During the summer of 2007, Stephen and Ginger lived in Montreal with their architecture studio class. We have always wanted to return and re-visit our favorite places.
We rented a
lovely condo for less than the cost of a hotel room downtown. It was in an old schoolhouse. Here's Stephen marking his map with a route for the day.
During our first summer here, we all bought bikes for transportation and adventures. Now, Montreal has purchased a fantastic bike rental system called Bixi. For $5, we could rent a bike for 24 hours. Every few blocks, there was another bike rack (Stephen calls them bike vending machines.) They were heavy-duty bikes with a lower center of balance than usual, but comfortable.
We visited several places that wouldn't be on the usual tourist list, but were very nostalgic for us. Below, Stephen's old apartment
and Dollarama: the source of everything. (Stephen found the same yard decorations there he had used to mount his project.)
The pink tree forest and rainbow stairs of the Convention Center.
Eating a nutella sandwhich. (Ginger likes to pack meals so we eat out less.)
We unexpectedly found a protest. (Likely, Quebec Separationists)
We attended the International Fireworks Competition and saw the Czech Republic's entry. The fireworks come from Expo Island. We watched from a bridge closed to traffic for the night. We got there early to get a good seat. While we waited, we practiced French by playing an old car game- "I'm going on a trip and bringing..." "J'ally un voyague e importe un aprere foto, un bebe, l'cirque de solie, un depenaur, l'eau, un fromage... Stephen studied a little French in high school. Last time we were here, Ginger only learned the words for food.
We visited McGill University and found the classroom studio the university had lent us for that summer.
We rode the Metro subway system to Expo island, location of the 1967 World's Fair. Expo Island only had one Bixi bike rack, which caused some problems! The rack was full, and six others were waiting for someone to check out a bike so they could return theirs. We got tired of waiting and brought our bikes on the Metro with us to return them to a different rack.
Every Sunday afternoon at a park near Mont Royal, there's an event called Tam-Tam, including drumming, dancing, tight-rope walkers, and fantasy-battlers.
Downtown, we saw the old Brewery. It's no longer abandoned, but is being reused as condos. Stephen also saw his old "site" for the architecture design he made in class. The building is gone.
On top of Mount Royal, we can see the whole city from the Bellevedere. Stephen went on a hunt to find his favorite shoes that are unavailable in the US.
