All That and Bi-Lingual Too!: A Guide to Montreal – Montreal, Quebec, Canada

All That and Bi-Lingual Too!: A Guide to Montreal

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Background
Montreal is a city set up for two seasons: winter and the rest of the year, and they do a remarkable job taking full advantage of both. No matter the weather, the city is bouncing at all hours of the day and night, no doubt a key reason that it has become a convenient and exciting destination for American travelers looking for a good time. But the charm of the city goes beyond the flashy bars, discos and – well, we might as well not pull any punches – blatantly advertised strip clubs which run the length of Rue Ste. Cathrine. Montreal is nothing like New York, Las Vegas, or Vancouver, and its definitively Quebequois air is something that attracts visitors from around the world. Descendent from the colonizing British and France, as well as substantial German, Greek, Dutch, Central European, and Chinese communities, Montreal is a city of immigrants. Everyone who has come to call Montreal home has brought a certain classical charm about them to create a community that is altogether its own.

By North American standards, the city is quite old, and most of the romantic charm of its antiquity has been remarkably well-preserved in the Old Town and nearby waterfront. These areas, with their authentic cobbled streets and stone facades, are enhanced noticeably by the literally hundreds of independent shops and vendors selling ice cream in the steamy summer months (late-May until mid-October) or hot chocolate and various heart-warming deserts the rest of the year. Outside of Old Town, the city mixes old and new with sky scrapers frequently towering over 19^th-century cathedrals, as businessmen and women rush to and from work during the day and from bar to bar at night. Oh, and they speak French there, but more on that later.

Transportation: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
The great part about going to Montreal for Americans is that it happens to be conveniently located in Canada (I hope I didn’t just throw anyone off.) And Canada, as anyone who vowed to retreat there after the 2004 election is well aware, is conveniently placed directly north of the United States. But Canada is still another country (more than just that place north of Minnesota) and, as such, requires a valid passport in order to enter if you are flying into Pierre Elliot Trudeau (formerly Dorval) International Airport. Luckily, the Canadian government is not nearly as visa happy as their southern neighbors and citizens of the US, EU, and numerous other nations, do not need one to enter. To find out if you need one, click here.

For Americans choosing to enter the country by car, in addition to traveling through my personal home town of Plattsburgh, NY (no, it’s not worth a stop. Or even slowing down) a passport is not required. Just proof of US citizenship like a driver’s license or a birth certificate is enough as of now. But that could be changing soon as the US government considers requiring passports for anyone coming back into the country. So if you don’t want to get stuck in that dark abyss of universal health care, make sure to check the status of that legislation before you leave.

Upon Arrival (just trains and automobiles)
In case you are only skimming this article, I will make the most crucial point immediately: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DRIVE IN MONTREAL. With the complex collection of one-way streets, traffic congestion, and multi-lingual signage it is simply not worth the aggravation, and you will do a lot for international relations not to have your American license plates cutting off a tunnel full of angry locals (not that the Quebequois are particularly adept behind the wheel, themselves; think Massachusetts drivers but with more attitude and a cigarette in each hand). If the automobile happens to be your method of arrival, find a safe and inexpensive (preferably free) place to park and leave it there. One great option if you are coming from the south is to leave your car at the huge parking lot across the river in Longueuil and take the metro into the city.

As the business capital of Quebec, Montreal is extremely well set up for visitors, with an excellent public transportation system to get you around the city with speed and efficiency. If time is not of the essence, you can get from the airport to downtown in mere hours by taking either the 211 or the 204 bus. L’Aerobus is probably your best bet for getting to and from the airport. It makes frequent trips from Trudeau to the central bus station on de Maisoneuve Blvd, where you can either catch a bus or jump on the metro to take you anywhere you want to go. If you’re a big spender, taxi rates from the airport to downtown are regulated at $31, but aren’t much quicker than L’Aerobus.

The Metro is without a doubt the most convenient way to get around the city, for a number of reasons. First, because the stops don’t change during road work season of May-September, but mostly because it makes stops at or within easy walking distance of almost all of the main tourist sites and districts. And while it doesn’t travel much beyond the business and cultural centers of downtown and the immediately surrounding area, the speed and efficiency of the system makes it a great way to get around. A single fare on the metro or bus costs CA$2.50, but you can also buy a tourist card, giving you a full day on the public transportation routes for $8.00 or a three-day pass for $16. For a full map of the metro, as well more info than you could ever need on each stop and its surrounding area, check it out online.

Money!: Currency
Canada uses the Canadian dollar (or the “looney” as it’s sometimes called because of the image of the loon depicted on the quarter, a more aesthetically pleasing site than the profile of a dead president), and banks and currency exchange establishments can be found all over. You can also use credit cards most places or one of the many ATM’s. Almost all establishments in the downtown area are willing to take American currency as well, frequently posting their exchange rate on the window. It is currently US$1.00 for CA$1.15, but that figure is inching closer to the even level as the Canadian dollar strengthens and the American stays rather stable.

Taxes and Tipping
Most things are taxed twice in Canada, first with a 7% national sales tax and a then a 7.5% provincial tax. The exception to this rule is food in grocery stores which are more or less exempt from both. Visitors are eligible to be refunded the sales tax they pay for many of their purchases, so be sure to keep track of your receipts for redemption at the duty free shop either at the airport or the border. Tipping is customary at service establishments, especially in Montreal with so many American travelers and businesspeople. The general rule of 15% applies, but throwing in a little more is another good way to help build cross-border relations.

The Sites
Underground City
If you visit Montreal in the winter, which spans well over half the year, the underground city is an essential stop, if not as a destination, at least as a means to get from one part of town to another. If shopping is your thing, than this is the place. The underground city is exactly what it sounds like, connecting many of the major downtown buildings via a network of multi-story underground tunnels. Complete with large stores as well as smaller, independent shops and cafes, this area is a popular destination for tourists and locals alike, whether it be for a break from the bitter cold or as a way to spend the day shopping without ever having to venture into the blowing snow. Even those who are turned off by a massive underground shopping structure will most likely appreciate the ease with which they can get around underground as opposed to battling with traffic and inclement weather. The most popular entrances to the underground city are at Peel and McGill stations on the green line of the metro, as well as Bonaventure station on the orange line.

Place d’Armes
From the neo-gothic architecture of Notre-Dame Cathedral to the Bank of Montreal building, the city’s first skyscraper, this area is an enchanting place to walk around. Notre Dame (no relation to the one in Paris) is a great stop for any architectural buff, as well as simply being a great jewel in the middle of the city. Anyone can appreciate the beautiful stained glass windows, altar piece, and myriad artwork, as well as its enormous Casavant organ. Also in the area are the fun Aldred and New York Life Buildings to enhance your study of Montreal architecture and see a perfect example of the blending of old and new that characterizes the city.

Museums
The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal) near the Guy-Concordia metro stop or the Modern Art Museum (Musée d’art Contemporain) located at the Place-des-Arts stop offer the greatest collections of artwork in the city. Nearby the Place d’Armes, you can also find the Montreal historical center, which gives depictions of what the city was like in different eras of its development. Also in the neighborhood is the Pointe-à-Callière museum located at the site of the very first European settlement in the area (there is an archeological dig in the basement) and showing the architectural progress the city has made over the years.

Other Stuff
Mount Royal
Most cities have a place where you can go to get a great view of the town and surrounding countryside, and Montreal is no exception. No visit to the city would be complete without a trek up to the summit of Mont Royal (summit may be the wrong word, as it’s only about 800 feet above sea level) and the surrounding parks. There you will also find the many steps leading up to Saint Joseph’s Oratory. The basilica’s dome is a whopping 97 meters in diameter and is second in height only to Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome. Exploring the many parks and, if you are so inclined, cemeteries could definitely be an all day affair. Luckily, our friends, Les Amis De la Montagne, provide a map of the area, as well as all of the various activities which take place there throughout the year.

Montreal Biodôme
If the weather just isn’t cooperating with your outdoor plans on the waterfront, or if you just want a day off from site seeing, there’s no cure for what ails you like puffins. And penguins. They’re just so darn cute, waddling around without a care in the world! These are just some of the many animals that call Montreal’s enormous biosphere home. Inside, you will find four distinct climate zones all within the same building, from our little sub-Antarctic friends to the howler monkeys swinging from trees in the wet and wild rainforest, as well as the more local Laurentian forest and St. Lawrence marine ecosystems. The center also does a great deal of work towards research and conservation and is a great stop for kids and adults alike.

Olympic Park
There is a shuttle bus which links the Biodôme with the Viau metro stop, as well as Olympic Park, the Botanical Gardens, and the Insectarium, so a visit to the area could definitely fill a day in itself. Olympic Park was constructed for the 1976 Summer Olympics held in Montreal, and is also the home of Olympic Stadium, where the former Montreal Expos used to play before they realized that nobody cared about baseball in Quebec until the hockey season was over around mid-June. 1976 was not a wondrous time for architecture, and Roger Taillibert’s bold, record player-style arm (the largest inclined tower in the world, thank you very much) isn’t much to look at, but offers great views from the top of the funicular-type elevator, which is open to site seers. The arm is designed to lift the retractable roof of the stadium, a process which takes about 45 minutes. For this reason, during to a fluke summer thunderstorm which passed over an Expos game, stadium officials couldn’t get the roof down in time to prevent the field from becoming saturated, and Olympic Stadium became the only domed stadium ever to have a game rained out. You have to love that.

Botanical Gardens
Attracting more than one million visitors a year (significantly more than the Expos ever did), the Montreal Botanical Gardens, located right next to Olympic Stadium, is one of the most impressive displays of horticulture to be found anywhere in the world. It showcases over, get this, 20,000 species of plants from around the globe in ten greenhouses and no fewer than thirty outdoor gardens, along with, why not, a 96-acre arboretum. It is, as I assume you gathered, quite large. Included within the massive area are specialized plots, with everything from Chinese and Japanese gardens (each the largest of their kind outside of Asia), a Rose Garden, Shade Garden, Moss and Bog Garden, and a Garden of Innovations, displaying some of the most modern plants and techniques, along with various special exhibitions which change frequently. Whether you are a horticulture aficionado, or novice who happens to be in the area, this is a site not to be missed.

The Staples
Accommodation
As the business capital of Quebec, Montreal is full of upscale hotels catering to businesspeople, especially in the busy downtown area. If such establishments are your thing, you will have more than enough to choose from. Old Town, on the other hand, has a lot of smaller, mére and pére hotels and guesthouses, many of which include a traditional home-cooked breakfast or dinner in the price, which is usually quite affordable. And they are always a terrific help when it comes to figuring out where to go and how to get there. Prices and availability in these places vary greatly, so book early in order to ensure that you get the room you want. If you are really on a budget and don’t mind staying a little further out, look into places in close proximity to the metro lines so that you don’t spend all of your time commuting back and forth between your hotel and the sites.

Food
To everyone’s relief, the Quebequois chose to adopt the culinary attributes of their French colonizers rather those of the British. The entire city offers a wealth of great restaurants, whether it be in the more traditional French style, or one of the many ethnic cuisines. Chinatown offers some great food for good prices if you are on a budget, as do the many Indian and Middle-Eastern restaurants you will find scattered throughout the city. For those willing to spend a little more, Old Town offers a number of high end French and Italian restaurants, but be prepared to pay for the ambiance. Another benefit of these places is that you can go for a great after-dinner stroll along the colorful waterfront and grab some ice cream or desert from a local shop. If you are in the city for a few days, Old Town makes for a wonderfully romantic evening out, and you should definitely be sure to spend some time there at least one night of your stay.

Drinks
Montreal’s locals are young, vibrant, and looking to have a good time, and their nightlife reflects their enthusiasm, starting before sunset and going all night until well after the morning sun has risen. In a city as diverse as this one, there is something for everyone, but the wealth of options in Montreal could be a bit intimidating, if not down right scary, so it really depends on what you are looking for. The best sampling can be found up and down the lively blocks of Crescent Street. If you are looking for a place to sip martinis and manhattans in a fairly quiet, classy atmosphere, there are a number of places here which would fit the bill. Maevva is a great place with a wide variety of food and drinks for any palate, and the Ice Bar Lounge is a dark, and quietly intimate environment, usually with cool jazz music in the background.

Crescent Street is also a great destination for the traditional night out with friends in a smoky a pub. Sir Winston Churchill’s is a Montreal institution, and the Brutopia Brew Pub offers some great beers brewed on the premises. If you are looking for a more lively night, but still trying to keep with the whole pub scene, the Madhatter on de Maisonneuve is a fun time at any hour. The self-proclaimed “best dive in town” is known for having some of the cheapest deals on domestic brews, making it popular among students at nearby McGill University.

But if you really want to have a great night out, Montreal’s world renowned clubs are the way to go. Put on your dancing shoes, proudly sport those leg warmers and headbands, and get ready to step back in time (everybody is a fan of the ’80s it’s just a question of whether or not they are ready to admit it). My vote for best club in town goes to ’80s style Electric Avenue, also on Crescent, where Michael Jackson is still the King of Pop and Bon Jovi was still livin’ on what had not yet turned out to be an unanswered prayer. Or, if you prefer a decade earlier, the appropriately named Funkytown is a quick walk away on Peel. Changing neighborhoods slightly, if you don’t mind picking your way through a few dozen sleazy strip joints, Rue Ste. Cathrine is home to a lot of great places as well, including Dome Montreal, voted the number one dance club in the city.

Summary
Montreal has been referred to as the “Paris of North America,” but if you asked any of the locals, or anyone who has been there, they would certainly tell you that it is much more than that. In fact, all the two really have in common is the language, the great food, and the nightmarish traffic. From the ancient, European-style streets of Old Town to the bumping nightlife nearby, there’s something for everyone in this city that was just a fur trading port a few centuries ago. Montreal effortlessly combines all the benefits of modern city life, a prosperous downtown, a great variety of people from different backgrounds, and an eclectic nightlife, with the quiet charm of antiquity in a way that is friendly and inviting, leaving all who visit forever enchanted. It’s an area where culture, history, and modernity merge together rather than colliding, producing one of the most fun and exciting cities in North America.

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