Showing 1-15 of 15 results
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"I don't know where I'm going, but I sure know where I've been"
Blog: Big City Blog - 29 September 2009
Mark Twain - author? Martin Luther King - civil rights champion? Confucius - philosopher? Actually, it's David Coverdale - Whitesnake.And while it may seem odd to kick off a travel blog with a quote from an 80's hair band, it does sum up my mindset at the moment as I head off to a new adventure.
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Atwater Market
Blog: Curves and Levels - 9 August 2009
Finally ripe from Quebec's vast fields, city dwellers can now get the fresh stuff. "Picked this morning," was the promise at this venerable institution next to the Lachine Canal.
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Les FrancoFolies, Saturday Night
Blog: Curves and Levels - 3 August 2009
I was a fish out of water, this new Montrealer from western Canada sampling the celebration of music and language that is Les Francofolies. This is the latest offering in Montreal's summer-long season of festivals, held at the Quartier des Spectacles on Rue Ste.-Catherine.
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African Night
Blog: Curves and Levels - 24 July 2009
The Festival International Nuits d'Afrique de Montréal runs from July 14-26 and most of the performances are indoors at various clubs around town. Yesterday was the one outdoor dust-up at Place Émilie-Gamelin.
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Twins On Parade
Blog: Curves and Levels - 19 July 2009
As part of Montreal's Just For Laughs Festival yesterday, the Twins Parade marched from Place des Festivals on Ste.-Catherine Street to the Quartier Latin on lower St.-Denis for the 12th consecutive year.
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The Bixi Phenomenon
Blog: Curves and Levels - 8 July 2009
Any public program that encourages cycling as a means of transportation, and not just as a form of recreation, needs to be praised to the heavens. Widespread increase in bicycle use will by itself help alleviate an assortment of societal problems - pollution, obesity, poor health, traffic congestion, road maintenance costs. So Montreal's Bixi automated bike rental program, begun this spring, is good news for all of us, even if one already owns a bike.
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Rocksteady!
Blog: Curves and Levels - 8 July 2009
A historic reunion of Jamaica's pre-reggae stars was last night's free extravaganza at the festival grounds. Rocksteady is the name given to the music that sprang from Kingston's burgeoning urban culture in the mid-1960's. 40-something years later it was all joyful noise and dazzling color for the all-ages Montreal crowd swaying to the infectious rhythms and peppery horn fluorishes.
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Marché Duluth
Blog: Curves and Levels - 6 July 2009
Ignoring the photographers' injunction against shooting at high noon, I paid a visit to Marché Duluth, a new once-a-week farmer's market in Montreal's Plateau district.
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Opening Night
Blog: Curves and Levels - 1 July 2009
The sky darkened and the predicted rain began to fall about an hour before showtime on the Stevie Wonder free concert venue downtown.
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A comedy of galactic proportions
Blog: Send The Bugger Back - 16 June 2009
The train journey to Quebec was nice enough, I spent most of it watching ‘Galaxy Quest’ on the phone. A splendid spoof and sci-fi adventure in it’s own right. Also dead funny! On the way to the train station I stopped by the bus depot in Montreal to pick up a Greyhound ticket to Boston, you [...]
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When Orienteering turns bad
Blog: Send The Bugger Back - 15 June 2009
Last night I went to ‘The House Of Reggae’ with the 2 lads from Dublin and crazy Eddy the Mexican. Was okay, I didn’t even have to wear a daft beenie hat this time round either. My next stop of Quebec City is supposed to be very pretty but quiet as well. Maybe that’s a good [...]
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Dead man’s hand
Blog: Send The Bugger Back - 14 June 2009
I didn’t go out last night but it was another late one, stayed in the hostel and played Texas Hold ‘em (badly, at least on my part). It’s 13:46 and I’m having a bit of trouble dragging myself out of bed, my belly is starting to rumble though so if anything will do it that will. A [...]
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Of Montreal
Blog: Send The Bugger Back - 13 June 2009
This hostel is a bit more fun than the ones I’ve been in recently. Last night I was having a few cans and I got talking to a couple of Irish lads who have been living and working in Canada for the past year but are away home next week. I ended up going to [...]
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Happy Holidays! Keeping It Réal
Blog: Bec and John in the UK - 31 January 2009
After an interminable customs-stop at the Canadian border, we finally rolled into Montréal station - clean, airy, businesslike. A friendly, uniformed porter was helping people with their bags, and was greeting every passenger with a cheery "bienvenue!". It was great to be back in Canada again!Montréal is the capital of the province of Québec - where French is the official first language - so we both had a strange period of adjustment while we got used to the seemingly-implausible Franco-American mixture:
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Happy Holidays! Riding The Rails
Blog: Bec and John in the UK - 24 January 2009
Finally it was time to leave both Brandy and the Big Apple and head back up into Canada again. We'd decided to mix it up a bit and take the train to get there. Johnny had been looking forward to this train journey since Andy had first made him aware of The Adirondack; New York to Montréal in ten hours, undoubtedly passing through stunning forested scenes, frosted with snow.
Showing 1-15 of 15 results
