Welcome to Maine! I can relate a little from the opposite direction; I'm a Mainer and spend as long as I can in Canada each year. (My dad's family was from New Brunswick.) There's enough similarities in culture to make it really surprising when you run into the differences, but most of them aren't really a big deal. It's hard to find butter tarts and I don't think ketchup-flavored or all-dressed chips exist this far south, but poutine has become easy to get. The food is sweeter here, but not as much as some people claim; a good rule is that the cheaper the food is, the more likely it is to have unnecessary sweeteners in it.

I think it's a law that people staying any appreciable amount of time must try Moxie, but when you do, find it in glass bottles; there is a difference.

One of the great things about the Gorham campus is that, while people are right about not having as much snow as we used to, it's still possible to get some winter sports in even if you don't have a car; I don't know the trails close to campus, but pretty much every town in Maine has them so it's a safe bet Gorham does too. It's also a reasonable walk to downtown, if walking isn't a problem for you. It's easy to get your day-to-day needs there.

If you do have or can get access to a car while you're here, you're in a good location for exploring. The coast isn't far at all, and skiing is a reasonable day trip. When warmer weather hits, there are a few good swimming holes within 15-20 minutes drive. If not, then there is public transportation; not a lot of Maine has it, but there is a Gorham-Portland shuttle and Portland has a decent bus system. (At least compared to other places I've lived.)

For specific recommendations, I'll start with Becky's Diner. It's good but not great food, but it's reliable and the worst meal I had there was just mediocre rather than actually bad. Hit Trader Joe's; some stuff is more expensive than regular grocery stores and some is cheaper, but you can find a good assortment. This is the best time of year to explore the Old Port in downtown Portland, as the crowds tend to be heading for more winter sports-oriented places. If you like Thai food, try Pom's; there are two locations and the one on Congress St is easiest to get to without a car. Sun Market, also on Congress St, was a good Asian market when I lived in Portland, although that was a while ago. For a fun excursion, go down to the Portland waterfront and take a ride on the ferry; doesn't matter which one, because they all have excellent views. For a longer excursion, the Downeaster runs from Boston to Brunswick with several stops in between; they don't have the number of trains that they used to, but if you get up early it should still be possible to get a day trip in and some of the stops could be covered in the amount of time you'd have.