Montreal

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More Canadian Experiences:  Montreal, Quebec

May 23, 2013- May 27, 2013: We stayed about 25 km (17 miles) out of the BIG CITY of Montreal. Freeways and road construction of every sort surround this bustling metropolis.  We made our way in and out of the city several times, Mike’s excellent navigating/driving skills through different highways, byways, bridges and tunnels were pretty amazing. We were generally pleased that “Miss Maggie”, our not so always reliable GPS, was able to get us to different parts of the city and back to camp each night.

The weather was not so cooperative, it was RAINY and GRAY and WINDY and COLD (RGWC - L) we layered up and made the best of it although not without a few grumbles from this author. Even with the less than perfect touring conditions we decided if we were to see the city we should take a bus tour. We got on a double decker/hop on - hop off Grayline Tour (no we didn’t get to sit up top). The city is big and we really needed this overview to kind of get our barrings straight. Through the raindrops we were able to get organized and set ourselves up a bit of an itinerary for the following days.  There is so much to see, such a mixture of historical places, big bold modern buildings, museums, quirky neighborhoods, and ever present knowledge that you really are in a foreign country with the sounds of French being spoken everywhere.

Montreal is a city with over 500 churches, we went to the evening Illumination Show at the Basilique Notre-Dame – we enjoyed the story and the history of the founding and building of this church. The interior was amazing, so much ornate decoration and glitz!  The sanctuary seats over 3000 people, quite a place.  The church was located in “Old Town” Montreal, so while there we also took in the winding cobble stone streets, cute shops and a dinner at French Restaurant.  Very good, but over ate again!

Sunday was free museum day in the city so we tried to take advantage of it and headed back into the city to see a few of the 30+ museums. Despite the continued GRWC conditions we headed out and wandered several blocks to get to our museums. We visited the Musee McCord – with an interesting display of clothing and how cultures use clothing not only for warmth and protection, but also for show. We enjoyed a bit of walk through McGill University, beautiful old buildings and went into their Redpath Museum, there a small display of dinosaurs and fossils; by this time the museums were really filling up with families and LOTS of kids. We decided that we had soaked up enough culture, really didn’t feel like bucking the crowds, so enjoyed a nice brunch and walked a bit more of this part of the city.   

SUN!!! – Finally a break in the weather, and we took advantage of it. We headed to the Parc Olympque.  There we enjoyed a great view of the city from the Observatory – a 175 foot inclined tower high above the 1976 Olympic Facility.  We walked through the biodome that houses 5 ecosystems, over 7000 animals—we even got to see some puffins that we had missed while in the Maritimes.  We spent the afternoon walking through the beautiful Jardin Botanique, and saw some of the 30 thematic garden areas while enjoying the sunshine and fresh air.

We are glad that we had a few days to get a bit of a Montreal Experience; the city is beautiful and certainly diverse. The TRAFFIC, not so great, but guess that is to be expected in a city of this size.