FRAN: I'm doing a stint as guest blogger. Keep the comments short and sweet, please. I'm a first-timer.
Two weeks ago, Eli and I drove to Montreal from Grand Isle, a pleasant 75 mile jaunt. We stayed at the Hotel Gault in Vieux Montreal. In 1871, Andrew Frederick Gault commissioned J.J. Browne to build a majestic headquarters for his flourishing import/export textile business. Influenced by the Haussmann architecture of contemporary Paris, Browne proposed, for the façade, a Second Empire-style, featuring vertical pilasters and floral details carved into Champlain blue-gray limestone. The elegant corner door invites guests into the large open lobby, where we find the magnificent 19th century cast-iron pillars, the sole remaining interior element from the original design.
Hotel Gault
My room at the Hotel Gault. Note "the magnificent magnificent 19th century cast-iron pillar."
When I travel, I am not much for organized tours of famous sites. I like to wander. And eat. And take photos to remember what I did. Luckily, my children have inherited these preferences. So we have lots of fun when we travel together. Our 48 hours in Montreal included:
Abandoned grain silos. Great for a sequel to Blade Runner.
a visit to the Marché (you have no idea how long it took me to figure out how to get the accent on the "e") Atwater;
The Main Entrance
Homemade
All local
Patés. Although I'm not a big fan.
Would you believe mustard on tap?
a stop in a great bar, the Bily Kun;
Translation from Czech = White Horse"
These girls played Eastern European tunes. That included the Theme from Dr. Zhivago!
dinner at Au Pied des Cochons (where we ate no cochons or pieds);
The kitchen for the entire restaurant as seen from my seat at the bar.
a walk through the Jardin Botanique de Montreal, which is featuring an exhibition of horticultural sculptures called "Mosaicultures"
This one was submitted by the city of Shanghai. The USA did not participate:(
Presumably, the result of budget cuts and wing nut fear of all things international:)
and the obligatory visit to the cathedral to light a candle for our great friend Dr. Lee Bowen.
Notre Dame. A big disappointment. Sorry Doc.
And of course, I had to indulge my inner food stylist's obsession with food porn at Aux Pied:
Potatoes fried in duck fat. Yum but not very good for you.
Duck Carpaccio
Pickled Herring with Potatoes. Best dish ever!
And finally. You may ask why I used the words "foreign country" in my title instead of just "Canada." Here's the back story. When we were on Prince Edward Island, all of the signs, menus, brochures, etc. were in English 1st and French 2nd, although just about every islander was an English speaker. Even the street signs said Rue as well as Street, Chemin as well as Road. I assumed the same would be true in Quebec, only in reverse: French 1st and English 2nd. After all, they are both Canadian provinces, right? NOT TRUE!!! Although many Montrealers are bi-lingual (everyone that we encountered in the service industries spoke perfect English as well as French), there is almost no English anywhere unless it is necessary to save your life, e.g. how to exit the Metro in an emergency. Even the stop signs say "arrete" PERIOD. You can either read French or be dazed and confused. Amazingly enough, I could remember enough French to get by and understand just about everything written. Thanks to my French instructors, Ms. Wary of The Rayen School in Youngstown, Ohio, and Mlle. Fol of Wellesley College. But take your book of English/French phrase book just to be on the safe side. Á la prochaine...
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