The French side of things.

I've sat in this 'cawfee' house for 10 minutes looking blankly at this screen wondering how best to start. Seems like the best way I came up with is to tell you how difficult I'm finding it. Meh, it's a start and hopefully I'll think of a more interesting way to begin as I continue writing (although if you're reading this, I've either failed to conjure up a better one or forgotten that I had left a really boring opening!)

So we left the last chapter of our tale with Richard playing the honky tonk piano in Boston (in actual truth, as my blogs are rarely written in chronological order, this wasn't how we ended our stay in Boston but for the purpose of continuity, it will do)

Next in line on our journey was Montreal. We were able to find a ride share on 'Craigs List' from Boston to Montreal with Phillipe, who apparentyly makes the Boston - Montreal run every fortnight so was an accustomed ride sharer (offerer?!). Passing through customs was smoother than anticipated, a few questions to ensure we weren't smuggling/comspiring/emmigrating/going to enjoy ourselves etc. and we were in.

Hostel Alexandrie


By FAR the best hostel experience yet. Upon arrival, Hernan aka 'H', the hostelier began by introducing us to all the other guests and explaining the area (mostly best pubs) and inviting us to a pub crawl he had arranged to get everyone friendly. It worked. (For those who have seen the photos on Facebook, you may recognise H as the guy who looks like Hurley from Lost). He also began introducing me as Frodo to all new arrivals.

The Hostel itself wasn't the cleanest of places we've stayed at, and we had to move rooms several times as we kept extending our stay but the socialness of the place was incredible. Many 'nights' out would end as late as 6/7am as parties continued in the Hostels basement. It did mean most of the day time was written off to sleep/recovery for the first few days. Good times and lots of great people met.
We also discovered the Hostel used to be a Morgue which inspired great confidence late at night! In one of the bathrooms, there remained one of the old lifts they used to carry bodies between floors. Lovely.

Old Montreal

Downtown Montreal is what most people know as Old Montreal. Beautiful streets lined with magnificant buildings ofwhich the French/European influence is prominent.
A few piccies to highlight my point.

Notre-Dame Basilica
To avoid having to pay to look inside, I attended Easter Mass (In French..I had no idea what was going on!) Morally wrong? Maybe, but worth it...
Not a great picture I'm afraid as I got told off for taking this one and was too scared to take another!

Mount Royal
A few miles North of Old Montreal, Mount Royal dominates the skyline. An hour walk to the summit provides an awesome view of the city...
And just for the purpose of cool photographs -

Viewing Highlights
A few photos taken around Montreal.

The old 1967 World Fair Biospehere. Mostly burnt down in '76, this is what remains.
Crazy accommodation. Designed by a 21 year old. Show off.
Stade olympique. Looks like a UFO. Nuff said.

Poutine
The 'delicacy' in Montreal is a dish called 'Poutine'. Roughly translated to English means chips, cheese and gravy. To sample this delight, I went to Montreal's most (in)famous Poutine establishments, serving no fewer than 60 different types of Poutine. For a completely unbiased (and cheapest) option, I went for the standard sampling. My review:
The cheese used is actually cheese curds that tasted and felt like eating rubber. The gravy was scarce and bland whilst the chips served only as a stodgey medium in which to transport the dissappointing toppings to an even more dissappointed recipient. (I don't think being a food critic is my thing!)

Shit.

Overall, I loved Montreal. A fantastic city rich in culture and architecture, but by far the best thing for me was the social element. We met some great people (some of which we managed to meet up with in Toronto..see next chapter) and had some fantastic nights out, which I believe photos on facebook have illistrated.

On the next FGW...
We meet up with the Danes in Toronto, students in Guelph and family in Uxbridge.