Montreal, Canada - July 19 - 28, 2007
We departed Verona, NY on a rainy day eagerly anticipating our rendezvous with Roelina and Scott, our friends from Sacramento. The weather was starting to clear as we drove north at about 60 mph on I-81 in light traffic when some dude suddenly stopped dead in our lane not far ahead of us. Because his car was dead there were no brake lights and there was nowhere for us to go. By the time we stopped our 36,000 lb. of rolling weight, our brakes were smoking and everything in our home was flying - including the knife block and knives. We stopped about 4 inches off his bumper. THEN he restarted the car and pulled off the freeway. Geez! About 30 minutes later our heart rates returned to normal. After seeing us loom large in his rearview mirror, the driver of the stalled vehicle likely had a little cleanup in the driver's seat to resolve.
After a few challenges deciphering the French traffic and directional signs, we arrived safely at Parc Mont Laval RV Park north of Montreal. This lovely park earned its status as one of Good Sam's Top-10 in North America. It is situated in an area noted for flowers and produce, and was about 25 minutes from the very pleasant apartment Scott and Roelina rented in Montreal.
We had a spectacular time in Montreal. Roe and Scott added so much to our visit. Their eagerness to experience and taste everything was infectious. We were also reminded of the difference of a travel "vacation" and a travel "life style". When on vacation one wants to do and see as much as possible in the limited time available, and possibly return home exhausted. When traveling full time the pace is different, otherwise one would get burned-out. That said, on this trip we were encouraged to see and experience so much more during our 10 days with Roe and Scott than we would have otherwise. And what a fabulous trip it was.
Years ago Susan and Roelina decided to meet in Montreal for the annual International Pyrotechniques Festival. Each Wednesday and Saturday during the month of July a national team presents a 30-minute fireworks exhibit at La Ronde, a Six Flags Theme Park on an island in the St. Lawrence River. We had Saturday night tickets to see the French and closing presentations at La Ronde, and planned to view the German exhibit from the Cartier Bridge overlooking the island. Roelina and Scott had already seen two shows and were keen on sharing the experience.
And what an experience it was. Watching fireworks of this caliber is impossible to describe. Words such as 'spectacular' and 'awesome' just don't convey how eye-popping - and ear splitting - they were. We were very impressed by the French program, more so by the German, but we were most impressed by the closing presentation and the remarkable musical synchronization. Ultimately the winners were: Gold - England, Silver - Germany, and Bronze - USA. There are several competitions around the US and Canada, but Montreal is touted as the pinnacle of pyrotechnics and we highly recommend the event. If you have a chance, check out the festival's website photos, ours simply cannot do it justice.
Of course, while at La Ronde we had to take a couple of rides. Roe is convinced that the Cup & Saucers at Disneyland qualify as a thrill ride, so declined to accompany Scott, Bill and Susan on The Monster roller coaster. However, she and Susan did do a turn on a rocketship like ride, The Condor, which took her breath away and made her knees weak.
While walking to La Ronde we crossed a bridge over the St. Lawrence and observed jet boats on their way to the Lachine Rapids. It looked like fun so we arranged an excursion. The operators advised us to bring dry clothes and towels. We thought they were being overly cautious. Wrong. What a ride - exciting, sometimes scary, and wet. Very, very wet. To the bone wet. I don't think I can overstate how wet it was... great fun though.
Montreal is festival central during the summer. In addition to the Pyrotechniques event there was also the colorful and lively Festival International Nuits de Afrique and the Just for Laughs Festival. Just For Laughs was a hoot. It would have been even better if we understood French. We joined the street event during the closing celebration including a Mardi gras like parade complete with beads, confetti, floats and dancers wearing huge papier-mache heads depicting various comediennes. It was wild, joyous and so much fun.
Between festivals we visited several of the many beautiful churches in the city, including Basilique Notre-Dame, the Oratoire St-Joseph on the slopes of Mont Royale and the graceful Marie-Reine-du-Monde Cathedral. We also got our cultural fix on a very rainy day by visiting the Museum of Beaux Arts and on a brighter day the Botanical Gardens and Biodome where a tiny monkey became infatuated by Susan's hat. The four of us roamed the eclectic neighborhoods, public markets and gardens of the city - admiring the graffiti art and architecture, people watching, gallery hopping and bicycle dodging.
Note: Driving is crazy in Montreal. Be very aware of the numerous bicyclists who seem to have the right-of-way under most circumstances. It is wonderful to see the number of bicyclists, roller-bladers and pedestrians on the streets at all hours, but it can be a bit unnerving when driving on narrow streets. We were happy to assign Bill that duty.
Speaking of biking. We hauled our bikes north to the village of Saint Jerome to ride a portion of the 120-mile Parc Linéaire Le P'tit Train Du Nord. This is a rails-to-trails path running along the North River and passing through small villages on its way to the Laurentides, a region of numerous lakes and rolling hills. However, these two flatlanders didn't get that far.
Naturally, we had to show our new home to our friends, so we invited Scott and Roelina to dinner. We picked them up at the Metro station at Laval then visited the Laval public market to pick up dinner 'fixins'. The public markets are fabulous and offer fresh produce, flowers, meats, seafood, sausages, cheeses, deserts, breads, coffees, wines and spirits in small shops and stalls all under one roof. After the two-minute grand tour of our home and dinner we played dominoes, visited and simply enjoyed each other's company.
After Saturday night's closing firework exhibit at La Ronde, we caught the Metro back to Roe and Scott's apartment and bid them a sad good-bye. On Monday they would head to Vermont to catch a plane back to Sacramento, and we would leave the next morning bound for Quebec City. Montreal was fantastique and sharing it with friends was even more so.
