Gerry was up early this morning and, for a change, Linda slept in. After a quick breakfast, we were ready to go exploring the city. We started with a walk to the Clock Tower. We climbed the 192 steps to the top where we took a few pictures and videos. (One of the videos is on yesterdays update because we loaded it the wrong place and because our wifi connection is incredibly slow we left it where it was.) We then proceeded up Jacques-Cartier Square in pursuit of a bank or ATM that would accept our credit/debit card so we could get some Canadian money. After a few failed attempts we finally found one with the right “symbols” to match our cards and were able to withdraw some cash. We noticed that for every $100 Canadian, we are being charged about $90 U.S. so that is good.
We walked to the Tourist Information Center and decided to take one of the Grayline Tours. On the tour we saw, among other things, Old Montreal (through which we had just walked), Notre-Dame Basilica, Olympic Park, Mount Royal Park and St. Joseph’s Oratory. The tour started out it both English and French, but when it was determined that everyone spoke English, the driver/tour guide switched to just English. We found that, with very few exceptions, everyone speaks English, although French is their first choice.
On our return trip to the marina we again walked through Jacques-Cartier Square where we stopped at a local steakhouse for dinner and then spent some time “people watching” and listening to the street entertainers. One of the groups Gerry especially liked (guitar, drum and flutes) and we ended up buying one of their CD’s.
After that, it was back to the marina where we went aboard Harmonie (Ralph and Anne’s boat) and shared our Limoncello with them. (Linda had bought the Limoncello in Sorrento, Italy over a year ago and never drank it, so we had it with us in the freezer – decided it had aged enough.)
There was a HUGE private yacht, Blue Moon, that had pulled in during the day. We’re posting a couple of pictures … notice the runabouts that are on both sides of the yacht. Also, the Niagara had pulled it and was taking all the space in the other corner. Unfortunately, this was where the pumpout was, so when we left the next day, we were unable to use it.
Since we planned on heading out early in the morning, it was off to bed. Besides, Gerry was exhausted. We had walked about 12 miles that day.
Jacques-Cartier Square
On the way to the Clock Tower
The face of the clock
Norte-Dame Cathedral
Olympic Park tower and elevator
Courthouse in Montreal (for my court friends benefit)
These are a couple of very nice homes in the very nice area of town. The tour guide mentioned that they all have several steps, but they are just for show -- they are not used, especially in the winter. Most of them have elevators from the garage level to the top level.
Linda in Montreal .... at one of the many statues
St. Joseph's Oratory -- there are 99 steps leading to the top. Many people kneel and pray on each step all the way to the top. The guide mentioned that there are 450 churches in Montreal.
These are pixi bikes. The city of Montreal purchased approximately 45,000 of these 2 months ago. They are distributed in many locations throughout the city. You can buy a yearly pass, monthly pass, daily pass or hourly pass. You then get a card (or key if you have the yearly pass) and can pick one up anywhere. Then you ride it to your destination and deposit it in one of the bicycle stalls. When you want to ride to another location, you simply pick up another bike and off you go. They have become very popular. Taxis are complaining saying they are losing money. That probably won't be the case come winter.
Gerry and Linda at the Montreal Steakhouse (we're eating dessert)
Street performers .... they were very good
The yacht Blue Moon
If you look close you can see one of the runabouts (beautiful wooden boat). There was another one on the other side.
The tall ship Niagra Looking east from the clocktower
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