2017
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