Chapter 14

Bonjour Mes Amis. Is it too late to say, Happy New Year to Everyone? How about Happy Valentine's Day, and Happy Family Day. In Canada these two festive days follow each other on the 14th and the 15th of February. In any case, this is my first update of the new year, 2021. Let’s hope that we can all see each other once again in person. It has been a year of isolation, hardship, and understanding. Let's go forward and come out at the other end of the tunnel. As I heard on the news the other day, this is the beginning of the end concerning this COVID pandemic. A communal sigh of relief would be heard around the world if in fact these words come true.

Where am I writing to you from...Montreal. Thus my greeting in French. We came here at the end of the year for a pet-sitting stint. By the way pet-sitting is up for debate as to whether or not it is an essential service. Though travelling is not recommended, this couple with a new baby is moving to Ireland in March, hence their travel to Dublin to search for the house they will call home. Hello Dublin for them, and as a result of their decision, Hello Montreal for us. Riding the rails for almost six hours took us from Toronto to Montreal, relatively close, but worlds away from each other in atmosphere. Quebec offers a flair of Europe, France in particular, with its rich culture, different language, and joie de vivre. It's like we are sleeping back in Ontario, missing out on the exuberant joy of being alive. I have found my place where the joy of eating, the joy of conversation, the joy of living each day is celebrated. My philosophy of life, Capture the Moments, is lived here. Even under COVID lockdowns, closures, and curfews, you can see couples out walking hand-in-hand, children and adults celebrating winter in the snow, and others sharing a hot drink outside in the minus temperatures, laughing and smiling. Oh yes, Montreal is alive and the winter spirit is captured in the faces all around me. The curfew in place restricts movement from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m., but that is the only obstacle. Doesn't affect me though as going to bed early and rising with the sun suits me perfectly.

Old Montreal has cobblestone streets and great historic buildings. We have walked through this area at dusk to enjoy the lights, which by the way is just after 5:00 p.m. these days. The famous Notre Dame Basilica is found here. This is closed for reconstruction, but we could still breathe in the enormity of this cathedral, and imagine its beauty behind the ongoing renovations. The architect behind this masterpiece was an Irish American man by the name of James O'Donnell, who was obsessed with Gothic architecture, in the end creating the first church of the Gothic Revival style in Canada. The church was first opened in 1682, but then rebuilt starting in 1824. He wished to be buried inside the walls of his great feat however he was not of the faith, Catholic. What was his solution? He converted to Catholicism on his deathbed, and now remains the only corpse residing in the magnificent crypt on site. The Old Montreal area is filled with charming cafes, restaurants, and an archaeology museum, all offering the old charm of days gone by. Juxtaposed to this are the cutting edge design shops, the enormous Ferris Wheel overlooking the port, and zip-lining next to the St. Lawrence River. Old Montreal and the Port area afforded us an opportunity to absorb the French atmosphere all around. We spotted an open café for take-out only, and purchased a hot chai to keep us warm as we soaked up the history and the culture.

We brought in the new year here. On the first morning of 2021 we awakened early, walked five kilometres to reach Mount Royal, a large hill or small mountain in the city of Montreal. We climbed the 233 metres to the summit, and viewed the sunrise along with many others, social distancing of sorts. Music was played by a group of young, fashionable Quebecois, who were drumming up enthusiasm and excitement to welcome the great ball of fire on the first day of the new year. What a wonderful start to the unknown possibilities awaiting us, gazing at the rising sun. This is most definitely a practice we learned from the Japanese, as many there take great pleasure in welcoming each year in this manner. During our stay in Montreal we have returned to this winter wonderland two more times, for another scenic lookout onto the city, and for cross country skiing. This park was designed by another highly skilled designer, Frederick Law Olmsted, the creative mind behind New York's Central Park. We rented skis for a two hour time-slot on a beautiful sunny winter's day. We managed to stay on the skis for ninety minutes. That was incredibly hard work for sure. The cold temperature of minus ten degrees was not the problem, rather continuing to propel oneself ahead on the snow laden trails was the problematic issue. Once, I remained standing, speeding down a hill while keeping my skis in the pristine trails. Not sure how I managed that at all!? After releasing myself from the skis once and for all, we found the chalet. Sipping on a piping hot potato soup outside with the warming rays of the sunshine was the perfect comfort for this crazy adventure lover. There is not a restaurant or café open for inside eating during these COVID times. What we have is mother nature, outside it is, no matter what the temperature. That's a Canadian experience for sure.

On some other days we have walked, or taken the subways and buses to reach some desired locations. We visited the Expo grounds on one of the islands in the city that held the Expo event in 1967, that was the 100th birthday year of the Canadian Confederation. The grounds are now a gigantic outdoor park, though originally built for the Expo, from millions of tons of rock excavated for the building of the Montreal Metro Underground rail. The location was Notre Dame Island, a man-made island. There is a Biosphere that houses the only museum entirely dedicated to the environment in North America. This monolithic geodesic dome sits proudly for all to see, and invites us in, of course, after this pandemic is over. Hardly a person we came upon as it seemed to be a rather remote destination at this current time. To reach this island we rode a subway that tunneled through the waters of the St. Lawrence Seabed. I didn't wish to think about barreling through the water as we went.

Another gorgeous hike we had was ascending Mont St. Hilaire. This land was donated to one of Canada's top universities, McGill University. The trails are all listed as "easy". I am not so sure I would agree as we huffed and puffed at times on our way to the summit. Lots of people were cross country skiing this nature reserve crisscrossing the hikers on their way up. Upon arriving at the 402 metres, a wondrous panoramic view of the small towns below, the river, and the natural, Lac Hertel, all echoing cries of the ancient settlers of Canada's history. We met a friend of the pet owner who was a High school French teacher who escorted us on this journey. We could even ask for some tips on communicating to our fellow French speaking Canadians. Salut, for example is the casual way of saying Hello or Goodbye rather than Bonjour. We learned that this is an informal greeting to others around the same age. Similar to Japanese where the very words speak to certain age groups with respect.

The food is wonderful. French cuisine is notable for sure, but also many culturally diverse options were up for grabs. Though I did cook a lot, we ordered weekly from some of the hard-hit restaurants due to COVID, and had the meals delivered. Among the countries we chose were Italian, Japanese, Korean, French, Mexican, and Caribbean. I was always happy to have a night off in the kitchen. One very famous and notable French offering is Poutine. This is a French Canadian dish traditionally made of French Fries and fresh cheese curds, covered with gravy. That's the basic style. Of course now there are a countless number of renditions with the same base though covered with various toppings similar to pizza toppings. Perhaps this dish is loved by those seeking to have a heart attack served on a plate!

The French love their breads. Not like the bread varieties found in Japan, though they were tasty in their own way. But European style breads so first and foremost the French Baguette, various kinds of grains of bread, and in any shape you might think of. As my command of the French language is little to nil, I often took home a bread I knew nothing about. Just pointed to it and the bread shop staff handed me the loaf. Shades of what I did in Japan, also not knowing the language. This leads to an endless exciting adventure every day. Where we shopped was also unique, in the market. Only a couple of times did we find ourselves in a grocery store for some odd item. Almost all of our food was found at the market, from fresh produce, to fresh fish, organically raised meat, and sweets that came from Heaven. We did visit the Korean/Japanese store that we found downtown to purchase our Asian supplies, though. The French know how to eat, and I love that enjoyment of life.

Before I go I should tell you about the one we were pet-sitting. The reason for finding such love for Montreal. Foxy is a sixteen year old grandmother cat that loved to eat, drink water, and be cuddled. She slept for the most part, but when awake she wanted to be pet, and given love as she wished. The pet-sit was a very laidback gig, and we were able to work each day from her home, and live life from her perspective. Thanks to Foxy we were able to discover the city of Montreal, and all of its French character. We loved the winter here in sub zero temperatures and mounds of snow. Definitely we will be back in the summer time when the joie de vivre is accentuated even more we are told with music, cuisine, and festivals. Goodbye Montreal for now, but not for long.

Stay well and take care,

Love Rosemary 🌹