8am train from Toronto to Montreal: the rising sun casts rays on my waiting Via Rail train
Early Friday afternoon: arrived in downtown Montreal
Downtown Montreal: tall, modern buildings a very contemporary-worldy air
Early summer - perfect weather to visit Montreal
Behind the fountains, note the Montreal metro station entrance - exactly like the station signs in Paris
I got an awesome deal through Via on the W Hotel Montreal. Just wait to see how insane this hotel is
Through the front doors to the W hotel lobby
The nightclub/lounge-like lobby of the W Hotel Montreal
Continued awesomensss, I got bumped up to a nicer park-view room. Sweet deal
Beyond the bed, through the glass wall, is the voyeur shower. Fun!
The nightclub/lounge-like lobby of the W Hotel Montreal
The nightclub/lounge-like lobby of the W Hotel Montreal
Lobby of the W Hotel Montreal
Out to explore the vibrant streets of Montreal
In downtown Montreal, among the modern hustle and bustle, amazing examples of older architecture abound
The European vibe is very real: lots of cafes on sidewalks and squares
Old buildings and new collide in downtown Montreal
A modern skyscraper emerges behind the older architecutre of the beautiful Bay department store
Montreal's main shopping street: Rue Ste-Catherine
Skylight at Montreal Eaton Centre
The greatest department store of all in Montreal, Simons. You're guaranteed to get something that will make you look slick
Montreal is full of street buskers
Montreal's metro glides along on tires instead of rails
The metro is a neat example of 1960s-70s Montreal: you can sense how this city had outsized ambition in that era
The controversial man behind Montreal's 60s/70s dynamic years: former mayor Jean Dreapeau
Ile Sainte Helene was the site of Expo 67, one of Montreal's most famous events
Park Jean Drapeau on Ile Sainte Helene offers a stunning view of the Montreal skyline
Park Jean Drapeau on Ile Sainte Helene offers a stunning view of the Montreal skyline
The Montreal skyline across the Saint Lawrence from Ile Sainte Helene
At Park Jean Drapeau on Ile Sainte Helene in the Saint Lawrence River in Montreal
The Montreal skyline across the Saint Lawrence from Ile Sainte Helene
From Ile Sainte Helene, looking at Jacques Cartier Bridge
Jacques Cartier Bridge
The Montreal Biosphere
The Montreal Biosphere
Detail of the geodesic dome structure of the Montreal Biosphere
Detail of the geodesic dome structure of the Montreal Biosphere
Detail of the geodesic dome structure of the Montreal Biosphere
Detail of the geodesic dome structure of the Montreal Biosphere
The famous US pavilion for Expo 67 is a geodesic dome... now the Montreal Biosphere
Back on mainland Montreal, walking through the colourful downtown neighbourhood streets
A row of houses in downtown Montreal
Row houses in downtown Montreal
Summer in the city: Boulevard Saint Laurent (Montreal's "main street") closed for a summer festival
All of the restaurants and shops along Saint Laurent set up along the street
On Saint Laurent, Montreal's most famous deli: Schwartz's
Montreal smoked meat curing in the front window of Schwartz
Montreal smoked meat curing in the front window of Schwartz
I can verify, the Montreal smoked meat sandwiches from Schwartz's are awesome
Buskers aplenty along Saint Laurent during the street festival
As I was walking along Saint Laurent, I randomly found the Montreal Fringe Festival. Love it when you stumble on great things
Fringe Festival attendees enjoy the late summer night atmosphere
A folk-electronic band plays at the Montreal Fringe Festival
A folk-electronic band plays at the Montreal Fringe Festival
Enjoying the Montreal Fringe Festival
Late-night summer outdoor concerts: bliss
The Just for Laughs stage in Montreal
Back at the hotel - nifty glowing night tables
The stylish bar at the W Hotel Montreal
The stylish bar at the W Hotel Montreal
The stylish bar at the W Hotel Montreal
The stylish bar at the W Hotel Montreal
The sun was rising before I went to bed... oh well. Got up and explored the trendy Plateau Mont-Royal neighbourhood
Montreal's trendy Plateau Mont-Royal neighbourhood
A late-morning breakfast at Montreal's most famous bagal shop: St. Viateur
Famous montreal bagals at St. Viateur: boiled so they're soft on the inside, wood-fire toasted so they're crispy outside
The peak of Mount Royal has beautiful parkland to walk around in
Downtown Montreal from Mount Royal
Downtown Montreal from Mount Royal
Downtown Montreal from Mount Royal
Very fit people enjoying the view from Mount Royal
At the top: the belvedere buidling on Mount Royal
At the top: the belvedere buidling on Mount Royal
The view of Montreal from the Mount Royal belevedere takes your breath away
Lots of very fit people who trekked up Mount Royal for the view. Check out that guy's super stretch!
After breakfast, I ventured up Mount Royal - montreal's mountain. I took the bus up
From Mount Royal looking out towards Olympic Stadium
Hey it's me!
I didn't have quite as much energy as the ambitious cyclists trekking up Mount Royal
Back underground, here you can see the nifty tires that Montreal's metro trains ride on
Lots of ways to get around Montreal without a car. They now have the bixi public bike rental program
Construction at Place d'Armes obscrures my vantage of Notre-Dame Basilica
Art deco detailing of the art deco skyscraper
I have this thing where famous places I visit are often under construction. This is the main square in Old Montreal: Place d'Armes
The main square of Old Montreal under construction: Place d'Armes
Place d'Armes square: where Old Montreal meets the new downtown buildings
Columns and arches of Notre-Dame Basilica
The twin spires of Notre-Dame Basilica
Notre-Dame Basilica
An art deco skyscraper at Place d'Armes
A clock tower on a building facing Place d'Armes
The entrance of Montreal's famous Notre-Dame Basilica
Intriciate window of Notre-Dame Basilica
Further into Old Montreal towards the old port, the historic buildings convey a very European feel
Beautiful historic buildings in Old Montreal
Many of the streets in Old Montreal are cobblestoned
Arched widows in Old Montreal
Beautiful buildings in Old Montreal
Old Montreal
Old Montreal
Row upon row of arched windows in Old Montreal
Old Montreal
Old Montreal
Window boxes in Old Montreal
An old fire escape in Old Montreal
An old fire escape in Old Montreal
Old Montreal
I really liked the look of this restaurant/bar/cafe where one of the early World Cup matches was playing, so I took a pit-stop
Loved the architecture in this Old Montreal bar
Loved the architecture in this Old Montreal bar
Loved the architecture in this Old Montreal bar
A chef brulees some creme brulees
More neat deatails of the stylish Old Montreal bar
Enjoyed a nice beer, and the chef gave me a few slices of baguette right out of the oven
Customs House in Old Montreal
At the edge of Old Montreal, approaching the redeveloped Old Port of Montreal
A horse-drawn carriage trots through the Old Port of Montreal
Narrow Streets as Old Montreal reaches the Old Port
Still a few ships using the Old Port of Montreal - now redeveloped into a nice urban park area
The redeveloped Old Port of Montreal has lots of popular tourist areas
Old buildings lining the Old Port of Montreal
Old buildings lining the Old Port of Montreal
Around the Old Port of Montreal
Around the Old Port of Montreal
Around the Old Port of Montreal
Around the Old Port of Montreal
Around the Old Port of Montreal
A tall ship at the Old Port of Montreal
The late-late-late night staple for Montreal: this famous poutine shop has a line up late into the night
The most famous poutine shop in Montreal: La Banquise is open 24 hours
Looking at the Montreal skyline from Old Port
The Saint Lawrence from Old Port of Montreal, Habitat 67 on the left shore
Habitat 67, residences built for Expo 67
The Big Top for Cirque du Soleil in Montreal
Looking at Ile Saint-Helene across the Saint Lawrence, with the Montreal Biosphere in the distance
La Ronde amusement park on the right under Jacques Cartier Bridge. neat tower on the left
At the Old Port, the beautiul building of the Bonsecours Market
Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel
A really neat old warehouse in the Old Port of Montreal
Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel
La Place Jaques Cartier in Old Montreal
Dramatic shift from old to new: the symbol of Montreal's 1970s ambition gone haywire: the Olympic Stadium
The Montreal Olympic Stadium (big O, big Owe, big Woe). Over budget, not completed, faulty design
The Montreal Olympic Stadium wasn't quite done for the 1976 olympics
Though it's in kind of rough shape today and has had many structural problems - the sense of futuristic ambition of the design is still there
As soon as you see the Olympic Statdium, you can't help but feel a sense of awe. It's out of this world - but totally insane too
You can kind of see that the structure is looking pretty tattered... and it's not even that old really
If it was in a little better shape, the Olympic Stadium would still look wildly futureistic
Detail of the tattered cement
Montreal Olympic Stadium and the Montreal Biodome (originally the cycling velodrome)
The tower and Olympic Stadium
Well-worth the money just because it's so cool, you can ride the funicular up the side of the Olympic Stadium tower to the observation level
About to ascend the side of the Olympic Stadium tower
From the top of the Olympic Stadium tower, you can look down at the stadium and roof
The complex cable structure was supposed to retract the huge fabric roof of the stadium. That was supposed to work??
Looking from the Olympic Stadium tower across Montreal and the Saint Lawrence River
Well, I believe they retracted the roof a few times... but the roof wasn't done in time for the Olympics
And then the fabric roof started to collapse, so they replaced it with a permanent roof
An overview from the tower of the Olympic Park grounds
An overview from the tower of the Olympic Park grounds
Downtown Montreal from the Olympic Stadium tower
Looking down at the Montreal Biodome - neat building for sure
An overview from the tower of the Olympic Park grounds
Part of the Olympic Stadium complex, a very nice aquatic centre
Inside the Olympic Stadium, architect's model of the insanely futuristic design
Inside the Olympic Stadium, architect's model of the insanely futuristic design
Part of the Olympic Stadium complex, a very nice aquatic centre
Inside the Olympic Stadium, how retro is this concession stand?
The very under-used Olympic Stadium being set up for some trade show
Part of the Olympic Stadium complex, a very nice aquatic centre
A retro sign for the Montreal Olympics. Montreal leg of the trip completed
About to ascend the side of the Olympic Stadium tower
From the Olympic Stadium tower, a new soccer stadium and the pyramid-like Olympic Village
Next stop, visiting some friends in Ottawa. It was the Italian Festival... main feature - hot Italian cars
Lots of Ferraris on display at the Ottawa Italian festival
Caught up with some friends at the wonderful Pub Italia in Ottawa
Vito and Renee took me to Manx, an underground pub with proably the best breakfast in Ottawa
Mmmmm - huevos racheros at Manx in Ottawa
About to leave Ottawa from Fallowfield station - I always love the sense of anticipation as a train rolls into station
