Blogs from Old Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada, North America - page 3

If you’ve been watching the news, you may have seen that Canada and the Midwestern U.S. are experiencing a “heat dome.” “Heat dome” seems a euphemism for “hell on earth.” It is miserable, and apparently the worst is yet to come. I hate to complain, especially while on vacation, but the humidity and heat is taking its toll. Ain’t nobody happy. Fortunately, we were able to spend the entire day in air-conditioned bliss at the Montréal Museum of Science. The Indiana Jones exhibit currently on display combines movie memorabilia (props, costumes, etc.) along with the science of archeology. Each visitor gets a headset with an interactive device. As you make your way through the exhibit you enter numbers based on what you are viewing and the device provides sound and/or video clips. You are also taking ... read more

It’s 8:15 a.m. and I am sitting on a lovely patio at the campsite here in Quebec, enjoying the already hot morning sorting through photos and attempting to write a blog. We made it to the Montreal area yesterday afternoon and are getting ready to enjoy the new experiences of a province with another language. I should go back a few days first; I believe left off with us having spent an incredible time in Niagara Falls and heading to Toronto. Driving to Toronto was far easier than we expected, we left Niagara Falls after the rush hour so it made driving the 401 a lot less stressful. The 401 is Deerfoot Trail jacked up on steroids, a lot of steroids! There are collector highways that run parallel to the Express way that are 3 lanes ... read more

For the fifth largest city in North America, Toronto doesn't make much of a fuss, though it's clean and safe, with only a very few beggars on the streets. (It did make headlines recently as the originator of the 'slut walks' protests, but, like many other things about Toronto, that's probably now forgotten.) At the moment, it's proudest boast is the CN Tower, the largest single structure in the world. It took 40 months of continuous pouring of concrete to create it. We took 58 seconds in the lift (sorry, elevator) to get to the observation tower. The view was impressive, in spite of the weather closing in on us. Mary thought they should have worked the posh restaurant harder with all day dining. (I think she just fancied a meal up there!) At the level ... read more

Sunday, October 10th, 2011 The next day Renata and I decided to go up the mountain to visit St. Joseph's Oratory, whereas Liane and Candy went to see the botanical gardens. I woke up early to take a shower and hopefully get an early start to go site seeing. However, my sister was fast asleep and I did not have the heart to wake her up. When she finally woke up we headed up the mountain to see the Oratory and it was freezing up on the mountain. My hands were going numb ;-). The Oratory was beautiful; my second favourite church in Montreal. My favourite church is yet to come. The Oratory reminded me of Sacre Coeur in Paris and it provided a great view of Montreal from the top. This is the church that ... read more

Montreal is a blend of old world charm and new world style. The old world charm comes from its 300 years of English and French history, while its 'new world style' is reflected in the rich tapestry of ethnic communities, multicultural food, music and arts. It is the largest bilingual city on the North continent. From the cobbled stone streets lined with quaint cafes and trend setting galleries and nightlife, Montreal is dynamic and almost as diverse as Sydney. It's certainly a university town. One of the highlights during our stay there, was stumbling across a peaceful student protest over hikes in university fees. More than 3000 students across several surrounding universities gathered to protest against a $600 increase in fees over the next 5 years. It was amusing to witness the huge affair it had ... read more